Latest Stories

Most recently published stories in Chapters.

If God Had A Job
If God had a job, I’d bet most would say it would be a lawyer or a doctor. Those are good; he is known as a defender and healer, but I think there’s something that would better describe him.
By Stephanie Rosasabout a month ago in Chapters
Donald Trump — Power, Politics, and a Divided Nation
Donald John Trump is one of the most recognizable and polarizing figures in modern American history. Known first as a businessman and television personality, he later became the 45th and 47th President of the United States. His life story is filled with ambition, success, controversy, and constant public attention. Whether admired or criticized, Trump’s influence on politics and media is undeniable.
By Haroon Pashaabout a month ago in Chapters
Alzheimer’s disease.
Alzheimer’s is a soul destroying disease, and probably the worst way to end a life imaginable. I had an idiot tell me once that it is the best way to end your life because, all that happens to you is that you forget things, so it’s peaceful and you don’t know what is happening to you. Like I said, he was an idiot. I researched symptoms online, and this is what I found. I’ll get back to the idiot‘s comments later.
By Guy lynnabout a month ago in Chapters
Manchineel
White ethereal shapes move around a Florescent lit room. A bleary face looms in front of me. Liquid drips from a pipet into my eyes. They clamp shut automatically as the saline stings like boiling water. I blink a few times to clear them.
By N J Delmasabout a month ago in Chapters
Brass Ring Chapter 14: When Bad Things Happen to Good People
Captain Sandoval walked into the room. In this room were ten of the best of his precinct, men who had proven themselves again and again. They had access to the best training, the best equipment, and the best weapons. Each had been assigned a suit of armor capable of handling an anti-tank weapon, a rifle that could switch between a sonic blaster, a grenade launcher, and a slug-thrower capable of eliminating a marble statue. They were ready to deal with most super-powered crime.
By Jamais Jochimabout a month ago in Chapters
Thousands of gallons of arsenic-contaminated water are treated by an electricity-free water system.
Laboratory tests have shown that a modified carbon filter material can lower the amount of arsenic in contaminated water to below the suggested safety limit. For households and small groups that depend on faulty wells, that outcome brings a low-cost, electricity-free alternative closer.
By Francis Damiabout a month ago in Chapters
US-Iran Crisis: Trump Sets 10-Day Deadline as Geneva Nuclear Talks Resume
Iran has once again made it clear that any type of American attack would be considered “aggression” and would be met with a response.
By Real contentabout a month ago in Chapters
The Words I Never Got to Say
The Words I Never Got to Say ‎BY: Ubaid I always believed there would be more time. More time to sit across from him at the small wooden table in our kitchen. More time to argue about politics and laugh about old family stories. More time to say the things that sat quietly in my chest, waiting for the “right moment.” But life rarely waits for the right moment. The last time I saw my father, it was an ordinary Thursday. The kind that slips through your fingers unnoticed. I was in a hurry, as usual—late for work, phone buzzing, mind racing through deadlines. He was standing near the doorway, holding his cup of tea, watching me tie my shoes. “You’re always rushing,” he said with a soft smile. “And you’re always observing,” I replied, half-laughing. There were things I wanted to say right then. I wanted to thank him for the way he never gave up on me during my rebellious years. I wanted to apologize for the sharp words I had thrown at him when I was younger, words fueled by pride and immaturity. I wanted to tell him that I understood now—the sacrifices, the silent worries, the late nights he spent working just to give us a comfortable life. Instead, I checked the time. “I’ll be late,” I muttered. “We’ll talk tonight.” He nodded. “Of course. Tonight.” But tonight never came. The call arrived in the afternoon. An accident. Sudden. Unexpected. The kind of news that makes the world go silent for a few seconds before everything crashes in at once. I remember staring at my phone, reading the message again and again as if the words might rearrange themselves into something less painful. They didn’t. At the hospital, the white walls felt too bright, too clean, too cruel. I stood beside his bed, looking at a face that seemed peaceful, almost asleep. I kept waiting for his chest to rise, for his fingers to twitch, for some sign that this was a misunderstanding. But there was only stillness. And suddenly, the words I had saved for “later” began to scream inside me. “I’m proud to be your son.” “I’m sorry for not listening more.” “Thank you for believing in me.” “I love you.” Four simple sentences. Words that could have been spoken in less than a minute. Words that now weighed heavier than mountains. At the funeral, people spoke about his kindness, his honesty, his patience. They described a man I recognized but had