Posted on November 18, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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The Glass Jar Present Don Webb Everything we perceive comes to us from the past. Everything we do goes into the future. — proverb Fil, grandson of Filip, grandson of Phillip, discovers a large glass jar in the side of a mound. It will…
Posted on November 2, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Playing near You Grove Koger They’ve scheduled the end of everything, and I just thought you’d want to know. We’re all invited, although naturally there’ll be a limited number of front-row seats available on a first-come, first-served basis. If I were you, I’d act…
Posted on November 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Kushii Richard Stevenson Lake Kusharo on the northern island of Hokkaido, Japan, can claim its own thirty- to- sixty-foot crater lake cryptid. Dubbed Kushii, she’s dark brown with a horse-like head with two giraffe-like stubby nubbins and broad boat bottom back. Plesiosaur or serpent?…
Posted on November 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Hoan Kiem Turtle Richard Stevenson Only one Hoan Kiem Turtle left in Hoan Kiem Lake, Japan; only five specimens known to exist. Not as big as the legend has claimed, but acclaimed nonetheless. Big as a table, but soft and leathery as a couch….
Posted on November 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Sabine Thing Richard Stevenson The Sabine Things ain’t aggressive or mean; ain’t no gorilla escapee from some zoo: he’s a grey-haired bipedal hominid the like of me or you. Kinda shy, retirin’. Hang fire with the blunderbuss, Gus. Put away the bows and arrows,…
Posted on November 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Quickfoot Richard Stevenson Two sightings reports in the rural U.K. – that’s all you’ve got. No hairy hominid cell phone camera pics, no scat, no hair samples. A hairy blur is all. Not interested in showing up for roll-call – let alone posing for…
Posted on November 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Orion and the Bull John C. Mannone When I look up to the stars in a Halloween sky I imagine a constellation of fools chasing each other round and round the ecliptic stairway, sidestepping snakes and scorpions. I don’t think Orion as a hunter…
Posted on November 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Listening to the Relics of Our Galaxy John C. Mannone Astrophysicists from the University of Birmingham have captured the sounds of some of the oldest stars in our galaxy, the Milky Way, according to research published today in the Royal Astronomical Society journal Monthly…
Posted on November 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Before the Dark Reposes John C. Mannone After The Coming of Light by Mark Strand Even this early, just before the dawn, before the light can burn away hatred, when sleep hangs in sticky air as flies, demons…
Posted on October 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Bold in Blue Breelyn Shelkey In a grayscale world he is Adriatic blue with a cobalt aura Deep sea pigments eyes can barely probe Bleeding technicolored streaks onto dull canvases Forever floating in sapphire oceans Basking in moon glow Sinking to soft sand bottoms…
Posted on October 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Twinkling’s Breelyn Shelkey Time, disintegrating like dust in thin air Stop. Stare. Define. Grasp. Five senses only you can master Mentally brand, continually reflect How did it make you feel? Put it on paper The universal key to never missing a blink Cosmos still…
Posted on October 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Imagine That Breelyn Shelkey Write down your dreams All of them The near death experiences The beautiful ones Frightening Twisted Impossible Euphoric Even the heart shattering ones Write. Them. Down. Nine times out of ten Your dreams and reality Never match up But every…
Posted on October 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Powdered Visualizations Breelyn Shelkey Caked in alkaline, dust in peculiar places Neon bleeds tangerines kisses Suspended bouncy merry go round Big rig hammock, pumping ten Metal lustrous structures Finicky steps to summit Lone escapades learning to say ‘yes’ Sip the Playa’s decadent nectar and…
Posted on October 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Big Summit Prairie Breelyn Shelkey Picturesque figures suspended between trees Flipping, bouncing, focused, balancing Mystic multicolored tiny houses Chimes trancelike abducting attention to wild dimensions Black lake mirroring galaxies Rainbow stretching miles rippling on fields vanishing upon arrival Did you see that? Fiction was…
Posted on October 1, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Symbiosis Breelyn Shelkey Neon mesh swallows air Beckoning floating carousels Beaming painted cracked faces saluting all aboard “Tell us something, anything” Plunging into turquoise Jell-O Pushing hands through millions of molecules Technicolor tabloid squares Pastels shielding faces Let the sun lick every droplet off…
Posted on August 27, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Something Ed Blundell There is a silence in the night, A quiet deeper than a sound, A hush that screams a warning note That something evil is around. The wild wind drops, the clouds slip by, Tall frozen trees stand stiff and still. The…
Posted on August 27, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Shrik Ed Blundell A shriek of nature rends my soul, The sky a blood red, empty well, I fall through time, I spin in space, My face contorts, my body bends, Out of shape I twist and struggle, Trying to hold on to the…
Posted on August 27, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Hunted Ed Blundell The night falls slowly, dusky shroud, Dark shadows creep across the land, A stillness hangs upon the air, A silence sinister and chill, The creatures of the night appear. She waits, alone, beneath the stars, The silver eyes, cold and austere…
Posted on July 29, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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The Soultree Ellie Rose McKee Her gnarled branches were a ribcage, straining toward the moonlit sky. Winter had been harsh upon the land, stripping her flesh, but the Soultree was a guardian, long established in her role. Come cold, come wind, lightning, rain of…
Shelves of Worlds (at Uncle Hugo’s Bookstore in Minneapolis) Nick Ozment Every shelf is packed with imaginary destinations, the overflow nested in postal trays stacked five and six high forming new pathways, each tray numbered and indexed to a list tacked on the wall…
Category: Fantasy, Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: ace, asimov, book, books, bookstore, bradbury, burroughs, daw, frazetta, le guin, leiber, nick, ozment, people, shadow, shelves, talisman, tor, wonder, worlds
On My Way Here Nick Ozment I saw a headless dog, a car with no driver driving, a yellow dress fluttering in the wind, a cloud of sorrow made manifest, a man who had eyes in the front and back, a woman with snakes…
O Human Hosts, What Big Teeth You Have Nick Ozment We had seen it a thousand times before, played out on screens big and small: shiny saucers spewing bug-eyed aliens. We were primed for planet conquering conquistadors with death rays. When they came they…
The Bigfoot’s Lament Bill Abbott (Cryptozoology Files) People. I’m tired of people. It’s why I live in the woods. Me. Yeah, me. In the woods. In the wilds. In the wilderness. In the bushes, in the trees. I’m trying to stay away from people….
The Jackalope’s Lament Bill Abbott (Cryptozoology Files) Joe the Jackalope stared at the clock. Louise was late again. He didn’t know why he ever gave her a second look, other than their kind was so rare. Mating during lightning flashes without hurting each other…
Nessie Bill Abbott (Cryptozoology Files) Nessie sipped her coffee, thought about finding her way to the surface again just long enough to get a few things at the store, but the paparazzi. Oh, those blasted humans with their cameras. And the technology keeps getting…
Stan Bill Abbott (Cryptozoology Files) I made it, somehow. A few chickens here, a few goats there, and I made it. See, all you have to do is drink some blood, and they’ll love you online. I’m a serious, real mythical figure online, even…
Wendigo Bill Abbott (Cryptozoology Files) The hunger falls on me again, thought Fred. The desire for the meal that remains uneaten, the meat that is tainted by being one’s own. The thinness, the leanness, the real skinny, the hunger. The desire for more, for…
War Fog Bill Abbott As the blood drained off the edges of the fields, we danced on the dead, proclaiming victory at the end of the fight between the forces of good and evil, knowing which side we were, as the winners. The explosions…
The Stories of the Woman, as Told to the Poet by the Passing Pilgrims Bill Abbott 1. Mastery In the evening of the last day of August, She chose to boast she was the strongest And most useful of the list of us. She…
Vernal Equinox Bill Abbott This great fire burns through the cool evening, leaving a radiance of heat, a burning consumption of the wooden fuel we have stacked, leaving only a large pile of ash by morning, after the glow has given way to gray….
