Third Wheel, or Kent Tells a Tale

Tom and Lily sit on the soft sands of the beach, their images lit by the white glow of the moon. At their backs sits the fading nightlife of a city readying itself to finally turn in for the night. In front of them is the dark mysteries of the night wrapping itself around the vast emptiness of the ocean, its waves trying desperately to lick at their feet. Lily slips free from Tom's embrace to inch her way closer to the shoreline. Tom tries to pull her back to him. Both finally concede to the other and get close enough for only the most determined waters to wet their naked toes.

Kent grabs a pebble and flings it into the ocean, watching it disappear into the shadows of the waves. Tom and Lily have now become a single creature in his drunkenness, communicating in whispers and hushed voices. How many bars did we hit tonight? He looks around again. And where the hell did everyone else go? He pulls apart the Velcro of his wallet. How much did I drink?

Kent trips over the shadowy mass of Tom and Lily, planting his face firmly in the sand. He gets to his feet and dusts off what sand he can.

Tom, having taken the brunt of Kent's drunken assault and forgiving, asks, "How you doing dude?" His hands slide upon Lily's tanned arms, pulling her back into his embrace.

"You know me," Kent says with a slight sway to his stance, "just buzzing like a bee."

Lily laughs at his unconscious rhyme and so do the other two. Taking this as a cue, Kent bends into what can only be described as a drunken bow of aristocracy and begins

"The light of the moon shines upon the beach.
The lovers walk alone upon the sand.
The stars, they glow just out of reach.
The night moves just as it was planned.

"The lovers walk alone upon the sand.
The waves ebb and flow on the shore.
The night moves just as it was planned.
A classic tale since the times of yore.

"The waves ebb and flow on the shore.
He says to her and she whispers to him

"Wait, you're just repeating lines now," says Lily, what looks to be a pout upon her face.

"I think that counts more toward style than it does cheating," Kent says with a smirk on his face. He notices the tracks in the sand, his footprints, circling their little area. He tries to stand in place, at least he tries.

"Could you make your story more about us?" Tom asks and no one can tell if he's joking, not even Tom himself, but they all laugh anyways.

"Will it get me to best-man status?" Kent says, and once again no one can tell if he's joking, but he probably is.

"How about you write the best man's speech for him," Tom says, just to be safe.

"Tom and Lily were childhood friends.
Who would've thought their stories would end
With them embraced hand in hand,
Staring out to sea sitting in the sand"
Jeez that last verse is looking really bland.

"Under the stars they drunkenly dance
A simple sway as if in a trance
At each other's dishevelment they glance
And feel the feelings of romance."
I'm so drunk I can't keep one stance.

"Each glance puts into words
Neither could speak true
Since the images they paint
No words could do.

"In a minute they fall down to the floor.
Standing again feels like a chore.
Drunken bodies all out of sync
Cannot respond to the thoughts they think.

"And under Tom's jacket the two embrace,
Cementing a love time cannot erase.
He says to her and she whispers to him.
While my chances of getting home are looking grim."

"Dude, what the hell are you babbling about?"
"Yo hand me a cig. I seem to be out."
Tom tosses Kent his pack and a lighter as well.
If he wants them back, Kent's too drunk to tell.

Kent inhales once and his head starts to spin.
There's no telling now what kind of trouble he's in.
Kent sprints down the beach as his head starts to whirl.
His knees hit the water as he starts to hurl.

"Dude, are you okay," Tom says from afar.

Kent pulls his head out of the waves just long enough to respond and give the two a thumbs-up. He stumbles back to the two of them and collapses on his back without care of the sand which would follow him into the car in the morning. Through all this, Kent still continues as if possessed

"They stare at the stars,
They stare at the moon,
Knowing too well
This night will end soon.

"They embrace each other
And lock their lips
The beauty of it all
Will all but eclipse

"The majesty of the sun
Or that of the sea.
But I just wish
You were here with me.

