Speculative Fiction and Poetry
the poem dreams by Herb Kauderer
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…
Until Dawn
Master Ikthan, leader of the four-peaks temple, listened with an uneasy heart as his friends and charges, Katja and Tanu, explained their concerns for Sunar to himself and Sarah, Katja’s mother. He felt glad that they had come to him for council, for he…
Sunar
Master Ikathan knelt in the small gazebo atop the Four Peaks Temple and watched the sun set over the plains. The distant whine of a turbine made its way to his ears and tried to disturb his meditation. He ignored it, continuing to contemplate…
Beyond the Mad/Funhouse by David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendal Evans
Beyond the Mad/Funhouse David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans She is underlit There atop the cathedral madhouse As if by the floor lights of a stage Illumination ascending, spotlighting mercilessly Casting crowraven shadows of features and form All in…
Recursion by David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans
Recursion David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans Where’s this starship been Resembling a pretzel Infinite figure 8 Maybe a moebius Nor-easterlies, or their 4D equivalent From another universe Might be responsible Or some minor deity’s Momentary inattention Its unscarred surface Belies the great age That…
The Station Master by David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans
The Station Master Nearly Always Runs the Trains on Time David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans In the morning’s roaring rain The driving outrageous migraine pain I disobeyed the Station Master’s instructions Despite his threats of Post-mortem punishments And repercussions yet more dire I never…
Corrected Maps of your City by David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans
Corrected Maps of your City David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans Every convenience store has them: So shiny and bright, Each street name legible, They fold and refold perfectly (Your first clue they are alien technology) Behind your building, no-name alley, You know, the one…
Robot/Worker
Robot/Worker David C. Kopaska-Merkel Limestone opens eroding eyes / kudzu drags a gray shack Into a verdant mound / while skulls peep back at stony eyes Groaning into a world of glades, And ghosts, and raddled condominia_ Eyes rotate, focus, scan for human survivors…
Robo-Cat by David C. Kopaska-Merkel
Robo-Cat® David C. Kopaska-Merkel No messy hairballs with Robo-Cat® Pet is pre-programmed and pre-trained, but be forewarned: Though great to have around the house, Robo-Cat® Is extremely playful; be sure to secure your computer mouses This is one high-maintenance mechanical pet Picking mouse gears…
In Answer to your Relic Query by David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans
In Answer to your Relic Query David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans His day in court proved a kangaroo trial They found his sin to be most vile For sipping his gin from the Holy Grail They sentenced his ass to an orbital jail Somewhere…
Elegy for Iain Banks by Vince Gotera
Elegy for Iain Banks Vince Gotera First published in Star*Line 39.3 For Iain M. Banks (1954-2013) Scottish science fiction writer known for fanciful spaceship names. The Irish corvette Macha – a small warship – was dispatched to France to bring William Butler…
Pharaoh’s Eye by John C. Mannone
Pharaoh’s Eye John C. Mannone Sacrilege. Intrusion into Egyptian chambers, looting the relics: rubies, emeralds, gold scepters, the king’s sarcophagus. No one’s watching but the scarabs that scurry down the stone maze of passageways now choking with sand falling as rain. Darkness closes in,…
You Always Said You Could Swim Like a Fish by John C. Mannone
You Always Said You Could Swim Like a FishJohn C. Mannone You, in that black cocktail dress,red heels stiletto-ing floor. Legs,sinuous in the ballroom. We embrace, my hands on the arch of your back. Outside, salt water sings. Beckons.Caribbean air mists its magic over…
Entreaty of the Ancient by Jennifer Ruth Jackson
Entreaty of the AncientJennifer Ruth Jackson Describe it, scribe How the mountains tasteThe sound the moon makesAs it sees its faceStark, in ocean mirrors Give me the scent of griefSo I can press it to me,A dead flower preservedTo still resemble life Return memories…
Dorothy Delivered by Kathleen A. Lawrence
Dorothy DeliveredKathleen A. Lawrencespiraling abecedarian
Alice Abbreviated by Kathleen A. Lawrence
Alice AbbreviatedKathleen A. Lawrencespiraling abecedarian
I Am He As You Are They And We Are All Together by
I Am He As You Are They And We Are All TogetherDavid C. Kopaska-MerkelKendall Evans In the beginning the word was, I’m told,We all wanted to be a part of something biggerWe sacrificed mobility but gained collective strength,Our numbers covering a great deal of…
The Third Planet by David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans
The Third Planetor, Something Had to be Done David C. Kopaska-MerkelKendall Evans The blues of seas, the aquamarinesWhite whorls of cloudThe sun-struck tans and brownsOf continents with tailsAnd trailing islandsAs if the Coriolis force affects them too–The third planet: thin-skinned, touchy,Not a particularly good…
Superhero by Vince Gotera
SuperheroVince Gotera for Kathy Tiger Woman loped through green jungle. Hum of insects, bird song, monkey chatter paused as she drew near and passed, though she was quiet as a breeze, a wisp of smoke. That memory filled…
Dragon-in-Training by Vince Gotera
Dragon-in-TrainingVince Gotera —terza rima Rawrr. Oh, that isn’t nearly loud enough. Ahem . . .RAWRRRR. Ahem ahem. That’s rough on the throat.My windpipe is sore from practicing breathing flame. Listen, I’m a dragon, yes, but jeez, I’m only thirteen.A teenage dragon, I guess you’d…
Dragon’s Teeth by David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans
Dragon’s TeethDavid C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans Our teeth fell out like seedsThe new children of Medea Canines:Extinct species resurrecting,White-feathered dinosaurs,Albino Dire Wolves and Deadly ManticoresProwling the arctic’s equatorial islands Incisors:Our own ancestors,Giant rats,Camels like giraffes Bicuspids:Rhinos 11 feet high at the shoulderSabred…
Grant Wilson Art
