Good Fight

The Pen & Cape Society, in conjunction with Local Hero Press, is proud to present The Good Fight, an anthology of superhero fiction from some of the best authors working in the genre. Collected within this volume are stories by Scott Bachmann, Frank Byrns, Marion Harmon, Warren Hately, Drew Hayes, Ian Thomas Healy, Hydrargentium, Michael Ivan Lowell, T. Mike McCurley, Landon Porter, R. J. Ross, Cheyanne Young, and Jim Zoetewey. After enjoying the stories in The Good Fight, please be sure to check out the works of the individual authors, because they're just super! I was born in the summer of love in 1967, and I've been a writer since I first learned how to string words together - but I haven't been an author. An author finishes works they've started. Instead of becoming an author, I had a career and a family, and along the way I accumulated a drawer full of incomplete works.My first novel was an accident. Variants of a story had been floating around in my head for years as novels "to- be" that never became. The various story bits and subplots found their way into comic book scripts which became graphic novels, but the core story remained unused. I was itching to get back into prose - so I cracked my knuckles and sat down to write whatever came to mind. What came out was the first draft of The Paragon of Animals.The moral to this story is that life is a journey - as long as you keep on walking, you'll end up somewhere you wanted to be. Anthologies from the authors of the Pen & Cape Society

Jerry Lincoln has a problem: his Sioux Falls IT consulting business has more work than one man can handle. Luckily, that means he can hire some help. Jerry just hopes his new employee, John Black Raven, ends up being more helpful than distracting-but John's deep eyes and long hair are very distracting. John came to town for an education and a chance at a life he couldn't have on the reservation, but what's important to him now is getting a job and keeping it. Six months ago, his sister died, and now her children are in foster care. Despite having the law on his side, John can't get custody-can't even see his niece and nephew. As Jerry and John grow closer, John discovers he doesn't have to struggle alone. Jerry helps him win visitation rights and provides much-needed support. Yet their victories aren't without setbacks. Child Services is tangled up with money, politics, and red tape, and Native American children are their bread and butter. But John and Jerry are determined to fight the good fight and to win-in more ways than one.

Bryce Morton needs a change of scenery. Since his partner's death a year ago, he's become withdrawn and quiet, so his friends, Jerry Lincoln and Akecheta (John) Black Raven, convince him to go camping with them on a Sioux reservation. Though he's not immediately sure he's done the right thing, Bryce becomes more interested when he meets Paytah, the man who owns the reservation's trading post. Paytah Stillwater's life is filled with hurt, and sometimes the only thing he has left is pride. After being abused as a child and disbelieved when he spoke up, he has withdrawn into himself - but he can never truly put his past behind him, because the source of his pain still lives on the reservation. Paytah is proud of his heritage and careful with his heart, but when Bryce commits a selfless act of kindness for one of the reservation's children, the walls around Paytah's heart begin to melt. Bryce and Paytah each fight the pain within them. When Paytah's abuser sets his sights on one of the reservation youngsters, Bryce and Payton must set their individual fights aside. Finding a way to stop the abuser unites them to fight their way forward - together.

Will Martin's racist father, Kevin, hates Native Americans and wants to keep them off his property, never mind that part of the ranch land is sacred ground for the Sioux. When they request access for prayer, Kevin refuses-but Will doesn't share his father's views. Ever since he first saw Takoda Red Bird during one of the Sioux sacred ceremonies, Will has been fascinated. He grants the tribe access. Takoda defies Kevin on a regular basis. He often sneaks to the sacred site on the rancher's land for prayer and knows Will has seen him there. When, out of spite, Kevin places the land up for auction, Takoda knows it is time for action and bands together with Will to stop the sale. In the fight that follows, Will gets more than he expected. He starts out helping the tribe preserve their identity… and ends up finding his own.