The beaten path is not for me The trail laid out by those before To walk along and see the marks Of the more adventurous,  Those willing to explore   I don my hat and satchel I store tools by my side I swallow fear and battle doubts Towards the forest I go Leaving mediocrity ...

I rush home from school. This may be the night. This is our chance to be a normal family. All the insanity waits beyond the wooden dining room table. Nothing else carries the weight of the dinner ritual. If done correctly, it eases my family into the illusion of a peaceful evening; if not, it ...

Constant readjustments to build trust of people who continue to take advantage of us   The tears of their mothers, daughters, grandmothers   can take the lives of our fathers, grandfathers, sons   No chance to defend ourselves, for savages have no say in their impeccable, uncontaminated communities   Our word against their tears, our ...

Paige stood in the middle of the long dirt road with her backside toward her grandparent’s farm. She crossed her arms and gazed upward to observe the darkening mass hovering overhead. Trepidation filled her. Storm clouds had formed a menacing hand with extended fingers that threatened to swoop down and grab ahold of her small, ...

The caves ran deep beneath Telia Un. Endless veins that forked in every which way, and somewhere within lay its beating heart. Cold air blew like the land exhaled a breath it had held for thousands of years. In the darkness, torch fires threw shadows against the damp walls. Men dressed in a full complement ...

She sat at her desk, Wondering if life was Worth living beyond the Contents of her mind, Because she found fantasy Kinder then the reality Beyond her bedroom door Where the shouts and hurt Filled the very air She breathed. Drowning in her loneliness, Her friends were the books On her shelves and the birds ...

I will be the first to tell you that suffering from anxiety is far from fun. Every moment of every day, my brain works against me. I wonder if I have said something to offend someone if I was too awkward in a given situation. These are the things that bother me regularly. Sure, there ...

Part 1 Wes, DeeDee, and Jenna stood in silence, staring up toward the hatch door as Vic closed it, trapping them underground. The metal access panel closed with a loud click and echoed off the subterranean walls. Wes’s jaw dropped, Jenna clenched her teeth, and DeeDee’s breaths quickened. They listened with keen ears for possible ...

Jenna and Deedee stood in front of the aged castle-like hotel, looking upward toward the turrets. The building dated back to the 1800s and held a disturbing history. Until fifty years ago, it served as an insane asylum with many reported deaths. The repurposing and remodeling of the old structure had seemingly carried some of ...

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four Trigger warning: graphic sexual content and violence Morning light trickled through leaves and dispersed what was left of the night. Wierna and her guards crouched low, spying on a clearing just ahead of them. Large bushes concealed them from sight. Bandits camped here, their fires low and ...