Heroic Fantasy Quarterly #46, November 2020
“Weights and Measures” by Benjamin C. Kinney
“The Diamond Stars” by Robert Zoltan
“Sathano the Slayer” by Jeremy D. Farkas
Reviewed by Seraph
“Weights and Measures” by Benjamin C. Kinney
From the grand city of Verazza to the rural port of Senvosk, there are no borders to the Trader’s reach. This high fantasy story finds a Priestess of a far-reaching mercantile deity matching her faith, and her wits, against servants of a local but cunning hunter deity in a deadly game to recover a holy relic. From the word go, however, few things are as she determines them to be, and all her magical power does little to aid her. Her wits alone carry her through, albeit not to the ending she might have hoped for. The writing is smooth and evenly paced, with an ending that leaves plenty of room for further tales. There is even a fun take on the “all magic comes at a price” trope that gives it a far more literal interpretation. All in all, it is not only well-written but enjoyable, and left me wanting to read more adventures in this particular setting.
“The Diamond Stars” by Robert Zoltan
Usually, it is wise to leave the classics be, but occasionally someone succeeds in breathing new life into one. This story combined elements of what honestly seems like a fantastic D&D campaign, with all the feel of the Phantom of the Opera. Rather than just rehashing old tropes, nearly all of the story breathes anew while retaining the familiar threads of the classic. Set in the city of Merth, beneath the stars of Plemorra, two swords-for-hire find themselves chasing a phantom responsible for the nearly impossible thefts of diamonds. No trace left, seemingly capable of entering and vanishing through solid walls and barred windows, and nigh impossible to follow. The trail finds them chasing the phantom all throughout a famous theater house in a twisted tale of love, obsession, desire, and greed, until at last the curse is broken and a tormented soul laid to rest.
“Sathano the Slayer” by Jeremy D. Farkas
Many have contemplated the meaning of life and the measure of a man in their writings. Few of them manage to do so as clearly and elegantly as this story does. Mostly set in the fighting pits of Al Subakh in an indeterminate age of mysticism, there is plenty of intrigue and clawing for power and riches, but the true depth of the story rests in the soul of a champion fighter. Viewed and treated as little more than a beast by his captors, yet he mourns and prays for every life he has taken at their command. Survival is never an option for him, an instinctual mandate that he follows mercilessly. Yet this seemingly brutal, savage creature has more humanity than all the others who believe him lesser than they. There is a satisfying element of justice rendered at his own hands, and even after he finds a way out and leaves it all behind, the vicious cycle continues unabated. There is a clean line drawn between that which seems monstrous, and that which truly is.