A young Orphan navigates on foot the hazardous streets of a town where Soldiers routinely instill order and discipline for The Regime, serving not as protectors of Freedom but hired thugs. Since the last Election, Martial Law was imposed, replacing Democracy, and nobody feels safe.

"Spirits" by Lori R. Lopez weaves a short Dystopian Ghost Tale featuring a boy named Zavier, who tries to sell an old inscribed bottle he acquired, but nearly everyone he encounters wants the prize for themselves. The bottle turns out to be haunted by four cursed specters, who are not in the best of "spirits" — let alone the type of Spirits that the men who drank from the bottle were expecting!

This story is part of Lori's Ghost Collection, SPOOKTACULAR TALES.