Tempest Phoenix Smith

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jun, 2023

Stories (45)

45 Stories

812 karma pts

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“Road Trip” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #291

Waking up disagreed with me so I resisted the process, clinging to the dream of throwing a stick for Dasher to fetch as we walked together through the Redwoods, a game I generally tired of before he did.Finally, I blinked myself awake to a reality that no longer held the Dachshund who had accompanied me on so many adventures. I knew my faithful companion still existed somewhere beyond the reach of even my deeper sense that tuned me in to so many things that full-blooded humans seldom perceived. Perhaps I had visited him in my dream or he had...

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“Hiding in Plain Sight” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #290

Going nowhere, parked up, hands resting on the steering wheel, I listened to the rain dancing on the car roof. I watched bright droplets shimmer on the windscreen wiped dutifully away by the repetitive ker-thup of the wipers. Beyond, the lighthouse rose like a giant white chess bishop surrounded by cloudy sky and overlooking the crash of the waves along the pebbled beach. I broke the trance my mind was sinking toward, released the wheel, flicked the wipers to neutral and turned off the ignition. I stared at the dangling keychain, carefu...

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“Popeye the Sailor’s Dog” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #289

The room is unfamiliar. I don’t know how I got here.Chrissy repeated the words to herself, eyes closed, until a scene from her past finally surfaced like a negative developing under the red light of her best friend’s improvised darkroom. The cramped dark space had made her too claustrophobic to share that part of the hobby, but they often did photo shoots together.Eleven years old and two thousand miles from home, Chrissy sat cross-legged in aqua shorts, a horizontally striped red and white t-shirt, tennis shoes and pink socks on the pale gr...

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“Risk” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #289

Emerald smiled the smouldering smile required and gave a coy wave with her fingers which implied she would be right back. No point in trying to say anything under the crashing heavy metal music that echoed from wall to wall inside the nightclub. The player’s greedy eyes reflected her gold spangles, no doubt already imagining her satisfying his every craving. Not so much player as predator—assuming she was his prey.Even a shade for hire needed to powder her nose now and then, realign her parameters due to excessive sensory input so as to...

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“Peace and Quiet” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #288

Trevor knocked again, knuckles loud, annoyed with the heavy rain already soaking through his shirt and continually pattering on his head like miniature fingers on a hairy drum.He searched the edges of the door for a doorbell in case he’d missed it, but no button to press.Florida was not living up to his expectations. How many others had been lured here by the promises of eternal sunshine and balmy breezes? Sharks ruining the idea of swimming in the ocean, bulbous frogs jumping out from bushes, their ugly corpses littering the roads and espec...

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“Maestro” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #287

The Maestro stared out of the broad bay window and watched the rain falling onto his capacious front gardens. His eyes followed the paved path to one side that led toward the distant street. He tried to imagine the steady progress of the sturdy black umbrella bobbing up the path, glimpsing the tweed coat and long grey skirt underneath as if the force of his will could make her appear.But he lost patience. “Where is the blessed Housekeeper?” he grumbled.The only answer was the tick of the grandfather clock which presided over his study.He loo...

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“Breaking the Rules” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #286

Meredith took another steadying breath as the train rumbled into Conway, giving her a view of the familiar estuary and the castle that held such a prominent place all during her childhood. Not long now. She toyed with her red silk scarf and relished the old-fashioned quiet of the carriage. That couple in the far corner quietly talking to each other, not lost in a pair of mobile phones. An old man reading a newspaper with evident pleasure, nodding to himself as he folded over to the next article. A woman turning another page of a pa...

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“Tempted by Tacos” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #285

I remember how impressed everyone was in the 1980s by a group of four travelling teachers invited to our place of worship. In those days, spiritual practices could not be explored on the internet, when, other than books which sometimes contradicted each other or confused more than they enlightened, teachers from various backgrounds and religious orientations were the only source of knowledge.  When they first disembarked on a Sunday morning from their white minivan with the inspiring logo and inscription on the side, the driver, we...

