Ashen Lands
Ashen Lands
A Short Story
Authors & Illustrator
Author:
Tess
Manchester
Second Place Award
Fiction - Short Stories
Description
Blood, bullets, and the promise of tomorrow.
After the downfall, hardened soldier Randall Colt guards society’s last chance of restoration: a mysterious package he must deliver at all costs. To do so, he moves like a wolf through treacherous territories where peril skulks in the shadows.
While on the run from cutthroat raiders, two intrepid women hinder Colt’s covert objective, forcing him to violate his own rules and risk everything on a journey where weakness means death and trust equals demise. With every step, the newfound allies must fight through rivers of bodies, raging dust storms, and fierce enemies.
Will Colt complete his mission for the sake of humanity, or will he perish among the ruins, at the hands of vicious hostiles?
Ashen Lands is a gritty post-apocalyptic thriller that blends the savage action of Mad Max with economic intrigue, exploring how civilization might rebuild from ashes—one bullet and one hard choice at a time.