Anthology of Blades: First Pages – Death Comes in Bone

Death Comes in Bone has been incorporated into An Anthology of Blades. It is a dark fantasy short story about a skeletal assassin.

Murdered by his closest friend, Tanag is not surprised to wake and find himself dead. He is surprised, however, that others have come to the caves hidden not so far from what used to be his home. As the adventurers plunder his bones and move on, Tanag remembers who killed him, and the vow he made as he died. In order to fulfil that vow, Tanag must rise and leave his impromptu tomb—but first he has to get his sword back from the adventurer that woke him and took it from his remains.

Death Comes in Bone is available in electronic form from, among others: Smashwords, OmniLit, DriveThruFiction, Amazon-Kindle, Kobo, iTunes, and Nook.

Here's the first page.

First Page: Death Comes in Bone

Tanag woke as light broke into his resting place. He didn’t know how long he’d been dead for, knew only that he’d been murdered and that he was still angry about it. His best friend had betrayed him, had chosen his family’s ambitions over loyalty and friendship after all. Tanag had made a serious misjudgment of character. He worried that it had cost his family their lives.

Careful, lest he should be destroyed before he’d woken, Tanag lay still. His sword lay in its sheath—Arrin had given him no time to draw it, plunging the weapon he’d taken from the yellowthorn thicket deep into Tanag’s kidney and holding his friend, his prince, until he was sure Tanag had died of the injury and the poison in the yellowthorn’s sting.

Tanag remembered the pain, so great he hadn’t been able to make a sound, but not as great as the pain in his heart. Arrin had gone to great lengths to ensure Tanag’s murder remained undiscovered, bringing down the cave roof with a magical ability Tanag had not even suspected. The wielding had brought about a distinctive stench and the prince wondered just how long Arrin had consorted with demons, or when he’d found the time. Arrin had spent his off-hours and many stolen moments in the arms of dark-eyed, dark haired Lannara.

Rocks tumbled, metal gauntlets scraped against stone and the light grew stronger. Tanag tried to resist the urge to squint against the light, and registered that he had no eyes, no eyelids. He started to raise a hand to feel his face, but the first twitch of his fingers brought a startled shout to ears that were no longer there. Retribution was swift, even though he’d stilled his hand. A sword was driven through his ribs. There was pain, but not the kind of pain Tanag expected. This time it was no effort to keep himself still.

Magic bound him together… Why would magic bind his bones together when his flesh was clearly gone. He had known he was dead, but this… Why?

Laughter interrupted his thoughts.

“The great knight Devas, frightened by a pile of empty bones.” Mockery.

“I swear I saw it move.”

“Well, it’s not moving now. Who was it, do you think?”

Tanag listened to them try to work out who he’d been. Not a single word was close. He did not protest when they took the sword, well-preserved by its sheath, and rifled through the trinkets and coins that had fallen into his remains when his pockets had rotted away. He did not try to stop them scattering his bones when they noted the glint of gold that had once adorned his fingers or the entwined gold and solid medallion that he’d worn around his throat. None of that mattered.

What mattered to him now, was to work out why he lived beyond death—a death unfairly given, certainly, but an ending none-the-less. As the big man in plate mail and his trio of less well-protected companions made their way further into the cavern complex, Tanag wished them luck.

END OF FIRST PAGE

If you would like to read more, Death Comes in Bone is, or will be, available in electronic form from, among others: Smashwords, OmniLit, DriveThruFiction, Amazon-Kindle, Kobo, iTunes, and Nook.

PDF - C.M. Simpson: First Chapters, First Pages and Free Reads from 2013

We published a lot of C.M. Simpson's work in 2013, and you can read a collection of the associated first chapters, first pages, and free fiction below.





You can also download the PDF HERE.

PDF - C.M. Simpson: First Chapters, First Pages and Free Reads from 2012

Recently, C.M. Simpson decided to gather all the first pages, first chapters and free reads she had offered in 2012 into one PDF document so she could make it easier for her readers to find and access them. We thought this was a great idea, and asked if she'd mind sharing her documents with us, and then doing the same for our other authors, and she said yes.

Here is the first of our PDF series.

We hope you enjoy.



You can download the file from HERE.

First Pages: Corporate Loyalty by C.M. Simpson

Corporate Loyalty is an short pseudo-science adventure a la the 1950’s. Its science is unlikely; its people and their motivations are not.

When a leading ‘bug’ researcher is returned to normal size early, he discovers the science which alters his size has a flaw. Can his best friend help him out of the trouble he’s in?

Corporate Loyalty is one of the short stories that will be incorporated into An Anthology of Pseudo-Science. It is currently available as a stand-alone short story, and can be found at Smashwords and Kindle. It will shortly be available from Kobo, Nook and iTunes.

First Page: 

I had been placed in a different section to the others, but it made no difference; I was here to study, and the data I required could not be found anywhere else. My research was in its final stages and soon I would be free. I allowed my mind to dwell on my impending success for a fraction of a second, before returning my attention to the task that lay before me.

