H
ONORABLE MENTIONS
River Beast By Holland Youngman
I live in a deep deep hole in a river, and am old like the rocks and the current. I outlive my lore, centuries over. The land people curious enough to dive down beyond the light don’t often resurface. They are my sustenance. Most stay shallow where their inherent fear of the dark depths preserves them. But the few brave, foolish souls who strain their lungs and courage... pulling themselves down down down into my cold dim realm...do not breathe air or feel sunlight again. A flick of my claws, a snap of my jaws, and their lives are extinguished. Only the briefest flash of terror before death, as my presence swirls around
The Loop By Alan Carey …and suddenly Sam found himself on the beach. With no explanation of how he got there, where he had been going or why, it was one of the more sobering moments of his life. He scratched his head and began walking when his feet bumped into something in the sand. He picked it up, examining the object. It looked like a golden magic lamp from a Hollywood movie. Sam rubbed it, expecting nothing to happen, but was not surprised when it started to glow. A purplish smoke spewed from the nozzle and materialized into a genie. “I am the genie of the lamp. You know the drill. Three wishes, no funny business, don’t be stupid about it.” The genie seemed depressed. Sam
them. My doomed visitors are rare. After one fails to resurface there is much fuss with those waiting on the shore. In recent times others have come searching with breathing tanks and lights. I let them prowl about as I coil into unseen places. No need for a massacre, so they carry out their fruitless search and surface without answers. And then there will be no one for years and years. The dread of what is down here, the tale of the disappeared, keeping the inquisitive away. As stories fade through the generations, again they are drawn by the allure of unknown depths. They are more than food. For that I have the fish, algae and mussels. The people feed my soul. Not only do I absorb their nutrients but also their
raised an eyebrow. “Why are you so bummed out?” “I don’t want to talk about it again.” “Fine,” said Sam. “I wish that a beautiful woman would fall in love with me.” “Of course you do,” said the genie. He folded his arms and nodded. In a flash of light, the most beautiful young lady appeared next to Sam, fell into his arms and kissed him more passionately than he’d ever been kissed before. “This is wonderful!” said Sam. “No sense in rushing my next two wishes!” So Sam married the woman in a lavish affair. After a few years together though, Sam began to resent her. There was no conversation with her except about how much she adored
memories—their emotions, thoughts and dreams. While my gut digests the meat and bones, my soul is filled with the lives they have led. I have felt their joys and fears and have loved their loves. Smells of treasured children, lovers’ electric caresses and the laughters of friendship. Thousands of senses flow from their energy to mine. It is how I know the world beyond my own. It is how I comprehend the ethos of a prolific race, and experience the duality of creatures both imprudent and wise—loving and cruel—aware and oblivious. Throughout the millennia I have consumed them, experiencing the constance and the change in their world. Their relationship to the earth and the great beyond. Their understanding of the spirit and con-
him. Eventually they had children, but as an extension of her, even they wouldn’t talk about anything else. One day, Sam remembered he still had two wishes left. He summoned the genie once again. “Genie, they’re so devoted to me that I can’t get a single moment to myself. It’s maddening!” “So what do you wish for?” he asked sardonically. “I wish I had time to myself.” The genie sighed. “Of course you do.” Suddenly, Sam found himself alone in his house. “Finally, some me time. I’ll have to be really careful about this final wish.” After playing on the internet for a few hours and watching some movies without his family fawning over him the whole time, Sam felt good. He
nectedness of all life, and the loss of that perception as more domineering forces prevail. As they manipulate and devour their surroundings, through some misguided marriage of necessity and greed, their essential link to a lifegiving earth weakens. They foul the air, degrade the soil and poison the water. Elements so key to their survival they continue to abuse, and bequeath to their children. And so I wait in my watery world. As the synthetic chemicals build and the fish decline, I wait for my next morsel from above. What news will that body bring? What greater consciousness may be evolving in these beloved creatures, so helpless in their power? What hope may be building for such a conflicted race, and what hope for the world around them?
wondered when his wife would be home with the kids, so he called her phone, but the number didn’t work. He went to look for them, but could find no one outside. There was no one anywhere. Sam searched for days. Days turned into weeks, months, but there was no sign of anyone. Finally, he used the lamp again. “Genie, where is everyone? I’m so lonely.” The genie shook his head. “You had everything, and you were ungrateful. Now you have nothing, and you’re still ungrateful. This happens every time. You never get it right.” Sam felt tears well up in his eyes. “Well, for my final wish, I wish I could try again.” “Of course you do,” said the genie. Smoke enveloped Sam…
chattanoogapulse.com • July 17-23, 2014 • The Pulse • 11