DAJB01

Sandrine has devoted her life to the Order of Charon, an organisation responsible for countless deaths. After almost a decade of faithful service, she is given a mission which forces her to question the very purpose of the Order and her role within it."Abhorrent Practices" is a fantasy adventure, which examines the issue of assisted suicide. That's not why you should read it though. You should read it beause it's fun, too. No, really! :-) Story, characters, names and all original elements: (C) David A J Berner. All rights reserved. Illustrations including all preparatory sketches: (C) E.C. Nickel. All rights reserved.…

DAJB01

Sandrine has devoted her life to the Order of Charon, an organisation responsible for countless deaths. After almost a decade of faithful service, she is given a mission which forces her to question the very purpose of the Order and her place within it. "Abhorrent Practices" is a fantasy adventure, which examines the issue of assisted suicide. That's not why you should read it though. You should read it because it's fun, too. (No, it is - really!) :-) Story, characters, names and all original elements: (C) David A J Berner. All rights reserved. Illustrations including all preparatory sketches: (C) E.C. Nickel. All rights reserved.…

DAJB01

You can learn a lot from gazing out to sea. But, for the Men of the Watch, it's not so much a pass time as an article of faith.This story was written a long, long time ago and, like the other short stories I've posted here, is a little over-written. As with the others, I've resisted the temptation to edit it and I've posted it here in all its original, if rather immature glory.In those days I often used to look for inspiration by scanning the titles of books listed at the back of the paperbacks on my bookshelf. One of the titles I stumbled across that way, was "Watchmen". I hadn't read it at that time, and I didn't even know it was a graphic novel. The title, though, was the jumping off point for this story. (N.B. I've since read "Watchmen" many times, and - in case the source of inspiration has got anyone excited - I should probably add that my little story bears no resemblance to Alan Moore's great opus!)…

DAJB01

Fathers will take any action to protect a child. But for Lokjorr, Lord of the Northern Dwarves, that action has unexpected consequences!This is a short story I must have written about twenty years ago for my sons, David and Richard. I raised them on a strict diet of The Hobbit and LotR, and so it was no surprise when they began collecting Warhammer miniatures. It's a story about dwarves and orcs, and two boys called David and Richard. What more can a father give?! ;-)The cover image is (I think) artwork for the MMO, Warhammer Online.…

DAJB01

Investigative reporters and playboy billionaires can leap into action at a moment's notice. Unlike other superheroes, however, Curtis Brent has a "real" job; one which requires him to be in the office, five days a week and from nine to five. That can't be good, can it?This is another short story I wrote many, many years ago, back when I was knee-high to a ... well, a knee. It has a curious approach to capitalisation and some rather long sentences (99 words in one of them!) but, as with the other stories from my past, I've resisted the temptation to re-edit it. For better or worse!The cover image was made using the "Create Your Own Superhero" tool at Marvel.com.…

DAJB01

Now and again everyone wonders what awaits us in the afterlife. Colin Durrell is about to find out!This is another short story I wrote many, many years ago, back when I was barely out of short trousers. Again, I've resisted the temptation to edit it, so it's a little over-written (although not nearly as much as The Stuff of Fairy Tales!) It was inspired by a line from the BBC tv adaptation of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. When Arthur Dent asks Slartibartfast (see cover image) his name, the old planet-builder replies that his name is "not important". And that's where this story came from!…

DAJB01

Life for a modern day princess is not exactly a fairy tale. But what if it were?I wrote this short story many, many moons ago when I was just a wee lad. It's a tad over-written (yes, even more than my recent stuff!) but I've resisted the temptation to edit it. I think it still has the ability to raise a smile here and there.The cover is an illustration by Paul Friedrich Meyerheim (1889).…