A woman in army green and a blue headscarf peers through binoculars at a desert landscape.

Shrike

Solia Faris slammed on the brakes of her armored jeep, released the seat harness, and launched herself out the driver’s side door. She tumbled down a steep grade, bounced, rolled, and then slammed to a stop against a pillar of goraxian rock. Solia spat blood from her mouth and scrunched into a ball.

A sailing ship with three masts sits in a calm blue harbor, with a village on the hill behind it.

Rapscallion

Pirate Oliver stood at the helm of the Rapscallion, wind ruffling through his fine brown hair and fake beard. Standing on a barrel beside him, squat, pink, and wearing an eyepatch, was his talking pig Fortingras.

Red, gray, and black reflections swirl in a puddle marked with ringed wavelets from raindrops.

Rain on the Blacktop

Rain sheeted down, wetting the window panes. On the street outside, cars splashed through puddles. It was a melancholy day. A day for sitting fireside with tea and books and company. But she had no fireplace or chimney, no logs to burn. Her house was too dark and quiet to be cheery.