The nest had accepted me, thanks to the scent other operatives had secured, but I still had specific tasks to perform in its service. The nest warriors took my responsibilities seriously, and my study less so. These responsibilities that had extended my stay into months yet, as time progressed I found I did not resent them. And, speaking of tasks…

I looked up at the seeds clinging to the swaying stem above me and sighed. I'd hated heights before, feared them. Hunger conquered fear. I began to climb.

If they'd told me, when I'd laughed at it, that the panga, the bush knife, would soon become my most valued possession, I would have laughed even harder. I wasn't laughing now as I dug the climbing-spikes attached to my boots into the stringy fiber of the grass stem and took the panga from my belt.

Two practiced swings of the blade and the seed head began to sway. One more carefully placed slice and it began to fall. I clung to the stem like a lab monkey to the bars of its cage, and watched the head plummet to the ground. Once it lay resting on the earth below, I climbed down, thanking whatever powers presiding that I had stayed fit in the company gym in spite of the hours I worked.

That fitness now stood me in good stead. Fitness and the Talent I had not informed the company I possessed. Fitness had seen me through the grueling weeks of autumn when the nest went into a frenzy of gathering enough food to take its inhabitants through winter, but it was the Talent that warned me of dangers I could not see.

The Talent was whispering at me now. Pausing mid-climb, I dug the spikes firmly into the stem and looked around. Nothing, yet I could hear the Talent whispering and felt the skin on my spine beginning to crawl.

I resumed my descent, careful to keep my progress as steady as before. Some of the creatures down here were smart. If I looked to be in a hurry, whatever it was would pounce.

I stopped my climb just before I reached the ground. It didn't take long for me to release the climbing spikes and step, one foot at a time, away from the plant. The Talent was almost screaming now.

I reached for my machete, slipping it free from its holster as I turned and found the creature already advancing. Of all the animals I had faced, I knew this was the most deadly.

He was fast, almost as fast as myself, and he was bigger. He was pretty smart as well, although I did not like to think of him as being as smart as I was. Deny it as I might, I was  

END FIRST PAGE

 If you would like to read more, Corporate Loyalty is currently available as a stand-alone short story, and can be found at Smashwords and Kindle. It will shortly be available from Kobo, Nook and iTunes.

First Page: Darkness and Light by C.M. Simpson

Darkness and Light is one of the short stories to be included in An Anthology of Gods and Older Magic. It is currently only available as a stand-alone short story.

Abselia has traveled a long way to reach the trading town. Shadows move at her arrival, and light shimmers in dismay. Can light’s champion find the stronghold of shadows, and solve the puzzle of its strength, or is she doomed to failure like all who have gone before?

Darkness and Light is a short tale of dark fantasy and a battle older than time. It is currently available as a stand-alone title at Smashwords, but will shortly become available at Kobo, Kindle, and iTunes. It is one of the stories which will be incorporated into An Anthology of Gods and Older Magic.

First Page

The day had been hot and the road dustier than usual. Abselia looked at where the town rose to make a dark silhouette against the afternoon sun. It was larger than she’d expected, and she felt a twinge of unease. The duty lying before her would be harder for having a large town overhead.

One of the guards rode his horse alongside the cart on which she'd purchased passage, and smiled down at her. "You sure this is the place?" he asked.

"This is it." Abselia left it at that. She'd been deflecting approaches from the guards all journey. She sighed, pretending to study the wooden palisade surrounding the town.

The guard allowed his horse to drop back.

The day had been too long, Abselia decided as they passed through the gates, with no more than a cursory check from the men stationed there.

And the journey, she thought, as she caught the overseer's eye and signaled she was leaving, near longer than I can stand.

She dropped from the back of the cart, making sure she dragged her knapsack after herself. Having reached the journey's end, unscathed and unattached, Abselia was glad to see the front of an inn and the back of her companions.

Abselia didn't stop to watch the caravan as it wound its way towards the town’s merchant's quarter. If she had, she might have seen the flickering of shadows that blurred the buildings' shade and the answering shimmer that shook the heat haze in the caravan's wake. As it was, she saw neither. Her attention was wholly taken by the coolness of the inn's interior and the promise of a cold drink, a decent meal and a soft bed.

She was even hoping for a private bath. The road's dust had formed a fine film over her skin and it would be good to feel the air moving freely against her face again. She walked purposefully through the main entrance. The heat outside the inn's door shimmered in frustration, and a flicker of shadow laughed in reply, as Abselia walked across to the counter at the bar.

The sound of her boots on the wooden flooring made the innkeeper look up. It was late afternoon. Travelers would be arriving with the caravans ending the day’s journey in town. He should at least welcome the first.

The shadows fluttered around him, running tendrils through his hair, and breathing soft words into his ear. He nodded at their reminder. He would not forget. They were due their tribute just as he was due his life.

He watched the woman approaching the counter and felt a twinge of regret. She was tall and trim, her figure as lithe as a cat's and her skin tanned honey brown. She was the first to arrive, and the shadows had made their choice in spite of who might come after. He hurried to greet her.

"Afternoon, lady," he called.

END FIRST PAGE

If you would like to read more, Darkness and Light can be found  as a stand-alone title at Smashwords, but will shortly become available at Kobo, Kindle, and iTunes.