Alex Sultan

Author on Reedsy Prompts since May, 2021

Stories (39)

39 Stories

5314 karma pts

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“Relic Hunter” by Alex Sultan

A fool steps into the unknown. An explorer finds their way back. Vali considered herself the better of the two. She raised her map against the buffeting sands, grains rapping against the paper. Relics and scrolls shifted in her pack as she stumbled, the wind picking up. Vali covered her face with her arm, squinting at the dunes ahead, the piles of sand as tall as mountains. An endless desert. An orange sun set on the horizon.Savour the sand that stings your face, Valianne, Xqoaix spoke. She would never e...

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“Iriewani” by Alex Sultan

Shells rained upon Ramree Island.Takuro struggled—hands trembling—to load bullets into his rifle. The ammunition slipped between his fingers, hitting the dirt, rolling in the trench. He brought his head down as bombs whistled. They landed close enough to make him jump, dirt spattering his eyes. Shrapnel cut his uniform.Dazed, reeling, Takuro got to his feet, stumbling. He turned his head. His allies to the right affixed bayonets onto their Arisaka rifles. Banzai! Banzai! Banzai! They charged the British and Indian s...

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“5 Minutes Past” by Alex Sultan

Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Soyeon would try one more time. She stepped into the library, stretching her arms behind her, ready for another attempt. She’d get it this time for sure. Without a doubt. Everything down to the second had been memorized, and she wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.Soyeon checked the notes on her phone, then approached...

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“Highway Robbery” by Alex Sultan

Diamonds, wealth, luxury—none of it holds a torch to self-preservation. Vaux sorted through a storage trunk, pushing aside a framed photo and picking up a coin purse. The silver pieces clinked together in the pouch. His crew looted the rest of the caravan, pulling apart cupboards and drawers, taking whatever they could find.It’d been ages since one travelled down their roads.“The law,” a merchant called, “is going to get all of you.” He struggled against the rope binding his hands, his face in the dirt. Two dead guard...

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“Middknight's Cavalry” by Alex Sultan

cw: violence Like lightning, Middknight’s cavalry never needed to strike twice. Eleanor pulled the reins on her horse and cued him to turn. Hooves pushed into the field’s grass. They picked up speed, wind blowing her hair behind her, and Eleanor raised a stick to the air. Her makeshift sword—she would be the first woman from Middknight to ride a horse into battle.Someday.Until then, she found herself like every other woman training for the army. Atop a pegasus. A pure white, flying horse. One that could control...

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“Soul Reaving” by Alex Sultan

cw: mature subject matter, graphic violence Everything was ready for the ritual, and Aluin found there were more ways to enlightenment than divinity—more ways to power than training or speeches.A book in the hands of an occultist. Wrapped in chains, locked shut, hieroglyphs written down its spine. Dangerous work from unstable scholars. Practices better left unread. Aluin stood still in a cell as the occultist drew symbols on the wall, eye-stalks and claws, then lit candles.Bloodied tentacles twitched around him. Offer...

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“28 Letters” by Alex Sultan

A gem can not be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials. Sejong swept his books off the shelf. Rain pelted the world outside. The king opened one of his many works, the spine of it splitting under his force, and read off a page. Nongsa jikseol, methods of cultivation in agriculture. A guidebook to farming in Korea’s geography. Words that could keep his people from famine.He threw it into the rain. It splashed against the mud-coated field, water distorting the ink. A second book follo...

145 comments 145 WINNER 🏆

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“Arc” by Alex Sultan

Kel could not spark his lightning. He snapped his fingers but could not amass a charge. He sat powerless atop a bell tower, sunset on the horizon, a horde of ghouls clawing at the stone down below. His finger hit his palm. He waited for the scratch of static within, the rumble in his hands and blue glow at the edges of his vision, yet his lightning would not spark.Hundreds of ghouls crowded below. Decayed hands grabbed at the stone. Their rotting bodies created a pyramid as they piled over one another, climbing halfway ...

