He unfolds the cloth first, revealing the medallion hidden within. The face that peers back is profane and vulgar, but it is not unknown to him. It is the sigil of a creature whose existence has long thought to be past but whose influence garners follower…

My words made me a puppet in your eyes

And though I cannot say as much

The truth is not as such

It comes as no

Surprise

You sorrow for the lie that I believe

Has now misplaced what I made clear

Why I could not stay here

And why I had

To leave

And what y…

There is a kind of self loathing that exists beyond the burn of violent hatred and far from spineless apathy, that rests solidly on what can only be described as having become despicable in my own eyes.

It is one of the worst sensations I have ever experi…

The hidden thing inside the pipe twisted, thrusting deeper, spewing waxy slivers of ice in its wake – a fixed point around which their world revolved.

“It can’t be stopped,” he stated.

“How much further?” asked Srinin.

“A few hundred metres; a few …

I don’t know when I stopped

the daily painting of my face

On a Monday?

Maybe a Sunday

or some other day between

-

It could have been deliberate

an attempt to feel more proud

But it's most likely I was exhausted

and my teenage fears just weren’t as loud

-…

Strong's cat roamed their rented studio office space like he owned the place. Sarah found the matted fur ball curled on top of her desk, arrogant tail thwacking the keyboard of her laptop hard and steady, like a Sousa march.

"What, are you composing the…

Old walls, sunk deep into the earth, slick with moisture and trimmed in dripping weblike vines, rose well above toward a sky of flat white. Two halls of this kind met, creating a cross of light overhead. The floor was long lost beneath brackish brown wate…

Sometimes I forget that home has a scent

A comforting reminder of a familiar space, habits, and expectations

It’s unexpected

The pain of it’s absence

Especially knowing how transitional my locations will be

Without it I am less

On my journey to become …

Captain's log, ship's day 8482

I, Fleance Conor Norton, hereby assume command of the generation ship Hope. Let the record state that Captain Kettering performed his duties with dignity and honor, and willingly surrendered himself to the recyclers. Ther…

I think I've figured it out.

Why I've been so blazé about work. It's not that the students need a break and they've shut down for the rest of the year. It's me. I'm not trying to be a super teacher these last few weeks. Not days, no, weeks.

I'm the o…

Everything seemed to happen at once. Stella lived at two speeds simultaneously. In what felt like it should have taken only a second or two, the moon sprang upon her back and spread out like an effulgent tarpaulin, pressing her skin into the pricking fenc…

The cool of the window pane seeped into Roger's skin, bringing blessed cold. In a few minutes it would be too much but for now it felt like relief. Anything to bring down the fever that was overheating his body and stealing his energy. It was worse at nig…

It is night now, and moonlight pours through the one open window in the room. The moon outside is full, the light it casts bright and rich. Almost the moonbeam reaches the table. Almost it reaches the box. The moment he has been waiting for has very nearl…

(Temporarily taken down as it is part of a school assignment, I'll put it back later)

Story is marked as mature

“In the event of a gravitational storm, please return to your seat and buckle your restraints as demonstrated by the hologram in front of you. In the case of decompression..”

I tuned out the flight attendant. I'd taken this trip many times recently as bo…

Months went by,

Since she left the only way of life she's ever known,

Simple life, hard life, workers' life,

City life she now knows.

Spruced up her wardrobe,

With 15 hour works days,

Not much better than before,

But the energy here- it keeps here alive.

…

He lifted his head, unscrewed the top of the whiskey and took a big swig of it, holding it in his mouth for a moment to savor the taste that only good whiskey can provide before swallowing it in an attempt to make the girl disappear.

"I'm not going anywh…

"You drink too much" she said to him. "Or not enough. I guess it depends on what you are going for."

"I'm going for the 'forgetting my misery'" he said with a sigh.

"What you need to do is write more. Especially if you are drinking. All the great writin…

Story is marked as mature

The fat man moved suddenly, standing up and ducking forward to release her hold while throwing his unfinished noodles over his shoulder. Even as the contents of the bowl splattered against her chest, her hand closed reflexively, no longer on his neck but …

Pandemics have wreaked havoc throughout human history. In the 14th century the bubonic plague, or “Black Death”, killed an estimated 30-60% of Europe’s population. Close to one hundred million people died of the disease. According to the Italian poet B…

Porcelina stood on the shore, her bare feet covered in sea foam. A soft breeze rolled across the ocean, carrying a whisper over the waves.

"It's time to come home." The voice said.

"But I'm not ready." Porcelina said, "There's still so much to see."

F…

Story is marked as mature

The old men say that singing the fidjeri makes one go blind, but what can I do? I am al naham on a pearl ship and it is my job to sing while stronger men risk their lives diving beneath the surface of the coastal waters. The hours are long and the days …