Base City: Short Stories

(Set in the world of The Magu Program)

De: Matt Hartle

Narrado por: Michael Gruff

The Gift:

Every day, Police Chief Kahn faces the worst Base City has to offer—violence, corruption, and loss. His only refuge is Emiko, his wife, and the woman who reminds him there’s still beauty in the world. When the Corporation offers them a second chance at a future they thought was lost, it feels like a miracle. But in a city where even hope is weaponized, no gift comes without a cost.

The Noodle Chemist:

In the neon haze of Base City, Eido Naki runs a humble noodle stand by day—and a covert chemistry lab by night. To the neighborhood, he’s a healer and a provider. But when a heavily augmented stranger named Ashiro Taki stumbles into his stand, Eido is pulled into a dangerous entanglement.

Ashiro’s mind is shattered, but his body is a masterpiece of decaying technology—a ticking time bomb. If Eido is to help him, he must accept the danger that is sure to come, and Ashiro will have to learn to trust in a world he can't remember.

The Postulant:

In the fractured shadows of Base City, the ancient walls of an abbey provide refuge from the neon world beyond. For Vox 5, a nameless postulant raised in silence and ritual, this is the only life she has ever known.

But when violence breaches the sacred halls, a doorway to another life cracks open.

Alone and adrift in the chaotic sprawl of the city, Vox 5 confronts a world she has only glimpsed in her dreams—where hunger, wonder, and fear move hand in hand.

©2025 Hartle Publishing (P)2025 Hartle Publishing