Dark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction: Dark Horses Magazine, #1
()
About this ebook
/ˈdärk ˈˌhôrs/
noun
1. a candidate or competitor about whom little is known but who unexpectedly wins or succeeds.
"a dark-horse candidate"
Join us for a bi-monthly tour of writers who give as good as they get. From hard science-fiction to stark, melancholic apocalypses; from Lovecraftian horror to zombies and horror comedy; from whimsical interludes to tales of unlikely compassion--whatever it is, if it's weird, it's here. So grab a seat before the starting gun fires, pour yourself a glass of strange wine, and get ready for the running of the dark horses.
In this issue:
"The Burning Cathedral of Summer" by Wayne Kyle Spitzer
"The Hornet Priest" by Kurt Newton
"The Silhouette Shop" by M. Kari Barr
"Growing Season" by Davin Ireland
"A Whisperer Among the Graves" by Bill Link
Wayne Kyle Spitzer
Wayne Kyle Spitzer (born July 15, 1966) is an American author and low-budget horror filmmaker from Spokane, Washington. He is the writer/director of the short horror film, Shadows in the Garden, as well as the author of Flashback, an SF/horror novel published in 1993. Spitzer's non-genre writing has appeared in subTerrain Magazine: Strong Words for a Polite Nation and Columbia: The Magazine of Northwest History. His recent fiction includes The Ferryman Pentalogy, consisting of Comes a Ferryman, The Tempter and the Taker, The Pierced Veil, Black Hole, White Fountain, and To the End of Ursathrax, as well as The X-Ray Rider Trilogy and a screen adaptation of Algernon Blackwood’s The Willows.
Read more from Wayne Kyle Spitzer
The Concrete Veldt Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lean Season Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDinosaur Rampage Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Once and Future Kings Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Sex War Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Ghosts in Their Boroughs Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Fields Tinged with Red Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Wine Dark Passage: An Apocalyptic Coming of Age Story Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLean Season: Contemporary Tales of Primordial Terror Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Midnight Zephyr: Stories of Youth and the Fantastic Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Devil's Dictionary Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTales from the Flashback Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Complete Flashback Saga Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Reign of Thunder (Second Edition) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Magnificent Bastards: 3 Realms ... 3 Unlikely Champions Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Midnight Country Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Food of the Gods Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHunter and Hunted: Horror Stories of Predators and Prey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDemonosaur: A Tale of Blood, the Sea, and Revenge Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKings of the Road: The New Ank and Williams Adventure Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Tempter and the Taker Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Boy Who Fell to Earth: A Novel About Coming of Age Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAmerican Monsters: Horror Stories Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Burning Cathedral of Summer: Stories of Darkness and Youth Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFlashback Dawn: A Free Teaser Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Dark Horses
Titles in the series (28)
Dark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | March, 2022 | No. 2: Dark Horses Magazine, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | June 2022 | No. 5: Dark Horses Magazine, #5 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | April 2022 | No. 3: Dark Horses Magazine, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction: Dark Horses Magazine, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | May, 2022 | No. 4: Dark Horses Magazine, #4 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 8 | September 2022: Dark Horses Magazine, #8 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | August 2022 | No. 7: Dark Horses Magazine, #7 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | No. 16 | May 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #16 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | July 2022 | No. 6: Dark Horses Magazine, #6 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 9 | October 2022: Dark Horses Magazine, #9 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 10 | November 2022: Dark Horses Magazine, #10 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 11 December 2022: Dark Horses Magazine, #11 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 12: Dark Horses Magazine, #12 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 13 | February 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #13 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 14 | March 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #14 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 17: Dark Horses Magazine, #17 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 15 | April 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #15 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 19 | August 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #19 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 22 | November 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #22 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 18 | July 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #18 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 25 | February 2024: Dark Horses Magazine, #25 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 27: Dark Horses Magazine, #27 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 23 | December 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #23 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 20 | September 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #20 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 21 | October 2023: Dark Horses Magazine, #21 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 26 | March 2024: Dark Horses Magazine, #26 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 28 - May 2024: Dark Horses Magazine, #28 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 24 | January 2024: Dark Horses Magazine, #24 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related ebooks
