From the ashes, something new rises—fierce, strange, and unforgettable.In this anthology of speculative fiction, the phoenix takes flight in forms you’ve never imagined: protectors, objects of mass destruction, sentient stars, and lives forged in fire. Across fantasy, science fiction, and the surreal, these original stories explore what it means to end, to begin again, and to choose transformation.Featuring award-winning authors and bold new voices, Ashes and Embers offers ...

A Softare EngineerThomas Dunn is a normal engineer who slings code for a living until he finds a gleaming sword in the snack machine at work.An Ancient WizardMerlin is an ancient wizard from another age waiting to be awoken to bring magic back to the mortal world.An AgreementThe engineer and wizard together to agree to use Thomas's talents to bring magic back to the mundane realm.

Aell the bladesinger is a former gladiatorial slave.Stiles the lockwhisperer is a streetwise cat burglar.The sword-bearing vagabonds try their best to get by but always embroiled in trouble and chaos. They form a formidable duo with a strong bond of friendship and a sense of duty to the run-down neighborhood they live in.Aell and Stiles become caught up in the machinations of a secret cult and a gang's protection racket while they search the city for kidnapped child...

They watch. They guard. They endure.From ancient cathedrals to far-flung planets, gargoyles stand sentinel between the world of stone and the endless sky.In Stone and Sky, discover tales where winged guardians wake, monsters find new shapes, and legends are reborn in the clash of magic and machinery. Inside these pages you’ll find fantasy, urban fantasy, and science fiction stories that prove gargoyles are more than carved stone—they are protectors...

Marcus Barber is a two-thousand-year old immortal, a former Roman centurion who now works as a bounty hunter for supernatural creatures from the ancient world. When he's not pounding the pavement as a private investigator for mortal clients, Marcus chases down missing mythological creatures for the Ancients.Now, in the heat of San Antonio, Marcus must search for Nemesis's missing Griffin while trying to rescue a melting Ice Pixie from an eccentric collector. His adventures...

What lurks beneath the waves?Krakens. Sea serpents. Megalodons. Spirits of storm and tide.In Tentacles and Tides, the ocean is anything but empty. Sailors glimpse impossible shapes below their hulls. Coastal towns bargain with ancient powers. Great whales guard secrets humanity was never meant to find.And sometimes…the monster is the one telling the story.These speculative tales explore the creatures of the deep as heroes, v...

An immortal bounty hunter in service to ancient deities.Marcus Barber is a two-thousand-year old immortal and a former Roman centurion who now works as a bounty hunter for supernatural powers from the ancient world. When he's not pounding the pavement as a private investigator for mortal clients, Marcus chases down missing mythological creatures for the Ancients.Now, in the dog days of summer of San Antonio, Marcus must search for a Sumerian Ancient's kidnapped canine. His ...

ZOMBIESSince the Night of Madness, Zombies have been part of the normal world for the survivors.C.L.O.W.N.S.Unfortunately, it was tainted makeup from overseas that caused Cognitive Loss from Overnight Withering of Neurological Synapses. Yeah. You read that right. C.L.O.W.N.S.!HUNTERSFortunately, there are intrepid bands of hunters that venture out at night, when Zombies are mostly blind and idle, to sla...

This is the story about how I lost my sense of invulnerability when I was fifteen years old. It involved a horrific car accident where no one died, but I was mortally injured.I guess I was (and still am) too stubborn to die.Everything here is true, but names have been changed to protect the innocent and guilty.

A Young ManJohnny is tired of the farm and wants to find his future in the nearby spaceport. His wanderlust will take him off the farm and into the big city.Two Ray GunsJohnny's father knows the feeling of wanderlust and grants two ray guns and some credits to Johnny to help him walk tall like a true man while in the spaceport.A SpaceportJohnny arrives at the 'port and finds that there is more to being ...

The HouseThe house at the end of the lane had stood empty and abandoned for many years. It represented a challenge for the youth to get in, wave through a window, and get back out. It usually took an infamous Double-Dog-Dare to get this to happen, though.The KidHarold has fallen victim to Mark's Double-Dog-Dare and must now enter the empty house to prove his worthiness to hang out with the older, larger kids in the neighborhood. Harol...

LIBRORUM TABERNAA bookstore that travels through time, space, dimensions, and perceptions. More than books can be found within the confines of Librorum Taberna.EZRA FINFROCKThe eccentric proprietor of Librorum Taberna who finds secrets, sells mysteries, stocks dangerous tomes, and brings knowledge — even unwanted knowledge — to all who enter his store.JUSTIN AND THE TEMPLARJustin, a starving and broke c...