Animal

He ran like a cheetah
He had the hearing of an elephant
His eyes were like a hawks
His strength was like a gorilla
His skin was tough like an armored reptile
He was as animal
Agile and nimble, strong and terrible
Yellow eyes, bulging muscles
Long tangled hair
He was ugly and mean

She had a slender body
Long legs and brown eyes
Long hair, clean and auburn and beautiful
A lovely dress, all puffy and lacy
Her skin was fair and pale
She was small and helpless
She was gorgeous and likable

He loved her when he saw her
And he swung through tree to meet her
Following the beating of his heart
She was frightened at first
But slowly she fell for that animal
That ugly beast of a man
Because love is a powerful thing

Zombie

We stumble and crawl
Brainless and stepping two feet
In front of the other daily
On a track and going
Never stopping always moving
But we never look at the details
The little things in life that make
Special the days we live
Instead we go on the same track
We keep moving at the same pace
Doing what we always do
We might as well be eating flesh
And drink blood
We might as well be zombies
With only one focus on ourselves
Never mind everyone else
Me me me is important
Like zombies we stumble we crawl
Brainless and stepping two feet
In front of the other
Daily, ever day, every night
Zombies all the same

Lost

All days come to an end
All sorrows slip away into the night
Light is just on the horizon
The morning hour dark lasts not

Happiness is not a choice
No more than a bird is not meant to fly
No less than a dog knows its owner
Still, be still my heart

Clouds hide the sun
But yield the heavenly water
To make strong the earth
To bear forth fruits

Cling to one another briefly
Knowing each time you let go
You may see each other no more
It may be your last embrace

Do not forget your love
Do not forget her face
When the night closes in
Picture the sweet smile of the angel

All days come to an end
All sorrows slip away into the night
Light is just on the horizon
But she is gone forever

The Burning

They were coming down the hill all in a line.  Swords swinging from their hips, spears pointing towards the sky.  The hunt had been successful.  There were three boars each one carried by four men.  The leader of the hunting party, Sir Varin of Lance, rode a mighty steed with a black coat.  The beast rode proudly at the head of the party, its head held high and its eyes focused straight ahead.

Children came running from village to see the party return.  Women holding babes stood and watched from their doorsteps.  Many women had husbands returning in the party.  Lady Syra, the wife of Sir Varin, stood at the doorway of the min hall waiting for her husband to come to her.  She wanted to run to him, but she knew this is would be improper of her.  So instead she waited with bated breath.

The old Lord Targin of Brhee also waited outside the main hall.  He carried a book with him as he almost always did.  His son Tomahs was returning that day as well.  All the young lads who had not gone on the hunt and joined in the returning party and walked with the hunters.

When Sir Varin rode up to the main hall and got off his horse his wife then ran to him and they embraced.  She beamed at him.  The days they were apart had been difficult for her, and for him, though the hunt had occupied him enough.

"How was it?" she asked.

"The hunt," said Sir Varin loudly to all gathered around, "was successful!  Tonight we feast good people of Brhee!"

The people cheered and laughed with excitement.  The children all continued to laugh and dance around and peasant folk all began to chatter among one another.

That night the feast was held in the main hall, but there were so many people that tables had to be set up outside.  The three boars were roasted and served along with an abundance of vegetables and the finest ale and wine.  People talked and laughed and sang songs of merriment.  The children played on the floor.  They chases each other or threw bones for the dogs and played with the cats with small balls of string.  It was a happy night.

But deep out of the woods a great evil crawled.  The Goracks came from their caves.  They brought torches with their wicked battle axes.  The Goracks were not human.  They were devil-like creatures with cruel horns that twisted out of their ugly heads.  They were up to ten feet tall, but usually no smaller than eight.  They had thick muscular arms for ripping and tearing.  The Goracks sole purpose in life was destroy all humans.  They hated humans with a passion.  They loved nothing more than to destroy them.

The Goracks came to the town and began to light it on fire.  Everyone was attending the feast and by the time someone saw the fires it was too late.  They were raging all around and spreading closer and closer to the main hall.  The villagers were frightened and women and children cried.
Sir Varin walked out to the front the hall and drew he sword.  he raised it into the air.

"Cursed be you Goracks!" he shouted.

It was answered by a monstrous bellow.  A victorious bellow.

And Brhee burned.

Wabby

"Are we going to go for a walk today, Wabby?"

"Yes, Jack, yes we are."

