Theme 10: Breathe Again

Alton's chest rose with an audible intake of breath.

Pain!


Where was he? He had been so comfortable. So safe. No worries. Somewhere else. It was fading so fast, like a dream. Where was he?


He opened his eyes. Whiteness. Bright. Blinding. Too bright. More pain.

He blinked a few times. Whiteness resolved into a room. There was a man in a white coat sitting in a chair across the room. He was older, maybe in his forties or fifties. He had fallen asleep, slumped in the chair. Alton was in a bed. He was breathing. Why was that strange?

Then he remembered.

Because he was supposed to be dead. That was why. He was dead. Had been dead. He died. How long ago? It felt like life was a long time ago.

He sat up. More pain. Beyond stiffness. Like he had been sleeping for years. He tried to speak, but only a strange croaking sound emerged and devolved into coughing. It was enough to wake the man in the chair.

"Ah," he said. "You're back with us. Good. Try to take it easy. You're going to need to get used to your new condition."

Alton's coughing finally subsided and he found his voice. It was scratchy from disuse. "Why? How?"

The man smiled sadly. "I'm afraid you're not ready for the how just yet. But I will tell you why. You're going to save the world, Alton. And I'm afraid you're going to have to die several more times doing it."

Theme 9: Drive

Quentin sulked in the back seat of the car.

"Come on, Q," said Jesse from the driver's seat. His best friend was grinning.

"Look, I don't expect you to get how important this is to me," snapped Quentin. "But I do expect to be taken seriously. Come on man."

Brigit chimed in from the front passenger's seat. "Ease up, Quentin. Of course we take you seriously."

Quentin rolled his eyes at his twin's comment. "Whatever. Look, it's important that we get this drive out of the hands of Ardcorp."

"Yeah we know, " said Jesse. "End of the world scenario. Well here I am driving you to this shady drop-off thing you've got going. Just don't ask me to take it all that seriously. You know your cloak and dagger stuff just comes off as hilarious sometimes. Especially since we're doing this in broad daylight."

Quentin's frowned deepened. "See that's what I'm talking about. Obviously I'm not gonna do a shady deal at night when there's no one on the road. The important thing here is to blend in."

"Right," said Brigit. "So we're blending. Teenagers laughing is pretty blend-y, Q."

"Yeah," said Quentin. "Well so is teenagers sulking."

Theme 8: Innocence

Harmony surveyed the life-size clay figure stretched out on the table before her. She consulted her diagrams one last time, and then quickly began inscribing several runes in strategic places on the figure's body using her violin's bow. Normally, she would have employed a ceremonial stylus for the task, but this particular operation would require a speedy transition to her other talents. Her music would be required while the runes were still very fresh. Once she was done etching the runes into the figure's body, she picked up her violin. She took a brief second to ensure it was still in tune and then began her song.

Harmony played the Aria of Innocence. It was a song of her own composition, one that she had never played before and yet knew every note and rest of. The music poured from her soul into the violin and then into the clay. The runes began to glow, softly at first then growing brighter.

Harmony was a rarity among rarities. In fact, she had reason to believe she was the only one of her kind alive on the planet at the present time. Willworkers like herself were vanishingly rare to begin with, only a few thousand existed worldwide. And spellcasters were also quite rare, though not as rare as the Enlightened. She was one of the most rare beings in creation: A Willworker who could also cast more "ordinary" magical spells. Her research on the Dreamtime network led her to believe that the phenomenon had happened less than a dozen times total in the whole of recorded human history. This unique combination of talents allowed her to achieve effects unattainable by either magician or Dreamer.

Her Willworker's music mingled with the spellcraft of the runes and the glowing reached a crescendo as she finished her song. As the last note of the aria faded into the air, the glow of the runes likewise diminished. After a few tense moments, the clay figure's chest rose with a sharp intake of breath and the figure sat up.

The clay girl looked at her creator, confusion on her face.

"Welcome to life. My name is Harmony, but I guess you can just call me 'mom.'"

Theme 7: Heaven

They cast me aside.

They broke their promises. They used me until I was no longer convenient and then I was discarded. But I will not be quietly resigned to my fate. I will make them pay.

My life began simply, as a proud samurai warrior serving my lord. When he fell in battle, I thought to join him, but Heaven had other plans. I was approached by a Seraph, a divine arbiter who offered me a choice. I could end my life now, stained as it was with the blood of the innocent and the guilty alike, or I could work for her. Either way, she said, I would die. The only variables were time and how much good I could do for the world first. I took her offer.

