by Kai Delmas I scoured the oldest libraries and their secret texts. I uncovered clues that were lost or thought destroyed. Hidden away behind a sealed brick wall, the tome was clasped in a skeleton’s hands upon an altar. Now it’s finally mine. I leaf through the pages to find them… empty. Nothing. Nothing at […]
by Christina Persaud This damned dissertation. Loose leaf papers threaten to take flight. Books stacked upon books, most if not all on the occult. My bleary eyes strain to read one in particular: The Sworn Book of Honorius. It’s old. Language too ancient to ask for help. So, I read aloud, sounding out syllables, hearing […]
by Freya King Ophelia stared at Grimgran’s sunken cheeks in the casket. The townspeople, who’d called Grimgran a witch and shunned her, attended like vultures. Ophelia raged. “Ophio-cordyceps Ants in their pants Punish everyone here To their graves, make’em dance” To her delight, this time it worked. […]
by Kristin Lennox Amelia discovered the book in the thrift store behind a stack of Reader’s Digests. She was a sucker for old tomes, and this one checked all the boxes. The pages crackled like delicate insect wings, revealing handwritten passages in some long-dead language with oddly sensual illustrations. Tucked into her wingback with a […]
by Tracy Davidson I said my spells would blow their minds. But hadn’t expected results to be so literal. There are typos in my grimoire. That damn cat exaggerated his keyboard skills. Blood and brain matter cover the stage. The judges’ headless torsos slump over their desks. The stunned audience stares as I back away […]
by Kathryn Reilly To silence her coming screams, the priest shoved an apple into the witch’s mouth. As the kindling caught, she chewed, seeking the seeds. Consumed, she whispered a curse to kill God’s lying faithful. In spring, seven apple seedlings rose seeking vengeance. Lured by delicious golden, red, and pink apples, everyone believed this […]
by Susan Monroe McGrath Chelsea hated shoes. They meant pinched toes, rubbed heels, sweaty suffocated feet. She preferred one of her twenty pairs of flip-flops. No toe pinch, no heel rub, no sweat. Chelsea’s toes enjoyed the breeze as she rode her bike to the beach. They enjoyed slipping into the sand and then the […]
by Aurelio Rico Lopez III Mark stepped around the pool of blood slowly spreading across the grimy floor. Chunks of brain tissue, bone, and patches of scalp and hair littered the ground. Tom—what was left of him—remained seated, arms and torso securely bound by lengths of rope. The wall behind him had instantly become a […]
by Scott O’Neill Rabbi Michnik proudly watched his golem dismember four more Schutzstaffel guards. Imprisoned in Hitler’s occult research facility, he’d invested months in secret sculpting and kabbalistic rituals to refine the humaniform clay. His golem was graceful and obedient. He’d even taught it courtesy. It had politely held Michnik’s cell door after shattering the […]
by Evan Baughfman Shawn sat in the driver’s seat of an extra-terrestrial vehicle, though he wasn’t steering his new friend. The Corvette—shape-shifting robot, Xcellsior—carried its teenage companion over rain-slick roads, dashboard stereo blasting rock ’n roll. “Awesome!” Shawn whooped. Then, lightning struck Xcellsior, frying alien circuitry, squealing robot brakes. Xcellsior began to morph into bipedal […]