Margohot: Queen of the Harpies

Keith Melo

Nov 2024 · Keith Melo

About this ebook

It's summer of 1899 and the state of Wyoming has been unresponsive for an increasingly alarming amount of time. No mail nor telegram communication has ever been sent out or responsive, which has prompted the United States Postal Inspection Service to investigate. The inspector general has selected US Postal Inspector Jed Pluck from Boston, Massachusetts to team up with another postal inspector named Louie Secoli to investigate these towns along the railroad. The peculiarity of this case, in contrast to others they had investigated previously, is that the only evidence they have is a strange, large black-red feather, sharp enough to slice through skin.

Leaving his family once again, Jed hitches the train with Louie, and they set off for Wyoming. Upon arriving in Cheyenne, they found Wyoming's capital deserted-and covered in the very same peculiar feathers. The next few towns along the railroad all share the same description: no bodies in sight and covered in the same feathers.

Only one town along the railway has been spared from the disappearances. Lemonstown, a town near the Red Desert, remains active but unaware of the fate of the other towns. Fearing that Lemonstown would be the next town to be raided, the two postal inspectors must solve the mystery of the strange creature and help the townspeople before Lemonstown becomes the next ghost town covered in feathers.

About the author

Keith Melo was born in a US Naval Hospital in Okinawa, Japan, in 1990. He is American by birthright and ethnically Filipino Caucasian. He spent his entire childhood as a military brat, accustomed to diverse cultures, and has been voted the best artist in many of his classes growing up in DoDEA Pacific Schools, where art isn’t as valued. With several degrees, two of which are artistic degrees, and as a United States Army veteran, he spent a lifelong journey understanding the world.

Keith lives in Los Angeles, California, changing aspirations of being a tragedian for the literary world. Tragedy and xenofiction are what he specializes in, having a new aspiration of telling good stories that are not always exclusive to humanity but sentients at large. Keith's transition between industries presented challenges, but he ultimately discovered a fresh avenue to express his creative freedom.

One of the major benefits of literature over animation for Mr. Melo is that he doesn’t have to spend months creating a scene in motion when he can complete stories with prose from his heart. He strives to read and write more after finding inspiration from Michael Crichton, Guy Gavriel Kay, Harlan Ellison, Robin Hobb, and Richard Adams. Inspiring himself to create a bibliography of meaningful nonhuman characters and unique points of view, he no longer fears his dyslexia, which he has been battling his entire life.

Please visit Keith at keithmelo.com to see more of his artwork, short stories, and updates on future novels. There are also plenty of links provided in the site if you want to support Keith’s work.