90 Results in the "Burned Cover" category
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Story
Burned Cover
Erika Walker has a problem. Her mother isn’t who she says she is. An urban-fantasy set in supernatural Chicago. -
Chapter
02 – Flying High
“The Terminator didn’t follow you into the future,” Erika said, not as a question, but as a simple statement. She was willing to admit that most of the fight sounded confusing, but she got that part of it. “I don’t believe it can. At least not to the same extent that I am able.” Erika drew in a deep, slow breath as she took in The Fixer’s recounting of their fight with the clockwork angel. Having seen The Fixer’s full robot form in action against Jack, she was surprised they would…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
01 – Flipping the Narrative
“I’m standing here live in Millennium Park, where crowds have gathered behind police barricades around The Bean. This is one of several locations in Chicago and its surrounding area where what can only be described as enormous, metallic-feathered birds have taken up a perch.” Erika paused, dropping a heavy weight, as she watched the camera pan off the reporter. The curved chrome of The Bean reflected dozens of people gathered around the artistic sculpture, all holding phones up to record. As the…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
29 – i – Outside Context Problem
Reality fractured, splitting apart at the seams. It began at the macro level, with large, whole objects. The old motel’s walls shuddered as paint bubbled and peeled away in slow-motion waves. Windows melted like wax, glass pooling on the sills before the windowsills cracked and split into thousands of identical fragments. The bed elongated, stretching to fill the room even as the legs twisted and knotted together like tree roots seeking water. Light itself bent, creating pockets of blinding white…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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“She’s still breathing—” “Get her inside, quickly!” “Rick, get me the first aid kit. Sofia, find clean towels.” “On it.” Leslie swept his arms over the table in Varn’s back room, knocking aside stuffed animals, party balloons, and packs of trading cards destined for the prize counter. Erika’s hands shook around Delilah’s shoulders as she helped Anna lift the girl up. The metal creaked under Delilah’s weight, and a few stray cards fluttered to the floor; Erika barely…
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321.4 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
27 – Did It Work
Erika’s skin tingled and burned, rubbed raw from her scrubbing. The water running down her skin felt exquisite anyway, and yet it wasn’t enough. Two empty body wash bottles littered the floor along with three bottles of shampoo, but Erika could smell the bile and sludge. Some still circled the drain, sticking to the edges of the stream where the water pushed it aside; the stench was as strong as ever. “I think I got it up my nose,” Erika groaned, rubbing around the interior edges of her nose.…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
26 – The ______ of Maggots
“This is why I wanted napalm,” Erika hissed, staying well back from the opening. The Warrior pulled a card from her pocket, flung it toward the hole leading to what she assumed to be the Mother of Maggots, and snapped her fingers. It grew until its edges hit the walls, blocking off most of the hole. A few small gaps remained along the thinner ends of the playing card, but it would stop people from slipping and falling in. “I’m not sure I have the firepower to take out that,” she said,…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
25 – The Ziggurat
Black bile splattered across the steps of the ziggurat. Chunks of viscera arced through the air, flung from the end of Erika’s bat. Each turned into a projectile in its own right, splattering every maggot in the way. Grime coated every inch of her face. Erika opted for garbage clothes knowing she would end up getting dirty, but she hadn’t quite realized just how messy the night would become. Her hair felt tangled and greasy, a rat’s nest despite pinning it in a neat bun to keep it out of the way.…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
24 – The Maggots of Myrk
It only took six hours before things went to shit. “That’s the twelfth cop car that’s gone in the opposite direction from us,” Daniel commented as Leslie pulled his oversized truck off to the side of the road, making way for the emergency vehicles. “Thirteenth… fourteenth,” he added as two more blazed through an intersection ahead of them. Erika watched them go, eyes drifting up to the turbulent column of smoke stretching up to the clouds. Leslie started pulling back into the street,…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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Chapter
23 – i – The Hermit
Tucked away in the heart of Hyde Park, concealed behind a nondescript brick façade, Ren lounged in her small slice of paradise within the otherwise chaotic city of Chicago. To the uninitiated, it appeared as little more than an aging townhouse, but to those with the right eyes—or the right introductions—it opened a door to a whole other world. The heavy scent of incense hung in the air, mixing with the violet smoke that wafted from her long pipe. Carefully cultivated flowerpots hung throughout the…-
321.4 K • Ongoing
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