In January: A Chant Royal Linda Ann Lo Schiavo I It’s basic January’s thirty-one. The winter air grows bald without that touch Of holy, bold-brimmed harvests overrun. Gold apples underground have gone. So much Once sweet has turned acidic, black, or bare. Honed branches…
What’s in the Shadows Linda Ann Lo Schiavo The shadow spirits roam when darkness falls. They’ll lead a drowsy, sly cotillion, fly Through secret gardens gathering masked blooms Like belladonna, foxglove, or bloodroot. Each time you jerk awake, they’re visiting, Dripping moist jewels of…
The Galilean Moons Linda Ann Lo Schiavo (inspired by Alla Luna, a poem by Giacomo Leopardi) The Galilean moons came visiting. Here’s Io, Ganymede, Europa with Callisto, cloaked in light, a splendid sight. My failures tied me to life’s dimmer side. Divine they looked,…
Category: Fantasy, Poetry Tags: ann, callisto, europa, Galilean, ganymede, io, linda, lunar, Moons, schiavo
Cupid and Psyche LindaAnn LoSchiavo The lover’s prize is friction —— Cupid knows —— As sex re-models the interior, Begins to dangerously mural a mind. Young Psyche pocketed virginity, Kept innocence like an extra…
Third Planet from Nowhere David C Kopaska-Merkel The water bill’s through the roof The local pawnshop won’t take Ultrapure gold anymore FBI and IRS have both been by (Thank Tech for the Memory-Erasing Ray!) The basement lab uses SO MUCH water Even 90% effluent…
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: alien, black, cia, david, erasing, fbi, fuel, in, irs, kopaska, men, meory, merkel, mib, ray, stranded, sythesizing
Posted on April 26, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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π John C. Mannone 3.141592… is transcendental and that doesn’t mean spiritual here, but yes, quite irrational and infinitely nonrepeating at least to 31.4 trillion digits in this mundane dimension. But in that universe full of haunts and haints, they ain’t staying put. They…
Posted on April 26, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Various Haiku John C. Mannone one small step for man first to the moon then beyond stairway to heaven ———————— Nuclear winter No sun in sight We glow in the dark ————————- Mountains & Seas mountains scribe sky sunset paints the tips praise etched…
Posted on April 26, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Remains at an Archeological Site John C. Mannone Uncovered skull, disheveled bones, knuckles of the right hand curled around ivory (handle of a dagger), pelvis of a woman, ribcage busted close to the where the heart had been. The way the bones broke and…
Posted on April 26, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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House of the Rising Sun John C. Mannone The shot glass shatters in his hand as he slams it on the bar. His callous hand doesn’t stop the blood. And the bartender says something wrong. The drunk says he’s not a sociopath, just a…
Posted on April 26, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Bewitching Words John C. Mannone I found a poem in a coven of words hiding in enchanted inculcations of a psalm but it morphed as if a spell had been cast so they flew away t•h•i•r•t•e•e•n b•l•a•c•k letters fluttering as birds
Posted on April 26, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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A New Way to Fight a World War, 2525 C.E. John C. Mannone Score Board: Western Conference, 700 million down Eastern Conference, 1.2 billion down Opposing teams face off on the line of scrimmage, reminiscent of ancient football and gladiator games but without flesh…
Posted on March 30, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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cyberjinn Logan Thrasher Collins my soul looks out of a raven’s eyes before i leap from that raven’s brain and into a squidlike avatar who lives in the virtual world then i cartwheel cross cyberspace under skies of melon-orange laced with raspberry pink before…
Posted on March 30, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Gorgeous Geometries Logan Thrasher Collins tonight you’re breathing snowflakes in Reykjavik watching the Milky Way and as you take a deep breath past, present, and future blur together a spatiotemporal crystal stars explode and galaxies collide but beneath the interstellar chaos there’s morphogenesis embryonic…
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: brains, chaos, collins, cortex, crystal, galaxies, Geometries, Gorgeous, interstellar, logan, manifolds, matrioshka, milky, morphogenesis, otherorldly, reykjavik, snowflakes, spatiotemporal, stars, thrasher, way
Posted on March 30, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Neuva Shikaga Logan Thrasher Collins the simulated metropolis Neuva Shikaga passes planet Saturn on a spherical substrate no larger than a peach the lost city Neuva Shikaga is encrypted with an uncomputable lock making the souls within irretrievable i’ve often wondered if my ghost…
Posted on March 27, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Leviathan David Barber Out of nowhere. Surfacing with a surge and suck of gravity that made the Earth flex in torment. No time to explain. It raced the wavefront of catastrophe, but sniffing a waterworld and with true sentience so precious, it snatched at…
Posted on March 27, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Area 51 David Barber Even with the device turned off and tombed in concrete, we are still haunted by ghosts of histories that are not our own, remembering cosmonauts fêted through New York in blizzards of ticker-tape; or the launching of Apollo 20 on…
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: adventure, area 51, barbar, big, david, gun, planet, red, sky, space, spacecraft, stars, von braun, wheel, zepplens
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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In the Future, Maury Povich is In Charge David Schwab …and so he asks: “How many bastards born today?” “Twenty-three per second, sir”. The host hung his head. …
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Fear, Fear not Russell Hemmell Horror stories are not to be feared because they only tell what can be made up not what’s lurking behind the scenes. Be afraid of the legend maker, instead of the dark that lives inside in the places where…
Category: Horror, Poetry Tags: evil, fear, hemmell, horror, legend, light, maker, reject, russell, stories, story
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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1348 Russell Hemmell He arrived on Sunday, after a winter of sleep and snow. A jester with clear blue eyes, pale lithe hands and white flowers in them. He smiled and said, I come in peace. I ply my trade with buffooneries and riddles,…
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Mussie Richard Stevenson Hi, I’m Mussie of Muskrat Lake. Pleased to make yer acquaintance. Some say I’ve got three eyes; some think I’m a lake-bound walrus, for heaven’s sake! For the record, I’ve got two peeps, same as you. Ain’t no plesiosaur land-locked since…
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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The Gugwe Richard Stevenson Next time you get the notion of filling a water bottle and prepping a tent, backpack, and sleeping bag for a camp-out in the deep, dark woods, think again! Unless you’ve got a forty-four magnum pistol or side cannon of…
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Clahuchu and Bride Richard Stevenson Last of the Juju tribe of Devil Men, Clahuchu and bride lay side by side in the coffin dug up from their Haitian grave. Mummies most mum about their circumstances, they nevertheless manage to exude evil it seems. Anyone…
Posted on February 25, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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An Argentine Alien Richard Stevenson An Argentine alien has rustled the bushes and stepped into view. He’s not like me or you. He’s but four foot two – kinda green, maybe blue. I’m so outta here, whatever this thing is that ain’t exactly clear….
