SpaceWesterns.com has published its latest short story, "No Right" by Jens Rushing:

Of course my employees have the right to leave at any time, with notice or without it, Mr. Lang.” Nolan’s unctuous voice filled the large office. “The deuce of it is, he took my favorite speeder.” Nolan leaned back in his chair, his soft hands gripping the polished oak desk. Real wood was a rarity here in the Sierra sector; Nolan had imported the desk all the way from the Middle Colonies, and it had been worth every credit

I woke up far too early on Saturday to get to an 8 a.m. Star Wars d20 game. The game let out early, which gave me time to wander the exhibit hall until exhaustion sent me retreating to my hotel room … only to be called back by a phone call from Erilar about a Pirates of the Spanish Main game that was just starting. Rounding out the day was the well-attended RPG Podcaster Party and an all-out zombie assault on a French-built shopping mall.

Thursday's D&D 4E buzz subsided by Friday morning, though a bunch of the special 4E t-shirts could be found in the convention hall. I will say there weren't nearly as many as when 3E was announced in 1999, though admittedly the t-shirts for that edition were much, much cooler (listing all the major changes being made to 3E; we'd kill for that kind of list for 4E).

By the end of the day I'd noticed a grassroots buzz building for an entirely different game: Savage Worlds. By then I was also recognizing just how hard it was going to be to find open wireless at the convention.

The big buzz around the con today is the anticipated announcement of Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition, when the game will arrive, how it will be different from 3E, and what this means for the hobby.

And that's just what I heard while waiting in line for coffee. Then again, maybe they should have just read the official press release, which states the game will launch in May 2008. Which is way, way too soon for my tastes.