The Burning Cathedral of Summer: Stories of Darkness and Youth Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWakinyan's Valley Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSalvos on the Backwater: A Novel of the Civil War Period Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Above the Falls Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Range Boss Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Hunger and the Cold Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Reverse Takeover - Part 2: The Reverse Takeover, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJewel of Promise (Treasure Quest Book #4) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Watchers: The Trekana, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction | April 2022 | No. 3: Dark Horses Magazine, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIt Happened on a Train Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5O Fortuna: Lower Heaven, Episode Two Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Young Lion Hunter Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRoger Trewinion Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Quokkas' Christmas Quest Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Kopje Garrison: A Story of the Boer War Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsScreams in the Night Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Whitewater Crossing: A Casey Jones Columbia River Adventure Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSolitary Island and Other Strange Tales Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGhost at Work Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The American Sun & Wind Moving Picture Company Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsZombie Co-Pilot Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWithershins Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Baetylus Stone Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFishing Forever: Tales from the river bank of a very different kind! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCABIN: AN ALASKA WILDERNESS DREAM Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Young Lion Hunter by Zane Grey - Delphi Classics (Illustrated) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAdventure in Gold Town Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFor Everyone Concerned: & Other Stories Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Wild Man Island Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Horror Fiction For You
It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Annihilation: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Only Good Indians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I Am Legend Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Leave the World Behind: A Read with Jenna Pick Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Brother Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Complete Short Stories Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Hollow Places: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Stories of Ray Bradbury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Troop Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Cabin at the End of the World: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Misery Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Whisper Man: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Needful Things Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dracula Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pet Sematary Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5We Have Always Lived in the Castle Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Best Friend's Exorcism: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Revival: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hell House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Watchers: A thrilling Gothic horror soon to be a major motion picture Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Different Seasons Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Outsider: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Deep Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5John Dies at the End Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Weiser Book of Horror and the Occult: Hidden Magic, Occult Truths, and the Stories That Started It All Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Firestarter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Pale Blue Eye: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Dark Horses
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Dark Horses - Wayne Kyle Spitzer
CONTENTS
––––––––
THE BURNING CATHEDRAL OF SUMMER
Wayne Kyle Spitzer
THE HORNET PRIEST
Kurt Newton
––––––––
THE SILHOUETTE SHOP
M. Kari Barr
––––––––
GROWING SEASON
Davin Ireland
––––––––
A WHISPERER AMONG THE GRAVES
Bill Link
THE BURNING CATHEDRAL OF SUMMER
Wayne Kyle Spitzer
Do it,
Orley urged, and though I didn’t look at him, I could feel those earnest brown eyes looking at me—eyes that always seemed just a little too intense, as if he might burst into tears or kick your ass at any moment.
We made a pact, kid,
said Kevin, his voice low, his intonation world-weary—even though he was the same age as the rest of us—Han Solo to the core, at least for today. Besides, this was your idea.
I hesitated, the sharpened stick wavering, as the big, green caterpillar inched across the pavement. I know.
I watched as the insect’s bulbous sections undulated, rising and falling, glistening in the sun. It’s just that—
Here,
said Orley.
He took his own stick and used it to roll the caterpillar onto its back, where it curled into a fetal position and promptly froze, looking like a shrimp at the Chuck Wagon buffet, its multitude of little legs ceasing to move, its tiny antennae holding perfectly still.
Okay, read that passage. The one about daring to approach the gods. You know, where it talks about blood and danger and becoming like gods ourselves. I saw you bookmark it.
I looked at the book, The Encyclopedia of Death and Dying—which was lying atop my orange nylon schoolbag precisely where I’d left it—and stood, hefting the volume and cutting to the mark. The sun passed behind a cloud as I read, Participants in blood sacrifice rituals often experience a sense of awe, danger, or exaltation, because they are daring to approach the gods who create, sustain, and destroy life. Therefore, morale is strengthened by the ritual killing, because the group has itself performed the godlike act of destruction—and is now capable of renewing its own existence.
There was a slight breeze, which seemed to give the proceedings a funereal air, and I continued, The underlying philosophical assumption is that life must pass through death.
Orley said, That’s it. Okay. So.
He looked from me to Kevin—earnestly, intensely—gripping the sharpened stick. Considering what’s ahead of us ...
He paused, letting that sink in. I think we all know what we have to do.
He added: And why.
