Love in Dark Settings

I should have known that my Muse would turn my little bit of prompt fiction into a full-blown novella. By the time I reached Chapter Two, he was demanding that I stop doing everything else in my life in order to spend a fortnight reading Muse-friendly fiction; only under those circumstances would he supply me with the rest of the story.

He's like that. This is why I usually only compose stories in the fall and winter, when I can give him my full service and devotion.

So I'm just going to post the first chapter now. It works well as prompt fiction on its own, and it satisfies half the prompt fic requests. The rest of the novella I'll work on in October and will post as my holiday gift fic for this year. Sorry that it can't be finished sooner than that, but I've got a heck of a lot of offline work to do before the end of summer.

(By the way, I forgot to mention that I've added a brief historical note to Rebirth.)

Parental supervision is strongly suggested. This story includes major spoilers for Rebirth.

He was weaponless. Or rather, not quite weaponless, for he knew what he was capable of doing with his body, but he bore no blade, nor any whip, nor any lead pipe with which to stun his victim, nor any rope with which to strangle the victim . . . The number of potential weapons he had deliberately laid aside was frighteningly high.

New online fiction. Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

If the High Seeker wants something, no power in life or death will hold him from taking it. What he wants now has brought danger to the Eternal Dungeon.

One of the jokes of the Eternal Dungeon was that Layle Smith had designed the Seekers' hoods, and that he had done so for the sole purpose of forcing prisoners to focus their attention upon his cold eyes. It was a joke that inevitably brought nervous laughter.

Comments, queries, and oodles of vigorous discussions are welcome.

New online fiction. Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

Unexpected danger reveals to a torturer the dark mystery of his mentor's past – as well as unpleasant revelations about himself.

"I believe that your suffering will make a difference to the prisoners. Otherwise, I would not send you there."


On another topic: I'm enjoying the Eternal Dungeon story discussions but am not feeling terribly comfortable about being the person to offer the opening question. Would somebody here like to post an opening question or comment to start off the conversation?

(Yes, of course you could have done this all along without my prompting. But maybe now that the discussions have gotten rolling, people will feel less inhibited about posting comments.)

At any rate, this is due warning that - as with all my story announcements - there may be major spoilers in the comments.

New online fiction. Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

One man seeks to heal from abuse. The other man dreams of abusing. Now they're in love.

He was trying to imagine abuse at the same time he was trying to keep his love-mate from remembering abuse; he could have cried at the absurdity of it.

New online fiction. Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

As a torturer learns the art of questioning prisoners, he discovers that the word "love" can have a darker meaning than he had supposed.

He examined the titles there: Racks, A Manual for Woodworkers; Pain and Punishment in Our Queendom's Prisons; Spikes and Their Usage; One Hundred Techniques for Breaking a Prisoner; Man's Cruelty to Man . . . After a while he winced.

He has taken his first step to being accepted by the other prisoners. But what is the secret of the missing prisoners?

Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

He had never liked being the center of attention at Mercy Prison; being noticed at a life prison always brought the wrong sort of attention. With any luck, here at Compassion he could fade back into anonymity and live a quiet life. And damnation to hell to Tom Keeper, who wanted him to help change conditions at Compassion Prison.

Michael has survived poverty, prostitution, and the loss of love, but not even his partner may be able to help him overcome the latest challenge.

Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

"You'll break his heart." "He's got no heart. That's the point. Have you ever seen him cry?"

The second half of Noble is now available online. In addition, the next volume of the series has been announced. The next volume's summary and excerpts have major spoilers for the first volume, so it would be best not to scroll down to it till you're through with the first.

The blood throbbed through my wrist as though his fingers were still clamped there. I turned stiffly to face him.

It is intended as the model pleasure house, the one that will transform the manner in which male prostitution is conducted in the kingdom of Vovim. But Michael's House is facing ruin – unless one of the partners falls back on old ways.

Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

It was when Michael's voice went flat and his face drained of expression that Janus would begin to worry.

The final part of "Debt Price" is now online.

Parental supervision is strongly suggested for this story.

"You owe me a debt. A death for a life."

The final part of Blood Vow is now online.

"If you cannot serve me, then you must be my captive."

The final story of the serialization is online. For adults only.

A rude top and an interfering family member prove to be an explosive combination at the Eagle bar.

The brothers of the Lawnville Leather/Levi Club always back each other, no matter how dire the circumstances. As I was to learn shortly.

Yes, I know I said I wouldn't be releasing Whipster this year. As a compromise, here is the first part reposted; it can be read as a stand-alone novella. It's also available as a Kindle e-book.

Running a business seemed a simple enough matter: you learned what the patron wanted, and you forced an employee to satisfy his needs. Then along came the new boy.

Now the centuries-old system of male prostitution in the Kingdom of Vovim is in danger of being overturned in favor of a new way of doing business. But will the young man who is carrying out this revolution be able to keep himself from repeating history?

"We'll be hiring the finest craftsfolk in the city, giving them hours of training to perfect their much-demanded skills and allow them to perform their tasks to the peak of their mastery – and the peak of the satisfaction of those who buy our goods."

The second part of "Debt Price" is now online.

He woke finally to discover that his chamber was on fire.

The fifth part of Blood Vow is now online.

"The only way in which to bring peace," said the governor, "is to find this Koretian rebel-leader and kill him."

The fourth part of Blood Vow is now online.

"Here we are in a land with no native law of its own, whose people have always depended on the whims of passion to decide their loyalties . . . or else have followed the commands of enigmatic and irrational gods. I hope that you do not allow this visit to confuse your carefully acquired Emorian sensibilities as to the proper definition of loyalty."

The fourth story of the serialization is online. For adults only.

The narrator goes on the hunt at a college ballroom dance.

I don't know what to call the way I can always pick out those guys in a crowd. My friend Martin calls it "gaydar," which leads to us having long arguments over whether being able to tag a guy who doesn't know he's gay counts as gaydar.

Master Trent has another word for it. He calls it "corruption."

The third part of Blood Vow, "The Look of the Chara," is now online.

"You have not been raped or killed or enslaved, or watched as your city was destroyed on the orders of the Chara."

The second part of Blood Vow, "Land of the Chara," is now online.

"This Koretian dog speaks with a barbaric tongue and comes from a barbaric land, one which has no order or laws. Yet if I were to take him, in three months you would find him thinking and acting like a civilized Emorian. If you know how to discipline a slave, as I do, such transformations are accomplished with ease."

The second story of the serialization is online. For adults only.

Can an Old Guard top survive in a world with safe words?

Spontaneous (scroll down to "Online Edition").