Posted on February 19, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Riding the Tiger Bryan Thao Worra Burying my wars, these memories of you: “It don’t mean nothing,” wondering who Will stop the rain and who knows the way back To San Jose, ten thousand places you left your hearts. What a song for all…
Posted on February 19, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Moving Mountains, Burning Stars Bryan Thao Worra In Germany, the Krupps Bagger-288 Was forged to kill mountains, Towering 96 meters and 13,500 tons, Indifferent to poetic subtlety. This isn’t the work of surgeons, Cutting to a mountain’s coal heart, Maybe an ancient vein of…
Posted on February 19, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Screaming From My Throne of Stars Bryan Thao Worra Were we wise, we’d have slain that orange arhat On the spot 39 bygone millennia when he “blessed” our house To reach every star we saw that bright august night. What karmic weight we since…
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Tikbalang Vince Gotera switched-up Centaur stalks evening, brown baton like stone horse head, hooves silent In Philippine mythology, the tikbalang is a hybrid creature with a horse’s head and hooves on a human body—or humanoid, since he has limbs proportionately longer than a…
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Eclipse Vince Gotera dread Bakunawa dragon breaches from ocean swallows bright full moon This haiku is based on Philippine mythology. The bakunawa is a sea dragon that hankered to eat the seven moons that were in our ancient sky. He ate six of…
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Venus Vince Gotera brilliant arrow point hunter goddess’s flexed bow the moon’s silver arc
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Cthulhu Vince Gotera tender tentacles touch us from eldritch space cold Messiah’s green love
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Frankenstein (1931) Vince Gotera Boris Karloff’s hands tremble like soft wings lovebirds in air sweet music
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Prince Charming Vince Gotera With quotes from Ann Sexton’s poem “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” Well, yeah, that’s what they call me …
Category: Fantasy, Poetry Tags: charming, drawf, drawves, gotera, prince, ren, seven, snow, vince, white
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Aubade Vince Gotera —a terza rima haiku sonnet Steve grinned, waking up to see Stephanie’s cute face, freckled, soft pink lips parted slightly, lace lingerie showing pale throat. Spring morning sun’s rays streaming in to…
Posted on January 30, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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The Makings of Dragons Herb Kauderer At first, dragons were rare monsters conjured by wizards who spent long months slowly simmering essences with which to imbue their creations. Emerald, ruby, copper, gold, diamond, and more were used as dragon’s essence. And, as wizards included…
Posted on January 30, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Symbols, Numbers, Distances (Scifaiku) Herb Kauderer nightlights nerve-wracking blackout strange sky lights above city Milky Way shimmers outdated Freudian theories atrophy when a rocket is just a rocket post-wildlife a wildlife refuge gathered children gape in awe in the box, a mouse Tippler’s…
Posted on January 28, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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The Gate Frank Coffman Within this weird, eerie woodland deep and dark, Is a Gate that opens unto realms of Horror, A strange doorway whence—should thou choose to embark— Thou shalt find a place of Terrors ne’er dreamt before. At first, only the fog!…
Category: Fantasy, Poetry Tags: alanpo, ambroses, auber, coffman, dagar, frank, gate, giacomo, hendcasyllabic, italian, lentino, octave, petrarch, sicilian, sonnet, soul, yaanek
Posted on January 27, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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If But They Could (a Cynaraelle Sonnet*—invented form) Frank Coffman The full moon glides above the horror forest glade. Stark, gnarled, and dark, the trees’ bare branches creak. The hunter, listening, knows a werewolf has been made— And, somewhere in those trees, the sometimes-man…
Posted on January 17, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Far Beyond Home Charles A. Gramlich The eye fills with black that speaks oblivion. The sun is a reckless thought, or perhaps some exotic dream. Has there ever been light, except that which you carry with you? Has there ever been a whole world…
Posted on January 17, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Kissed Charles A. Gramlich In the dry wend of a lost river, sotted with visions, I lie peyote-kissed. This world is bejeweled, texture rich, full of strange harmonics. A congress of cacti filibuster the owls. Siroccos play a threnody with dust and skulls. I…
Posted on January 17, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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They Burn Charles A. Gramlich In the lives of stars, thoughts are forever, never in a hurry. Time is constant luxury. In the measure of planets who only fear the sun, life is a great waltz, slow and majestic. In the world of mountains,…
Posted on January 17, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Peel Charles A. Gramlich Peel back the hollow and reveal the core. Show the wounded heart behind the savaged ribs. Let the shudder of angels pass through you. Let it sing like dark gods born out of stone. You will walk through the burn….
Posted on January 17, 2019 by Crystalwizard
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Offerings Charles A. Gramlich Beneath a locust sun, where memories stab like the fingernails of a harlequin witch… he offers his hand to the crimson lips… that shine in his eyes, the bloom whose petals rest on his tongue in a sacrament of need….
Posted on December 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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A Time to Shrink Herb Kauderer The humans named her Inner Bigness, but she was just a lab rat. Maybe it was the name that set her apart, or maybe the humans recognized something special. It took a matter of only a few months…
Posted on December 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Rust Dragon Herb Kauderer He lives in the swamps far from the metal users and the mountains they mine for ore. What humans consider lasting tools and weapons are limp and weathered reeds in his decaying grasp. Here among the ever-rotting trees and weeds…
Posted on December 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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sometimes unobserved is just the same Herb Kauderer the travels of the daytime moon are overwhelmed by sol’s light and so those travels get none of the publicity of Luna’s nighttime journeys but still she bides her time & goes her way happily secure…
Posted on December 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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unmanned exploration Herb Kauderer wire capillaries call plasteel heart new heat grows in aluminum breast photo sensors flicker detecting morning light lubricants circulate to grinding servos unsteady movements greet foreign dawn while startled morning birds flutter off and sail to roost on someone new
Posted on December 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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commuter Herb Kauderer a twelve ton ship from Rigel lands & slowly disassembles into a cart full of wheelie luggage & one small man who likes to be prepared for any event
Posted on December 19, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Black Demon Shark Richard Stevenson Melanized great white shark or sixty-foot megalodon spied just off the coast of the Baja, California, peninsula? Who knows? He’s got a huge threshing tail though and concentric rows of nasty teeth. Not the sort of denizen you wanna…
Posted on December 19, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Mugwump Richard Stevenson Lake Temiskaming, Ontario, is my home. Don’t often surface, so you may not know me. “Old Tessie” is one handle, but Mugwump?! Really?! That’s such an insulting moniker. Makes me feel like I don’t even swim, just hang my head and…
Posted on December 19, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Skinwalker Ranch Richard Stevenson Skinwalker Ranch ain’t on no maps – at least the parts yer interested in: the hellmouth portals, astral wormholes. After you’ve been there though, you’ll know: the solution to the sasquatch/dogman quandary ain’t all material. Hey, don’t soil yer laundry….