We thought about it, the sun beating down, the breeze jostling our hair. The lake. The sword. The visitations in our dreams. We knew.
"So I say we get to it ... before the Valley Boys show up and it’s too late. Way too late."
I looked at Kevin—who just looked at me with that Zen Master expression of his but seemed to confirm—before again crouching by the caterpillar. And then we all gripped our sticks—and prepared to do something really shitty.
By the time the sun re-emerged the caterpillar had crawled across the sidewalk and into the grass—leaving us more than a little red-faced, not to mention uncertain as to what had just happened. Mostly, I think, we were just relieved.
I couldn’t do it,
said Kevin wistfully, Not with the kid here.
I raised my eyebrows and looked at him, as if to say: Fucking what, dude?
He started to smile but caught it.
Orley elbowed me. Hey, hey, why didn’t you?
He looked at me earnestly, calmly—as though he were all ears, all understanding. Then he deadpanned, It was the gay thing, wasn’t it?
And then they both laughed, falling about on the grass, even as I ignored them, thinking about it.
I don’t know. It just ... it felt like ...
I looked at them in the sun. Like we would be killing ourselves ... not the caterpillar. Or a part of ourselves. Like, a version of ourselves. The ideal version.
They paused, looking at each other, processing this.
So the gay thing,
said Orley, and held up his hand—which Kevin promptly high-fived.
I must have just stared at them as they bumped fists and swiped palms. What’s that? Foreplay?
And then they were both crawling toward me, sneering menacingly, and by the time the Valley Boys rumbled up in their chopped and channeled Chevy (as opposed to our learning permits and BMX bikes), everything had devolved into an out-of-control wrestling match; a match which ended only when Todd Benson, the leader of our bullies, shouted, Are you faggots finished? Because there’s a lot of miles between here and the lake. And it’s getting late.
Jesus,
he said as we clambered into the backseat, the gear in our schoolbags clanking and thumping. You think you brought enough?
Should have charged them by weight,
added Mickelson. He twisted in the front passenger seat and glared at us. You runts planning on camping there or moving in?
Just Mickelson. This was going to be easier than we thought.
Listen,
snapped Orley. Hearing you run your mouth wasn’t part of the—
Money,
said Benson, and reached over his shoulder. Twenty now, twenty when we get there. As agreed.
We all looked at each other.
At last we dug into our jeans and pulled out our bills—Orley and I, at any rate (I had a five left over from my allowance and he had some ones, tips from his job at the golf course). Kevin, meanwhile, had reached into his backpack and was fishing around for something, straining. It couldn’t have been easy; he hadn’t taken it off. None of us had.
A moment later he withdrew a purple Crown Royal bag and handed it to Mickelson, whose hand dropped from the weight of it. Is this a fucking joke?
Nope. Seven dollars, counted and rolled.
Mickelson just stared at him—as though he might jab him right then and there.
Take it, asshole,
said Benson. He glanced at Kevin through the rear-view mirror. "It’s the money he’s been saving for Star Wars figures."
Mickelson took the bag and appeared to set it on the floor before turning up the stereo and cocking his arm out the window, still shaking his head. Moments later, looking in the side-view mirror, he said, There they are. Right on time.
We all glanced at each other—before craning to look through the rear window and seeing Jud Spelvin’s rodded out Ford Falcon bearing down upon us, its chromed stacks glinting and its headlights shining, and its cab virtually crammed with pasty-faced seniors, at least one of whom I recognized as Buddy LaCombe—the third biggest asshole at Prosperous High. And, considering twenty was all we’d had and we planned to hit and run, this was a problem.
I looked at Benson through the rearview mirror and saw him smirk at our reaction.
Awww,
he said, and pretended to pout. Why so sad? You didn’t think it would just be us, did you?
But nobody said anything, just stared straight ahead at the road, the road that would take us to Mirage Lake and the thing we’d left buried under the brush, as Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band sang "Fire Lake" and the sun crept toward the stark, blue horizon, and shafts of light pierced the trees—like spears through a sacrifice, I thought. Or sunlight through a cathedral.
It’s still hard to believe, what happened next. But then, it’s all hard to believe, especially now, almost 40 years later. Suffice it to say that we were only minutes from the lake when the deer ran out in front of us