I traded my dou-maru for the protection of divine fire, the latent power of my own soul made manifest and amplified by the Seraph's gift. She sent down a pair of Principalities to instruct me in the use of my new-found power and school me in the laws I was now sworn to uphold.

Only the most effective of killers can become a Warden's Hunter. Only a mortal already so bathed in blood as to be beyond ordinary redemption can be offered the chance to turn that deadly instinct to divine purpose and in fulfilling that mandate find salvation. And what a killer was I.

My daisho shattered in the struggle with my first Edict-breaker. I wrenched the pitchfork from the demon's hand and destroyed his mortal shell with his own infernal weapon. And it is that weapon I still wield to this day. It is not the primitive hay fork of human folklore. My weapon is sleek and built for battle. Forged with cunning artifice by the techno-gremlins of the pit. Black steel prongs, carbon-nanotube haft, and a blood red jewel where the prongs meet the haft that glows as it drinks in the life-energy of my foes when they fall. It is a good weapon, a delicious irony when used to slay a demon. And on the rare occasion one of the Celestials breaks an Edict, well. . .it does what it was built to do.

For six hundred years I served my heavenly master. For six hundred years I killed who they told me to kill. For six hundred years, I was their faithful tool.

Until now. After six centuries of loyal service, I am now told my services are no longer required thanks to an "incident" that occurred relatively recently. And the Metatron has reneged on his offer of entry into Heaven.

But the Fallen and the Host are the same basic beings. There is one thing I have been trained to do very well over the past six hundred years. And that is to kill angels.

Tonight, for the first time since the Rebellion, there shall be sorrow in Paradise. And I shall be its author.

Theme 6: Break Away

They chained me. They bound me and left me in darkness to rot. But I am not so easily dealt with. I am no simple problem that can be locked away and forgotten. I am the cards and the cards are me.

I close my eyes. I am the root of the powers of air. I am the knight of swords. I am freedom and wings and chains cannot bind me. I am strength.

I am all these things and more and my chains are nothing. They fall to the ground shattered and rusted.

I am the Cartomancer, and my enemies will soon learn their mistake.

Theme 5: Seeking Solace

I look at your picture through a haze of cigarette smoke and whiskey. My lungs, my liver, my love, all fucked. L just isn't my letter it seems. My whole life I've been looking for something without quite knowing what it is. I thought it was you.

I was wrong.

Theme 4: Dark

Fraze blessed the darkness as he stretched out to the moon with his soul. The dragon of the night responded, sending power cascading into the conduits made by the network of tattoos crisscrossing his body. He became  an incarnation of opposites. The color from his skin and clothing was drained, leaving an inkblot on the face of reality in the shape of a man. The markings on his body were alive with silver fire, shining through his clothing where it covered his skin. His smile and his eyes glittered as his face split into a grin, three points of white in the void that was his face.
"Time to cause a little trouble for the sun-worshippers," he said, launching himself into the night on a trail of moonbeams.

Theme 3: Light

The light washed over and through him, searing his vision despite tightly closed eyelids. He fell to the ground, choking on his own breath.
"That's right, cocksucker," said the woman. "Drink it in. You think that light's all rainbows and happy thoughts?" She kicked him in the ribs. "Think again. My light is glorious and terrible, the stuff of legends and gods."
He choked out a sound that was probably meant to be words. The woman ignored him.
"I'm not going to kill you," she said. "But I am going to hurt you." She punctuated the last with another swift kick to his midsection. "And you're going to limp home to whatever faction thought they could take on this poor defenseless light mage and you're going to tell them how fucking wrong they were."
She kicked once more for good measure. "And if I ever see your face again, mine will be the last thing you ever see."

Theme 2: Love

"I don't understand," said Lisa.
"I really didn't expect you too," responded Carter.
There were tears in her eyes as she looked at him, but to her credit she blinked them away and did not let them fall. "I thought that things were good between us. What happened? Don't you love me anymore?"
Carter's gaze remained hard, unyielding, lifeless and cold like a painted portrait of a king. "I do love you," he said. "I love you more and more with every moment we spend together. But that's why I have to go. As long as you're with me, you're in terrible danger. Danger you can never understand and that I can never keep you safe from."
Her sorrow turned to anger. "Coward," she hissed, voice barely more than a whisper. "True love doesn't run. True love doesn't care what problems are before it. True love struggles and fights and overcomes."
Carter just shook his head and turned his back on her. "Don't follow me, Lisa. Hate me if you have to, but don't follow me."
He walked away, vanishing into the deepening night.
She didn't follow.

