The silence is deafening when I return home. The laughter is gone and I am all alone

Then, out of nowhere a thundering whisper. Her words are sharp and my ears start to blister.

Her love is gone, it is no more. The pit grows larger and we have no rapport.

I drop to my knees, this can't be so. Is my life over? Not even I know.

Her thundering whisper rings loudly in my ears. My heart is barely beating and rains with tears.

The thundering whisper, rips and shreds, until my heart is no more and I'm nearly dead.

Lifeless I lay on the hardwood floor. I have nothing left. I am no more.

Getting gloomy, better pray Posers praising, better pray Bellowing buffoons, better pray Darkness daily, better pray

Growing garbage, better pray Plentiful pain, better pray Barley breathing, better pray Disassociation done, better pray

Growing gladness, didn’t pray Pleasant people, didn’t pray Beautiful balance, didn’t pray Delightful dawns, didn’t pray

Warmth In the morning, cold night Shining through the darkest hole Bright light, purely shines and burns Rises and sets just like me

Magic is what happens when the sun rises Or so they say Magic could be anything really The sun sets on the bay

Magic is what happens when the sun rises It happens every day Magic is at the table When your friends come over to play

Magic is what happens when the sun rises When at night you go to bed and lay Magic is when love is in the air Or when the sky turns grey

Magic is what happens when the sun rises The summer days in May Magic is connecting With those gone astray

Magic is what happens when the sun rises A Christmas morning sleigh Magic is sadness When your friends have gone away

Magic is what happens when the sun rises I say happy birthday Magic is nature And the horses saying neigh

Magic is what happens when the sun rises A swimming manta ray Magic is a celebration In the midst of disarray

Magic is what happens when the sun rises I feel it’s true today Magic is always with you When you choose to light the way

The forest was off-limits. The villagers had long told the story of some dark creature that lived in the depths of the dense woods. Anyone that dared enter never returned. Life was generally happy in the village. Working together in a peaceful bliss meant most villagers never left. They enjoyed staying there and living together as long as no one enters the forest.

One day, a young boy was picking some apples for his mother. It was one of the many chores that he was responsible for. He hated chores but knew mother wouldn't like it if he didn't get them finished, so he begrudgingly completed them all. He often dreamed of a different life. One like the stories he had heard. Stories of adventure and exploration. Stories where young boys and girls discover new things. That want his life. No one ever left the village. The boy wondered why that was the case. Surely, there was more out there to see than this tiny village. The village was placed almost perfectly in the middle of the forest. The village was surrounded by forest.

As he was thinking and picking apples he was startled by a small sound coming from just beyond the edge of the woods. He glanced over, but nothing was there. He must have imagined it. But then he heard it again. He wondered if he should go look around. He could see the area from here. It must be okay to just look. As he slowly crept into the edge of the woods his hands began shaking. He had no idea what was beyond these woods. But there was a pull for him to continue, to explore. It a chance for him to live out his dreams, but this felt way too real.

As he took his first step into the woods, he hesitated. He expected something to happen. Like something to jump out and scare him. But nothing did. So, he took another step, then another. After a few minutes of walking, his fear subsided. Why were people so scared? There was nothing to be afraid of. As he looked around, he noticed how beautiful the trees and the flowers were. Vivid reds and blues. Colors he didn't her to see much in his small village. Why would people be so afraid of such a beautiful place?

It was at that moment that he noticed something strange. A large object in a small clearing up ahead. The boy hid as his fear returned. But the object wasn't moving. It looked like a grey man on top of some kind of animal. The animal had four legs and had some type of device on top that allowed the man to sit on it. But they were so still. Almost like they were completely frozen. How could they be so still? As the boy inspected this scene, he noticed that the man and animal were on top of some type of platform. The boy moved forward.