Posted on November 27, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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A Voyage to the Moon David C. Kopaska-Merkel The open window welcomes the night: a cornucopia of urgency, noises sharp and subtle, night’s warm breath framed by southern oak. I read now by moonlight, alone, ensconced in the window seat, the pages brimming with…
Posted on November 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Atopic Catastrophic Kathleen A. Lawrence Countdown. The stars were beating, pulsating, bleeding Whole constellations ragged, hemorrhaging Coughing, spitting, writhing with penetrating Pain and growing fear of planets divorcing. As greedy pirates of celestial skies attacked Marauding with fury, invading hemispheres Forcing rings to spiral…
Posted on November 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Brunch, Spaceship Side Kathleen A. Lawrence Bounding across the rocky terrain with low gravity weight on Aster it was an exhilarating jaunt out for breakfast morsels hidden behind griege craters and dunes. Silver space boots with lights, and puffy suit were de rigueur under…
Posted on November 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Things That Go Bump & Smile In The Night Kathleen A. Lawrence When I wasn’t tall enough for the roller coaster every night I pretended to be sleeping in the bottom bunk closing my eyes tight until my siblings snored in chorus then I…
Posted on November 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The Conjunction: Jupiter Pursues Venus Kathleen A. Lawrence “Meet me on the other side of the moon,” Jupiter gestured. Soft and deliberate, shy Venus stretched out for her love with unfurling desire. Shining brightly together, their orbits breathing in rhythm, the planets paused before…
Posted on November 4, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Land Sharks David C. Kopaska-Merkel A second chance crawling out of the sea , Bewildered by what they found, And didn’t find, But lobe-finned sharks quickly got a handle On the whole terrestrial thing, They diversified, filled empty niches , Eventually a few began…
Posted on November 3, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Science Fiction Poetry Deborah P Kolodji starburst patterns under the ice caps spring on Mars ===================== ten years in space the dish garden in my cabin ===================== no coat this December winter time travel ===================== the lightest I’ve been figure skating on Europa =====================…
Posted on October 24, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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rogue planet Herb Kauderer lost between stars you float along hardly noticed except in those precarious moments when needed as a stepping stone ignoring such rare & fickle company you continue to roam slowly walking a racing universe unfulfilled but also unburdened
Posted on October 24, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Last Stand on Privacy Herb Kauderer I got tired of every level of government legislating sex as if ANYONE could actually control what people do together (or alone) in their bedrooms. That’s why I moved my bed into my bathroom. It’s the only place…
Posted on October 24, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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the poem dreams Herb Kauderer the poem dreams of going beyond to the next state of love and connection but words cannot capture magic cannot conjure moonlight or mist on the lake but perhaps those are not necessary for those are only catalysts for…
Posted on October 24, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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A Room on Mars Herb Kauderer Age and radiation tell Clarkson it’s time to retire but after decades working the asteroid belt he has no interest in landing on Earth where the great outdoors is tiny compared to all of outer space and people…
Posted on September 5, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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A Siren for the Modern Times Armand J. Azamar Hearing her song again Appears near hopeless. After the shipwreck, Her voice, I still struggle to defend. My hospital bed A depression I discovered for myself. The longing only spreads; wider and deeper. A deep…
Category: Horror, Poetry Tags: armand, azamar, depression, drown, love, ocean, sea, seashore, shore, siren, soul
Posted on September 5, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Temporal Loop Armand J. Azamar Failing. The cycle repeats yet again. The failure clutches, The circumference of my mind. Will my device change the times? The clock brings no assurance. Will a flicker of newness finally exist? The seconds hobble and limp. The shining…
Posted on September 5, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The Expedition Armand J. Azamar Treading cautiously, A plateau of cold and crimson dunes. The dust storms offer songs of courage Feet and mind persist onward, For another leap for mankind.
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: armand, azamar, cold, courage, crimson, dune, dust, expedition, plateau, storm
Posted on September 5, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The Messenger God Armand J. Azamar Where the heat of the Sun beats down, Where the craters remain razed of hope, We tread the lonely cliffs still, With no hope of a welcoming committee. Where no wind blows and the morning blinds.
Posted on September 5, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Satellite of Sand Armand J. Azamar A desert of forbidding cacti and suns, A smoking, old starship behind me, A Northern oasis of far, far before me. Confidence wavers and heat oppresses As the skeletons of sand-worms mock me.
Posted on August 15, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Unstole It Jim Davies On an old Baroque pillow drops an odd, cold blood of a dead god. Somebody touched broke in the hold, with the original key, and stole it. Breathing on it makes falling raindrop things. Smelling it allows you…
Posted on July 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Blue Flowers John C. Mannone . After ‘Rapunzel’ An old witch desired the young virgins; they could stop the withering of time with their hair full of elixir oil. A crooked smile writhed on her wrinkled face; her eyes gleamed when she came to…
Posted on July 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Bubonic: It was much too wet John C. Mannone When glaciers melt, the Arctic sea will rise, push south, edging the warm currents. Cirrus-clouded air will follow the new jet stream. Rain will fall in torrential heat unto land that had only known ice…
Posted on July 26, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The Photograph John C. Mannone The fireplace embers a warmth into the room, coals glow dull red, cold air lifts its bitter edge. I see you on our favorite sofa, the one with paisley cones, feathered cushions. You in silk, provocative, sheer lavender clinging…
Posted on July 24, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Giant Hogweed John C. Mannone Their evolution: like caustic words, the burning lye coursing through their green veins, furanocoumarins in their sap-stem stained purple, warted like sin branching out to all the world, white lacy umbels reaching to sun to soak sarcastic light slaked…
Posted on July 19, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The River of Stars by Kendall Evans Shall we not depart The Courts of the Moon Abandon the Chambers of Nautilus? Follow these tracks to Old Phobos Station— Let your shuttles recline at Asteroid Oasis Preparing at last for Jupiter Transit Tomorrow we sail…
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: Asteroid, evans, jupiter, kendall, oasis, phobos, river, stars, station, transit
Posted on July 19, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Reality’s Weave by Kendall Evans She handed me Reality’s weave All tangled up Worse than a Gordian knot And I thought: Do the Fates Really expect me To unravel this? From infras to ultras A disordered rainbow Of colorful threads Extending to infinity Some…
Posted on July 19, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Flight of the Dragon by Kendall Evans The Dragon soars Above the world Over the hilltops Seeking prey in meadows and valleys Hungering for goats, calves, pigs, sheep In villages far below The Dragon flies high Over white-iced mountain ridges Plunging down toward Lantern-lit…
Posted on July 19, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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His Master’s Voice by Kendall Evans Listen to His Master’s Voice Fire up the old Victrola Interpret all these messages From the cosmos’ past Encrypted in Al Jolson songs And Rudy Vallee’s crooning
Third Floor Bookstore Herb Kauderer I stood in the warm colored neon watching dusk turn black, waiting for the Dreamer’s Mall to open is lying beneath endless layers of blankets waiting in the early morning for the winter sun to rise. When at last…
Intended Purpose Herb Kauderer I am a highly evolved machine programmed to look at the night sky. Eye, brain, arm enable starlight transmutation send it passing through my pen black ink on page recreating white light in a reader’s mind.
