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A Line Before The Other
by Dina Hendawi “When are we going to stop calling these terrorists the fringe and realize that they’re the mainstream.” Everyone around the staff table is uncomfortably quiet. Trent is talking to Allen, but really directing the conversation towards us. It is hard to tell if he is baiting us for his own amusement. There…
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Horehound Candy
by Marco Etheridge Lieutenant Bondar scanned the battle-scarred landscape through a pair of heavy binoculars. He reconnoitered from inside a hidden basement bunker, elbows propped on the sill of a blown-out window. The powerful binoculars compressed the perspective of the broken land before him as if capturing the scene between plates of glass. Shattered trees…
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And…
by Richard Ankers Artist: KC – Khings Collage And… I loved her despite the tales, those fabricated fantasies. There was never a why, not from me. I accepted her as she was, like the clouds accepted the rain, in misery made manifest and melancholy downpours. This was just the way it was. Initially, I drove…
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The Hurtshop
Jonathan Darren Garcia is a San Antonio based writer. He was a featured poet in San Antonio’s Collective Carefest and is a Staff Contributor to PEPPER magazine. He has been published in multiple literary magazines including Royal Rose, From Whispers to Roars, Scum Gentry Alternative Arts, Beyond The Veil
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Cat Eyes
by Logan Rose “Go get the cat,” says Mother. I roll my eyes. “Roll your eyes one more time, young lady,” says Stepfather, who likely let the cat out, in the first place. He raises his hackles from the couch, ready to stand over me and emphasize his authority, as if it’s not already clear…
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Alone
by Lily Tierney Debbie sat alone at a table in an empty restaurant. She ordered a tuna sandwich and a cup of coffee. The waitress was heading in her direction with it. Her order was placed in front of her, and the waitress said enjoy. Debbie thought that was kind of funny in a sad…
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Second Hand
by Daniela Esposito I was given a new pair of hands because mine were no good. They came in two colours, gold and space grey. I opted for space grey, somehow gold seemed to be setting myself up for failure. They were factory made and pretty decent although the delivery man dropped them on their…
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Earth Day
by Maria Letterioti We were told yesterday in class that we must respect Earth. That means the plants and the animals. The environment, our natural habitat. “We must collect all trash from the beach,” our teacher said. “We must not leave any waste behind, and we have to be considerate of others. Selfishness shall not…
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Three Pieces
by Elancharan Gunasekaran Kill The MessengerPeeling the hood from shaved head, fingers grip tight. “It” struggles. Feeding the enemy, magic for magic. My wildfire to its tiny ember. Carefully I sift through the memories, siphoning conversations, maps, war plans. The euphoria fades and its life is gone. Gates unlock, another subject waits to be probed.…
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Candy Canes
by Amanda Crum Donetta Cain was an eye baller. Everyone else at the factory relied on measurements, and she had too, in the first year. She had poured the syrup precisely, kneaded the sugary mass until her hands ached, rolled it finger-thin against a yardstick to cut perfectly formed candy canes. It had seemed important…