Theme 1: Introduction

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome! Welcome to our wonderful circus of the strange, our bazaar of the bizarre. I will be your host this evening. I have many names, yet none are mine. You may call me what you wish, for I am but a humble guide. But you did not come here to hear me prattle on. Please, get comfortable in your seats. Relax and enjoy the show."

100 Theme Challege

Been out of the world for a spell, I'd like to walk it again.

Gonna do some short prose vignettes corresponding to each of the 100 themes found on this post. I'll be going in order, from 1 to 100.

-The Drewcifer

Muncie Blues

Okay, this is really hard for me to do, but here goes.

I started this song by singing it on my porch in the last couple of weeks before I left for China. Originally, it was just a chord progression I was doing to practice playing an F chord on my mandolin. It had different words every time.

While on the plane over to China, I managed to codify some lyrics that I think I can live with for the time being. The song may well go through another version or two, but I think it's pretty good.

Update: Added a few more lines and I think it's finished now.

For those of you interested in singing along, I'll include the chords for the first couple of patterns. After that, you can figure it out yourself.
So here goes. This is helping me to get over her.

Muncie Blues


F
So I'll write another story and sing another sad song
C
About some girl who's never gonna love me
Em
What's worst is I got no right to miss her
Am
Cuz Lord knows, I never even kissed her

F
And I'm finding myself at a crossroads, at a junction
C
Tryin' to figure out my form and my function
Em
But listen kiddo, don't you worry about me
Am
You worry enough as it is already

F                                                    C
Oh what the Hell am I supposed to do
                                           Em
With you and your Muncie blues?
                                Am
No one compares to you.

F                                                    C
Oh, you know I got something to prove
                                                Em
And I just don't think that I can move
                                           Am
'Till I see it in those Muncie blues.


So I'll find another lover and sing another sad song
About a girl who's never gonna love me
While the new one sits beside me
With no idea of the pain inside me

Oh how I wish she was you
with your Muncie blues
Muncie blues

Oh and I feel my heart starting to bruise
But I think I've got nothin' to lose
When I'm staring at those Muncie blues

So I take another hit and sing another sad song
About the girl who said she'd never love me
And tell myself the drugs'll make it better
But all they do is make her eyes wetter

Oh I can tell that you don't approve
I can see it in your Muncie blues
But you don't get to choose

Oh and my heart it hasn't got a clue
Cuz if it knew what to do
It wouldn't be in love with you

And I die a little bit whenever I sing a sad song
About that girl who never did love me
And she never did love me
No she never did love me

Oh how I wish that I could tell you I'm through
That I've finally gotten over you
But that just wouldn't be true

Oh and I know the problem isn't with you
But it seems no matter what I do
I just can't forget about you

So I'll drain another glass and sing another sad song
Cuz all along I knew you'd never love me
I look for answers in this bottle of whisky
All the while wishing you were here with me

Oh it was nothing that I chose to do
but you see when I saw those Muncie blues
I knew I'd finally found my muse

But it's another empty round while I'm drowing my sorrows
Trying not think about all of the tomorrows
That you and I will never have

And the truth is now I'm more often drunk than I'm sober
Cuz at the start it was already over
Oh but ain't that the way it goes.

Summer Butterflies

What follows is a poem, but please allow me a bit of navel-gazing and reflection before we get into the work itself.

"Summer Butterflies" is a poem that details the emotional content of my relationship with a particular person. It is, broadly speaking, the culmination of nearly two years of experience. Because my relationship with the person has not yet ended, the possibility of additional stanzas being added at some point in the future is a very real one. In this way, "Summer Butterflies" is a work in progress.

Because Blogger is being a real asshole about preserving my indents, and the indents are very important to this poem, I'm providing a link to the poem here. Additionally, if you don't like clicking on links, I'm embedding the poem in the post as well, though I don't really care for how tiny it is.

Poem

This poem is dedicated to someone very important.

Poem:

My love was once a fire pure

Burning hot and clean.

Now the signal's slick with smoke

From oil and gasoline

I've seen a lot of bridges burned

By my consuming fire.

And watched each girl I've loved become

Impurities on the pyre.

But all the while through each heart break

My soul continues singing.

And it beats on, my wounded heart

Though every cut keeps stinging.

As I look forward, I cannot see

An end to loss and yearning.

But though the smoke grows thick and black

I'll keep this fire burning.