"How the smell of your hair
Overpowers my smoke.
How you always choose Pepsi
When I only drink Coke.

"The sound of your laugh
At all my bad jokes
Especially in public
Your embarrassment it cloaks.

"The feel of your skin.
The way you drive clutch.
Its too simple to say
I miss you so much.

"Your presence in my mind
Is all that I need-"

"Yo, Kent! We still got time before last call," Tom shouts from the street, one arm around Lily's waist as his jacket hugs her shoulders.

Kent walks off the beach and dusts the sand from his clothes. Why not, he thinks as his eyes focus on the couple silhouetted against the neon lights, Maybe one day they could be us

The Woods

Free time or just need an escape from your life? Sit at the edge of the woods one day. Just sit and stare into the trees. Through the trees. See the birds, the squirrels, a fox? Do you see a clearing? Keep on watching.

You'll see them, only a glimpse, to let you know that their realm still exists - that they are still real. Who? The ones lost in the woods of course. Don't tell me you've forgotten them and their fairytales already?

Don't go into the woods. Don't try to follow them. Our people left the woods behind long ago. Its not our place, not our home, not anymore. We cannot survive the tests and trials of the woods no matter how much we want to. We can't go back to believing in the same magic that defeats a gingerbread witch or helps a red-clad girl escape from a wolf. A magic allowing them relive, again and again, their own happily-ever-after forever. A magic lost to the world we created outside the woods in the realm of adulthood.

Its the same magic which stops them from learning calculus or holding a minimum wage job. It binds them to the woods left behind from our diaspora to the outside world. Our stories take place in cities now; towering trees replaced by towering buildings, cruel trolls swapped for cruel bosses.

And you may hate it when you go back to the city and leave the woods in your rear-view mirror. You may dream about going back and leaving your life in the city behind. You can't. Some have tried and instead polluted their own imaginations, corrupting the pristine landscapes and fables of childhood.

So just sit and watch and remember. Later return home. Unlike the ones lost and left behind in the woods, you still have just a single story to bring to a close. One day you'll return and look for hours into those same trees, not hoping to catch glimpse of the fantastic, but merely to search for why it was that you used to come here so long ago.

The Cliff

Could I stand at that ledge forever, lost to time, just watching the waves crash upon the rocks? It wouldn't be right to turn back after climbing so high, but its still terrifying to leap off.

So why climb, why aspire so high in the first place? We are taught that to achieve what we want we must climb. But what if we don't find another mountain to conquer on the other side to take us further skyward, but rather a cliff to halt our progression? Unable to climb further, I seem to have plateaued and the only safe bet is to turn back, to try another path to achieving success.

And yet I can't seem to turn back yet. I've worked so hard to get here I don't want to give up. At least I'd like to enjoy my own personal glory for a bit. Have you ever tried to accomplish something only to stop when you knew that you couldn't go any further? To see that no matter how hard you work at it, you still can't climb any further because your path is gone. The only thing left on your ascent toward the sky is the blue sea stretched below. Its vast and rough and you know that if you fall it'll swallow you whole and spit your tattered corpse onto the rocks.

But if you stand long enough at that cliff you'll eventually need to look up to see the goal stretched above you. That was my desire anyway - to reach the sky. And I see the birds, the masters of the sky, as they soar from the mountain into the heavens. And I realize how the great ones really climb to the heights we find them today. The trail becomes, not a test of survival, but rather one of devotion. And to get to the very pinnacle you need complete devotion: to give yourself entirely to your aspirations. But there's still the dread of falling as I stand at the ledge. To make that last leap only to find failure - that is what's truely frightening. To know that once I jump its all up to Chance to stop me from crashing onto those jagged rocks. Chance, Hope, and a little bit of Luck.

