Rubicon: A Fantasy Short Story Collection

Jacquelyn Smith

Summary

A high-priced thief who can’t turn down a challenge. A cocky, young mage whose power has caught the attention of the local Mage-Lord. A royal scribe who stands on the brink of an imperial invasion.

Three people whose fates hang in the balance at a point of no return...

This dark fantasy short story collection includes three twisting, stand-alone adventures by the author of the World of Lasniniar series, Jacquelyn Smith:

The Unclean (Winning entry of the Writers’ Journal Fiction Contest, 2010)
Wayward Scribe
The God’s Eye (Overall winner of the Writers’ Journal Fiction Contest, 2011)

The Unclean:
An appointment with the Mage-Lord.

Jared can sense the fulfillment of his destiny approaching as he rushes through the cobbled streets with his blue mage robes flapping behind him. The kingdom of Galdavia prizes the mage gift above all others.

And Jared takes pride in his abilities. He knows he belongs at the Mage-Lord’s side.

Nothing can come between him and his rightful place...

Wayward Scribe:
An invading empire. A fallen kingdom. I watch from the shadows at our usurper’s side as history repeats itself...

In a game of power and thrones, only a nameless, royal scribe stands to make the difference between the kingdom’s uprising or complete submission. Death lies on both sides of the knife’s edge.

And in this game, only the victor can claim to know hero from traitor.

The God’s Eye:
Raena never could turn down a challenge.

Tales of her exploits travel across the land in soft whispers. The finest thief in Midnight Reach.

Only the most intriguing (and high-paying) jobs appeal to her. The more challenging, the better. She holds herself above those of her kind who might do any dirty job for a bit of coin.

No risk, no reward, after all…

Available since: 12/04/2019.

Print length: 58 pages.

Other books that might interest you

The ugly sisters

Danny King

For hundreds of years, readers have been enchanted by the tale of Cinderella, of how a nobleman's daughter escaped a life of servitude with the help of a pumpkin, a pair of glass slippers and her Fairy Godmother. But the truth is very different from the fairytale yet no less extraordinary. Marigold and Gardenia Roche have simple dreams; to marry well and live happily ever after. Yet this is a tricky proposition when neither heralds from money nor could be considered a great beauty. But two events are about to change the lives of everyone in the tiny Kingdom of Andovia: the first is the announcement of a great ball, at which the Crown Prince has vowed to choose a bride. The second is the arrival of a widowed French nobleman and his beautiful daughter. Two events, seemingly unconnected, and yet both will have dire consequences for all – unless something is done. Marigold and Gardenia's lives are about to become entwined with the girl who would be Queen. And yet few will ever know the dangers they faced nor the sacrifices they made to save a vainglorious Kingdom from the damsel with the crocodile smile.
Every child knows the story of Cinderella. But this is the story of Marigold and Gardenia Roche – otherwise known as the Ugly Sisters. And it is no fairytale.
»One of the few writers to make me laugh out loud.« – David Baddiel, Comedian
»One of Britain's best kept literary secrets.« – The Big Issue in the North

Show book

Lone Wolf

Michael Newton

A werewolf contends with love and hunger while fighting for the Confederacy during the Civil War in this romantic fantasy.   Graham is on the run. Running from a civil war that he was forced into, from the beast that lies hidden within him, and from the curse that keeps him from leading a normal life.   When Graham meets Eliza, a mere human, he falls deeply in love. But could she possibly love him once she discovers his ability to transform into the beast? Can Graham tame the beast inside him and live a normal life, or will his secrets tear apart the growing love between he and Eliza?

Show book

Opening Wonders

Rajnar Vajra

Countless un-parallel universes intersect in a place where science and magic function perfectly. A Crossroads World. A world that holds a fantastic and deadly secret. An ultra-advanced species, the Common, govern this world and invite other advanced species to set up enclaves where the planet's extraordinary properties draw an assortment of gods and demons like supernatural moths to a flame. The first human allowed there, Professor David Goldberg, is secretly tasked by Earth’s governments to observe the Common.But Goldberg’s mission might not be as secret as he thinks. Someone or something with unknown motivations sends truly terrifying monsters bent on taking him down. Opening Wonders. Fantasy, science fiction, mythology, adventure, mystery, rich history—and more.

Show book

Modern Magick Volume 2 - Books 4-6

Charlotte E. English

The fight to save British magick rages on — and it’s taking the Society’s beleaguered champions away from Home. Far, far away, to worlds long lost; worlds no one could ever have imagined existed.
 
Dangers and mysteries abound, which is way up Ves’s street. Jay isn’t quite so sure. Severed as they are from the Society’s support, will magick’s unlikely heroes make it Home unscathed?
 
It’ll be fine. After all, these lost magickal domains are the Society’s ultimate dream. What could possibly be so bad about that?
 
The Society for Magickal Heritage battles modern decay in three thrilling new Modern Magick adventures: The Fifth Britain, Royalty and Ruin, and Music and Misadventure.

Show book

Toil and Trouble - Modern Magick 2

Charlotte E. English

As an agent of the Society for Magickal Heritage, I, Cordelia Vesper, have an important job: rescue endangered creatures, artefacts, books and spells wherever they are to be found.
 
It’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to keep British magick alive.
 
So we rescued a valuable book from a long-lost library, only it proved to be unusually... chatty. And it's got a foul mouth, too. What manner of weird magick is this?
 
Somebody else thinks it's pretty interesting, too. Ancestria Magicka, they call themselves.
 
Brand new. Big trouble.
 
But why are they so interested in the book's creator? The woman died six hundred years ago. It's grave-robbers, necromancers and thieves all the way, and when things get that kind of crazy, there's only one thing to do.
 
Call in the Toil and Trouble department.

Show book

Modern Magick Volume 4 - Books...

Charlotte E. English

Things are getting serious at the Society for Magickal Heritage. An ancient legend has plans for Ves, and Ves has plans for just about everything else.
 
It’s time to take on the ultimate challenge—and hope for the best. What could possibly go wrong?
 
Well, everything. As usual. But if old magick is going to survive in the modern world, it’s no use being cautious.
 
Nothing ventured, nothing gained, and Ves is giving it everything she’s got. But can she handle the cost?
 
And can the cost handle her?
 
Modern Magick comes to a dazzling conclusion in these final three adventures: The Magick of Merlin, Dancing and Disaster, and The Fate of Farringale.

Show book