There were little stone structures around and on the floor. Like they had been destroyed in some way. Ruble scattered everywhere. As he approached the platform he looked up towards the too and realized that it wasn't real. It was some sort of frozen picture that took up a lot of space. He has never seen anything like it before. It made no sense to him. The boy reached out his hands and touched one of the animal's legs. It was cold and hard to the touch. But no reaction. As the boy looked around he noticed something else. There were words written here. But some were missing. Something had knocked part of it away. All the boy could make out was “Ulysses S.-”

The boy kept looking for something to happen but nothing did. He was feeling a little disappointed. So much had been made of the woods but there seemed to be nothing there. Nothing but space and a weird stone structure. Who put it there? How long had it been there? Why did no one want to find it? What were they so scared of? The boy returned to his village and everyone was in a panic. The village elder saw the boy return from the forest. The boy confused said, “there is nothing out there. Just some old rock.” The elder with a look of compassion said, “It has been forgotten and that's what scares us.”

“I can’t believe it,” the king stammered as he glanced over the parchment in his old frail hands. The king glared down at the messenger with contempt, almost as if it was his fault.

“My brother. After all these years he's finally done it.” The king was filled with rage as he ripped the parchment into pieces. The messenger was shaking and on their knees fearing how the king would respond. He was known for his outburst and he knew his life was at stake.

“Hunt down the traitor, and bring them back to me alive. I will be one to separate his skull from his body. But first, he will know the depth of his actions. Do it. Now!” The king was furious and the messenger quickly left his presence. The king stormed back to his throne and sat stewing thinking of his brother. They had been at odds for years. “He’s always been jealous, ” the king muttered to himself. His fingers were thumping on the throne as his anger grew. The more he thought the angrier he got. Until finally it was too much. He jumped from his seat and stormed to the dungeon. He screamed through the cells, “who wants to die today?” A distant voice from one of the cells shores back, “I’ll go” the voice said quietly. You almost couldn't hear it. It was a voice of emptiness.

The King approached a broken, dirty, and awful-smelling man behind the bars. “Ha. Figures. You're so pathetic. How long have you been down in this dungeon? Twenty, thirty years?”

The man almost smiled. This may have been the closest thing to a human interaction he had been a part of in years. “I would-” a loud blast of firey red energy shot out from the king's hand. The man fell to the ground clutching his chest as his body began to disintegrate into dust. A very faint whisper could be heard. “Thanks,” the man said as he left the world, moving on to whatever comes next.

The king was not satisfied. He had a disgruntled look on his face. A scowl almost. He walked back to his throne and fell into it. That didn't satisfy his thirst for blood. Suddenly, the messenger burst back into the room, “my king he's coming for -” his voice fell silent as an arrow emerged from the messenger's throat. Blood gushing down his body as he collapsed to the ground. The king's brother stood behind.

“Your an evil man your highness” the bother spoke mockingly. “Your time has come.” The King smirked. That was all he needed. He fired a blast of firey energy directly at his brother. Without even flinching the brother brought up a shield, deflecting the blast to the celing causing a chunk of it to fall. Without a word, the brother looked at the king. “It is over” he muttered. He brought his hand up and a cold blast of ice shot towards the king. The King fell as his body froze. The brother walked forward. Stepping over his kingly brother. As he watched his king take his final breath, he sat on the throne. He smiled.

“And to think I loved you brother, ” he said as he sat back in his newly claimed throne.

She’s massive and immense Calm and intense Flowing with love And full of rage

A home for many While making others homeless She sparkles day and night But filled with the darkest light

Adventure awaits in every direction But she’ll swallow you up if you don’t pay attention

Open air and salt in the lungs Smells of exploration on the horizon above Fight her and your end she will make Work with her and your guide she can be

She’s wide and full And empty and shallow An ally for some And an enemy for others

Some are terrified by her Others adore her Some never see her While others can’t leave her

Her beauty is unmatched buy any other Care you must take when approaching But do so with love and a friend you will make She will always be there

Many names she goes by For me there is one She’s my everything She’s her

My brother was always very paranoid. With the recent killings around town lately brought this out in him. But he always thought people where out to get him. So when he called me last week to tell me someone was following him, I just blew it off as him just being is typical self. Nothing bad has ever happened to my brother. He has a great life with great friends. He had nothing to be concerned about. However, this time felt a little different. He called me three days in a row, which was a little excessive even for him. Still didn’t think to much about it though.

