Heatstroke south of sudan

 That hot afternoon fifty of my tribes men pounded drums.
The rhythm was inciting all of the small local villagers to the large clearing at the foot of the forest.
The sun shining through, dozens of home made juices and drinks.
What an occasion I danced and danced. My tribe dance with me.
I was a part of something I was not alone. yet something tickled my ear as if there would be some tragic event looming.

I bounded into the air full smile, knees bent and hands risen high. A long shark like bullet split through my endorphin ridden brain. Screaming through in less than a second, though having an hour long conversaton with my nerve endings as whizzed through.

It spoke of where it came from a life of order and glory filled with gunpowder and curated for the magazine home and the airport barrel. The bullet blurted out that it had gone through some ups and downs on it's trajectory into my head. That it's purpose was now fulfilled and that it would move on. Leaving my skull.

"Whizz snap" As if the mistake that murder is, made perfect sense.
The lifeless body once me, consecrated some lost desire of the cosmos.
On the fall my last energy leapt toward the glare of the afternoon sun,
the juice from cups splashing on impact of a local toast.

A split second to feel the last ounce of existence leaving. Laughing out of me as if life iself was a silly joke. Like a vacuum cleaner I try to soak them back in, and they wind more of me out.
Until I am definitively gone.
The beauty of having lived steaming out of blood.

By the time the party had turned to screams I had gone.
The cheerfulness and excitement of the afternoon dead as I here now lying.
The bullet had dug itself into the ground. An instant and appropriate grave for such a lively piece of lead. No head stone short of my corpse. The local wildlife would drag that away, in the case I wasn't lucky enough for a burial.

Entering Tamag

 The Horseman dismounted, took his rucksack and looked over at his two followers.
He nodded and they also got off their horses.
They placed the herbs down on the hard desert floor. Erdem blew an ember from a piece of wood he burnt.
Placing it inside the bowl.
Sangcar and Demircan his followers took turns blowing until the herbs were smoking.
The side of the bare hill obscured most of their bodies from the sun.
The pink yellow clay at this slightly higher elevation looked foreign when compared with the rest of the desert. The bare expanse they had spent weeks traveling over.

"When the herbs have burnt down we will make our entry into Tamag Geçit."
Sangcar and Demircan nodded. 
A bluster of wind kicked up accelerating the burning herbs, then a small explosion from within the bowl, the bowl overturning and exploding into little pieces. sparks flew.

"Praise worthy" Demircan muttered.
Sangcar pulled his sword, and Erdem stumbled higher into the hill to see if something had shot at them.
"It must be a sign that we can enter." Demircan declared.
"Ok lets march on. Leave the horses here tie them to the narrow rock."
As the three continued they rounded a terrace on the hill where faced by a two headed demon.

Canavar the wretched. He moved in a way that felt unnatural. Unholy.
"So three dumb lost men have come to be devoured, how convenient." Both heads sporting fork tongues that could reach out like arms.

"No we are not here to die, though we will breach Tamag to find our lost brother."
"You cannot talk to me, your words are as empty as my stomach, and it is time to eat"
Canavar twice the size of one man leapt upon Demircan biting him deeply where the shoulder met the neck. Using his other head to monitor the reaction of the other two.
"Let us attack" Erdem screamed.
Canavar let Demircan fall to to the ground holding his neck and panting from bloodloss.

Erdem struck a blow to the demon's pectoral, not causing any significant damage.
Sangcar attacked from the rear and drove his blade upward into the demon's leg.
"Wooooooooorrrrrr" Canavar roared and bled from his leg wound.
Aligning the claws of his right hand and aiming his hand at the sun they grew another inch longer. 
Erdem and sangkar were looking for an opening but the demon had both heads on them, Canavar sprang toward Sangcar and decapitated him in one foul movement. Erdem leapt forward and started swinging, landing a few nice cuts but not enough to separate Canavar from Sangar's headless body.
Canavar had his jaws locked over the stump as if it was all one grotesque animal.

Then Erdem realized the demon was still bleeding out from the leg. He dove and buried his sword into the demon's leg. The sword went right through.
"RRRRROOOOOOOONNNNNNN" Canavar roared again. Used his claw to take off Erdem's face. Erdem blocked losing a little flesh from his arms and bleeding badly.