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“Korea 2108” by Alex Sultan

cw: mature subject matter, violenceThe most dangerous weapons to the world are the ones that live and breathe.Welding sparks flew off Kang Choi-ri’s skin. A wire surgeon worked to fuse a speaker into his shoulder, binding the device against Kang’s steel-laced bones. He replaced patches of skin with pale-colored plates, switched to a solder, and wired the speaker into his muscle system.A radio played century-old rap music throughout the basement. Neon-lit posters on the wall showed men with mechanical arms, ...

31 comments 31 SHORTLIST ⭐️

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“Shortcut” by Alex Sultan

For good reason, not all paths and trails are marked on every map. Marko kicked through piles of autumn leaves at the roadside. His parents had refused him a ride, he couldn’t afford the train, and hopping the bus without change didn’t work out. It'd be a three-hour walk back to Moscow.A car drove behind him. He turned. It didn’t come from the end of the road, but halfway as if it drove out of the forest. He waved his hand, slowly, inspecting the vehicle as it approached and stopped.Purple stains, like splashes of wet...

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“A Thousand Years in Tokyo” by Alex Sultan

Anyone who wins the lottery on their first ticket should be considered a time traveler. A win on their second ticket as well and they're giving themselves away. Takeshi yawned. The car radio read 2:45 a.m. He drank the last of his coffee, cold and bitter, then clicked on the overhead lights. In a couple of minutes, a woman by the name of Naoko Asari would walk out of the gas station with two winning lottery tickets. She’d cash them in before returning to her time.He would arrest her before she could.Takeshi checked hi...

61 comments 61 SHORTLIST ⭐️

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“Merchant Boat” by Alex Sultan

Park counted fourteen bricks of cocaine on the merchant boat. Fourteen duct-taped, condensed packages, tucked beneath fishing nets at the bottom of shipping crates. He laughed under his breath, holding the nets up and counting the bricks out once more. Fourteen. Enough to land him ten years in prison. He propped open the hull's storage and stepped back. “Hey, Jin,” he called. “Do you think it’s too late to back out?”The boat swayed as Jin hopped on. Park stood aside and brought his hand up against the su...

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“snowfall” by Alex Sultan

Snow can fall at a speed of up to two meters per second. In the right moment, however, it could feel like an eternity. Zhu leaned back in her chair, listening to it creak. She listened to the monotonous clicking of a dozen office keyboards. The two-note tone of phones rang further off, followed by muffled conversations. She listened while wishing she could step outside and be a part of winter. Be a part of it like she had as a kid. Even after twelve years, that same train of thought came with every snowfall. She breathe...

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“7 Knights” by Alex Sultan

TW: violenceEmrys sat alongside five other knights, all of them knowing tonight would be their last alive.The flames of their campfire flickered in the wind. He pushed a log into the midst of it and listened to it crackle. The surrounding knights—the ones that could eat—picked bones out of river fish. Emrys dropped the corpse of a fish in the grass, grabbed a stick, and drew in the dirt.“One more time?” Bran asked.“Yeah,” Emrys said, nodding. He drew the village in three squares, sealing the exit points off wit...

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“Azure Rainforest” by Alex Sultan

For an entire half-hour, Cynthia threw up what felt like her body weight in blood, and by some miracle, she did not die. Passing out would’ve been nice. Her throat and stomach burned like she had drunk raw acid. Still conscious after the vomiting, she stared at the pool of blood drowning the blue grass. Blue grass. The grass glowed with an azure hue. This couldn’t be Earth anymore, could it?“Can you stand?” a quiet voice asked.Her arms trembled as she held herself up. It wouldn’t be long until they gave, and ...

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Author bio

23 / Canada writing a novel - 'Grace of a Goddess' on a grand scale email - alexsultan27@gmail.com instagram - alexsultan27 something about copyright send an email if youre going to use my stories somewhere

Winning 2 stories 🏆

Contest #139

buried in saipan – read story

Contest #115

28 Letters – read story

Shortlisted 4 stories ⭐️

Contest #128

Zero – read story

Contest #125

Medic – read story

Contest #112

Korea 2108 – read story

Contest #109

A Thousand Years in Tokyo – read story