Valentine's Day 2009

I know this is a little late, but I figured if anyone still occasionally checks this blog, I could give them a little something for Valentine's. Obviously, I'm running late with it as usual. Will this be a story? A poem? I honestly have no idea. I'm just going to sort of start writing and see what happens.

-The Drewcifer

Story:

Once upon a time. Does anyone ever really put some serious thought into that phrase? It's so ubiquitous, used at the beginning of so many fairy tales. But what does it really mean? I know it's not a complete sentence. But as beginnings go, I guess it's not all that bad. If you look at it, it's basically saying "What comes after this phrase happened at a time." And I guess that's good, but shouldn't you know that anything that happens happens at a time? Sorry, I got distracted and started ranting. Anyway.

Once upon a time,

there was a boy. And the boy found himself without companions. For you see, this was before anyone else existed, but after Time had already begun, for as we have already said, it was upon a time.

So once upon a time, there was the Boy. And the Boy looked for his mother, the Moon. He cried skyward for many nights. And though he could see the Moon, she would not answer his calls. She could not come down and comfort him. And this made the Boy sad, and his lonliness grew.

So once upon a time, the Boy couldn't find his mother. So the Boy looked for his father, the Sun. And once again, the Boy found his parent easily. And once again, he cried out to the heavens. And, to his dismay, he was once more left without answer. Once more denied the comforting embrace, this time of this father. And the Boy experienced a saddness that cannot be described, only felt. And the Boy thought that perhaps the Sun and the Moon did not love him any longer. 

But that is not the truth of the story.

Once upon a time,

the Moon and the Sun were one. And from that, the Boy was born. And for a time, the Boy and the Moon and the Sun were together, and they were happy. But, inevitably, it came time for the Sun and the Moon to take their places in the sky. And they bid the Boy farewell, telling him they would watch him, and that they would always love him. And so the Boy was sent to the Earth, so that the Moon and the Sun could watch over him. And for a time, things were good. Not as good as they had been when the family had been together, but tolerable. The Boy would see his father during the day, and his mother at night. But soon the lonliness began to swell within the Boy. And the Moon and the Sun looked down and heard him crying out for them and they were saddened. 

So once upon a time, while the Boy was moping with head downcast, the Moon began to appear in the day sky, to conferr with her husband. And they found that they had missed each other dearly, so their visits did not cease after the trouble had passed. But that is another story. They spoke and wondered and felt keenly their son's pain, for they missed him as much as he missed them. And so the Moon and the Sun spoke to Time and to Dream.

Once upon a time,

there was a girl. And the girl was lonely and without companions. This too happened after Time had begun, for it was upon a time. But only barely.

Because once,

Time and Dream met and found each other pleasing. And from their union was born the Girl, who was prophecy and mystery. And with the arrival of their progeny, Time began and Dream created.

So once upon a time, the Girl knew she could never feel again the embrace of her parents. But she dreamed each night, falling into her mother's arms. And she moved at all times through the substance of her father. And she was happy enough. But dreams and grains of sand can only be companions for so long.

So once upon a time, the Sun and the Moon were worried for their Boy, who was born of the two great lights in the sky. He was knowledge and curiousity. Just as the Girl, born of invisible forces, was all things concealed, so too was the Boy, born of forces illuminating, all things revealed. And the Sun and the Moon spoke to Time and to Dream.

So once upon a time, the four of them decided that perhaps their children should meet, so as not to be lonely any more.

So once upon a Time, buoyed up and carried by a Dream, the Girl found herself on Earth, opposite a crying Boy.

Once upon a time, the Girl asked "Why are you crying?" And the Boy stopped crying. "I was crying because I was afraid that my mother and father do not love me any more. They watch over me, but they cannot speak to me, nor comfort me in their arms when I am frightened or lonely."

Once upon a time, the Girl comforted him, saying: "Do not be sad, Boy. I too have been left by my parents. Like yours, they still love me, but they cannot touch me. But I know that our parents love us, still." And the Boy, once upon a time, asked how the Girl could know this.

"Because your mother and father saw that you were lonely and my mother and father saw that I was lonely. So the four of them sent me to you, that we might both find an end to our loneliness," she said, once upon a time.

And so it was.

Wendell Chapter 2

The following post also appears at A Shot in the Dark
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Wendell could tell it was going to be one of those nights.

He had screamed for almost a full minute before Felicia opened the coffin lid.

"Oh Wendell, I'm so sorry. I was in the washroom and I couldn't get here right away. Are you alright?"