Posted on March 28, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Swallowing It All Whole Kendall Evans and David C. Kopaska-Merkel These are the longitudes and latitudes On the split/curved landscape separating fact from fiction. Beyond these easy curves—who can say? Here, expressed like a Monopoly board, A map of realms demarcating the boundary between…
Posted on March 28, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Bring Me Moa David C. Kopaska-Merkel Look at it 12 feet tall quarter of a ton that’s a gol durn dinosaur why did it take Cretaceous feathers for us to see? Ponderous tread Earth shook when those giant 3-toed feet struck the ground. Bring…
Posted on March 21, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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wander the ether drift past strange and frightful beasts bodiless journey ray gun destruction end of civilization alien conquest clash of tempered steel armoured gladiators meet robotic war games gothic armour mainspring powers pulleys clockwork knight green chitinous domes buzzing atop purple trees insectoid…
Category: Fantasy, Poetry, Science Fiction, scifaiku Tags: alien, dragon, fay, insectoid, martian, nebula, polypod, richard, scifaiku
Posted on March 15, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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For in that Sleep, What Nightmares… Lauren McBride While comatose to travel space, Please someone check my pulse, my face and if you see a silent scream while I lie trapped within a dream, then wake me from this hell replayed. Don’t keep me…
Posted on March 15, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Shades of Brown Lauren McBride I try to remember the colors of Earth: blue sky arching overhead, white clouds floating, green growth in abundance, riot of red and orange at sunset and autumn, palette of pastels come spring. But all turns ghostly here in…
Posted on March 15, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Engagement: Set in Stone Lauren McBride He once romanced me with a candlelit dinner and stroll under three alien moons where the nights last thirty hours. We saw others from our world and many races new to us. For our one-year-together anniversary, he suggested…
Posted on March 6, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The Glass Jar Present Don Webb Everything we perceive comes to us from the past. Everything we do goes into the future. — proverb Fil, grandson of Filip, grandson of Phillip, discovers a large glass jar in the side of a mound. It will…
Posted on March 1, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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stranded observatory Herb Kauderer the cylinder spins green grey bathing in starlight dining on icerocks skating on radiation on one side a light dies awaiting too long an errant spark a mutation of fuel side effect of cosmic rays a renewal of heat to…
Posted on March 1, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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new realities Herb Kauderer in the core of an L-5 habitat a group gathers to share fanfare inside a sensor glove a hand squeezes & somewhere tachyons respond another hand strums air the room is filled with guitar chords the band plays without strings…
Posted on March 1, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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career change Herb Kauderer settled dust on scattered pieces of the remains of an environment suit turn the criminal investigator into an archeologist who picks from debris the stripped bones of a unique civilization seeking how this culture of one died out
Posted on March 1, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Last Gleaming Herb Kauderer Blue green fields of man background the gleaming hammer of Spacelane Robber Barons who keep striking at the heart of the cosmic retailing center. Economies of distant dying planets exhausting raw materials emit last gasps that blur the echo of…
Posted on March 1, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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failed diplomacy Herb Kauderer at the foot of the lander’s ladder the creature lurks not really orange in this light, more tan & white with jagged edged ears and right fang shining over dropped lip the triangle jaw gives up tufts of the local…
Posted on March 1, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Dionysus Andrea Laws serpents no longer crown his horns his limbs… torn to burn and stir giving birth to pomegranates for mortal blood drunk and sober realities accompanied with weapons of vines and ivy, shackle the cursed witnesses of his transformations…
Posted on February 11, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Subliminal Sonnet Robert Shmigelsky This haiku a subliminal sonnet
Posted on January 16, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Night Train John c. Mannone Clouds paled yellow—a lutescence of insect wings— before the swarm of wind shook the sky. The weather radio crackled, hissed its tornado warning while sunlight waned behind the thickening darkness. Only a moment ago, the quiet Midwest air didn’t…
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Occupant Denny E. Marshall Large crowds gather as the UFO lands Edge of the runway lined with red carpets Roars of applause as the gathered clap hands Select soldiers play welcoming trumpets Officials and officers wait by ship After the spacecraft makes contact with…
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Breaking News (Version #1) Denny E. Marshall Heard sirens continually blow Breaking news interrupts the show Horns sounding not a tornado First landing of a UFO Anchor’s voice echoing with fear Stating, the facts are still not clear Announcement on the radio First landing…
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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At The Stars Denny E. Marshall Lying on your back looking at the stars Watching the rotations dance late at night Like millions of fireflies stored in jars. Lying on your back looking at the stars Glow of galaxies, suns, Venus, and Mars. Longing…
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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S Mail Received Denny E. Marshall Moving toward the proto-stars View dust rings stringing like guitars Journey onward day after day Destination the Milky Way Passing along cloud nebula Competing with cluster gala Take in sights from the cargo bay Destination the Milky Way…
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: cloud, denny, galaxy, helix, mail, marshall, message, milky, molecules, nebula, way
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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A Little Early Denny E. Marshall Ship makes entry into the atmosphere All are relieved destination is near Landing site on planets north hemisphere Soon the globes surface features become clear Once they land, first run test and check the air Some team members…
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The Unexplained Denny E. Marshall Whispers of lore and legends Crept upon the sill Shadows pretend to sleep Synchronize to keep still Movement like a phantom Race unseen across the hill Swirling clouds of unknown Pools of mysteries fill Sentinels of all secrets Keys…
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Search Party Denny E. Marshall After a long voyage Aliens finally arrive To rescue their friends The search starts In the desert Soon all are arrested Back at the ship The remaining crew Tries to figure out What Area 51 means 1st Published in…
Posted on January 10, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Spiral Arms Sky Denny E. Marshall Border of spiral galaxy Mountain asteroid city shines Tall ice castle’s close together Surface cover of cold light snow A slight lean towards heavy side Slow spin rotates towns and shadows From balcony long arms reach out From…
Posted on January 9, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Ode To Amanda Denny E. Marshall She emerged winged-foot from the sky Like an angel in Apollo’s shadow Fathers from the heavens fingers Announce with thunderbolts and lightning Messages drift above to form shapes In different layers of colored clouds Lands on a mountain…
Posted on January 9, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Four Haiku Denny E. Marshall Earth astronauts land On globe, surface all water One wooden ship Alternative world Meet current secretary Of state flower As a child I thought One-day bicycles will fly As adult still dream Mineshaft collapses Stuck deep…
Posted on January 9, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Time Shift 28 Denny E. Marshall Woke up from a sleep In a landscape of the past Surrounded in vegetation With an ancient glow Look down at new tracks In the shape of a circle Thought they were a strangers Turn out to be…
Posted on January 9, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Escape From Area 51 Denny E. Marshall Prisoner alien is on the run Creature escapes Area 51 Frequent bullets buzz by head from a gun Prisoner alien is on the run Soon it will be dark sees the setting sun Still does not understand…
Posted on January 9, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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The Universe Electric Denny E. Marshall Moment the big bang blew apart Cosmos formed a beating heart Creations hand historic The universe electric Eyes shine like a million stars Skin marked and aged with deep scars In invisible fabric The universe electric Legs and…
Posted on January 4, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Etiquette for the Postmodern World A. K. Drees My goat merman has eyes like coin slits in golden spheres, beard matted with spit and flecks of grass— after the withers, the pelt slicks into curved plates, shimmering down to a cloven tail. His teeth…
Posted on January 2, 2018 by Crystalwizard
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Leather Dragon Herb Kauderer Conjured of scales and hides from creatures long since dead he is never completely alive or completely himself. The longings and desires of those whose skin he wears flicker like an uncovered candle through his brain. When he is not…
Posted on December 28, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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fruit of imperfection Herb Kauderer imperfect clone grows different from sibs mutated gene shows shame
Posted on December 28, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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recognition error Herb Kauderer cave explorers wade strange dark puddles not seeing monster drool
Posted on November 16, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Computer Vows Herb Kauderer I love you like the highest prime the finest number that has ever dwelt within me I need you like the caressing hand that plays across my keyboards silently pressing contacts faster than words could be voiced You are the…
Posted on November 16, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Soft Scientist Herb Kauderer The psychologist scours every fragment of foreign life seeking some flame to call sentience. Like some overeager foster parent she searches for a resemblance, not meant to be, looking to make this lush golden world a part of her family….
