Tag: short story

Glory, Pride, and the Maiden Vain: Part 3

Posted on by in Fiction

Luthandra must flee Westridge! To be sentenced to wed a man with a severe lack of hygiene is to be sentenced to a life of misery! Her elf companion returns and offers a way out, but little does she know that she is walking into a trap.

Part I: Luthandra Raikin
Part II: Dráiden Kaldor

III. Elven Tidings
Wind whipped the pine trees overhead, making their black silhouettes look like seething dragons with outstretched claws. Luthandra struggled to keep from nodding off. She dug her fingers into the handle on the saddle in an effort to force herself to be alert.
He had returned. He had come back for her. The mysterious elf from Adaina Pass had rescued her.
“I know of an elf lord, my lady,” he had said. “I’ve sent word to my people, and he’s agreed to offer his hand! I know I am but a lowly sword-smith, but he…a powerful elf lord with blonde hair. His blade is unmatched! Some say he’s even more skilled than Avanduil.”
Between the sobs and the lingering odor in her mouth from Lord Kaldor’s slimy, grotesque tongue, Luthandra felt she had no other choice. A shudder ran through her when she thought about that wretched kiss. The elf tightened his grip on her torso, mistaking the movement for clumsiness.
“I’m okay,” she cried. I can’t let him think I’m weak. I’m just tired and…She winced. Kaldor was a monster! Oh, the dreadful way he had embraced her! The putrid stench that nearly made her retch right then and there! Then there was the matter of his sadistic sentencing. She couldn’t get the image out of her mind…The blood…the fear in the criminal’s eyes as Kaldor sliced his left cheek….because beheading him wasn’t enough…
“Hang in there!” the elf called. “We’re almost there!” Half the night had gone by, and Luthandra supposed she only had a few hours left until Braynia would wake up to find her mistress gone.
The foliage grew thicker the farther they traveled; the trees seemingly banded together like some sort of dark, twisted symphony of the night. She caught the elf occasionally whispering in some unknown, ancient tongue. They were now in The Wunderlands, she knew, the long stretch of forest between Westridge and the elven kingdom of Álainn.
No one entered The Wunderlands unless the elves summoned you, and they never summoned you, or so Braynia would say in her stories. The horse slowed to a trot, and she sucked in a deep breath. Finally. Luthandra was sick to death of traveling! She wanted nothing more than to fall into her future husband’s arms and bury her face into his beautiful, elven hair.
Shadows drifted between the trees as three tiny blue lights flickered into existence. Another elf appeared with two dark figures flanking him. He was adorned in leather and chain-mail so fine that she couldn’t distinguish the different links in it. These don’t look like regular patrol wardens…Why wear such fancy armor? Is my new husband eager to meet me? She smiled at that.
She didn’t wait to be helped off the horse. Luthandra swung her legs over and landed on her feet in the cool forest bed.
“Celmyra’s Gift, Wench,” said the elf with the glimmering chain-mail. Her gem began to glow. Metal slid against leather, and she counted three swords being unsheathed as the two shadows stepped into the clearing to join their leader.
“I-” she paused, bringing a hand up to her jewel. She covered it. “I’m sorry?” Perhaps wench meant something else in their tongue.
“You heard me loud and clear. Hand it over, or we rip it from that unworthy neck of yours.”
Her companion slid down from his horse, and she heard him unsheathe his sword. Its pointy tip pressed against the small of her back.
“But…I…am…to be married to an elven lord with long blonde hair. We are to have children, and-“
The leader laughed, a sneer marring his pale face. “You had your chance.” He pressed closer. She covered the amulet with both hands. The elves proved stronger, for she was just a maid of eighteen years. They gripped her wrists and tore her hands from her neck while her companion sliced the chain that held her family’s heirloom in place.
“How dare you!” she shrieked. “My father will hear-”
Her companion backhanded her and grabbed the front of her dress. Luthandra winced. Tears came bursting forth, and she found she had no control over herself. Heat seared from her forehead as her blood boiled beneath her skin. She screamed a series of words she did not know and had no business coming from the mouth of a high born maid.
His hands tore the thick fabric of her blue traveling gown. Its sleeves fell down her arms as the thing coiled at her feet. Stars studded her vision, but it was no deed of the elves which blinded her fury so.
“I AM LUTHANDRA RAIKIN! I AM GOING TO BE LADY OF WESTRIDGE!”
“Glory and riches wants she, the Maiden Vain,” they laughed. The leader swept his torso into a mocking bow as his fellows continued chanting their impromptu song.