Wendell took a few moments to catch his breath. Ever since the transition to becoming undead, he hadn't actually needed to breathe. Nonetheless, Wendell wasn't the sort to let go of hyperventilation just because it was no longer a biological response. Wendell was a creature of habit.

After he had regained his composure, Wendell managed to give Felicia a watery smile and a weak thumbs up as he sat up in his coffin. "No problem," he said, insincerely. "I'll be fine."

Concern dominated Felicia's face. "Are you sure, Wendell?" She held out her wrist. "Here, have some breakfast to soothe yourself."

Wendell protested weakly and inaudibly while feebly pushing the girl's hand away. Felicia would have none of that.

"Now Wendell, you may be my undead lord and master whom I have sworn unswerving allegiance to, but I've been watching and you haven't had a bite to drink in two nights. You are going to drink my blood and you are going to like it, Mister!"

And with that, Felicia thrust her wrist forcefully into Wendell's face. Grumbling, Wendell sank his fangs into the girl and began to suck on the wounds.

Felicia cooed softly as the vampire administered his Kiss. Wendell just tried to keep the blood down and resist the urge to throw up. After only thirty seconds or so, he stopped his ministrations and licked the wounds closed.

"Oh Wendell." The disappointment in her voice was punctuated by the halfhearted sigh. "Why did you stop so soon?"

"I-I didn't want to hurt you. Drain you or anything." Wendell's stammering reply was made worse by the after-drink queasiness he always suffered.

Felicia looked at him, highly exasperated. "Wendell, how many times do we have to go over this? You can drink for several minutes-plural-before I'd be in any danger."

Wendell looked at her sheepishly. "I know. I'm sorry."

"Well. Try and remember next time. I'm off to bed. Wake me up when you're ready to go bed."

Yeah, it was going to be one of those nights.

Wendell Chapter 1

The Drewcifer will now attempt some comedy.

The following post also appears at A Shot in the Dark
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Wendell hated his name. In fact, he told everyone he met that his name was Chris. To him, Chris seemed like a much simpler, stronger, more American name. But no matter how many people called him Chris, one thing never changed.

Deep down inside, he was still a Wendell. Wendells were meek, wimpy, and British. Wendells were prey animals. This might not have been a problem had this particular Wendell not, in fact, been a predator.

You see Wendell was a vampire. A vampire who, each night, upon waking, screamed at the top of his lungs.

Wendell was both claustrophobic and nyctophobic, meaning he feared both tight spaces and the dark. This made a coffin a very uncomfortable place for him. Each morning his housekeeper watched him fall asleep, then gently closed the lid of the coffin.

Wendell's condition had instilled an intense fear of the sun (heliophobia). As a result, Wendell went to bed very early each night. And Wendell often went to bed hungry.

Wendell did not like drinking blood. He had been assured time and time again by his bevy of beautiful mortal concubines that the act was, indeed, very pleasurable for them.

Wendell found it icky.

Technically Wendell shared the concubines with his roommates, Jeff and His Dark Eminence the Dread Prince of the Night Markomanius Necrosian (whom everyone just called 'Mark').

No one in the house called Wendell "Chris."

English 205 Final Project

Originally, this assignment was limited to a 9 page maximum and needed to show setting, internal and external conflict, and a bunch of other stuff.

Anyway, I need to do a revision of it by next Tuesday, the revision can have as many pages as I want. There is a notable lack of internal conflict in this story, among other flaws. To all of my readers, I'd like as much input from you on improvements as possible. I know the ending is wonky, so suggestions there are very appreciated.

Note: Anne Marie's name and likeness are used, but her powers and goals are very different. Consider this "fanon" as far as she's concerned.

Thanks very much for your help, guys.
-The Drewcifer

Story:

Unlucky

by Andrew Blatt

Most people don’t believe me when I tell them I’m psychic. I can’t say I blame them. In fact, I’m always a little suspicious of people who do believe me right off the bat. That said, I’m being 100% serious when I say that’s what I am.

Not professionally, of course. I’ve never met a genuine psychic who made money from his or her “gift.” Unlike some of the frauds, I can find my own car in a parking lot. Most of my clairvoyance, though, is the ability to see my immediate future. I know you’re thinking that that sounds great, but it’s not. See, to go along with that little edge, I have terrible luck. So when I stare into the infinite maw of Probability, all I see is how much my life is going to suck in about five minutes.

I seem to have forgotten to introduce myself. My name is Gregory Hallen. As I’ve mentioned I’m a psychic by nature, though not by profession. I’m pretty much always between jobs, a side effect of the bad luck. Doesn’t bother me too much, though. I can always see what’ll give me the best results during an interview, so getting new jobs isn’t much of a problem.