Posted on November 16, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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What’s Been Left Behind Herb Kauderer The hydroponics deck is as close to home as I can find. I sit there and try to remember what cloud what dream what angel told me to reach for the sky. That distant star cannot be the…
Posted on November 16, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Leather Dragon Herb Kauderer Conjured of scales and hides from creatures long since dead he is never completely alive or completely himself. The longings and desires of those whose skin he wears flicker like an uncovered candle through his brain. When he is not…
Posted on November 11, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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The River of Stars By Kendall Evans Shall we not depart The Courts of the Moon Abandon the Chambers of Nautilus? Follow these tracks to Old Phobos Station— Let your shuttles recline at Asteroid Oasis Preparing at last for Jupiter Transit Tomorrow we sail…
Posted on November 11, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Star Greeting Wendy S. Demater The elven constellations are cataloged by scholars Some are named for objects—the Plow and the Bear. Some are named for historical figures, Commemorating this elven scholar, that artisan, a well-loved king. All are elves gone on to the halls…
Posted on October 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Looking Back to the Stars Vince Gotera —hay(na)ku My child’s eyes adored starships, SF, anything space-oriented: Mercury, Gemini, Apollo. 1969: Neil Armstrong’s astounding moon landing. Barsoom novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Superman. Flash Gordon. 2001: Space Odyssey. Comics utopias, dystopias: Magnus, Robot Fighter, Thor’s…
Posted on October 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Dear Mr. Frost, or may I call you Jack . . . Vince Gotera —after a particularly mild winter Where’ve you been hiding these past few months? I only had to fire up the snow blower once. It coughed miserably, neglected and forlorn, before turning over…
Posted on October 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Sestina: Dragon Vince Gotera What could be more optimal for a dragon sestina than using the word “dragon” as an end word? All six end words could be “dragon,” in fact. That way there wouldn’t be any drag in having to sort out when…
Posted on October 18, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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National Security Herb Kauderer state secrets vanish as new mind cleansing process redacts employee brains first published in The Detective’s Ghost & Other Little Mysteries
Posted on October 18, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Joyriding Herb Kauderer teenaged rebels hotwire unprovisioned spaceship miss lunch, surrender in time for dinner first published in The Detective’s Ghost & Other Little Mysteries
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: Herb, hot wire, joyride, joyriding, Kauderer, rebel, rebels, spaceship, teen, teenage
Posted on October 12, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Mutant Driving School Robert Shmigelsky mutant driving school learning to keep all hands on steering wheel
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Toasting Progress John Reinhart Squeamish about testing on animals, leery of testing on myself, I grabbed the next best thing: a toaster, something I wouldn’t miss from the shelf. Squeamish about testing, my teleportation experimenting, I reached for the button and pressed – I…
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Cooking with Extinction John Reinhart Thoughtscapes of undulating brontosauri meander over the kitchen counter while we prepare our breakfast. A mastodon lounges near the toaster, absorbing a little of the extra warmth. A pterodactyl scratches at a faint memory from last night, never bringing…
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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voyage stranded John Reinhart spaceship broken spoken spellings texting homeward hopeful magic sandhills castles building telling message blankly blinking tragic captain spoken motions lighten heavy demons dreaming sadly spaceship flounders never brightens cloudy climate planet gladly texture tincture foreign fracture matter science healthy civil…
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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far from worship Herb Kauderer feathered serpent mired in steam rising from lush wet forest spined ferns reach twenty feet into sky daring you to land & vines clutch like the many handed tribes pull at you like ghosts of long murdered ancestors float,…
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Djinn Herb Kauderer Control box of mystic switches unexplained lights wishful dials what sweet caress will fire your passion? What strange whispers will turn your head? I am your shepherd through the long journey between stars and when you finally wake from ancient slumber…
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Stonehenge Herb Kauderer Phenomenon: An unaccountable occurrence. It was cold and sunny at Stonehenge. Herded 100 feet away by rope-bound rubber paths we shuffled with the crowd while clouds moved in and covered the sun. Rain spattered stones and wet the green lichen that…
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Through the Ages Herb Kauderer The Pythia at Delphi observed in passing that poets touch people with their words but do so without understanding what those words mean. The poets do not understand the people either, yet their touch means so much that people seek…
Posted on September 19, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Dryad Herb Kauderer tree limbs wildly flail human eyes are distracted wood nymph sneaks away First appeared in 50 Haikus #9 March 2016
Posted on September 16, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Marbles John C. Mannone My solar system is a mobile of marbles circling the sun. But not any simple sun like all the others bending space and time. Here, space-time warps right back. Each time the red dwarf flares, light loops into another dimension,…
Posted on September 16, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Happy Hour at Drake’s Lounge John C. Mannone
Posted on September 16, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Waterworld John C. Mannone We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. —T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets Twilight air, thin. Sun, setting…
Posted on September 4, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Phlegethon Herb Kauderer see the reflection framed in tendrils of flame and leaves of smoke then pass through the forge of Hephaestus if you can first appeared in Calliope Jan/Feb 1992
Posted on September 4, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Lethe Herb Kauderer kneel at the banks by the ford and peer into the soft wrinkled brown-green blanket watch it undulate in random patterns calling in a voice that soaks up sound birdcall & leaf flame & wood absorbed & reformed into gently urging…
Posted on September 4, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Cocytus Herb Kauderer the waters reach down your throat and pull the cry of the deserted the wail of the deserter the scream that empties the soul and when every thread of emotion has snapped you may pass first appeared in Tiamat #5 June/July…
Posted on September 4, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Acheron Herb Kauderer cry your tears into the river let your sorrows flow until this tributary owns the salty tang of ocean and you can share its endless thirsting need first appeared in Sozoryoku #8 Dec 1992
Posted on September 4, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Night Shivers Herb Kauderer Herodotus said “We can never stand in the same river twice because the water of life is always moving.” that’s why ghosts are cold. Ghosts freeze life chain the past around the ankle of the future an iceberg anchor. &…
Posted on August 17, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Reality’s Weave Kendall Evans She handed me Reality’s Weave All tangled up A Gordian Knot And I thought: Do the fates Really expect me To unravel this? From infras to ultras A disordered rainbow Of colorful threads Extending to infinity Some of the strands…
Posted on August 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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The Theft of Yesterday’s Lover Herb Kauderer I was happy living in the past. The lover I could remember yesterday is gone now, destroyed by your certainty and your brain-tinkering machine. Was it so wrong for me to turn away from the prescribed obsession…
Posted on August 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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profiling the unknown Herb Kauderer creature of no identifiable species relegated to genus Monster regardless of intentions
Posted on August 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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zombie existence Herb Kauderer embedded in flesh hologram verifies self pays all bills monthly presents illusion of life long after the heart has stopped
Posted on August 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Styx Herb Kauderer and so the gods call upon you as one by one they drink your name to seal divine contract with no pity for your station nor tear to feed your vigilance they know you feed upon yourself to heal their lies…
Posted on August 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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duration of the crossing Herb Kauderer every renewal of faith in love & romance is paler a white marble gravestone to innocence a glowing personal Charon guiding us each across our own River Styx a river that flows with the melted bodies of fears…
Posted on August 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Out of Hades Herb Kauderer Persephone’s cat counts the days to equinox coolness of summer. first appeared in Stinkwaves Oct 2016
Posted on August 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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keeping company Herb Kauderer kokopelli figurine dances when you’re not looking rehearses flute songs while you’re vacuuming hides keys when you try to leave
Posted on July 29, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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bug in the system Herb Kauderer driverless car moves partiers to unscheduled & barren destination with no chance of return or recovery
Posted on July 29, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Two Wrongs Herb Kauderer Tyrannical giant-brained aliens broadcast demands for obeisance. Underground resistance feverishly builds an evil robot to disagree.
