Chapter 1 Hrothgar, the wise and venerable king of the Danes, had passed away, and his son, Halga, had taken up the mantle of leadership. Halga was a just and fair ruler, but he lacked the strength and courage of his father. The people of the land were content, but they knew that they could never truly feel safe without a great hero like Beowulf to protect them. One day, a messenger arrived at Halga's court with news of a...

Chapter 1 Once upon a time, in a quaint little village nestled at the foot of a majestic mountain, there lived a man named Benjamin. Benjamin was not like the other villagers; he possessed a unique ability that set him apart. You see, Benjamin could only walk backwards. From the moment he took his first steps as a child, Benjamin realized that he couldn't move forward like everyone else. His legs would refuse to cooperate...

With strings of a dulcimer shaking me a willow. with a scent that weeps the silence of it all touching the creek stones with Autumn's tomorrow shaking me a willow holding it close to the windmill of my mind in the eddies of my prose with strings of a dulcimer

The two friends were lazing out in the meadow, allowing the Sun to warm them while they idly discussed life, the universe, and other stuff. The conversation had lagged for a while when Girl spoke up. “Bear,” said the Girl. “Do you have dreams when you sleep?” Bear looked at her and smirked. “Yeah, I dream of fat, fresh seals, waiting to be caught and eaten!” Girl smacked him on his shoulder. “No, I mean real dreams.” Bear...

Play for me your unwritten melody Be authentic as you tickle the ivory Reveal yourself with each note unabashedly Entrance me with your musical honesty Play for me haphazardly Free yourself from the confines of conventionality Sing your reality off-key Hypnotize me with raw poetry Play for me your harmonious art Worry not if you’re witty or smart Worry not if you do not sound like Mozart Simply strum the strings of your h...

That November night, Mira would later learn, went down in history. It seemed normal enough as the nuns tended the various children in the dormitory. But before they could even get to sleep, the noises from the heart of the city began. Mira thought she heard a window breaking, then another, and very quickly, more windows were breaking. Then, a rifle shot, was it? Mira sat up in bed and saw some of the other girls doing the...

That Thursday, all pupils were called into the minor-hall in the convent, where the Mother Superior, her voice cracking occasionally, told them that under a decree from the German High Command and with immediate effect, the Roman Catholic nuns would no longer be allowed to teach them. She added, “Apparently, we are not capable of following the Aryan policy. Whatever that may be.” Ominously two men in black uniforms stood...

“Reality is a cruel mistress and Fantasy is a kind one. The more I learn of myself the more fictional I feel. As if I am their love child, named Delusion, with an astral twin, named Dissociation. The Gemini of the Cosmic Zodiac, only one of us has the temper of a Taur... the other as aquatic as a Scorpion. Inhaling the vapors, Gemini caught a vision -- of the fall of Man. It began with a Fish. Got too lost playing with a...

In dreams of nature's paramour of cardamon and used candles. Listening to the sounds from the well of Artesian and Aphrodite. Echoing the clandestine tall trees of the winds and leaves of lingerie. Whispering geometry, π r2, in dreams of nature's paramour.

Penelope tightened the last bolt, checked the wiring one last time then typed the coordinates into the typesetter. She watched the gyrosphere spin as the steam engine pumped the pistons faster and faster. The whirl of the spinning cogs reached fever pitch. She was tempted to pull the handle and let the machine kick in and take her off but at the last second, she pulled the Abort lever and let the machine slowly settle int...

It was 1938 and Mira Wurtz, eleven years old, loved to eavesdrop the gossip of the customers in the grocery store where she bought the weekend bread and milk for her busy Grossmama (grandmother), Jana Kanner. Here in the city of Vienna, talk, for a long time, had been full of despair involving the cost of living, and work prospects for the future. But recently, a new word had crept into conversations. That word was ‘Ansch...

1943- Cave Johnson was a successful businessman. His company, Aperture Fixtures, was making a fortune selling shower curtains, particularly to the U.S. armed forces, during the world war. He was chosen as the Shower Curtain Salesman of 1943, but as he was holding his shower curtain shaped trophy, he felt incomplete. He thought about the huge world out there and the small scale of his victory. He thought: "Who will remembe...

Chapter 1 Once upon a time, in a far-off galaxy, there was a young star named Evan. Evan was the brightest star in his constellation and had always been admired by those around him. He shone with such brilliance that even the darkest corners of the universe were illuminated by his light. Despite all this, Evan was unhappy. He looked at himself in the mirror, or rather, in the cosmic dust clouds that surrounded him, and sa...

Clinging onto faded photographs Rigid poses that were choreographed Blurred bodies and echoed laughs Locked in stasis for a time and a half A mirror to glance into the past Sparking memories specific and vast Faces of Youth gone too fast Fleeting moments were never meant to last A tool invented allows us to remember Sunsoaked summers and chilled Decembers Waves of joy and hearts in embers A time conserved together Hollowe...

Of withers and breathless willows in a lyrical translation haunting the quiver in my mind silently like fingers bending holding on to the pen's morality as soft winds touch the myriads at peace in remnants of nature of withers and breathless willows with a spiritual dialysis of Gregorian monks sung in prayer