When you’re psychic, seeing things like ghosts isn’t supposed to be a big deal. Somehow, I never quite got to that point. I think that the restless dead make me uncomfortable because they throw off my predictions. I can’t read anything about the future when ghosts are involved. Once you get used to a life with no surprises, even if that life isn't all that great, surprises start to make you very uncomfortable.

Which is why I'm never quite as happy to see my dad as one might expect.

"Hello, Greg." My old man's voice is slow and melancholy. Not because he's dead, though. He's sounded like that for as long as I can remember.

I jump slightly in my chair, then put down my paper and turn to face my father.

"Hi, Dad. What can I do for you today?"

These visits are starting to get out of hand. Before, it was unusual for me to encounter a ghost more than once every two or three years. Even after Dad died, he would just drop in twice a year; once on my birthday, once on his. Simple, little things. But this is the third time Dad's been here this month.

But he shrugs it off like it's nothing. "Just wanted to see how you're doing, Greg. I worry about you a lot. I worry about your mom, too, but she can't see me."

Uh oh. Looks like Dad's going to work himself into a ramble if I don't do something.

"Look, Dad, something must be up. You've visited me more in these few weeks than you have in all the rest of the four years since you died. I know you. You don't get that sentimental. And you know that you being around tends to gum up the one single talent I have."

Dad's trapped. Everything I've just said is pretty much spot on, so there's no use in him arguing it. He sighs and looks at me with an unfamiliar expression. After a moment, I realize that it's pride.

"I always knew you were smarter than we gave you credit for," he says to me. Great. That makes me feel just wonderful.

"Right, whatever." This is becoming irritating. "Look, Dad, if this is something I can help with, tell me. If not, you need to let me get back to my life. Birthdays are still fine, but you can't just hang around the living all the time. We're both supposed to be moving on."

Dad shifts uncomfortably. He hasn't really changed any of his mannerisms since his death. It's somewhat unnerving. People are supposed to be different after they die.

"I just wanted to make sure you were safe. There's been some sort of plague or something. Something is killing psychics and no one can tell what it is."

Something killing psychics? That seems strange. "But," say, frowning. "Wouldn't we be able to see it coming? That's kinda what we do. My life's kinda shitty, but I'm not usually in any sort of mortal danger."

My dad grimaces. "That's the problem. Whatever it is, it's striking without warning. I guess I just want to tell you to be careful. Don't rely too much on your 'gift.' Keep your eyes open in the present, too."

As much as I hate to admit it, his frequent visits have been forcing me to ease off reliance on reading the future. Whether he realizes this or not is a matter of speculation. Still, I'm glad he decided to warn me.

"Thanks Dad. I'll keep on my toes."

"Love you, Greg," he say as he fades from view.

Funny, he rarely said that when he was alive.

The futures I can see slowly become relevant again. The thing about my clairvoyance is that it doesn't stop when I'm dealing with ghosts. If that were the case, I'd still know when they were around from the "blackout." Instead, timelines and futures with the ghosts in them just never show up.

That's when it hits me.

This malevolent presence hunting down psychics, it must be ghostly in nature. It's the only thing that really fits. And Dad probably knew that, but couldn't tell me. There seem to be a lot of very strange and arbitrary rules governing the behavior of the dead, one of which seems to be a restriction against telling any living being what exactly the rules are.

Right. Sorry about that. I seem to have inherited my father's legendary ability to ramble ever since I hit my thirties. So where were we? Right, my potentially looming death.

So far I'm betting it's another ghost, obviously a malevolent one. Though to be honest, I've never heard of a ghost outright killing anyone, which always led me to believe that they couldn't. The number of murders who would prefer not to be stopped by death is not a small number, let me tell you. But I've faced down the spirits of serial killers and saints alike, finding them equally unable to touch me.

This is turning out to be a great day so far.

I do know someone who might be able to help me solve this little mystery. After all, that's what she does. So I take the bus downtown and end up at the offices of one Miss Anne Marie Thompson, private investigator.

I raise my hand to knock on her door, but am interrupted by Anne Marie's voice.

"Come on in, Greg."

Did I mention she's a psychic, too? I know what you're thinking. But we're the only two in this town. It's only natural that we'd know each other, right?

