CRYING SHOULDER

Creatures
by Anon Allsop

Another world, long ago

The macabre creature looked upward into the strange sky, one of its twin suns grew dim causing odd light to be cast upon the land. Tilting its strange triangle-shaped head slightly, it turned then raced back toward its nest to protect a small clutch of sleek and nearly impervious silver mirror-like eggs.

The eggs were nestled within the earthen bowl, each reflecting the face of the alien beast as Christmas ornaments would reflect back a child's face - distorted and bent across its surface. She hovered over them, instinctively using her body as the last bit of protection from what was racing down from above. Slowly she raised her head, just as the meteorite entered the thin atmosphere burning and tumbling toward the ground.

Chapter 3

I had to sit down and catch my breath. I said “That can’t be right; I don’t look girly, do I?” He said that it was not that I looked girly now, it was the fact that some small adjustments to my facial bones, that any competent cosmetic surgeon could do, would give me the look he had drawn.

Patsy Power Part 23

We went back down to the changing room and Angela came up and said,” we have just decided that there will not be a usual type of break between sets. With these numbers a stadium audience is always on the move in and out of the auditorium so we will do a five minute break between sets. I have organised a curtained area for you behind the PA speakers for you to change. “

Lyle, or Lindsey to his close friends and special acquaintances, was retired and celebrating his 50th birthday with lunch with two long time friends. It was a fairly low key gathering at the rustic Mount Baldy Buckhorn Lodge & Café in the nearby San Gabriel Mountains. The Lodge held many memories for their group because of the many special occasions held there.

Today Is Your Day

Prison Therapy
A Short Story
By Maryanne Peters

I never shared a cell with Saus Solnick. I like to think that if we ever had, if we had talked this through, none of this would have happened. If I knew who he was, I never would have followed him on this path.

Carla & Julian - Chapter 5

By Julie D Cole

Honey, I’m Home

Chapter 2

I carried on with my case-load for the next few days. The fingerprints did not match with anything we had on file but were close in a couple of cases. I took notes of these and waited for the DNA.

Patsy Power Part 21

Riordan then saw Angela looking at us so she beckoned her over. “Angela” she said “I know that Patsy and her band have to fly to Atlanta tomorrow morning; when does ‘Amazon’ fly to Miami, I know the first show is Thursday?” Angela said they were scheduled out on Monday so Riordan said “I want to reschedule to Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning and I want access to the K Beat studio with Chris here so that the whole band can see some video and audio; it may take some hours to watch.”

Squaddie
A Short Story
By Maryanne Peters

The Special Air Service is one of the most prestigious of special forces units, if not the most prestigious. All other special forces units have been modelled on it or some of its practices. One key element is that membership is on merit as assessed by a secret and non-reviewable internal selection process. This has always been seen as a strength. But it has been observed that it may also account for the fact that no woman has ever been admitted to the unit.