Major Arcana Page 3

  As it turned out, there wasn’t much. In a growing wave of thunderous applause, the crowd rose to their feet and the curtain fell as MonaLisa gently descended to touch down on the stage once more. Her wings folded and were gone as quickly as they’d appeared, and she dipped into a graceful curtsey as flowers began to fly through the air, landing at her feet.

  Giovanni kept his eyes on his strange new allies as he clapped, watching as Zadkiel leapt up, put their fingers to their lips and gave a loud, high-pitched whistle. MonaLisa turned a radiant smile in their direction when they waved. Beside them, Letizia stood up much more slowly, languid, and looking very satisfied. She grinned as if she was personally responsible for the night’s success, even the soprano’s music and packed house’s adoring shouts. Like she’d seen the script ahead of time, and everything had gone perfectly according to plan. Giovanni envied her, but resolved they wouldn’t always be on such uneven footing. He’d quickly regain his equilibrium and the upper hand, monsters and tarot cards be damned.

  Still, he couldn’t help feeling this particular curtain-fall marked the close of his life’s previous act. When it rose again, nothing would be the same.

  The story continues on Patreon!

  patreon.com/ModulatingFrequencies

  Future episodes of Stake Sauce and Death Masquerade

  will debut exclusively on the

  Modulating Frequencies Patreon page.

  Not on Patreon? Stake Sauce, Volume I will be released in October 2017 from Kraken Collective Books.

  If you enjoyed this story, please consider leaving a review on a retailer. Every review, no matter how short, helps indie authors succeed. Thank you for your support!

  RoAnna Sylver is passionate about stories that give hope, healing and even fun for LGBT, disabled and other marginalized people, and thinks we need a lot more.

  Aside from writing oddly optimistic dystopia books, RoAnna is a blogger, artist, singer and voice actor, is an actual genetic mutant (and proud), knows too much about Star Trek, and lives with family and a small snorking dog near Portland, OR.

  The next adventure RoAnna would like is a nap in a pile of bunnies.

  Enjoyed “Major Arcana”? Check out these other great stories by RoAnna Sylver:

  Going Through the Motions (Stake Sauce, Arc 1, Act 1)

  ACT 1, IN WHICH: A cute punk-rock vampire and a disabled firefighter-turned-mall-cop with a dark past join forces to battle the forces of evil.

  Jude used to leap out of helicopters to rescue/protect people from terrifying infernos. Now, by day, he protects the local mall from rowdy teenagers who ride their skateboards inside. By night, he protects the the parking lot, and the rest of Portland, from undead, bloodsucking creatures of the darkness. Or would if he could find them. But he’s just about ready to give it up (living with PTSD and pain from the traumatic event that cost him a leg, a friend, and a lot more is hard enough), when something crashes into his life. And his window. It’s one of these creatures of the darkness – and he’s a lot less scary than expected. More cuddly, with dark fuzzy wings, and neon-bright hair.

  His name is Pixie, and he refuses to bite anyone. Assault/murder/draining fluids isn’t punk, even if being a vampire really kind of is. He’s very hungry by now, and the much bigger, meaner, deadlier vamps kick him around on the nightly. Jude would love to find and fight some actual undead bullies. And Pixie could use some help staying… ‘alive.’ Time to make a deal. Together they fight crime. And maybe even heal.

  Of course, life still sucks when you’re a vampire who refuses to suck blood. Fortunately, there’s a really interesting new barbecue restaurant in the mall, with an intriguing new recipe. (We hear that the secret ingredient is… love. No, really.)

  Chameleon Moon (Book One of the Chameleon Moon Series)

  The city of Parole is burning. Like Venice slips into the sea, Parole crumbles into fire. The entire population inside has been quarantined, cut off from the rest of the world, and left to die - directly over the open flame. Eye in the Sky, a deadly and merciless police force ensures no one escapes. Ever. All that’s keeping Parole alive is faith in the midst of horrors and death, trust in the face of desperation… and their fantastic, terrifying, and beautiful superhuman abilities.

  Regan, silent, scaly stealth expert, is haunted by ten years of anxiety, trauma and terror, and he’s finally reached his limit. His ability to disappear into thin air isn’t enough: he needs an escape, and he’ll do anything for a chance. Unluckily for him, Hans, a ghostly boy with a chilling smile, knows just the thing to get one. It starts with a little murder.