I open the door and close it behind me. Anne Marie's office is small and sparse. Three sets of filing cabinets, a desk, and two chairs are the only furnishings she has. The air in here is think and smells heavily of nicotine. Sitting behind the desk is Anne Marie herself, smoking a cigarette.

At thirty-two, Anne Marie is quite a looker. She is, like me, average height. Her dad was a boxer, so she learned and used his training regimen, which keeps her in shape and ready to kick the ass of the punks she usually ends up chasing down. She keeps her dirty-blonde hair just short of shoulder length. You'd think two thirty-something, single psychics would have hooked up at some point, right? You'd be right, though that was a while ago. Back when we were still twenty-somethings.

"So, Greg," she says, blowing blue smoke into the ceiling fan. "What brings you to me today?"

Interaction between two psychics has an effect similar to, yet totally different from, interaction with ghosts. Similar in that our talents will be largely useless in our interactions with each other. Different in that I can see futures with Anne Marie in them, they're just fuzzy and constantly shifting. It's much less unsettling.

"I got a visit from my Dad today," I say, dropping into the seat across from her and placing my feet on the desk. "He had some rather downer news for me."

"Just so we're clear, this is your dead dad we're talking about, right?" She's got the same apathetic edge to her voice as always. But her eyes tell me she's interested despite the act.

"Yes, my dead dad."

"Okay, so what was this news?"

I take down my feet and lean in, resting my elbows on the desk. "He says there's been a slew of psychic killings lately. That none of them saw it coming. Heard anything about it?"

Anne Marie shakes her head. "I've been out of town the last couple of weeks. I read about a couple of deaths, but I didn't think it was anything connected. Any ideas who's responsible?"

"I was thinking a ghost, actually."

She frowns. "That'd fit the bill nicely, except I don't know of any way a ghost could kill someone. And the couple of deaths I did hear about sounded pretty gruesome."

I shrug. "I figure that's your job. You're the investigator. Do you think you can do a bit of digging? It'd be in your best interests, too."

Another long drag on the cigarette. "Yeah, I'll look into it. It's a pretty small crowd we're dealing with, so I should know something by evening. I'll call you around six."

With my hand on the doorknob I turn back to Anne Marie. "Hey, be careful, okay?"

She smiles at me. "You too, Greg."

And with that, I'm gone. While I'm in town I collect my unemployment check then head home to wait for Anne Marie's call.

The phone rings at 6:14. I pick it up on the first ring.

"Hello?"

"Greg? It's Anne Marie."

"Did you manage to dig up anything useful?"

"I've got a few leads, yeah. And I think I have a good idea of who our mysterious
psychic-killer is. Can you meet me at that old warehouse on the south side of town? Do you know which one I'm talking about?"

"The one that closed down in '93?"

"That's the one."

"Sure. When do you want me to be there?"

"Head on over now. I'll meet you there." Click.

And that's the end of that conversation. I pull on a coat and head out. The warehouse is close enough for me to walk. Besides, it's a pretty nice night and I could use the exercise.

When I get there, Anne Marie is outside, waiting for me. She tosses me a flashlight.

"You're going to need that. The power's been off in there for quite a long time."

I nod and she leads the way into the old warehouse.

"So Anne Marie, what do you expect to find here?" I look around the warehouse, moving my flashlight along the walls and ceiling, turning my body around slowly. When I turn back to face Anne Marie, I find myself staring down the business end of a revolver.

"I expected to find answers."

The future becomes staticky and unreadable. Each decision that Anne Marie or I considers alters the possible futures. The end result is like watching pay-per-view channels that you haven't paid for. The pictures are distorted and scrambled.

So I stop reading the future. The sudden clarity of Anne Marie's second sight disorients her just enough for me to duck behind a huge cable spool, left over from better days of this warehouse's operation. I start to comb the threads of time as soon as I'm hidden, effectively jamming both Anne Marie and I.

"Why are you doing this, Anne Marie?" I run from one spool to the next, staying low and fast. Anne Marie squeezes off two shots, the second one just barely missing my right foot..

"We're not meant to be, Greg!" The frustration and pain in her voice is completely different from the casual savoir-faire that she usually projects.

"What do you mean?" Another mad dash for a piece of broken and rusted industrial machinery. Another two shots, this time both of them going wild.

"This so-called 'gift' has never helped anyone. It's brought both of us hardship and bad luck. The best we can manage to do is take advantage of other people with it. It's been the same for every other psychic I've talked to. We're a cancer on the world, Greg. I've decided to be the chemo."