"You will not stop us demon" Demircan rose and threw a dagger slicing one of Canavar's cheeks and ear.
Canavar groaned again and sprang 3 meters above them onto the next terrace of the hill.
"Nothing is granted except these words enchanted, you lose here just a tiny token of what you will lose in Tamag" Canavar's body began to vibrate and burst into small ember like flames.
He continued to sing. "In Tamag the very walls will extract your essence, the halls will corupt what's left of your soul"

Canavar stood straight, pulled the sword from his leg and threw it into the Sangcar's lifeless body.
"He was the lucky one ha ha ha ha..." The demon's body had fully healed. Playing his little game he continued to dance across the top of the terrace.
Erdem and Demircan took what they could and ran.

A shadowy gate came into view infront.
"Run through." Demircan and Erdem put their hands infront of themselves to feel for the Material of the gate. There was none. The men ran through sweating and bleeding.
The land darkened, it suddenly became obvious they were no longer on the earth anymore.

The desert had tree like structures rising up thirty to fifty meters.
The structures had branches but no foliage, they were made of some sort of rock.
Other creatures lived up on them, reptillian cats. 

"How are we to find our brother now Erdem?"
Demircan asked.
"We must find one of the sane undead, they will lead us to the groves of pity where the priest said he was to reside."

Their conversation was interrupted by an incredibly sized batlike creature whose face except for ears and nose was more reptillian than mammal. all scales no fur. 

"Get down" Erdem shouted.
They dove for the ground as the huge shape passed a few feet above the ground.
"Can we die here?" Demircan asked
"Lets not chance it."
The thing let out a low moan and passed by quickly disappearing into the darkness ahead.
"Better follow it."
"it's gone!"
the land became gradually darker almost like they were walking from dusk into night every kilometer made the sky look darker, visibility was good and for the meantime the land except for the large tree structures was empty and silent.

In the gloom Erdem spotted a figure hunched below one of the structures. 
"That looks like Sangcar."
They approached the figure who was sitting with his face in his hands.
"Is this a trap? There could be some sort of danger." Demircan cautioned.
"Sangcar is that you, you are whole again!" Erdem exclaimed.

Sangcar took his hands from his face, there were tears upon his face and a look of resignation.
"Hello friends, I will tell you this now. Although I sit here whole, this place is wrong. You should attempt to flee from here even without our brother Karagön."

Sangcar looked at them with anger. "If I had not followed you all here, I would be back home in Jarabulus with my wife and children."
Erdem chanted some words under his breath, while Demircan put his hand to his face assuming shame.
"I command you to show us the way to the groves of pity so that we may find and save Karagön."
Sangcar's face reddened "Sorry brothers this place is taking me over, you can see t happening to me, I am filled with guilt and anger. I cannot guide you. The lizard cats control me from the structure. They feed off my sadness. Look up in the rock."

Sure enough lizard cats in the rock tree were absorbing subtle light from Sangkar.
"Dig under the rock with your daggers, you will find a gift I have bestowed unto you. It is the last of my hearts love, it will protect you." With that Sangkar buried his face in his hands and continued to sob.

Erdem and Demircan began digging

Severing the clouds

 

The air is home
The hunt is alone
Labor of flight
each sense to hone

Distances outlying
speeds so dizzying
Prey never sees brutal incursion
the dive bomb art no distortion

raised to ride the winds
Epitomy predatory sins
A demon outcast
Worlds never outlast

Reeling through the draughts
surging with the blasts
getting high on the friction loud
running the current bound clouds

Lord Berners soul ember fed in a
line of fire across the horizon
cut the troposhere beak and scorn
motoring fearlessly beyond harsh storms

(Andy Levitt- The modest Peregrine)

Because you love nature

 Counting the yellow rods he picked up at the side of the narrow creek over a canopy of vines and semi arid evergreens. 
Footsteps came a short way away from the other side of the creek. 

"Hey can you tell us how to get back to the carpark" Toby McGill said.
So abrupt the alien had no time to cloak. The alien was wearing human clothes, though,
he turned his back so they would see his strange face.
"Keep on going, there is no path but you can follow the creek"
"Is that gold you are taking from the river?" Janet Mcgill asked

"No I'm testing different materials in the river, to check water purity." The alien answered
"Oh wow, is the creek poisoned or something? Why are you facing away from us?"
"I have a disease that has changed the structure and color of my face. I'll turn around but you guys will have to brace yourselves."
The Alien turned around slowly Janet raised fists to her mouth, Toby gaped.
"That's not a disease, you are an alien!"

The words gave a new meaning to gravity, he had been discovered.
Almost uttering a "no" in protest he felt the absurdity of denying it.