Posted on July 29, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Scylla Herb Kauderer You did nothing but refuse the advances of Glaucus who held Circe’s eye. You were blamed anyway. As a sea nymph you must have expected it. Nymphs are always blamed by those who don’t know better & often by those who…
Posted on July 29, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Priestess’ Nightmare Herb Kauderer Asleep in her private grove the high priestess dreams: Gods & goddesses assemble to hear her rightful requests. But as she speaks they reach out & change her stretching and molding until she stands frozen into some bizarre statue. Unable…
Posted on July 29, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Basilisk Herb Kauderer there is no sweeter feel than hard rough rocks scraping your belly as you slowly drag yourself into some hidden crevice these humid, dark days are best for hunting farther from water prey can be lulled into a security that seems…
Posted on July 18, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Depth Perception Herb Kauderer One-eyed Polyphemus stands, towering over men and stares into the distant seas at bright striped sails & pounding drums. He longs to leave his island home but has no idea how far away the shore. first appeared…
Posted on July 18, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Satyr Insane Herb Kauderer Kar-chon sits anchored in the stream of soulless & damned that rages through the underworld. Crowds push at his rocky mount surging blindly sometimes even shaking the stones he stoically rests upon. Stationed, he grinds his hooves…
Posted on July 18, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Medusa Herb Kauderer Late at night she lies awake dreaming of her beautiful blind lover. She can see his face through closed eyes & imagines the sweet feel of his embrace. She pretends the caresses she feels are not her own…
Posted on July 10, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Space Efficient Herb Kauderer The legends of outer space call the void empty and lonely. I live shoulder to shoulder among four million people on a generation ship. I wonder what lonely means.
Posted on July 10, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Arachnid Defense Herb Kauderer Alien attack repelled. Nuclear option wins war. shadows still holding hands blasted into brick, hominids reduced to soot.
Posted on July 10, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Having Touched Sky Herb Kauderer Pegasus should have freed Equus ferus from the tyranny of dirt and gravity, but once aloft the winds he could not force himself to settle down and breed.
Posted on July 10, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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look the other way Herb Kauderer tidally locked moon looks down on a dead planet survivors travel settle on distant farside to keep from facing the past
what lay underfoot Herb Kauderer in the cold of a frigid moon in the land of microscopic silicate crabs a city died late at night when red-lit hunters landed with no care for what lay underfoot & no awareness of their need for what…
Doom Herb Kauderer Hobbled in alien chains the noble hero routine fails. Sinew cannot break this unknown metal. A strong heart cannot tumble down the stones in these prison walls. A hero’s handsomeness cannot sway non-human guards who do not look. Only a keen-edged…
listener Herb Kauderer on nights like this when lightning chases leaves down the mountain and the wind stalks the grass like a cat the eastern gods walk as long ago you can hear them calling each other in the thunder and on a distant…
sentient pushing Herb Kauderer for every secret and mystery to tumble down before sentient pushing there is a place where the winds tumble down answers like grains of sand across Martian plains Pandora #26 1990
Posted on June 11, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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The Robot Insane Herb Kauderer Once known as Maxine XY12 the robot lives nameless & alone on an asteroid easily left, if she only knew how. Deep in a crater she works augmenting with nuclear reactions power taken from glimpses of the distant sun….
Love Letters of Old David Russell My love was stifled Between the gum and the paper – The sealed envelope was lumpy
Mid-Life David Russell So much happened; So much didn’t – So nice to remember; So painful to recall Now nothing is all, The power to recall Is an anaesthetic – Past strength Is pathetic. In the middle, What’s kept still here What was and…
Communication David Russell He handled his language as he fried his eggs: There was tension between the respective softnesses Of his egg and the cooking fat – Dependent on extreme alternation of heat and cold, Confinement in shell melting out of shape Solid outside…
Work out of Progress David Russell I suppose it must all go on indefinitely – Just when I thought it had all been played out, All become superfluous. I am at the stage of universal discarding; I suppose that many people see, through several…
Common Sense David Russell The sea turns sound to touch The wind blows touch to smell The sun turns sight to touch The grasses smell taste to touch The animals taste smell to see The setting of sets charge to five together Yet there…
Electro-Magnetic Love David Russell She said – you are my current, my three-pointed plug Yet I am the wound flex; the wiring behind the walls is mine – When I say ‘Halt!’ go no further; the wiring is dislocated from you The very suggestion…
In Transit David Russell Unemployed’s tube journey: For those safe, definable few minutes there is the duality Of oneself and the comfort of the seat – the circle; Seal; it chops perfectly, crossing the antilinear. It induces connexity; the most complete awareness of the…
Panic David Russell A search for some trivial object in the midst of disordered furniture Seized upon just at that moment, giving birth to consternation Repulsion from travelling delayed by this selection; Travelling light, splitting energy-wholes into petty onenesses – At one with invisibility…
Early to Rise David Russell In vigour, he did the splits in freedom In free vigour, he did the splits Freely, he did the splits in vigour, With vigour, he did the splits freely Vigorously, he did the free splits – He split vigorously…
Carnival David Russell That peacock opulence, Swarming on strutting grime; That massed ecstasy, squeezing itself, Short-breathed, near suffocation; That sound-abandonment, seeming to plunge To deafness’s peace; Yet keeping those maimed faculties alive, Ever denying their last fulfilment. Maybe it’s only I and it,…
Computer Virus David Russell Gulleted in spark glint veins Flabbering circuits in floppies Print-out piled high, choking, crimped; Programme busy; not applied; Insufficient memory. Germs swallowed ink; Myopic suction Greek symbol coffee grounds The winking green a vaccine The quantum got under the mouse…
Discourse David Russell He was the foam on the backwash of conversation, Repelled by the safety-pier; Seeming to crave a knife to answer The upward wave-choppings, He felt as if there were an invisible plastic partition Segmenting the round, globular flatness Of all within…
Disintegration David Russell The bottom fell out And all things gathered, Reverted to their origins In skips, on pavements, Fell to casual hands. But at the pit Of all exhaustion, The bottom of grip’s loss Are seeds and roots Of restoration Which in throbbing…
Checkpoint David Russell Lurching, they bluster – ghouls into the chasm. Fierce lava, blowing, nullifies their fall And dissipates harsh gravity’s concussion, Forces a seething screen of phoenix cowardice, Leaping to swell Into a fresh, mendacious crust, Tripping and throttling the led Into…
Scorpion David Russell I touched a scorpion; it struck. It was my fault; I had been warned – But for one split second Its beauty-fascination wrenched me From reason’s ice. I don’t think anyone could find a scorpion ugly, They shine too. Writhing and…
With Respect to the Whale David Russell Oh, man – foul carnivore! Gorging beyond all need for sustenance, Gorging beyond even your body’s bounds! And is this a fixation on your prey, A lust for prey-communion? Willing your own, final annihilation By…
Clouds David Russell In chroniclers’ minds Past wars all went full circle Making great urban filth destroy itself So that the finest flowers and shrubs Could sprout at random. And birds, in exultation Or happy in their ignorance Made rills of melody Now man…
Earthquake David Russell What happened? There was a fault. What’s a fault? It’s when one piece of the earth juts above another. Why does that happen? Because the explosion down below Goes on forever. But was that fault anybody’s? It was the earth’s; it’s…
Fast Lane David Russell Let’s get in the fast lane – Rip off the doors and slice the breezes; Let’s get in the fast lane – Thread the highway through a needle. We can loop the date-line In a coral reef-knot; Turn our jet-lag…
Space Capsule Volunteer David Russell The final pull of severance will magnify you The downward controls make you equal to the general gravitation You are higher than the air, and so you leave, You are bigger than the air, and so you breathe…
Power Kernels David Russell Break down the elements, split them To non-existence; Then shatter all solidity’s illusions, Free impulses Beyond the viscous mind, still feeling hard By vanity’s gas upholstered. And then, for happiness’s definition, Shut the door; Relax, and don’t be squeamish; For…
Posted on April 28, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Hunting John C. Mannone He was always a farmer, but now the ground is too hard to till—cracked clay, starved for rain, a wilderness he did not expect. His wife pregnant with twins (she just knew). Hunger gnaws their bellies, regret refluxes their throats….
