Tag: Matthew Ilseman
-
The Cursed Woods
by Matthew Ilseman in Issue 147, April 2024 The corpse hung limply in the tree. A large branch impaled it through the chest. Blood covered the branch and fell in droplets on the forest floor. Aleron the warrior-priest stared up at it. He pulled his crimson cloak around himself. A sword and a seax knife…
-
The Voice of the Siren
by Matthew Ileseman in Issue 138, July 2023 The Siren sat on a rock amidst the cold spray of the sea. Her skin was whitish green, her hair and eyes dark green. Her clothes were ragged. She opened her mouth and sang. Her song was low and melodic. It wafted through the sea air amid…
-
The Ordeal of the Cave
by Matthew Ilseman in Issue 132, January 2023 A cold wind pushed the small ship through the blue-green waves. It glided between rocks that jutted up from the sea like jagged teeth. The grey sky hung over a brown island that spread across the horizon. Aleron stood on the deck of the ship. His crimson…
-
Glamour
by Matthew Ilseman in Issue 123, April 2022 Strange things come out of the East- An Old Saying. Ceran ran through the forest. He paid no heed to any path. He ran through areas thick with growth. Leafless tree limbs reached out like skeletal hands cutting him as he ran. Ceran paid no mind;…
-
The Chapel of Skulls
by Matthew Ilseman in Issue 87, April 2019 Aleron sat in a brothel listening to the Marquis de Calabra fret about the virginity of his betrothed. They sat at table on the ground level that served as a tavern. The girls and their customers talked and laughed. Stairs lead up to the bedrooms on the…