Friday Dark Fiction and More Freebies.

Another great day of free fiction, especially for those who like it dark. Another great selection from ChiZine, as well as horror podcasts by Pseudopod and Dunesteef add a creepy flavor to today's listings. But fear not fans of other genres, there are a few crunchy bits for you too.

Tomorrow should have another "QuasarDragon Presents" and gaming freebies, while Sunday should have video(s?) and maybe comics. There may also be random reviews and an announcement or two. As always links to free online stuff are appreciated.

Today's illustration is for "The Rook" in the fiction Section.






@ChiZine:The Chiaroscuro: Volume 47, Week 10 Dark Fiction.

"The Informers" by Gerard Houarner.

"A thrashing metal ballad’s muted chorus seeped through the edges of the battered wooden door, along with the din of laughter and drunken talk. He’d stayed too long nursing Dewars and beers at the bar. Nobody was playing Springsteen or watching the game, anymore."

"Motive, Means, Eventuality" by Gordon Grice.

"It’s hot enough to make him sweat. That’s odd, because in his nostalgia college always happens in snow. Nothing much is happening around campus."

"The Pillow Book of Liisa Härkönen" by Joe L. Murr.

"The midnight sun gives us a foretaste of the eternal light. Colours are muted and soft. The outlines of objects blur. It’s like seeing the world through a wedding veil. There’s nothing more beautiful in this life."

"Pisspot Bay" by Elizabeth Massie.

"Andy had been caught in the sweep. It happened so fast, he first thought it was a gag, something rigged up by that doofus Stephen whose dad owned the farm, something Stephen would have thought was really funny. But it wasn’t so funny when all was said and done."

"Signal to Noise" by Gemma Files.

"This world was full of empty spaces, especially where the maps fell away—holes that most often plugged themselves with phantoms, the minute you looked somewhere else. Nature of the game. Nothing was certain, only wars and rumours of wars, ’til the intelligence checked out."

"Unchambered Heart" by Jay Lake.

"The venue was the basement of a pawn shop that had once served as bank, centuries earlier. Barrel-vaulted ceilings made for small rooms separated by iron bars in the oddest places. Curious drains interrupted the floor periodically, as if the place also included “abattoir” in its resume."

"Wax and Wane" by Grant Palmquist

"After she had left, he opened the drapes, lit a cigarette and sipped a Budweiser. Three years the world had gone on without him. Three long-ass years. In the distance, a highway swerved upward and merged with darkness."

@Tor.com: "The Rook" by Melinda Snodgrass, from the upcoming Wildcards anthology, Fort Freak.

"I FIND THE FIRST day of anything tough—first day of school, first day of camp, first day of the year. My tendency is to view the unknown future more with trepidation than joy. And now I could add to that list the first day of work."

@Daily Science Fiction: "Apology" by Sam Ferree.

"At no point in the past or future will your life have any bearing on anything, at all," the redheaded, twenty-something time traveler with a sleeve of tattoos tells me. "That's why it's okay to kill you."

@Escape Pod: Episode #292 "For Want of a Nail" by Mary Robinette Kowal, read by Mur Lafferty. Science Fiction.

"With only a single camera attached, the interface glasses didn’t give Rava depth perception as she struggled to replug the transmitter cable. The chassis had not been designed to need repair. At all. It had been designed to last hundreds of years without an upgrade."

@Pseudopod: Episode #233 "Association" by Eddie Borey, read by Kris Johnson. Horror.

"Below the makeshift tourniquet, his arm was purple and rotten, especially around the bite. He untied the belt—-no point anymore in pretending that it could help him. He could see his purple forearm throb at the new rush of blood. The liquid pressure flowing into his arm was enough to break the scabs on the bitemark."

@Dunesteef: Episode #104 "Whelp" by Damon Shaw. Horror.

"The disturbing story of Ivan, who is forced to deal with a very strange and unsettling dog."

Serial Audio
@Author's Site: "Knights of the Rainbow Table" by Cory Doctorow. [via SF Signal]
(No story details available)
Parts One, Two, Three, Four, Five, and Six.







@Daily Science Fiction: "Dealing with Death" by Brenta Blevins.
@Every Day Fiction: "Chasing Paper Dragons" by Jason S. Ridler. Fantasy.
@Flashes in the Dark: "Alpha Male" by Bob Bois. Horror.
@Flashes in the Dark: "They Don't Care Who Pays" by Eric Petersen. Horror.
@365 tomorrows: "The Last Terran" by Victoria Barbosa. Science Fiction.
@365 tomorrows: "The Torus Ring" by Patricia Stewart. Science Fiction.
@Weirdyear: "Lunch with Sirso" by Don Dolan II. Weird.
@Weirdyear: "El Gallo" by Cynthia (Cina) Pelayo . Weird.
@Yesteryear Fiction: "The Mech-Maiden of Mesopotamia" Part 1 By Nichole Beard. Fantasy.
@Yesteryear Fiction: "The Mech-Maiden of Mesopotamia" Part 2 By Nichole Beard. Fantasy.
@ChiZine: [Poetry - Dark]

• Changeling by Myna Wallin
• Nothing but sky overhead by David Clink
• The Soft Key by Sandra Kasturi