Death has None

When an unspeakable tragedy rocks the Nezami family, 15-year-old Cyrus finds himself on the verge of losing everything he ever loved. His father Sohrab reassures him that once he hears the stories about his namesake and the first ruler of the Persian Empire, Cyrus the Great, everything will make more sense.

But as everything comes crashing down, Cyrus begins to lose faith. In this story of cultural duality and the significance of reputation, loyalty, family bonds, and the values they install in you, even the oldest, most unlikely stories can parallel your own, teach invaluable lessons, and end up saving you…

Mahdis Marzooghian is cofounder and editor-in-chief of Five on the Fifth. She has a master’s degree in professional writing from Towson University, and is a writer and editor based in McLean, Virginia. Her fiction and nonfiction have appeared in the Miso for Life anthology, Heartwood Literary Magazine, WelterLiterary Journal (print), Mud Season Review, Adirondack Review, BULL Men's Fiction, Lunch Ticket, Arkana Literary Journal, where her piece won the Editor's Choice Award, and most recently in Nowruz Journal. Mahdis is a founding member of the PRWR Towson University Alumni Alliance Writers Retreat program at Still Point, WV.