Tag Archives: Fiction
GrogHeads Fiction: Heart of Dorkness
Henry Vogel, 7 January 2015
Renowned storyteller and gamer Henry Vogel returns with another bit of fictional fun.
The con had wound down. The fans all gone back to their mundane lives, leaving the five of us in the con suite. Our host, the Gaming Director, passed around what was left of the free sodas. We drank and stared out the window as darkness gathered in the skies above the hotel. The Power Gamer spoke of adventures long past with the Rules Lawyer interrupting whenever the Power Gamer incorrectly stated a rule. The rest of us listened, extending the camaraderie of the con just a bit longer.
As the Power Gamer wound down Marlow took over the narrative. “Ah, friend, you have put me in mind of ancient games and old times. Of when Third Edition conquered the gaming realms, banishing our cherished characters as mere second edition cardboard characters. The end of the era when all it took was a handful dice and a few spare minutes to bring your character to life.”
We all lifted our soda cans in salute to the bygone age as Marlow continued. “To learn this new approach to gaming, many of us of ventured forth to small cons, far from the great cities and great hotels of the major cons. I was among those who ventured far from game shops, far from comic book stores, far from civilization itself. I remember not the name of the con, just that my dear aunt was on the con committee and could get me in for free. Friends, a free con does not mean a good con. Let this serve as a warning to you.
Darkness Falls – A Short Story by Henry Vogel
Henry Vogel, 13 May 2013
Pulp adventure from master storyteller Henry Vogel
Working the biplane’s controls with the practiced ease only possible from a former flying ace, Cliff Hanger pointed to the hilltop farm ahead.
“Cote? Are you sure that’s the place?” Cliff yelled over the roar of the aeroplane’s engine.
Cliff’s younger brother struggled to keep the map open against the buffeting wind and yelled back, “If the little bit Beth managed to say over the telephone before she was cut off is correct, then that’s the place!”
Giving Cote a thumbs up signal, Cliff was about to turn back toward the hill when he saw the other aircraft. Swooping down out of the sun and the clouds came half a dozen black-painted aeroplanes. Minions of the evil Doctor Darkness!
As he went into a barrel roll, Cliff hollered, “Doctor Darkness has sent us an unwelcoming party. Hang on, little brother!”