Because the best don't climb after all. They fly





so ends another Tale from Blood Talon Cove

My New Year's Resolution

Dear Marlboro,

We've had a long run together (can you believe its been almost a year and a half already?) but we both knew this was coming. This has been my longest relationship to date (except for the one with X-Box, but that's still an on/off thing). I promise it isn't because there's someone else though I guess you have some right to be jealous. I know I've been having weekly rendezvous with College Football Parlays but that relationship brings more pain than pleasure. Besides, I've only hit it once so it shouldn't really count, right? I also know I've been neglecting you for Alcohol more times than I can remember, and I seem to have developed a thing for Irish Car Bombs but it feels like another one of those passing phases. I will admit to you that Johnnie Walker and I are close but no matter what we will only be co-workers.

Though this is goodbye, let's not forget our long history together. Our families had known each other for a long time already. Your cousin Now was always there to greet me at the door everyday when I got home from school. But its been 5 years however since he and my dad have spoken to each other and I guess that shows just how much times have changed. My family was not happy when they found out about you and I. Some of my friends even went to extreme efforts to try to separate the two of us, sabotage what we had. Do you remember the time Allison tried to drown you that night we all went out drinking? You were good to me during that time of my life but now I think its time I make a decision that's best for me.

I know we will always be friends, maybe even hangout every once in a while and I may even one day realize I've made the biggest mistake of my life and come, literally, crawling back to you. Until then I just want you, need you to know that we can no longer be what we once were. Please don't make this any harder than it has to be for the two of us. No silly games to catch my eye - a different streak of color across your carton or change in blend for a smoother taste. I know we will see each other again - across the counter at the 7-11 or at parties, you with new flame. And whether it is a good or bad memory that strikes when we lock eyes, let's just leave us at that, a memory.





fuck, now I want a smoke...

a respite from the actual stories that matter

I try not to write about my own life on this but nevermind that. Its winter break for about another two weeks until school starts so hopefully i'll actually have something written to show for it. Seems like its just been limited to the writing i can get done either in my car before i start work in the morning or sitting in a single lamp-lit room with a glass of johnnie walker around midnight.

if anyone actually enjoys reading this, I can guarantee I'll have something next semester since I'll be taking two fiction writing classes

in the meantime ponder this "I'm trying to beat life, cause I can't cheat death." found it scribbled in a bathroom stall

Tales from Blood Talon Cove

Are these gods or mortals that I perceive?

Or do my eyes exist only to deceive?

A glowing aura round their presence

Calms my soul of any malevolence

Light from the sun, beaming down

Falls upon their heads like a heavenly crown

A picture preserved by one named Alan

Of two demigods at the cove of Blood Talon

The Newly-Weds

A perfect day. A perfect sky. Two young lovers upon the beach. In the sand, in the sea. They splashed and danced upon the shore. Listened to the sounds carried on by the wind.
And now they rest from a weary day of play, soaking in the sunshine and toying with the sand at their feet. Two lovers on their Honeymoon. Blissfully unaware of the Fate before them. A Fate of routine and normalcy.
These are not the Young Lovers who become the Widowed Lovers. No. In fact these Young Lovers will, for purposes unknown, will grow into the Old Lovers - sitting on their porch from noon till six, only to retire inside to eat, sleep, and eventually pass on to their next lives.
Nor are these the Young Lovers who transform to the Angry Lovers, separated by Rage and Violence. No. Their struggles and strafes, though soon-to-be tearing daily at their hearts and throats, will only grow them into the Committed Lovers - the ones that will forever continue to hold onto each other.
Nor are these Young Lovers destined to separate into the Solo Lovers, working their own jobs for their own pay. No. Instead they'll hold onto each other tighter, the Dependent Lovers - wanting and needing each other for their dual survival.
But that's all years, months, weeks away. Much too far to foresee, especially on a perfect day at the beach, a perfect sky overhead. He says to Her. She whispers back to Him. Two young lovers splashing in the waves and building castles in the sand.