"You are not measuring the purity of the water are you?" Janet tagged.
"Well I'm actually collecting a material hidden tot he human eye and quite rare, these rods collect it from the margins of these narrow creeks"

"Can we cross and meet you in Person?" Toby asked excitedly.
The alien silently wretched, he'd liked humans but never close contact, their skin was smelly.
"I guess so but I cannot shake hands because of hygiene reasons O.K.
Janet elbowed Toby in the ribs. and whispered "It's a fucking Alien lets just get out of here, and how did you know it was a fucking Alien?"

Toby pretended not to listen and jumped over the narrow one meter gap of the creek.
Approaching the alien cautiously "Wow you are exactly what I expected."
"What do you mean?" The alien replied.
Something rustled in the trees from the other side. Janet screamed "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh, there's something big over here!"

Out of the undergrowth bounded a sixty kilogram mountain lion.
Janet threw down her backpack and started backing away facing the lion.
"Just stay still" Toby shot.
The Lion cautiously started sniffing around Janet, Janet fell back and fainted.
The alien sprang like a frog near the mountain lion landing two meters from it.
"rrrrrrrrrrrrrowwwwwww" It turned on the alien.

The alien positoned a four fingered hand in the air above the lion. The Lion started to sway. It seemed to lose it's aggressiveness.
After a few more seconds Janet lifted her head.
"He's hypnotizing it"
"Quiet" Toby said.
The Lion slowly sat still swaying slightly.
Then lay and slept.

The alien quipped " Why are you all so shocked to see a mountain lion out here? this is it's habitat."
"Nature is just so strange" Janet got out after a pause to think.
"Do you mean alien?"

Clown through the fifth life

 The clown is partially obscured
in this our personal carnaval
Your mind a carousel
spinning

the clown's smile 
reflected in the opposing mirrors
The ones that in a dream of folly
represent the eternity

A nietzschean compound repetition
seventy one thousand lives
each mirror a mouth
with eyes with eyes

He's peeping albeit 
most of his face is hidden
Happy eyes
the tents cloth deflates

Too late for exit
Warm like a blanket
Itchy like flea mosquito
humid and balmy

Lost in the womb
The red tent
lost within 
the smell of popcorn and fried hotdogs vanish

ready yourself
for the new bid for life
New take on love
partially obscured for the entire journey

New mother
happy eyes wet and accepting
Clown society rigging failure
Tents collapsing

Face the external euphoria
retreat to the mirrors once again
attempt to Know yourself
Embed yourself in the competition afresh

winning some token animal
Or mug which surrenders to Koolade
Ego to flattery
tongue to sugar

Be reborn here
in this haunting carnaval
where each part of your life circulates each ride
queueing up glum and hopeful

womb warm like an oven
 The cord holds you as you spin round and round
I think I like it
I look out past the ride to where the mirrors stand

I see my reflection
that happy smile
Now the full face and smile is exposed
Thus I am the clown
 

Painting Johnny Iron's house

 I'd been waiting for 20 minutes for an Uber.
By the look of things on my phone, i'd be waiting much longer.
I looked down the street from the hospital I was at. I remembered an old friend, Johnny Irons.
Happy go lucky chap. 
"wanna ride?" Taxi cab cruising slowly window cracked open.
"No I think i'm going to visit a friend."

"Johnny are you home?" Noone was there, I let myself in. A one story wooden house spacey and simple.
Made a coffee and the sound of a v8 motor came bursting aggressively through the walls and windows.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" He gave me a confused hug not quite knowing the amount of affection to put into it.
"I was up at the hospital" I answered.
"Oh I know how that goes, my Dad is there in the next room, his healths not great."
"Is he okay, I let myself in, you wanna check on him?"
"No he will be up soon, last night he went on a bender."
"Can't be good for the old fella"
"Lost his job and mum left him the same week."

We looked down at our coffee.
"Wanna help me paint?"
"Yeah why not?" I volunteered.
His sister Mary walked in from the street "Is Dad up yet?"
"No he'll be sleeping in, Bender."
"We've got to find him a job or he's going to go mad."

The deck in his back yard was well built.
"Perfect for summer evenings" I remarked.
"Yep" Johnny responded.
"So how's work?"
"Bro I need to come clean, I also lost my job. And I´m totally hung over."
"Terrible news, do you want to come work at my farm?"
He just looked at me as if offended.

"I just came back this morning from getting a new tattoo."
"what it is it?" 
Johnny lifted his shirt from the waist to reveal a set of skulls hovering below his belly button.
"Oh wow" I pretended.
"scored some primo hash, wanna smoke?"
"Nah man left that stuff, it brings me down."

