Beneath Ceaseless Skies #181 has new stories by Fran Wilde and Suzanne Palmer, a podcast by Fran Wilde, and a reprint by Ferrett Steinmetz.

“Bent the Wing, Dark the Cloud” by Fran Wilde
In the sky behind, a group of children Calli’s age swooped and dove in unison, followed by one of the tower’s magisters. Calli heard scraps of song. A lesson about wind shifts. The students’ wings cut patches of bright color in the deep blue air. Calli knew each span and spar, even from this distance. She’d tested them all.

“Moogh and the Great Trench Kraken” by Suzanne Palmer
Moogh decided, with regret, that he would have to temporarily abandon his trek due west and instead walk alongside this water for a bit until either he outlasted or outpaced whatever curse made it seem to go on forever. He declared its true name to be the Tricksy River, and decided if he ever found the trickster responsible for it he might justifiably commit some minor violence upon their person.

Author Interview: Fran Wilde

Audio Fiction Podcast: “Bent the Wing, Dark the Cloud” by Fran Wilde (51 minutes, 30 seconds)
Liras tried to remain at his workbench and finish the customer’s wings, but the pain grew too much.

From the Archives: “My Father’s Wounds” by Ferrett Steinmetz (from BCS #75)
Father guides my hand to the ruin of his belly. My fingers sink into the wound, touching something moist and pulsing —

Fran Wilde’s story “Bent the Wing, Dark the Cloud” is set in the same world as her just-released debut novel from Tor, Updraft. And we recently reviewed Suzanne Palmer’s excellent story “Tuesdays,” from the March 2015 issue of Asimov’s Science Fiction.

Issue 181 was published on September 3, 2015. Read it online completely free here.

Beneath Ceaseless Skies is edited by Scott H. Andrews and published twice a month by Firkin Press. Issues are available completely free online; you can also get a free e-mail or RSS subscription.

Firkin Press also sells a Kindle/e-Reader subscription, which includes automatic delivery to your Kindle or other device. A 12-month subscription comes with 26 issues and costs only $13.99. Single issues are available on Kindle and at Weightless Books for 99 cents. Subscribe here.

The magazine supports itself though subscriptions, and also by selling anthologies, including the annual Best of BCS volumes and occasional themed books such as the steampunk anthology Ceaseless West. The anthologies each contain 15-18 stories and cost only $2.99-$3.99.

The cover art this issue is “Kodran Migrant Fleet” by Tyler Edlin. We last covered Beneath Ceaseless Skies with issue 180.

Our September Fantasy Magazine Rack is here. See all of our recent fantasy magazine coverage here.