Wolf

Wolf strolled through the village like an Angel of Death, striking swift and precise, leaving only those he wanted dead as corpses for the others to find. He even managed to avoid spilling any blood on the raven-black cloak and wide-brimmed kasa he wore on missions like this. With a wide, toothy grin, he made his way to the center of the village where the young woman's scent was strongest. She sat on a bench in front of the stone statue of the village founder. Her long, brown hair fell across one shoulder and down the back of her light-blue dress. Wolf took several seconds to admire the craftsmanship of the statue and decided, if anything, he'd at least leave it intact.
He saw her stand as he stepped out of the shadow of the building and into the torch-lit square. She walked several steps closer to him as she spoke, her movements betraying no sign of fear that she might hold within her, as most young heroes do. "So, what took you so long? You have been wandering around the town for almost half an hour now." She stared at him, eyes unwavering and fearless. Wolf assured himself that would change before he finished here.
Never breaking the wide, tooth-filled smile, he said "I had a hard time tracking down your scent. I needed to eliminate the others who reeked of it until I finally found you." He watched the look of confusion fill her face until she replaced it with one of horror, grief, and ultimately, anger. Who else would have her scent on them besides the people she made contact with. Her family. Her friends.
Wolf shrugged, still smiling. "It needed to be done, after all." With a subtle move, he dropped his black cloak onto the stone-slab ground of the empty town square. Nest came off his kasa, which he dropped onto the cloak, the wide-brimmed straw hat landing perfectly upright. She could see his face clearly now, his facial features still dominated though by his wide, tooth-filled smile. She saw him begin inspecting his gray, long-sleeved tunic, picking off bits of black lint. In the middle of a fight, she thought, the act infuriating her even further toward blind rage. She let her anger consume her, her Resolve determined to punish the intruder. For justice, she thought. And Vengeance, she quickly added.
Placing her two hands over her chest, she concentrated her Resolve and began unsheathing her Blade. The blue light emitted from her chest, dim at first but began glowing brighter. As she reached one hand into the light, Wolf walked forward, closing the distance between the two of them. When she pulled her hand out, clutching the hilt of her Blade, he sprinted forward. Pulling his hands from behind his back, he flung two short, thin-bladed throwing knives. She just placed her second hand on the hilt of her Blade when the two knives made contact with each of them. Startled, she released her grip, letting the Blade fall back into the light. With a swift tug, Wolf yanked the double-edged Blade from her chest just as the gateway faded. With a spin, he flipped her Blade upside-down and jammed the cold steel into the ground. He looked back at her to see she collapsed onto her knees, breathing heavy, and hands feeling her chest.
"Feels like somethings missing doesn't it?" He circled her, like a vulture, stopping where he started, right in front of her. "Like a piece of yourself has just been ripped from you."
She looked up to see only his smile. She tried to say something, to scream, but she couldn't. The pain was too intense and so she could only watch as he raised his head toward the sky and opened his mouth wide. Within seconds, a single light glowing from his mouth bathed the entire square in a crimson light. He reached one hand into the light and extracted a four foot katana. Even when the red light faded, she could see the blade-still glowing red. From its point it even dripped red. Blood.
"A Fang," she gasped. Her voice was strained as she spoke, leaving Wolf with a look of surprise on his face.
"So, you know what this is." He spun the sword several times at his side.
"A Fang," she repeated, "That means you're a, a, a Monster."
"Ahh, yes. A Hero I am no more."
"So, you've Resolved to kill me." She emphasized Resolved hoping he'd get the joke. He did and he laughed.
"No Resolve," he said, raising his Fang, the katana, above his head. "Only Hunger." He brought the sword down, point first, and buried his Fang into her shoulder, letting it taste her blood before he pulled it out. She fell. He turned around to see her Blade still plunged in the ground.
"Now," he said, resting his Fang upon his shoulder, "What to do with you?"


Wolf comes from the story involving Chance. both are tagged under the "Blades and Fangs" story