never fully acknowledged. I realized how often we assume our loved ones know how we feel, as if affection can be silently understood without ever being expressed. But silence is a fragile messenger. In the weeks that followed, guilt became my constant companion. It whispered to me at night. It followed me into quiet rooms. It reminded me of every conversation I had postponed, every hug I had shortened, every “I’ll tell him tomorrow” I had carelessly spoken. I began replaying that last morning over and over. “You’re always rushing.” Maybe he wasn’t just talking about my schedule. Maybe he was reminding me of something deeper—that life itself is not meant to be rushed past. One evening, I sat alone in his old chair. The house felt emptier without his steady presence. I picked up his cup from the shelf, running my fingers along the rim. For the first time, I spoke out loud. “I’m proud to be your son.” My voice trembled, but I kept going. “I’m sorry for the times I hurt you. I didn’t understand then, but I do now. And I love you. I love you more than I ever said.” The room, of course, did not respond. There was no miracle, no echo of his voice. But something inside me shifted. The words were late—but they were no longer trapped. That was the moment I realized something important: the tragedy was not just losing him. The tragedy was waiting. We wait to apologize because we think there will be a better mood. We wait to express love because we assume it’s already obvious. We wait to show gratitude because we believe tomorrow is guaranteed. It isn’t. Since that day, I have tried to live differently. I call my mother more often. I tell my friends I appreciate them. I say “I’m proud of you” when I mean it. I don’t leave important feelings for later. Because later is a fragile promise. I still miss him. Some days, the grief arrives unexpectedly—triggered by a familiar song or the smell of tea in the morning. But alongside the sadness, there is also a lesson. A quiet but powerful one. Speak now. Say the difficult words. Say the soft words. Say the vulnerable words. Don’t assume people can read your heart. If I could go back to that Thursday morning, I would have paused at the door. I would have looked at him properly—not just as a father who would always be there, but as a man whose time, like mine, was limited. I would have said, “I love you. Thank you for everything.” And maybe he would have smiled and said, “I know.” But even if he already knew, he deserved to hear it. We all do. So if there is someone in your life you’ve been meaning to call, someone you owe gratitude to, someone you love but haven’t told—don’t wait for the perfect moment. Say the words. Before they become the words you never got to say.
By Ubaid about a month ago in Chapters
I Lost Everything, Then Found Myself
I Lost Everything, Then Found Myself BY: Khan I used to believe that success was something you could hold in your hands. For me, it was the office keycard that opened glass doors every morning. It was the apartment on the twelfth floor overlooking the restless city. It was the expensive watch I bought after my first promotion, the one I wore like proof that I had made it. I measured my worth in achievements, in applause, in the quiet envy of people who thought I had it all figured out. And then, in the span of a few months, it all disappeared. The company I had devoted five years to collapsed almost overnight. What started as rumors of “financial restructuring” turned into termination emails and security escorts. I remember staring at my phone, rereading the message as if the words might rearrange themselves into something less final. They didn’t. Losing the job was only the beginning. Without a steady income, the apartment became a luxury I could no longer afford. I packed my life into cardboard boxes, each one heavier than the last. The watch went first—sold online to cover two months of rent I was already late on. I told myself it was temporary, that I would bounce back quickly. I had always bounced back. But this time was different. Friends who once filled my weekends with laughter were suddenly “busy.” Calls went unanswered. Invitations stopped coming. I realized how much of my social life had revolved around status and convenience. Without the shiny job title, I became less interesting. It’s a strange thing—how quickly people disappear when your shine fades. Eventually, I moved back into my childhood home. The same room with faded paint and old trophies from school competitions I barely remembered. At night, I would lie awake, staring at the ceiling fan spinning lazily above me, feeling like a failure. I was in my late twenties, unemployed, single, and back where I had started. I had lost everything that once defined me. For weeks, I avoided mirrors. Not because I disliked my reflection, but because I didn’t recognize the person staring back. Who was I without the job? Without the apartment? Without the validation? The silence was unbearable at first. There were no morning meetings, no urgent emails, no deadlines. Just long, empty hours stretching endlessly. I tried distracting myself with social media, but watching everyone else’s highlight reels only deepened the