Tag Archive for: microfiction

Twelve Drums

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by Maxine Churchman

 

The drums sounded sweet. Jack said he would show me how he got those wonderful tones. An extractor fan whirred and clanked ineffectually against the putrid smell in the chilly workshop.

“I need one more, twelve drummers drumming and all that.” He was obsessed with Christmas.

“Chemicals of the trade,” he said, laughing at my streaming eyes.

He picked up a frame over which a skin was stretched so thinly it was almost see-through.

“See that mark? It’s too identifiable.” He ripped it from the frame and turned his dark eyes on me. “You don’t have any birthmarks do you?”

Maxine Churchman

Maxine Churchman is a grandmother from Essex, UK. Having always loved reading, she has recently discovered writing is fun too. To pay the bills, she runs her own business selling promotional items and embroidered clothing to local companies.

She also enjoys hiking, caravanning, knitting, and yoga. Find her blog at cccmaxine.blogspot.com

Bot Flies

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by Lynne Phillips

 

Zacji didn’t feel the bites, but as his body heated, his arm began to itch. Hundreds of tiny larvae wriggled in waves under his skin emerging through his pores, their heads taking a breath before disappearing and wriggling again. They moved like rivulets along his arm towards his shoulder.

Using the edge of his knife he frantically scraped his arm, removing his skin and the larvae, seeking relief.

Realising they had moved across his shoulders and down his left arm, squirming towards his wrist, emerging as bot flies, Zacji screamed in agony and collapsed, unable to bear the paralysing pain.

 

Lynne Phillips

Lynne Phillips lives in the Northern Rivers Region of New South Wales, Australia. Her stories have been published by Zombie Pirate Publishing, Black Hare Press, Fantasia Divinity Publishing, Our Wonderful Anthology, and in various online magazines. She enjoys exploring the craft of writing stories and the challenge it presents. Her priority is spending time with her family while her passions are reading, writing, keeping fit, and spending time at her farm. Connect with her on Facebook @lynnephillips

Visceral

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by Bernardo Villela

 

Malcolm awoke confused. Eyes stung from something acidic.

In pitch blackness he groped for his phone. Flashlight on.

A corrugated ceiling. No, a tunnel.

He touched the floor. Not rocky, covered in dark sludge and liquid. A muscular firmness and tissular feel. Fingerlike protuberances brushed against his hand. A noxious breeze blew.

Gaseous.

Sludge slid, knocked him about. Bumping his head into what felt like mucus, he recalled: a face fourfold his size, a gaping maw, being swallowed.

The giant thought he killed me. 

Malcolm gnawed on its intestinal wall. His oxygen limited, he ate in hopes of freeing himself.

 

Bernardo Villela

Bernardo Villela has published the novella, The Isle of Helyr, and three short story collections, The Bloodmaster Trilogy and Teenage Death Songs Volumes 1 & 2, and has short fiction included in Coffin Bell Journal, The Dark Corner Zine, 101 Proof Horror, A Monster Told Me Bedtime Stories, Page & Spine, and forthcoming in 42 Stories Anthology, Constraint 280, and Rivet. You can read more about these and various other pursuits at www.miller-villela.com.

Under Your Skin

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by Brandi Hicks

 

I skitter over skin, searching for the perfect spot. My host can’t see me as I dig through her dermis, but soon enough she’ll feel me. She’s done nothing wrong; she just tastes oh-so-sweet and was in the wrong place when I caught her scent. I’m at her muscle now, the sinewy goodness quenches my hunger-lust momentarily.

It’s time for the fun to begin.

My pincers snip away at tissue, I don’t need it but I want it. I hear her now, my venom filling her, making her scream in agony. I call for my siblings. Let our plague begin.

Brandi Hicks

Brandi Hicks lives in West Virginia, USA, loves writing in multiple genres, but hates writing bios. She has had multiple drabbles with Black Hare Press and one short story in Surviving Area 51. Her newest work releasing December 8, 2020, Happy Howlidays, is a collaboration with nine other talented authors.

In Control

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by Constantine E. Kiousis

 

The man stood at the edge of the precipice, staring solemnly at the angry tide below, a bottle of scotch dangling from his fingers.

Even though it was asleep, he could still feel it, wrapped around his brain, squirming. All the shit it’d made him do as he’d watched helplessly, seldom allowing him control… But he’d used that time wisely. He’d learned it couldn’t hold its liquor.

Breathing deep, he stepped off the ledge.

He sensed it waking as he plummeted, sensed its horror as it shrilled.