"It's gonna be fun isn't it, Wabby?"

"Yes, Jack, we'll have a real fun time."

"Yes, Jack.  We need to eat.  We've got to stay healthy."

"You're so smart, Wabby.  I love you."

"I love you too, baby."

"Do you think we'll always be friends, Wabby?"

"Yes Jack, I think we will be."

"The doctor says you ain't real, Wabby."

"The doctor is a smart man, Jack."

"What you saying, Wabby.  You saying you ain't real?"

"I said the doctor is a smart man."

"He says the medicine will make you go away...I don't want to lose you, Wabby."

"I'll always be with you, Jack.  I'll always be in your heart."

"You promise?"

"Yes, Jack.  Because I love you.  Now do what the good doctor says."

"Okay, Wabby.  I love you too."

He swallowed the pills and Wabby went away.

That Moment When Your Heart Stops

She stood at the edge of the cliff.  Should she jump?  No the fall would surely kill her.  But maybe that was a better death than the one behind her.  Who knew what he would do to her, but killing her slowly, that was a sure thing.  Slowly and painful.  Most likely there would be lots of blood.  He would mutilate her, once he was done using her body.  He was the sickest of the sick.  She knew it.  She'd heard all the reports of what he'd done to those other women.  Twelve other women.  She would be the thirteenth.

A thought crossed her mind.

Thirteen was an unlucky number.  No, she wasn't really superstitious.  But maybe, just maybe, he'd be caught this time.  Maybe thirteen would be his unlucky murder and the police would catch and send him to hell.  That was where he belonged.  Hell.  The deepest most evil part of it.

She wasn't sure where she was going.  Would she go to heaven?  She had gone to church since she was a little girl.  But her heart had never really been in it.  She believed in God...she believed in her savior.  Yes...she was going to heaven.  She was sure of it.  She was sure of it.

What would her family feel like.  They would miss her probably.  She's never been close with her brothers and sisters, or even her parents for that matter. But she knew they would miss her, just as much as she would miss them if they died.

She was going to die.  She could jump off this cliff to the rocky waters below.  Or she could wait to be raped and ripped up by the mad man chasing her.

She looked behind her.  Any moment he'd be coming around that corner, carrying his evil ax.

Alex.  She was going to miss Alex.  They'd been together since highschool.  He was her best friend.  If there ever was a real Prince Charming it was her beloved Alex.  She had tried to call him before she lost her phone.  There had been no answer and she hadn't had time to leave a message.  She only wanted to tell him she loved him one last time.

She couldn't jump.  She just couldn't do it.  She collapsed on the ground and began to cry.  She began to shake.  She closed her eyes and curled up in a ball.  She waited.

A hand grabbed her shoulder.  Instinctively she screamed and lashed out with her hand.  She wasn't going down without a fight.

"Marissa!" called a voice.

She opened her eyes.

"ALEX!" she screamed and flung her arms around him.  He was covered in blood.

"You're alright, I've got you now."  he said as she sobbed into his shoulder.  He wrapped her tightly in his arms.

"What happened?  How did you find me?"

"I tracked your phone from the office when I saw you called.  I had a feeling something was wrong.  I found your car...I saw the tracks."

"Did you see...him?"

"He's dead Mar...I shot him."

"Alex....I love you."

"I love you too.  Let's get you home."

Richard's Town

Richard's Town was a small community in the once peaceful and quiet town of Fallbrook.  It was a gated community with an iron fence that ran all the way around the perimeter.  It had two entrances, one at either end of the the town.  The fences had barbed wire all along the top, and outside there were trenches about five feet wide and five feet deep.  At the bottom of the trench were wooden stakes carved to a sharp point.  Behind the fences were flood lights that ran on generators.  They were all hooked up to the main generator in the center of the town. The two gates were opened manually and had barbed wire on the top as well.  The houses in the town were similarly fortified.  The windows were boarded up from both the inside and outside, the doors fitted with bolts and latches on the inside.

All along the fence line walked guards.  Armed guards with guns and swords, bows and arrows, spears and axes.  They patrolled the perimeter at all times and at the gates there were always half a dozen guards.  On the outside of Richard's Town were the seekers.  They were the walking dead.  Mindless monsters that roamed the earth.  Ninety-five percent of the world's population had turned into the seekers, wanting flesh and blood from the other five percent that remained sane and human.  They bred at an alarming rate and their growth was accelerated by the virus, whatever is was.  Within a month a baby seeker was born and within a year it was fully grown into an adult.  It had been five years from the start of the virus.  Richard's Town was a colony of survivors made up of around two hundred people, men, women, and children.  They guarded the town day and night.

