Sacred

"Wooden Gods"

Long ago a seed was planted. The land was barren and the water sterile, but the seed managed to root none-the-less. Its roots dug deep, spreading beneath the ocean and slowly twisting all across the world. And where the roots spread the world changed. The sterile oceans teamed with life and as the Great Tree pushed up through the surface, the land was soon alive as well.

All over its surface, the world was no longer barren. As the Great Tree's roots dug deeper and spread further, new life sprang into existence on the surface. Strange new creatures crawled, slithered, and flew over the land. Many made their home upon the Great Tree itself. Sheltered in its branches and fed by its fruits.

Finally, after the creatures had changed and mixed and spread countless times over the world, one creature fell from the Great Tree and stumbled awkwardly across the land. No longer content in the Great Tree's protection, the creature cut branches from the tree and made its own shelter, lighting fires with the leftover branches to keep away the night.

Sacred

“The Most Sacred Bond”

She gave birth to her first on a wooden floor. There were people all around, so she knew something was wrong. She was terrified, and the pain was excruciating. The doctor put his hand firmly on her shoulder, but that was it in terms of support. That’s not what everyone else was there for.

Samuel Joseph Hendrick came into the world fully formed, but clumsy, like a lot of children. When he looked around, he didn’t understand what he was seeing; he didn’t know where he was. All he felt was one magical, religious bond toward the being next to him, who he somehow already knew, despite only having been alive for seconds. All he knew was that – safety. The sense of complete safety she gave him. His every instinct was telling him to get closer to her.

But Samuel was special, and that was why all the people were gathered around them. Before he could move, rough hands brought him up, rubbed him off, and branded the number “999” in his ear. He screamed, never having known pain until then. Everyone applauded. He was terrified, obviously, but confused, because all of his instincts told me his mother should keep him safe. He had been Samuel Joseph Hendrick for mere seconds of life, but now he was just 999.

A scene where the only spoken dialogue is "uh-huh," "umm," "err," and "mm-hmm"

"Tacit Bond"

It had been a two-week trek from Grendos but Edron was looking forward to finally diving into the tomes at the Great Archives. And, thanks to Bellis' militaristic time keeping, it looked like they might just make it by dusk. As much as he loved seeing the corners of the world, Edron missed the comforts of city life. And his feet were killing him.

Edron did his best to conceal that from Bellis'. They had been traveling together for nearly 5 years now and he was still amazed at Bellis' drive. Even weighed down by her heavy armor she trudged forward without a hint of discomfort or low spirits. He was grateful to have her at his side.

Edron caught a fleeting smile shoot over Bellis' shoulder.

"Uh-huh?" He had seen that smile before.

A scene where the only spoken dialogue is "uh-huh," "umm," "err," and "mm-hmm"

"The Longest Summer"

“Uh-huh.”

The call had already clocked almost half an hour by the time she let go of his hand and got up out of her chair. He barely reacted, staring with intent at his phone, his conversation partner. She walked, first aimlessly, then toward the kitchen. The lights were on; she reflected in the sliding glass doors leading outward to the summer evening. She stood at their counter, eyes lowered, hands clasped on the granite, and felt her heart beat through her blouse and in her stomach. She felt all her years of yoga and meditation fall at her feet, ineffective. The beautiful kitchen they’d had contracted that had once been so important to her now felt like a mausoleum. All that wasted effort. She didn’t even care about the money.

"Once upon a time I was dying..."

"Circle"

Dark
green leafy skeletons
are being born, pushing their
way through the ground, out of the dirt. But are they
zombies or flowers? That is why we must
wait and see what they
are going to eat.
And so it was,
the sun.

"Once upon a time I was dying..."

"The Corruption"

I sat in the courtyard of the mage's guild watching the browning leaves drift from their branches. My shoulder ached and tingled but I resisted the urge to scratch at it. The healer magi promised me that agitating the wound wouldn't make the corruption spread any faster as so many claimed, but it would likely make the whole process more uncomfortable.

So I tried to take my attention away from my own dying body and put it on the dying leaves. I had once found them so beautiful, the tumbling colors. When I was a child dancing through the fall forests. My father would tell my sister Daiya and I to find the prettiest leaf we could and the one who found the most beautiful would get an extra slice of apple bread for dessert.

Death was not so beautiful for me nowadays. My father had died long ago when the war had began, and my sister had become infected by the corruption that spread after the fighting had ended. Like so many others I had sought a cure to the darkness taking over our world, and like the rest I had failed. By the time I had returned in defeat Daiya had already succumb.

A story that begins with a ransom note

"YOURS"

dEar frIEnD,

wE HavE wHat You ARe MIssInG.

MeEt us aT    The Appliance Superstore
                     325 15th Ave
                     Spring View, IL 60033

TUESDAY! nIgHT AfTEr 11pm

WE haVe It
It iS YourS!

A story that begins with a ransom note

"Garrett Porter, Age 55"

He remembered first not reacting to the situation at hand, but going into a rage over the fact that it was not spelled out in cut up magazine letters. He had insisted they show him the letter, and would not accept their telling him “it doesn’t really work that way anymore, sir.” He’d read the text of it off a computer screen, but couldn’t remember it verbatim now. Something about the kids. Didn't he care about the kids? He had them one weekend a month for the past 12 years - although since turning 18, Molly hadn’t come more than a handful on times, but she was paid off now, so he didn’t really blame her). Of course he didn’t wish anything terrible on them, but he certainly wouldn’t really say he liked them. They were simply his responsibility (“responsibility” being a synonym for “burden”). And honestly, he wasn’t a bad father. He never hit them, he never yelled, he never discouraged them from doing whatever it was they wanted. And, obviously, he’d given them everything they wanted, ever. It made sense, when he couldn’t show up to Molly’s high school graduation, that she should get a brand new Prius. And the kids liked it. They seemed to. They never complained.