Tag: free story
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The Wind Blows from The West Part 4
A rogue wind delayed the landing for a little over an hour. When the trio finally left the airship and picked up their luggage, Cheung led them through the sprawling, sparkling new aerodrome. A hired porter handled the trade goods, ten heavy chests, on a pushcart. At the exit, a short, dark man with bulging…
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The Wind Blows from The West Part 3
They met again the following week on the airship. Lee had boarded in the evening at nine, found his cabin, and passed the night in silence and solitude. Cheung said he would assemble the crew in the dining compartment to discuss the trip over breakfast. Lee showed up in his trail clothing. White cotton tunic…
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The Wind Blows from the West Part 2
Opening the door, Lee was greeted by an unfamiliar sound. Harsh, brassy metal punching against something harder. The noise came from several ball-like contraptions on the desks in front of him. Young women hammered away at keys that sprouted across the balls on long spines. They were Malling Writing Balls. He’d read about such things,…
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The Wind Blows From The West Part 1
Since he’d last been in the city, reconstruction and urban development had overridden his memories. Now a citywide steam tram service plied the streets, alongside rickshaws and steam cars, all of them imported, all of them driven by locals. When he was a child, most road traffic was velocipedes and sedan chairs and bullock carts.…
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Hunters of the Void Chapter 6
The flight back to the hotel was long and circuitous. Sirens echoed in discordant choruses through the empty streets, the first responders finally confident that the wrath of the New Gods had passed. The Angel at the controls pulled a series of high-speed high-precision maneuvers, staying far from police vehicles and away from the city’s…
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Hunters of the Void Chapter 5
Ring of Steel Nightfall. People said Babylon never slept. Here, it came closest to slumber. As the sun set, the district wound down operations. Lights extinguished by the scores. Cars and buses flowed out of the neighborhood, southwards to the suburbs, north to the town of North Valley. People abandoned the streets. By midnight, only…