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We’re open until October 15 for 100-word stories on the themes of BARS and TRANSFORMATION. Find the full submission guidelines on our website.

Some Kind Soul Will Surely Read This

By: Rodrigo Olivares

Dear kindhearted reader who found this note inside this bus, I need your help. I was walking along a dark road when aliens abducted me.

When I returned, there was a note in my pocket: “Say aloud: ArioLai miRai eriNon alEon.”

Only you can help me, dear reader, solve this riddle. Please say these words aloud. Do not proceed without reading this aloud. What do they mean?

You were tricked, dear naive reader. By reciting my profane spell, you have removed a great ancestral curse from me and transferred it to yourself. There is no escape. Just accept the horror.

© 2026. Rodrigo Olivares

R C Olivares works in IT and also writes speculative fiction. He lives in Brazil with his wife, two cats, and a rabbit (The World Eater).

P.S. Did you know you can purchase the two-year anthology?