I really started to get worried yesterday, when my sister-in-law called in the middle of the night. She said he never came home from work yesterday. I knew something was up then. That’s nothing like Derick. I drove over immediately and ran up to their apartment. Sarah was distraught. Her eyes were puffy and red. I asked her to stay calm and talk to me.

“He called me at six o’clock and said he was on the way home. He planned on going by the store to pick up some groceries. I went to bed early because I have to be at the hospital early. When I work at three, I realized he had never made it home. Please do you have any idea where he could be?” Sarah was breathing heavy and fighting back tears.

“Has he told you about this person he thought was following him?”

“What” she asked with a puzzled look on her face. She clearly had no idea.

Guilt began to rush over me. He tried to warn me but I ignored it. I could have done something. Was this my fault?

“Um...well” I stammered not sure what to say. “He told me he thought someone was following him.” I could already see the anger in her eyes. “But you know how he is right? He so paranoid all the time I just thought it was that.”

Silence followed for what felt like hours. Sara’s eyes were filled with tears and anger at the same time. It was almost worst that she wouldn’t say anything. I just wanted her to scream at me but she just stared. Finally I broke the silence.

“Call the police,” I said quickly. “I’m going to head up to his office. See if I can see his car or anything. You stay here. When they get here, let them know where I am.”

I jumped in my car and began speeding across town. Thoughts of what could of happened were flying through my mind. I tried to focus. We’re their any clues on what he told me?

I arrived at his office. The whole parking lot was empty. All except for one car. My brothers car. He hadn’t even made it to his own car. He was either still here or walked somewhere. It had been so long though that he could have been anywhere. I walked up the car. Everything looked fine. Until I noticed on the door handle was blood. The car was locked as I tried to open it. I ran up to the doors and they were still locked. I couldn’t get in. I glanced around but there was nothing standing out to me. I began to walk towards the back of the building, when all of a sudden an awful smell entered the air. I felt like I was going to vomit. I turned the corner with my shirt around my nose. That’s when I saw it. It was a hand. Just a hand and nothing else. Just lying on the ground. No arm attached to, just sitting in a pool of blood. There was a trail of blood. I followed it. The borrow before me was unimaginable. Another hand, then a foot, then the other. I arrived at a dumpster where the smell was at its strongest. My eyes filled with tears. Did I really want to see my brothers disassembled body? I glanced over. I was shocked. It wasn’t my brother at all. It was a woman. Blonde hairs, covered in blood. Missing hands and feet. What the heck was happening?

“Hello Jake,” that voice was unmistakable. I turned around. My brother was standing there covered in blood, dripping off his hands.

“Derick, what? What is happening?”

“This is my third one this month. She was a fighter.”

It was him.

The soldiers were shaken. The large cyber arachnid crept forward leaving everything behind in shambles. It’s large, red, pulsating eye shot a giant blinding light towards the skyscrapers bringing them crumbling to the ground. The response team was failing and the destruction was immense. Retreating back, their weapons seemed to barley scratch the surface of the chrome-like exoskeleton. One of the soldiers put his arms around his comrades. They fell to their knees as they accepted their fate. The large red eye began to pulse again as it prepared to obliterate the soldiers. As they braved for what was coming, their final thoughts were on their family and friends. They had failed them and the world was ending. As the final blast of light struck the soldiers they disintegrated into dust leaving no trace behind. The spider crawled forward searching for its next target, but their was nothing left. The ground was barren and bleeding. A new era had begun. One where there was nothing left.