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“The Truth of the Matter” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #284

Toward the end of November 1984, Scott lingered in that comfortable place between the end of sleep and the beginning of consciousness as if, by now, instinct made him dread waking up.And instinct was right.As he opened his eyes and stared at the pale blue ceiling, the awareness slammed into him. Today, as the counsellor had suggested, he tried to isolate how this related to his physical body. Was it like losing a leg? No, not by half. This was more as if some shadowy nightmare had ripped his heart out while he slept and replaced it...

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“What Really Happened” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #283

I woke to the most delicious warmth so I kept my eyes closed at first. And the smell of, what was it? Oh, cinnamon, the best spice of all.I almost fell asleep again, but the cheery jangle of a bell woke me up. I opened my eyes as a draught of air came across me and the warmth ebbed away in a blur of movement and brightness.Then I was lifted up and put down again on a cool surface, as a woman said, “I’ll have that one, he looks jolly.”Fingers reached for me and the face of a young lass loomed over me, smiling and saying, “Yes, ...

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“Missing Ingredient” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #282

Sethaster ascended the ladder that gave access to the higher shelves of the scriptorium bookcases. The young mage deliberately did not think of what he was looking for in case such thoughts propelled the precious item to hide itself elsewhere. Some magical ingredients possessed enough awareness to elude the seeker.But when he could look over the edge, he only saw dust and, in a far corner, the headless skeleton of a mouse that Grimmer must somehow have carried up here to enjoy undisturbed and then only eaten the head. He was used to finding ...

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“Unexpected Guest” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #281

Content warning: Contains sexual undertones and suggestive imageryPart One. ObserverAs I made my slow progress around the fringes of the dance and revelry, trying to ignore the more passionate embraces of the masked dancers because they stirred feelings in me that made me want to join them, I focused on my father.Though nobody else would have noticed, I could see that he leaned more on his ceremonial staff than ever before. Eyes alert under the ever-unruly white hair, watching for any unwanted intrusion, he was the one unmoving point at the ...

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“A Solitary Man” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #280

Ewan liked watching people, eavesdropping on conversations when he could, extrapolating from the revealed puzzle pieces of other lives to distract himself from his own.Lately, as the days got colder, he just liked being inside and warm. Sleeping in the woods beyond the town was not going to be sustainable when winter arrived. Spring and summer had literally been a walk in the park in comparison.The sole waitress in the small café did not begrudge him lingering after his fry up breakfast since it wasn’t a Market Day. His eyes tracked her as s...

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“Lost” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #279

Can you find what you’re looking for if you don’t know what you lost?Ewan pondered this and many other questions as he walked among the ash trees.Sometimes, he felt lost in a sea of non-reflective mirrors because every tree seemed the same, each bare of leaves, their gray limbs upheld in a silent dance as they viewed his progress or lack of it. Because they did watch him. He was as sure of that as if he caught the glisten of eyes.That was ridiculous, of course. Sometimes he wondered about his mental capacity to make sense of his situati...

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“Letter from Mother Christmas” by Tempest Phoenix Smith

Submitted to Contest #278

Can you keep a secret?Once more than one person possesses a secret, the chances are less for it to stay hidden. Father Christmas himself always says that the best place to keep a secret is between your two ears. The more people that know, the greater the risk that the secret will become common knowledge. However, for a keeper of so many secrets such as myself, they often are tickling my tongue wanting to be spoken or making my fingers itch to take up a quill pen and write them down.And, really, after all these years, would anyone mind i...

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Author bio

Tempest Phoenix Smith loves to weave words into poetry and stories. Her first Read Aloud storybook will be available as soon as her website is up and running, so watch this space. List of stories that belong together: Series One Unexpected Guest Refuge Fever Nightmare Series Two A Solitary Man Lost Between Stations Series Three White Jacket Twin-Pearl Ring Series Four Hiding in Plain Sight Road Trip