Richard was the man who had started the town, and he named it after himself.  Or rather the people decided to name it after him to which he had no objections.  Now Richard was a practical man.  He did what needed to be done to keep his colony safe.  He cared for each and every person that he watched over, and he really cared for them.  More than once, before they had settled in Richard's Town, Richard had nearly lost his life defending his people.  The seekers were slow and not very bright, but in large numbers they could cause a problem...and there were so many of them, they were always breeding.  But they did not like the light, so once the flood lights were set up Richard's Town became a safe haven.  Richard was the perfect leader for them.

But they were running into a problem.  Food was running low.  They had stocked up and brought in cans of food from the surrounding neighborhoods, but the supply was running low.  Richard was going to lead a party of ten men, including himself,  deeper into the surrounding area.  They would travel during the day with two trucks to gather as much as they could.  They would have to start doing this on a weekly basis at least.  Richard's girlfriend suggested they start growing crops.  They had done so but waiting for the crops to grow, well, it just took time.  They needed food now.

They got up early in the morning and armed themselves.  Richard buckled on his trusty six-shooter and hunting knife.  On his back he had sheathed a large two-handed sword he named The Bull.  The other nine men all carried swords as well except for one man who had a battleaxe. They carried guns as well, but melee weapons were better for looting missions.  It kept the noise down, noise that might attract other seekers.  They set out in the trucks heading towards the old downtown Fallbrook.  The sun was shining and the seeks were all hiding indoors or under cars or in bushes and trees.  The seekers did not chase after the trucks at all.  Even when they stopped and got out the seekers did not approach them because of the sun.  The light must have hurt their skin because they hated it so much.

They arrived in a neighborhood they had not yet looted.  It was a nice neighborhood, also a gated community.  But these gates sat wide open broken at the hinges.  They started on the first block of houses.  They kicked down the door and cleared out the house, killing any seekers that they came across.  The houses were full of the creatures, but once they were taken care of they were able to find lots of canned goods.  They moved to the next block of houses, but they were surprised to find a barricade on the street.  There were me standing on top the barricade.  One of the men opened a gate off to the side and approached.  The other men all held guns aimed at the trucks.

"Who are you and what do you want with us?" asked the man.  He held a pistol on his hand.  Richard rolled down the widow.

"The name's Richard," he said.  "We're just scavenging the neighborhood for food."

"Well you can't scavenge here, move along," the man said.

"What's your name?" asked Richard.

"Thomas," the man replied.  "Now move along."

"Are you in charge, Thomas?"

"No, I'm second in command."

"Well let me speak with whoever is in charge.  You see, we come from a colony.  A much bigger, and probably safer colony."

"So what?"

"So...you could maybe join us, there is strength in numbers."  Thomas stood thoughtfully for a moment.

"Wait here, get out of your vehicles and wait here.  I'll be back."

He walked away and came back a a few moments later with another man.  This man was tall, at least six and a half feet, and had broad shoulders and thick muscular arms.  He was to say the least, intimidating.

"My name is Eric," said the big man.

"Richard, pleased to meet you, Eric," said Richard.

"Thomas here has told me of your proposal.  But let me tell you, we don't like outsiders.  I don't like this colony of yours, and I don't like you.  You should have left when we gave you the chance."

He turned and began to walk away.  As he did so he raised his arm and the soldiers along the barricade opened fire.  Richard and all his men were gunned down.  Eric's small colony, The Pike, lived on.  Richard's Town people were worried when Richard and the other men did not come back. Two days later they accepted the worst.  Women and children cried at the loss of their husbands and fathers.  They sent out a scouting party to look for them.  The three men came back and reported the small colony of The Pike, and that the bodies of Richard and the other men were lashed to the barricade out front.  Some people wanted to wipe out The Pike, others said it was best to leave them alone.

A small boy, only ten years old, who had lost his father Ben at The Pike sat alone in the woods in Richard's Town.  He did not cry.  He had never cried in his life, not that he could remember anyway.  He just sat there, wondering why in times of such strife people could not just get along.  They all had a common enemy.  The seekers were a danger to them all.  So why could people not just come together, and help each other?

It was a good question with a simple answer.