The Gathering Storm, Part 26

The road stretched before Query, but he traveled it slowly. If there’s a metaphor in there, I’ll just go ahead and ignore it, he thought. Too many people attach too much meaning to roads. Road trips as spiritual journeys. Intersections as allegories for life-changing decisions. This road was simply a tool. A means to an [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 25

She’d known he was coming—she’d been alerted by phone. But apparently he’d also been warned she was on edge. All for the best, Zoe supposed, as she heard a twig snap in the distance and a youthful, jovial voice calling out amiably, “Fringe, not foe!” as Mad Dash came into sight. The mask he wore—revealing [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 24

Stale stifling blackness. Spinning bouncing. Smells—Greasy sweaty green. Sensations—rough, warm, damp, gritty. No room to move; can’t focus. What? Where? How? Drifting. Panic. Sleepy. Weak. Angry. Terrified. I will no go…I will not…gone…go…quietly. * * * “Dash! Please tell me you’re not in the middle of something you can’t get out of.” “Query? Yeah, I’m [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 23

Darkness is a comforting shroud. A sturdy cloak. Those thoughts passed through the mind of Query, sitting in the semi-darkness of the club as Milo Phillips, while various pairs of rappers took their turns on stage to do a bit of freestyle vocal battling with one another. But not Milo tonight; he had to make [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 22

[ - To view a list of all current chapters, click here - ] Cole looked out across the devastation of the main gathering area at the Guardian Corps’ central headquarters. In some senses, it didn’t look that much different than normal. It wasn’t as if the Corps had deep pockets. They survived mostly by [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 21

[ - To view a list of all current chapters, click here - ] After the tense visit by Janus’ men, a nearly half-hour-long flogging at Hush-a-Bye’s hands had been very therapeutic, and now—flushed and covered with a sheen of sweat all over his bare, bruised, welted and blood-streaked torso—GoodKnight stood near her. “Ya did [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 20

[ - To view a list of all current chapters, click here - ] Through a mouthful of glazed doughnut, Carl Beacham mumbled, “Are we there yet?” “Yeah, and we’ve been here a bit over an hour and we’ll be here several hours more at least. But you already knew that. I warned you stakeouts [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 19

[ - To view a list of all current chapters, click here - ] After the latest recruitment dinner with Zoe—and possibly the last, given how much other work there was to do between now and the woman’s graduation deadline—Underworld was relieved to get back the the headquarters. Not only did she dearly want to [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 18

[ - To view a list of all current chapters, click here - ] In her Allison Wonderland costume, but sans the mask and wig, Vanessa Santos landed a vicious kick at the midsection of the practice dummy, then a quick trio of hand strikes at the nose, throat and chest. She did a short [...]

The Gathering Storm, Part 17

[ - To view a list of all current chapters, click here - ] Entering Janus’ office, she moved with slow, purposeful steps, like a ballet dancer building up toward some grand maneuver—then she abruptly stopped 12 feet away from the imposing mahogany desk, where Janus sat and Underworld and Crazy Jane stood nearby. Standing [...]