She's raving. I don't know what got her to this point, but there doesn't seem to be any bringing her back. She is right about one thing, though. We psychics have terrible luck. And two psychics in one place is a recipe for tragic improbabilities. I glance above Anne-Marie. Through the gloom and shadows I can make out the shape of an old iron beam hanging from a rusted chain suspended on a old, broken down crane right above her. And I know what's going to happen.

The future suddenly crystallizes for both of us. There's no static because there's only one path to be taken.

The chain snaps. The sound of the beam hitting the ground is unlike anything I've ever experienced before. Its magnitude only serves to accentuate and reinforce the finality entailed by its fall.

I get up and brush the dust off of coat. I make my way over to the beam, picking up my abandoned flashlight on the way. There's no sign of Anne Marie whatsoever. I shake my head and walk out into the pleasant air of the night. I always manage to have the wrong response to really serious events. This is no exception. For all my wanting to feel remorse, sadness, anything really, I can only manage one thought.

Looks like there's only one psychic in town now.

ENG 205 Short Story

So here's a short story I wrote for English 205. It's an alternate prologue for the book I'm working on. Whether I'll use this one or the one I wrote first or something totally different, only time will tell.
-The Drewcifer

Story:

Liar
by Andrew Blatt

My name is Allan and I’m a liar.

I remember the first time I told a lie. What it was is irrelevant, the important part is the feeling. It was a rush, sweeter and more profound than any sensation or drug I’ve experienced before or since. And like any drug, it’s never been quite as good as that first time. And yet I was still hooked.

Enough of that, now that it’s established that I’m a liar, you know the most important thing about me. And that’s that I’ll lie to you. Don’t worry, I’m convincing and I’ll try to be entertaining.

Anyway, her name was Emily and she was beautiful. She was in high school, I was in college. I majored in English. Not great for job prospects, but great for dating a certain kind of high school girl. Guys who are English majors are good with words. Most of my male peers were liars like me, though none quite of my caliber.

Now, let’s play a game of spot the lie:

It’s a full moon on a mild Indiana night in late May. Two moonlit silhouettes—one man-shaped, one girl-shaped—make their way through a sparsely wooded park. The trees here are thin enough to let in the moonbeams, but thick enough to hide the two of them from the prying eyes of Parks Department Security.

She stops him and looks up at him, tears in her eyes.

“I have something I need to say.” She chokes on her words, hesitates.

He knows what she wants to say, what she should say. She’s finally decided to take the advice of her friends and parents. To free herself from this older boy, whose intentions, they say, cannot be wholly pure.

And he knows how to stop her.

“If you don’t mind, I’ve got something on my mind, too.” He smiles at her nervously in the silver light of the moon. His façade is perfect.

The relief she feels is immediately visible on her face. Maybe he’ll want to break it off first? She’s young, unused to such difficult emotional decisions. Breaking up is easier to think about than to do.

“I know it hasn’t been too long since we’ve been together.” Punctuate the comment with a pause, a deep breath. “But I can’t pretend any longer.” Another beat, let her anticipation build.

“I love you.”

And now their positions are reversed. She’s hooked, instantly. She’ll stand by him right up until he discards her. And when he does, she’ll be left feeling jaded, cynical, and used.

Did you find it?

Those of you who guessed “I love you” receive one point. Those of you who thought the whole story was a fabrication receive ten points. Those of you who realize that nothing I say is wholly fact or fiction, you win.

I’m trying to change, though. Not because I feel guilty, but because I don’t. I’ve hurt so many people. I’ve broken hearts and ruined friendships, and never felt any guilt or shame.
Like any drug, after a while, the high gets further from you. After a while you do it because you have to, not because you want to.

So I’m getting help. I’ve started therapy. That’s what all this is. I’m supposed to write down how my problem has affected and shaped my life. My doctor says this journal will be a map of my road to recovery. I think she’s full of shit, but I’m paying to see her, so it’d be pretty stupid of me to just ignore her suggestions.

She says I can lie in here as long as I tell the truth eventually, but that once something’s in here, I can’t change it. I guess we’ll see how it works out.

New Project

If you're tired of reading Andrew Blatt makes a poor attempt at writing like Neil Gaiman, perhaps you'd like my newest project, a collaboration with the Alchemist that we're referring to as "Mid-World Writings" among other things. This is our attempt at telling a story within the setting for Stephen King's Dark Tower series. What this means to you is now you can read good stuff by the Alchemist and you can start reading Andrew Blatt makes a poor attempt at writing like Neil Gaiman writing like Stephen King.

Hoorah!

-The Drewcifer