ache inside me. One evening, after another rejection email from a company I had pinned my hopes on, something inside me broke. I stopped pretending I was okay. I let myself feel the disappointment fully—the anger, the embarrassment, the fear. I cried harder than I had in years. And strangely, that was the moment everything began to change. For the first time, I wasn’t performing strength. I wasn’t trying to impress anyone. I was simply being honest—with myself. The next morning, I went for a walk before sunrise. The streets were quiet, the sky painted in soft shades of pink and gold. I hadn’t noticed a sunrise in years. I had been too busy chasing the next goal, the next milestone. As I walked, I realized something uncomfortable but freeing: I had built a life that looked impressive from the outside but felt hollow on the inside. I had ignored my health, postponed hobbies, and silenced dreams that didn’t seem “practical.” I had mistaken busyness for purpose. Losing everything stripped away the noise. With nothing left to protect, I started asking myself difficult questions. What did I actually enjoy? What kind of work felt meaningful? Who was I when no one was watching? I began small. I started journaling each morning, pouring out thoughts I had suppressed for years. I picked up an old guitar that had been collecting dust in the corner of my room. My fingers were clumsy at first, but the music felt honest. I began freelancing online, not in the field I had studied, but in writing—something I had secretly loved since school. The money was inconsistent. The progress was slow. But for the first time in a long while, I felt alive. I also began repairing my relationship with my family. During the years I had been “too busy,” I had missed dinners, conversations, and simple moments. Now, I sat with them in the evenings, listening to stories I had never taken the time to hear. I realized success had made me distant; loss made me present. Months passed. I didn’t wake up one day magically transformed. There were setbacks. Doubts crept in often. Some nights, fear whispered that I had ruined my life beyond repair. But each time, I reminded myself of the truth I had discovered in the quiet: my worth was not tied to a job title or a paycheck. It was tied to who I was becoming. Gradually, opportunities began to appear—different from the ones I had once chased. I collaborated with small brands, wrote articles that resonated with strangers across the world, and built a modest but steady income doing work that mattered to me. But the biggest change wasn’t financial. It was internal. I no longer needed applause to feel valuable. I no longer compared my timeline to others. I understood that losing everything had forced me to confront parts of myself I had ignored for years—my insecurities, my fears, my need for external validation. When I look back now, I don’t see the period of loss as a tragedy. I see it as an awakening. Sometimes life takes away the things you think you can’t live without—not to punish you, but to teach you that you are more than the roles you play. I had to lose the job to discover my passion. I had to lose the apartment to rediscover my family. I had to lose the applause to finally hear my own voice. I thought I lost everything. But in the emptiness, I found clarity. In the silence, I found truth. And in losing the life I had carefully constructed, I finally found myself.
By Khan about a month ago in Chapters
Sparrow on a Plank Chapter 17: When Villains Do Their Research
The crew was more interested in what was behind them than in front of them. Although Sal and Hajime were doing their level best to hide the fact that they had stolen a book from Set’s temple and that temple may have been protected by someone representing the Bubastan government, Captain Taylor knew what was gointsg on; it had been part of the contract (after all, they needed him ready to go if something had gone wrong, and his ignorance would have slowed the ship’s reaction time, causing a number of unintended deaths and destruction of the ship). Rick had also been told out of necessity for the same reason. They had also been given a certain time; if Sal and Hajime took longer than two hours, the ship was to sail. Period. Staying any longer would have endangered the crew and the boat. Rick was happy that that condition had not been used.
By Jamais Jochimabout a month ago in Chapters
the berserker's tale - part II
If you missed part one you can visit it at the following link: the berserker's tale - part I ... To the tyrant Vortiporius of Dyfed. I, Giltas, bear warning to thee from the angel whom appeared to me at Arecluta in the valley of the Clyde.
By John Coxabout a month ago in Chapters
El Mencho Killed: Mexico at a Crossroads After CJNG Cartel Leader’s Death
Cartel Leader Killed Mexico at a Crossroads Mexico woke up to bombshell news this week: Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, better known as El Mencho, is dead. He wasn’t just any criminal he was the boss of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), one of the world’s most feared and elusive drug lords. Now, after years on the run, he’s gone.
By Real contentabout a month ago in Chapters