Niteblade #29 - Porcelain Doll

Fiction

There She Stands by Nathaniel Phillips
I try to look her directly in the eye. Alas, it is hopeless. I can only hold for mere seconds before her cold eyes slowly turn me to stone. No matter what, I will not fear her. But it is difficult.

Shelba’s Brood by Mary Garber
Sheltered by the rock, she extended her eyestalks fully and rotated them, seeking. She found nothing. The viable lands shrank as the desert wastes ate into it with each passing week.

The Crew by Dough Blakeslee
In the gloom, I counted nearly a dozen pairs of black eyes shining in the reflected light. The knife wasn’t going to help if they decided to swarm me. Even the gun wouldn’t take them all out. “No need for violence,” I said.

Lena’s Confession by Kristi Brooks
Lena’s throat was so dry that when she tried to answer him, it yielded nothing but a raspy click. It was probably better that way. This was a game to them now.

Dancing with the Departed by Anna Zumbro
I was going through a weird altruistic phase when I asked Mikaela to the prom. After all, she had died six months earlier, and probably wouldn’t get to go otherwise.

Poetry
Valediction for the Dungeon Master by Mark Jones
Porcelain Doll by J.A. Grier
St. Winifred Medical Center, Abandoned by Joshua Gage
Awakened by Sandi LeibowitzI 
The Gate of Horn by Megan Arkenberg