Psychological
The Varieties of Religious Experience. Top Story - October 2023.
Some monstrous thing struggles to tear itself out of you. A brutal labor, of which the pangs alone almost kill you, but not soon enough to keep you from experiencing the explosive birth. As the beast bursts free, it eviscerates you in a supernova of muscle and sinew, tenderizing you into choice meat for its first meal, a nurturing sacrifice of the creator to its creature, a nightmare unfolding lovingly before the ghostly presence of a dead god fading...
By C. Rommial Butler2 years ago in Fiction
The Tunnel
I am trapped in a tunnel. I have no idea how the hell I got here, and, at this moment, I have no idea how the hell I'm going to get out. I've been down here for about four, maybe five days. My sense of self, and my sense of time have both seemingly vanished. The ceiling above me is a stone grey arch that's mounted down on both sides of the floor–the arch stretching about five metres in width. There's not much light, but the cracks in the walls let some of the sunlight in every now and again, so at least I can tell when night-time comes. Whether that light is from the sinking sun, or the rising moon, I'll never know. I have to keep moving, maybe five miles per day just to keep away from that rising shadow that keeps following me. I've travelled far enough now that I know there's probably no end to this tunnel in sight–there's still an endless run of that stone grey arch in front of me, it fades out near the end, where my eyes can't make out anymore. Then, behind me is all the length I've travelled, again it fades to black. I normally drop my now-empty water bottle with the nozzle pointing in the direction I am supposed to be walking the next day, just to remember where I'm going. The stone floors don't offer soil to make footprints in, only the beating sound of the steps or movements of whatever's after me, gaining on my trail.
By Annie Kapur2 years ago in Fiction
Meteor Shower Tonight: A Celestial Spectacle
Meteor Shower Tonight: A Celestial Spectacle In the vast expanse of the night sky, celestial phenomena never cease to amaze us. Tonight, stargazers and astronomy enthusiasts are in for a celestial treat as a meteor shower graces the heavens. Whether you're a seasoned observer or just someone curious about these cosmic wonders, this guide will lead you through the meteor shower experience, helping you make the most of this extraordinary event.
By ketan kaushik2 years ago in Fiction
Vicarishame
If you ever felt embarrassed for someone else, even though you are not the one who did something wrong, you know what I'm talking about. Vicarishame happens when you witness someone say something incredibly stupid, outright lie, being rude to others, or doing something else that you know is wrong. You are ashamed for them, vicariously. For example, I experience this type of embarrassment every time I watch Jordan Klepper of The Daily Show interact with Trump supporters who do not realize how easily they get into his logical traps.
By Lana V Lynx2 years ago in Fiction
No One Can Hear You
Today is a Wednesday but it sure feels like a Monday. On the day that was actually Monday, Headquarters was made aware that contact had been lost with one of several manned deep-space research vessels. Details began to trickle in. There was an emergency of some kind which resulted in the total destruction of the ship. The data has just arrived; logs, experimental data, telemetry, audio, video, everything you could cram into a ship's computer. There are a dozen eggheads itching to tear into it from all angles, but that's not why you got out of bed this morning.
By Rebekah Conard2 years ago in Fiction
Deafening Silence. Content Warning.
Tremors ravage my hands and arms, and my knees bounce up and down like I have springs in my sneakers. Figures in scrubs race back and forth along the corridor, their faces drawn, pale, severe. The smell of bleach is all around me; suffocating, nauseating. A noxious, perfumey scent lies on top of it (gardenias, I think), trying to mask the odor, but it only feeds the pounding ache growing behind my right eye. There's another smell beneath it all - much more potent - that twists my guts up in painful knots. I can't quite place what it is, but it reminds me how much I despise hospitals.
By Natalie Gray2 years ago in Fiction
Dead eyes. Top Story - October 2023. Content Warning.
The moment the wooden oak doors open I miss the safety of the Hallway. Miss the comfort of the tiny bench where all the anxious feelings for the next few moments were only thoughts weighing on my shoulders.
By The Invisible Writer2 years ago in Fiction
Her Last Farewell
Eleanor hated funeral homes. Lonely, loathsome places, in her opinion. She hated the way those places made her feel. The way she shrank under the stern gaze of looming windows. The stale perfume of wilting roses and carnations thickening the chilly parlor air. The hollowing of her stomach every time she approached a casket, that final “good-bye” stuck in her throat like a knot of spiders. And the heavy dread that lurked in the shadowy corners of the overcrowded rooms, a sinister reminder of the inevitable. Eleanor had bid farewell to most of her family, friends, and even a few strangers in rooms not unlike the one in which she now found herself. The furniture, the wallpaper, the flowers, the murmuring crowd, all identical from one to the next. Even the corpses had begun to blur together into the same ambiguous visage. Except for this one. The body that now lay stiffly reposed in the silk-lined coffin was more familiar to her than her own reflection. She had spent sixty-seven years memorizing every angle and curve and twinkling aspect of the man that rested before her. The once brilliant smile of vitality and mischief now winced under permanently closed eyes, and the knotted hands closed over the sunken chest cavity belied their former gentle strength, now a mere gnarl of skin and bone. Her darling Theo. His was the only familiar face to her in the parlor. His, and the woman’s.
By Sara Little2 years ago in Fiction