“How can you be Lady of Westridge if you run away from your betrothed?” he sneered. “Leave her with just her chemise,” he barked. The others dropped their haughty grins. “Let her wander The Wunderlands in her own misguided blindness.” There was a hiss, and the elves were gone.

Stars or Stripes – For Your Wednesday

Posted on by
Hump Day? Kitten, please. You’re too fabulous for that! Happy ‪#‎MeowDay‬! 
I’ve got a gift for you.

Stars and Stripes is here!
Did I mention that it is FREE?

Apple iBookstore: Coming soon!
Barnes & Noble NOOK: Coming soon! 

‘No one prepared us for actual violence…like legit ‘I want to destroy the world’ stuff.’

Whatever happened to routine drug busts and petty criminals? Headquarters throw Agent Jadelynn Jackson in for a wild ride when they dump the empire’s most frustrating foe in her lap. The Federal Freemen are growing bolder and more violent with each passing day. It’s only a matter of time before the public finds out, and what will happen then? The empire can only control so much…

To top things off, a mysterious (and very illegal) telepath offers his aid. Is it wrong Jadelynn agrees to let him help? Is it wrong that she finds herself attracted to him? Telepaths—dirty twelps—are scum of the earth, awful, and deserve to be put away, but he’s her only chance at stopping the Freemen once and for all!

Twelps, secrets, and choices, oh my! In the end Jadelynn must choose between stars or stripes, her heart or the career she loves.

Happy Holidays: Uncle Sam Edition!

Posted on by

Here’s to wishing everyone a happy set of holidays no matter which ones you celebrate!

What are holidays without gifts? Lucius Sinclair is now (and forever) FREE! 

Visit my Lulu storefront to download the ebook today! Apple users, keep your eyes peeled (it may take a few weeks for it to show up as free on the iBookstore). *Merry Christmas from the iBookstore because they updated it in record time! Apple users, you can head on over there!

The year is Y.E. 0417, and Lucius Sinclair is finally free of his reckless, abusive twin. Where Remus was gifted with wit and brawn, Lucius was plagued with a nasty little trait that the empire exterminates—telepathy.

 Now that he is attending vocational school and is far away from his brother, Lucius is shocked to find that he is actually excelling at his trade. Just when he feels safe and starts fitting in with his peers, he stumbles into a disturbing truth. It turns out that he’s not the only one harboring a deep, dark secret. Betrayal is almost certain. Follow this dystopian short story as Lucius Sinclair struggles to hide his true face and cope with the turbulence thrown his way.

In other news, I updated a few things on here:
1. I changed the color of links to make them more visible.
2. I updated Images Around the Empire and my Portfolio

Mr. Burple Berry’s Untimely Adventure

Posted on by in Fiction

I was looking through some of my old stories and notes the other day. A very burple berry tale surfaced during my hunt. It was then that I remembered I never finished posting the rest of the story I was tweeting in bursts on my old Burple Berry account. While I’m busy NaNoWriMoing, here is the finished tale. It is a silly, fun sort of read. I hope you enjoy it!

