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ENO VOLT
A short story from the world of FUTUREPERFECTED.

Eno Volt was the life and soul of the party. Which party? Any party you’d care to mention. Life in Roxy was one big party. It was never meant to be that way, it just happened, slowly then suddenly all at once. The way binderweed starts out as a couple of leaves and then next time you look it’s all stringlike strands and yellow trumpets strangling the life out of some other, more delicate species. For the people who frequented Roxy...

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INFINITE DREAMLAND
A short story from the world of FUTUREPERFECTED.

The broad green leaves of a large tree moved slightly in the breeze that made its way through the land. It had stirred the flowers of wild rose nearby, lifting perfume from them and enveloping them in its unseen arms, carrying it off, then pouring it out like a libation throughout the nearby land for any that passed to share. Malat Zappran caught the subtle perfume and acknowledged it with a lifting of his head to better breathe it in through his nose. He leant against...

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FUTUREPERFECTED
The future - unfolding before your very eyes.

The rust-orange spires of Twisted Building punctuated the sky near the place where she lived. Its powder-like colour reminded her of the dyed fingers of a reveller’s hand she had once seen, in The City, in what now seemed the distant past. It had been nearly two years since she had first come to this place but it seemed like a lifetime ago. Twisted Building had been her landmark throughout that time. It stood at a distance, a dull brown initially but time had eroded its metal...

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Fear Of Snow
a Tentacle Tales short story from beyond the world of The Rising Tentacle.

They say that every snowflake is different. As Dan Armstrong walked along Harbour Street two nights before Christmas with large flakes of snow swirling and flipping and floating all around, he pondered the statement, wondering just who they were. From the human’s eye view, in amongst the falling flakes of white, the soft cold touch and ensuing melt on warm skin, they all look the same. Uniform blobs of white, dancing before the eyes. But at the microscopic level, the flakes...

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Sauce
a Tentacle Tales short story from beyond the world of The Rising Tentacle.

It was Monday and Dan Armstrong was about to start two night shifts as an orderly at Mingsport Hospital. Dan didn’t like nights but nor did he loathe them, they were just nights, an upset to the circadian rhythms he had gotten used to over the years. He just took them as they came and got through them. The last few evenings had been mild, not so muggy now and a waxing moon started to claim its domain. Birds could be seen skittering across the sky...

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Graft
a Tentacle Tales short story from beyond the world of The Rising Tentacle.

The alarm clock rang all too soon for the liking of Dan Armstrong. Light was starting to cast back the cloak of night with slow, feeble hands and Dan had to scrape sleep from his mind as another day requested his presence, however informally. He swung his legs around, out from under the sheet and thin blanket that had provided respite from the night’s cool air and felt for his slippers with a foot. He found a book. It didn’t fit.

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THE DARK NIGHT
a story of unimaginable horror, with funny bits - being Part III of what is, The Rising Tentacle.

Chapter 1 - Telegrams And Travel Plans
Egypt - Land of the Pharaohs. Which is fair enough, if you like that sort of thing but what with; your old friend being abducted by some winged beast, the prospect of another long journey by sea and the feeling that something...

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TRANSATLANTIC TERROR
a story of unimaginable horror, with funny bits - being Part II of what is, The Rising Tentacle.

Chapter 1 - The Calling
The clock that stood in the corner of Harold’s room had been mended. It had a tock and it had played happily with the tick for several weeks until it stopped again. All that remained now was an annoying tick, tick, tick and that really ticked him off!

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A FEAR OF THE DARK
a story of unimaginable horror, with funny bits - being Part I of what is, The Rising Tentacle.

Dedication
I couldn't have written this book without acknowledging the key role played by my old friend, the keyboard. Well, I could have used a pen and paper and, if truth be known, I did use a bit for some notes...

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SCAREDY CAT
an Older Tale short story from before the world of The Rising Tentacle.

There has always been something about cats that disturbed me. Kittens are cute, they are soft, balls of playful fluff but there is a certain time when the playful aspect turns. They become well, serious. The time cannot be defined, there is no specific point in time that we can discern. It just, happens.

I had known people with cats and had never given them a thought. To me...

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BEDLAM
an Older Tale short story from before the world of The Rising Tentacle.

The Personal Diary of Eric Helman
Today was my first day at the sanatorium. Doctor Waston had afforded me every courtesy in his letter of reply, welcoming me to spend time in research for my novel and had assured me of every cooperation. He would be personally showing me around the facility and introducing me to suitable subjects for analysis.

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DE'AD MANSE
an Older Tale short story from before the world of The Rising Tentacle.

'Be ever watchful'
It was the eve of All Hallows' when first I arrived at De'ad Manse, an auspicious timing for such an arrival. It was a bleak place, this rambling of buildings and it still is, a bleak, bleak place. On the day of my arrival, the sun shone strongly as only autumn sun can, splitting through the thinning branches...

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