He closed his eyes, managing a defiant grin before crashing against the waves.

 

Constantine E. Kiousis

Constantine E. Kiousis spends most of his time wandering through the worlds he has created, exploring every nook and cranny and constantly discovering new places and stories that need to be told.

He’s currently plotting ways to unleash the terrifying stories hiding in his mind upon the world, one word at a time.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KiousisStoryteller

The War Earth Won

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by Gary Smith Jr.

 

The world is a better place. Years ago, people abused her, taking resources that could never be replaced, giving back pollution, hate, and violence.

The planet was the real winner in the war between the humans and parasites. She barely noticed the increase of death and destruction during the decades of war. The bodies of humans and parasites alike nourished her back to health soon after.

Earth now receives the attention she deserves, love and caring she is owed for her eons of giving. Yes, without people the world is a better place. The parasites that remain love her well.

 

Gary Smith Jr.

Gary Smith Jr. has a passion for writing born from his love of reading everything, classic literature to cereal boxes. He lives around Atlanta, Georgia, with his wife, children, and animals. His stories have been published at From Whispers to Roars, The Mark Literary Review, ComutterLit, and Daily Science Fiction.

The Most Natural Thing on Earth

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by Gemma Paul

 

It burns her insides, itching to get out.

She clutches desperately at her throat and gags loudly—a deep, hoarse sound erupts from her lungs as she struggles to breathe. She throws her head over the toilet basin, but nothing comes out.

She can feel it inside. Squirming around. Twisting and turning. Its heart beats steady inside, a stark contrast to her erratic one.

It’s ready to come out. She can feel it.

No one ever told her it would be like this. It’s natural they say. To her though, growing a baby, inside her womb is her worst nightmare.

Gemma Paul

Award-winning filmmaker and scriptwriter turned author, Gemma Paul is a horror and fantasy writer who enjoys writing and illustrating stories for all ages. She lives in sunny Dorset, UK, near the sandy beaches with her two rescue dogs. When not writing and illustrating, she’s usually found walking the dogs, tending to her vegetable patch, or chilling in her garden hammock.
Instagram: @gemma_l_paul

Soul Fungus

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by Simon Clarke

 

Every day as darkness falls and the day’s echoes falter to silence, my existence slips further away.  Primordial spores now infect my mind, connecting to a past that isn’t mine.

Complex toxins cling to every moist membrane, burning my guts as my soul slowly rots.

Soon I will forget the afternoon I dozed too long amongst ancient trees, waking covered with a fine layer of pale filaments, brushing them off too late.

Unearthly enzymes dissolve and digest my being, fusing with my DNA. Before long I will be gone. It will become me completely, ready to join with you all.

 

Simon Clarke

Simon Clarke lives and writes in Norfolk, United Kingdom. He enjoys writing poetry and fiction and has been published by Hedgehog Press, Black Hare Press, Fifty Word Stories, and Breaking Rules Publishing. He regularly submits to UK and international publications and enjoys reading poetry at open mic events.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sclarkenp/

Crawl

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by Sophie Wagner

 

“Please!” the hysterical mother shrieked. “You have to help her, she’s going to die!”

“Mrs,” the doctor replied. “We are doing everything we can. We’ve never seen anything like this before.”

The girl who sat in front of them, once a healthy athlete, was now frail and almost transparent. Her hair was slicked with sweat from a fever that you could feel from halfway across the room. And worst of all, black lines traced up and down her veins.

Suddenly she began to convulse and fell to the floor. A dark shape appeared under her skin.

It began to crawl.

 

Sophie Wagner

Sophie Wagner is an up-and-coming student author from Ontario. She has been published by places such as Scary Snippets and Poets Choice! Besides writing and reading Sophie enjoys playing various sports such as soccer and karate.

Beauty Mark

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by Chisto Healy

 

Lara had first seen it on her shoulder. She had been outdoors that day and wearing a tank top. She figured it was a sunspot, a new freckle, some might say a mole. Lara preferred beauty mark. It was cute.

Then it wasn’t.

Lara’s little brown spot grew and stretched. It became scaly and raised as it multiplied, now five thick lines reaching to a large brown base, like a dark hand gripping her back.

She thought it was some kind of infection or disease until she heard its voice inside her mind. It said, “Kill.”

 

Chisto Healy

Chisto Healy has had over 100 stories published in 2020. He lives in NC with his fiancée and amazing kids. You can follow him on Amazon or find what is out at his blog https://chistohealy.blogspot.com. He loves to connect with authors and readers alike so feel free to reach out.