Mr. Burple Berry’s Untimely Adventure:
The Case of the Alien Caper
By
M.L. Crabb
Burple Berry was minding his own business, tumbling, bumbling, and mumbling in grassy knoll. A flutter of green and purple striped butterflies jetted out from a funny looking rose bush with drooping limbs. 
“Gold! Gold! Gold!” came a high pitched shrill. Burple rolled to a savvy stop and turned to examine the commotion.  The leaves hissed when the bush gave a sudden shake. Some fell away, cascading down into the grass below. Twigs parted, and a scrawny figure emerged from it. It wore a threadbare top hat which sat on its silver head with a lopsided plop. Pointy ears peeked out from beneath the wide brim. 
“Ah!” it said with a clumsy bow. “Another of the Fairy Folk?” Its slanted, large black eyes glimmered. ‘I’ve seen his kind before,’ thought Burple with a quizzical frown. 
“Z.Z. Talltree, The Elfin, at your service!” Z.Z. bowed again. This time he was tapping his long skinny feet to an unsung tune. He wore a faded, double-breasted waistcoat and a pair of mismatched trousers. 
“Elfin!?” Burple Berry cried, disbelief pouring over his face. “You’re a Lumpkin from the Con’Ma’N galaxy!” 
“Eep!” Z.Z. shrieked. “Oh dear me! You’re from Zoron, aren’t you? I should have known!” Z.Z. knelt down and clasped his skinny hands. “Please don’t tell the Earthlings! They think I’m a magical elf!” His wide eyes fluttered to and fro as he licked his thin lips. “I’m going on an adventure, you see…One that will end in riches for we.” He nodded his strange head. “Z.Z. is good to Zoron. Z.Z. will split the treasure if you’d be so kind to aid me…”
Burple Berry rizzled into a roll. ‘Treasure?’ he wondered. ‘Adventure?’ He considered Z.Z.’s offer and promise. He was on Earth to explore, after all. What would it hurt to get some glittering, glimmering, and glistening riches in the process?
“I’m in!” he announced. Z.Z. returned Burple’s reply with a smile. 
“Come!” he turned, his tattered coattails flapping behind him. Burple followed him into the rose bush. Beneath the bush’s gnarly limbs was a narrow staircase made of compacted mud. Z.Z. skipped down it with a bounce, whistling a zippy melody. Burple rolled down after him. Flakes of loose mud stuck to his round form, but onward he went! 
Slip! Slap! Burple missed a step! The staircase suddenly dropped with a tremble. The little wingless ding toppled into a deep, damp hole.  Mud and water plastered themselves against his burpleberry fur. A metal clang slammed above him, forcing him into a rickety cage made of whispering twigs, petrified with age. “Heee’sssss ourssss,” they seemed to say. 
Burple Berry lurched forward in an attempt to snap one of the twigs, but a metal clamp held him in place. It rattled against his movements, creating an eerie jingle which slithered through his ears. A high pitched cackle echoed in that deep, dark hole. 
“The bankers of Con’Ma’N will pay a pretty price indeed!” Z.Z.’s voice boomed into the little place. “Earth trinkets are a plenty, but a citizen of Zoron? Oh ho! Z.Z. will have his own mansion to boast with all the tresses and glamour he could possibly want!”  
“But you said Zoron was a friend of Con-” Burple Berry started. His large black eyes roamed the hole, but it was no use. Z.Z. had covered it up with a heavy board. He might as well be wearing a blindfold. 
“Oh ho! Indeed!” Laughed the grey alien. “The Con’Ma’N galaxy is friend of anyone who fetches such a nice penny as you! It’s been one hundred years since we last had ourselves a Zoron!”  The board issued a groan as Z.Z.’s footsteps bounded across it.  “I’ll be seeing you soon. It shan’t be long for a buyer to come along! By, by, my sweet money bag!”
Burple frowned and sulked in the shadows.
“Oh, and never mind the Earthling twigs. They say funny things.” Z.Z.’s footsteps vanished, and Burple was left alone. He didn’t know who was going to buy him or what someone would want with a little wingless ding like him, but he didn’t like the prospect of it. A shiver ran through him as he threw himself forward. The metal clamp raked against his movements. The alien closed his eyes, despair written on his purple face. 
“Ssssillly little creeeeature,” whispers broke through the silence. “The clammmp keepsssss him ssssstill, yet he persssssissssts!” 
“Help!” Burple cried. 
“Mattersssss of mortalsss are of no importance to usssss.” Burple Berry opened his eyes. The outline of the uncanny twigs was visible in the darkness of the hole.  “We are of noble sssstock. Come from a treeee five thousssssand yearssss ssstrong.” 
