Christopher B. Wright's Blog, page 24

Cracked Foundations: Part Four

Thorpe Island, Fishing Pier

CB watches the ocean as he smokes.

The island has a mid-sized town, the town has a small marina, and just off to the side of the marina is a long pier. CB sits at the end of the pier, trying to figure out if he can feel the island floating. It’s an artificial island, after all, and since it’s out in the middle of the ocean he’s pretty sure it doesn’t go all the way down, so it has to float. It’s not so much an island as it is a boat that looks like an island: boats...

Cracked Foundations: Part Three

Jacob K. Javits Federal Building

The rooftop of the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building is designated a Sky Commando refit and refuel center, and the rooftop has been reinforced with a landing pad and chassis support lattice. Alishia Webb lands easily, hitting the pad dead center, and waits as a mesh of steel beams and ruggedized cabling close around the sides and back of the Sky Commando chassis, hooking into it to run an automated diagnostic and set up what resupply is needed. Then she opens th...

Cracked Foundations: Part Two

Haruspex Analytics Situation Room

Jason Kline sighs, pushes his laptop away, and rests his forehead against the edge of the table. He stares down at the taupe-colored rug and wonders what color it was when they first moved in. He’s certain the rug has been replaced at least twice since they set up here, but he doesn’t remember it happening and he can’t remember the previous colors.

The Haruspex Analytics Situation Room stopped being “the situation room” and started being “their office” about a...

Cracked Foundations: Part One

Robert Thorpe's Office

The official meeting is ending. The real meeting is about to begin.

The official meeting, where Robert Thorpe revealed to all present that someone was creating a virus specifically engineered to kill metahumans, and where David Bernard revealed that they were going to use magic to simultaneously infect every male on the planet with it, ends with scientists milling about in a buzz of tense, excited conversation. None of them will sleep tonight: most won’t even bother...

Issue 28: Cracked Foundations

Story: Christopher Wright
Cover: Jamie Robertson
Logo: Garth Graham

A Rake by Starlight - Chapter 20

WHEREIN a Business Agreement is Altered Further

Griff peered over a glass of Stellis Blue at Cutter and frowned slightly. “I don’t really understand what you just said. Try to use smaller words.”

Cutter grinned—a lopsided, wolfish grin that didn’t reach the left side of his face due to the scar tissue that ran from temple to chin. “Don’t feel bad, Skip.”

“I don’t. I don’t have to know everything, I just need to know who to ask. That’s why I’m asking you. Just—smaller words.”

“Right.” Cutter se...

A Rake by Starlight - Chapter 19

WHEREIN Our Hero Embraces the Nobility of Retreat

“He wanted to offer you a job?”

Grif lay on one of the couches in the Wardroom, face covered by a damp cloth, a half-empty bottle in one hand, a half-filled glass in the other. Amys, Morgan, and Cyrus sat in chairs pulled up close, each staring at him in astonishment. Ktk stood nearby, fidgeting.

Grif reached up with the hand holding the bottle and pulled back a corner of the cloth, exposing one eye. He focused on Amys.

“No,” he said, voice muf...

Horeb's Shadow: Chapter 06

Fullerton Heights Precinct

Detective Harold Morris eases back in his uncomfortable wooden chair and squints at the computer screen. he’s trying to convince himself he doesn’t need bifocals. The argument is not going well.

“Need help there, partner?” The man sitting across the table has shaggy blonde hair, pale blue eyes, and a perpetual teasing smirk that never quite coaxes itself into a grin.

Morris scowls. “I’m just trying to read the incident report. Not my fault they make the text so damn...

Horeb's Shadow: Chapter 07

A Few Days Later

January in Fullerton Heights is usually a fierce month, and this January is no exception. It started snowing the last week of December, really let loose early in the month, and every few days it snows just enough to undo all the work everyone did the days before to clear it. Today’s snowstorm hit early, so it got dark early. It’s even darker now.

Heat blows fiercely out of floor vents, but the house is still cold. It always feels cold these days. Elijah knows it has nothing to...

Horeb's Shadow: Chapter 05

January

He wakes up in their bed—still on his side, as always—and for a moment, as always, he is the way he was before. He stretches, mutters to himself about the alarm not going, and begins to turn toward her, only to realize an instant too late that the bed is empty. For him, that is the cruelest moment of the day: the moment when he realizes, once again, that Sarah isn't there.

He sits up, takes a moment to steady himself, and notices he's shivering. He set the thermostat too low again. He'...