Our paintbrushes slowly made their way through the entire coat.
"what makes you make such shit decisions every single day of your God given life, man? You speak like your homeless your close to forty five, you still do drugs and get tattoos."
"Oh harsh bro, do you talk to all your friends like that?"
"Only when I'm being real with them. You are getting old and it seems you just don't care. All your problems seem to stem from the fact that you just don't give a fuck about anything, you didn't even ask me why I was at the hospital." I added.
His father walked out onto the patio. "What the fuck are you talking to my son like that for, you faggot?"
"Oh you must be the shitkicker father, did you not teach your son to be a man?"
"Fuck you arsehole "He picked up the whole can of paint and threw it at my face.
"Ah, get your Dad under control." I shouted.
Johnny took a swing at me but missed.
His father exchanged blows with me until we were both exhausted, he fell down on the dusty ground and opened his cigarette pack. I positioned myself to kick him in the head as hard as I could, but I stopped seeing just how sick he was. Instead I said.
"You even gave up the fight so you could feed your smoking habit. And your dying!" 
"Ill get my shotgun" Johnny ran into the house 

I ran toward the back gate that connected onto another adjoining to the hospital. Tripped on the last step and hurt my shoulder.
"Go get fucked losers, where do you think you are, this is not some fucking slum. you are not gangsters or clever hustlers, you are Shit kickers." I screamed this until every internal organ stung.

As I walked into the street, my head bleeding. I looked right to where the road would take me home, and looked back up toward the hospital, maybe it was the paint fumes, but it seemed that the six story building(hospital) was grinning down at me.

On my way back to the hospital, the taxicab man passed by me.
"You look worse for wear, Shoulda taken the ride chap." 

Cordiality before the rain

 "are you coming in next week, same time" The thin student asked enthusiastically as he opened the cafe door to leave.
"Sure" I said.
"I have to go and get my yaught repaired, but I think i'm going to stay for another coffee." Arnold said as if showing interest.
"We can have a class while you have your coffee." I said.
The door opened and Marcio entered with a huge suitcase, greasy hair, thick glasses and heavy Brazilian accent. "Hi Arnold, let's get some privacy and talk about your english?"
He nodded and the two sat over by the window looking out of the ground floor of the condominion.
"Did you think you were the only english teacher here" Andressa said from behind the cafe counter, bursting into laughter before finishing her last sentence.
"He made out we were having class, though?"
"You must have done something to upset him."

The summer rains came in at 17pm and another resident appeared closing umbrella somehow opening the door with his back and circling in.
"Hi Teacher are you available in a few hours?"
"I have to leave before the rains, Let's set a time later near my house?"

"You can't leave" Andressa said bringing a cup of coffee over to my bench.
"This is from Arnold" Arnold gave a wave by the window.
"I'm here looking for work, people are scheduling classes then not turning up, postponing and giving excuses. What would you do if you were me."
"I'd find another job." She said directly.

"Good advice" I grabbed my stupid brown teachers bag pushed the door open, drizzle was attempting to set in. Dusk was already on me. The streets were chaos with traffic.
I heard quick rehearsed footsteps behind me.
"Hey boss You need to slow down and see what's happening" a street thug.
I turned and nervously continued away from the building my back to him.
Pretending not to listen and inadvertently encouraging him even more.
"You need to slow down and hand over that bag you got right there."
His eyes returning from his last crack hit. "I can shoot you from here"

The street was full and I was going to get mugged. He came to my side weaving through cars.  His gun looked so well organized, his face looked a complete mess. 
"You can remember me tomorrow when you wake up, or you can remember me from hospital, if you don't die" He insisted.
"Ok here's my bag" I gave in, no one was going to save me and no cops or security were in the vicininty. 
Before i could pass it to him, an oncoming car from my transgressor's rare hit him lifting him half a meter above the car and sending him colliding into the gutter futher injuring his arm on a car parked there.

The car that hit him stopped ten meters down the street and reversed a further five meters in my direction. "You don't earn enough to be giving your money away to bandits." The smile, the irony the unexpected surprise. I attempted a response but shock kept me mute. Arnold in his luxury company car.
"See you next week for classes, Andre my other teacher didn't work out."
"What do you mean he was great, you guys seemed to be getting a long really well." I protested.
"Bad breath"
"Did you tell him so that he wouldn't make the same mistake with the next one?"
He laughed imperviously.