“Please! I’ll make it up to you. Unlike that ruddy Z.Z., I keep my promises!” The wingless ding shifted. 
“We only anssswer to the elvessss.” 
“Z.Z. is not an elf. So why do you answer to him?” 
“He isss of no importance. We do not concern ourssselvesss with mortalsss.” 
“But you let him build a cage out of you…” Burple trailed off, frowning. If he was going to get out of this before Z.Z. came back, he was going to have to convince the ancient twigs to help him. If only he could get one to wedge itself beneath the clamp! It might be able to pry it open and free him! The situation was hopeless, but he had to try. 
“Mortalsss build houssses out of our brethren. How issss thisss different? We ssssleep, wait, live…”
“But,” he sighed. ‘They are an old folk,’ he thought. They didn’t care what was built out of them. If only he could find an elf! Not that he knew what an elf was…He had only heard of them from Z.Z—
His large eyes widened. That was it! 
“Z.Z. pretends to be an elf,” he said. “he-”
“What isss thiss!?” The whispers hissed into an angry growl. 
“He thought I was a, um, what did he call it? Fairy folk? He would have had me fooled had it not been for the fact that I’m from Zoron and have seen his people!”
“Thissss cannot be!” A breeze brushed through the cage as the twigs murmured amongst themselves. The alien waited, holding his breath and gasping periodically when his lungs ached for air. The hush of the murmur grew louder, and the breeze quickened. It whirled about the deep, dark hole.  An hour passed before anything else was said. Fear trembled through Burple’s veins. 
“We have ssssummoned the elvesss,” came their whispers at last. “We will help you upon Z.Z’ssss return. The elvesss will deal with him, and we sssshall let you go.” 
‘Bait,’ thought Burple. He was okay with being used as bait so long as the twigs made good on their word. 
“He approachessss!” Sure enough, Z.Z.’s footsteps bounded across the wooden board above him.
“Doing okay, my little money bags?” he giggled. “I’ve got a lovely buyer for you! Captain McEats of the Hungry Banker’s Society has posted a lovely bid.” Burple grimaced. ‘Hungry Banker’s Society? No thanks!’ he mused. He hoped the twigs weren’t lying to him…He had believed Z.Z.’s lies, after all. 
Something rattled against the wood. 
“Just need to unlock this, mmhmm, and it’s a nice pay check for-” Z.Z.’s words were stopped with a shriek. Something hit the board with a loud thud. “But, but! I’m just a-” Z.Z pleaded. Burple tried to hear the elves, but the only sound coming from above was Z.Z.’s constant begging. A flash sent the board sliding down the far side of the hole!
Light flooded the damp place, and Burple had to blink. When he looked up through the twig bars of his cage, all he saw was a beautiful blue sky. 
“It isss done. We ssssshall help you now.”
“The elves! What are they going to do to him?”
“Elvessss are jussst and kind. That isss all you need to know.” The twigs twisted and turned, separating themselves from roof of the cage. They fell into the mud while one freed Burple from the clamp.
“They left you thhhe board as a raaammp. Usssse it.” 
“Thank you,” Burple said, rolling towards it. He turned to give them a proper goodbye, but the mysterious things had stacked themselves into a neat pile, their whispering as silent as the mud walls around them. He rolled up the plank. The grass was just as green as he remembered it, and Z.Z’s rose bush had been cast aside. ‘It was a fake!’ Burple thought. 
There was no sign of the elves or of the grey alien aside from the discarded rose bush. Burple looked around. A part of him was sad that Z.Z. had lied to him about partaking in a grand adventure.
“There will be other chances at big adventures,” he said to himself as he rolled away. Unseen eyes watched him from a secret hiding place. The purple alien of Zoron disappeared into the sunlight, ready for a bath and a hot meal. 

Stories in 6 Words

Posted on by in Other Fiction

Write a story in six words–the ultimate way to put your brain to the test! I got this idea after browsing around the web one mindless evening. It’s like @VeryShortStory on Twitter, only shorter! However, the idea of writing a tiny splash of fiction is much older than the Internet. Earnest Hemingway won a bet over it. You can read the Wikipedia article if you’re curious.

I took some pictures and used them as prompts. I’m no Hemingway, but I had fun!

 
“One to beam-” cried the redshirt.
 Took a selfie…lost my phone.
 Too stubborn for change, late notice.
Last seen at the lunch counter.
Wanted: a fitting meme and catnip!
****
Take a shot at your own!
 [ Your six word story is waiting. ]