  But instead of ending a man’s life, Regan starts a new one of his own. He turns away from that twisted path, and runs into Evelyn, fearless force on stage and sonic-superheroic revolutionary on the streets. Now Regan has a choice—and a chance to not only escape from Parole, but unravel the mystery deep in its burning heart. And most of all, discover the truth about their own entwining pasts.

  They join forces with Evelyn’s family: the virtuosic but volatile Danae, who breathes life into machines, and her wife Rose, whose compassionate nature and power over healing vines and defensive thorns will both be vital to survive this nightmare. Then there’s Zilch, a cool and level-headed person made of other dead people, and Finn, one of Parole’s few remaining taxi drivers, who causes explosions whenever he feels anything but happy.

  Separately they’d never survive, much less uncover the secret of Parole’s eternally-burning fire. Together, they have a chance. Unfortunately, Hans isn’t above playing dirty, lying, cheating, manipulating… and holding Regan’s memories hostage until he gets his way.

  Parole’s a rough place to live. But they’re not dead yet. If they can survive the imminent cataclysmic disaster, they might just stay that way…

  The Lifeline Signal (Book Two of the Chameleon Moon Series)

  Parole is still burning. And now the day everyone has been waiting for is finally here: it’s collapsed. A lucky few managed to escape with their lives. But while their city burned, the world outside suffered its own devastating disaster. The Tartarus Zone is a deadly wasteland a thousand miles wide, filled with toxic storms, ghostly horrors, and just as many Eyes in the Sky as ever. Somehow, this new nightmare is connected to Parole. And it’s spreading.

  Now Parole’s only hope lies in the hands of three teenagers reunited by their long-lost friend Gabriel—in their dreams. Growing up outside Parole, Shiloh Cole always had to keep xir energetic powers a secret, except from xir parents, Parole’s strategist-hero Garrett, and Tartarus expert Maureen. When Parole collapsed, all contact was lost. Now, connected by Gabriel and their colliding pasts, xie joins collapse survivor Annie and the enigmatic, charismatic Chance on a desperate cross-country race, carrying a disc of xir mother’s vital plans, whose encrypted contents may be Parole’s salvation. First they’ll board the FireRunner, a ship full of familiar faces that now sails through Tartarus’ poison storms.

  Together, they’ll survive Tartarus’ hazards, send a lifeline to lost Parole—and uncover the mystery connecting every one of them. The world outside Parole isn't the one they remember, and it didn’t want them back. But they'll save it just the same. It's what heroes do.

  Life Within Parole (A Collection of Chameleon Moon Short Stories)

  Living in a city whose population has been quarantined and imprisoned over an eternally burning lake of fire isn't what most people would call a 'normal life.' Then there are the superhuman abilities. Thousands of people with wings, scales, telepathy, sonic blasts - 'normal' seems long gone. But life goes on. Eventually, everyone discovers that life within Parole is just as real, meaningful, fun, frightening, mundane, and survivable, as any other. Sometimes it's just a little more intense.

  This collection of seven short stories from the universe of Chameleon Moon gives readers a look at everyday life in Parole, and the colorful, memorable, and thoroughly human characters who call it home.

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  Also by RoAnna Sylver

  Chameleon Moon

  Chameleon Moon

  The Lifeline Signal

  Death Masquerade Short Stories

  Major Arcana

  Life Within Parole (Chameleon Moon Short Stories)

  Life Within Parole

  Un-Dead

  Life Within Parole: Volume 2 (Coming Soon)

  You're Not Going That Way

  Runtime - A Chameleon Moon Short Story

  Always Be You

  The Library Ghost and Happy "REGARDS"

  Lunar Requiem

  Moon-Bright Tides

  Stake Sauce

  Arc 1: The Secret Ingredient Is Love. No, Really

  Standalone

  But Not Up Here

  Write Good Sh*t

  Watch for more at RoAnna Sylver’s site.

  About the Author

  RoAnna Sylver is passionate about stories that give hope, healing and even fun for LGBT, disabled and other marginalized people, and thinks we need a lot more. Aside from writing oddly optimistic dystopia books, she is a blogger, artist, singer and voice actor.She lives with family and a small snorking dog, and probably spends too much time playing videogames. The next adventure RoAnna would like is a nap in a pile of bunnies.

  Read more at RoAnna Sylver’s site.