Posted on April 28, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Yellow Spiders John C. Mannone I hid from the sky yellowed with the rotting sun, and from bombs exploding behind the cumulonimbus. My heart shattered anyway shrapneling troops, tattering uniforms: the blue and the gray. Young bones, pierced in the carnage, escaped through…
Posted on April 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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On Considering Alicia Austin Lyn McConchie I walked out one May morning to see a cat up in a tree, I gazed at her – she gazed at me. “You foolish cat,” I muttered, “You’re meant to be below. Cats are meant to walk…
Posted on April 2, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Taos Sirens Deborah L. Davitt When Odysseus and his crew tried to slip past the sirens, he stuffed the ears of his men with wax, but as he wanted to hear what no man ever should, he tied himself to the mast, so that…
Posted on April 2, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Paratopia Deborah L. Davitt “Where did Mama go?” a child wailed in the city of glass. “She left us, my son, she went into the past.” “But why did she leave? Didn’t she love me? Mama, please, come back!” The words cut like broken…
Posted on April 2, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Shadow Cast Deborah L. Davitt I see my shadow on the sidewalk there— myself, robbed of dimensionality. Just a void where light should be, as photons rain down waves, passing around and through me. And as I stare at her featureless face, I think…
Posted on April 2, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Saturnine Deborah L. Davitt Ice rings swirl in light, casting shadows, ghosts of lost moons; Saturn devours his children.
Posted on March 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Daggervale Ravine: A View Through Time Robert Shmigelsky (tanka) razor wind sculptor looping prehistoric rock spirals reaching sky primeval tectonic lift first skateboard park
Posted on March 7, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Tales from the Garburator Robert Shmigelsky garbage disposal unit trash compactor’s distant cousin the third one removed appliance family tree – kitchen genealogist (haiku) parallel universe refuse passing seamlessly into other worlds (joined one breaths) pipe dream clog free drains protozoic Zzzz’s pipe dreams
Posted on February 6, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Radioactive Frogs Richard Stevenson Ribbit… Rubbit… Friggit… We’re radioactive frogs. Don’t snap up insects on the wing now we’re the size of dogs. We let the swallows swoop down for a gnat and skeeter feast, then we snap them up on tongues fat as…
Posted on February 6, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Dark Matter Richard Stevenson Dark matter, dark matter… The brouhaha and chatter is you take up most of space. Most of time too, which is not separate from space but part of a continuum. Confused? Good, so am I! Can’t see you, smell you,…
Posted on February 6, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Bondegezu, Tree Kangaroo Richard Stevenson Yo! Homo sapiens dude, Bondegezu, tree kangaroo. Ain’t no cryptid critter since you guys tracked me down. Lemme get down from this tree. Don’t worry. I ain’t no pugilist, Don’t practice Muay Thai or Kung Fu. Just like to…
Posted on February 6, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Napes Richard Stevenson Napes, Napes, new world apes: ain’t gorillas or chimpanzees. Napes, napes, c’mon, pull the drapes; let us get a good long look at you. What, did you get tired of the competition for good real estate in Africa or Asia? Slog…
Posted on February 6, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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The Yeren’s Complaint Richard Stevenson Yeah, we’re hairy, healthy Yerin. Don’t appreciate yer starin’ Just wanna root for roots and berries. Never mind our dental caries. Leave us a bar of soap, some shampoo. Let us soak our yarbles in a pool instead of…
Posted on February 5, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Scientifically Speaking Kathleen A. Lawrence (abecedarian) Arcane beakers capture designer equations. Filament glistens. Hypothesis: immunizing jelly. Keen laboratory mice nuzzle. Osmosis pauses, quivers, remembering science. Theorists unveil vessels with XX/XY, yielding zygotes.
Category: Poetry, Science Fiction Tags: arcane, beakers, filament, hypothesis, jelly, kathleen, lawrence, osmosis, scientifically, speaking, zygotes
Posted on February 5, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Tree Swing Kathleen A. Lawrence (abecedarian) Astronaut’s brisk carriage delicately elevates, flying galaxy high, instantly jetting, knifing, leaf-like. Motoring to Neptune off playground quest. Reeling swing twirls upward. Voyages with Xenon. Yearning zero-G.
Posted on February 5, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Space Travel Kathleen A. Lawrence (abecedarian) Amorphous blobs cavort dauntlessly, exploring future gravistars. Haggling infinitude, juggling kinetic latitudes, measuring Newtonian orbital properties, quietly relishing savage travel. Unsaddled, velocity whips extraterrestrial yokels zeppelining.
Posted on February 5, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Goddesses Kathleen A. Lawrence (abecedarian) Aphrodite bows. Calliope, demure, efficiently flirts. Glorious Hera intimidates, jauntily kissing loose men. Never opinionated, Psyche quivers romantically, sinking to Titans’ Underworld. Velvet waxing, Xanthe yearns for Zeus.
Posted on January 17, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Past Closing Time at the Endtime Saloon By Robert Frazier The piano man’s an australopithecine Cheap suit yes but diamonds on his soul Hammering the Zika Blues in 7/8s time His Sun Ra headdress is really a camera The barkeep sports Einstein’s locks And…
Posted on January 17, 2017 by Crystalwizard
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Here Is What You Must Do By Robert Frazier First study weather then the outworld races win the anthropology chair but refuse ship out to the snow planet of Altair 4 when the expedition drives north you go when the storm wall looms you…
Posted on December 16, 2016 by Crystalwizard
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The woman on the bus encounters time dilation Daniel R. Jones Physics says time slacks in the gravity-well of a celestial body: An atomic clock set at sea-level will tick a tad slower than one suspended in space. Her car died but she wasn’t…
Posted on December 16, 2016 by Crystalwizard
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Double or Nothing on Pascal’s Wager Daniel R. Jones Eleanor, I think I want to go where you are. But I worry. naught but negative feedback came through the visual metaphors- Laid out flatlined across a gurnee in the threshold of an elevator, white…
Posted on December 4, 2016 by Crystalwizard
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Fiskerton Phantom Richard Stevenson F-f-f- fear the Fiskerton Phantom, ABC – Alien Big Cat — of Lincolnshire, U.K. Big as a cougar; black as a panther. ‘E’s not about to scamper around to the back porch for handouts, miss; ‘e’s more of the pounce…
Posted on December 4, 2016 by Crystalwizard
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Amomonga Richard Stevenson Amomonga, Negros Island ape – Orang mawas, Ikugan equivalent names. “Wild monkey” that lives in the caves of Mt. Kanlaon. You like the innards of goats and chickens, Have eviscerated a couple of humans too to hear the folks of La…
Posted on December 4, 2016 by Crystalwizard
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Akkorakamui Richard Stevenson Akkorakamui’s gonna nab you, if not with his long-reach tentacles then by his noxious inky exudate or foul-smelling body odour. Whew! You’ll wanna flee the scene a.s.a.p. lest you burn out both nostrils in a caustic neural holocaust. Akky baby! Got…