Category: Fiction

The Lighthouse: A Short Story by Mike Cole

He had reached this shore many times before. The waves crashed against the rocks as the façade of the lighthouse came into view. Faded were the once bright colors, the bricks long since crumbled on a shore unknown to man. He was trapped and every time he ventured, he eventually wound up back where he started. His memories were beginning to fade and his reality had become a blur. How many years had it been? Ten years? One Hundred? Time had no relevance here. He could see every reality play out, timelines that were no longer his own. When the rift had opened up, he had thought nothing of it. A glitch in the matrix, a blip in time and space. He thought he could make it back but the further he ventured, the more the route changed and the more it stayed the same; twisting and turning as if a machination of his own imagination. For every step forward, a step backwards. It was always the Damn lighthouse. A shelter in the storm and now a prison. He would always end up back here. He could be gone years, live a life and travel as far as his body would take him, but eventually, he would find himself back.

The light had not shone in years. But every so often it would begin to flicker and come whirring back to life, focusing its beam on some unseen shore in the darkness. And every time he would follow the light. Sometimes through storms, other times dead stillness. The waters were always an inky black. Heaven or Hell, he could not tell, more of an in-between if anything; purgatory, if you will. At first, reality jumping had been fun, living a different life from his own. He could see how his life would have played out, if he had only made different choices. In one he had a family, found love early on and kept it. The other he was a CEO, another a treasure hunter. Each a piece of him and each uniquely different. There was no life in this Ocean as far as he could tell, only darkness. Funny, considering the rifts he jumped through. He was getting closer to the rift and he wondered what he’d find this time around. Would spiders crawl out of it? Would he feel the splash of water? Rats? Anything was possible when traveling through the rift. He felt something brush up against the boat. A moment later, he capsized.

Hades: A short story by Mike Cole

Hell. A place long forgotten, a land of dead Gods. Tales have existed since the dawn of civilization. His search was over; the long forgotten forest had been found. A lifetime of research had led him here, an insignificant forest located on the Underbelly of Volcán Wolf, thought to be the Oceans end. The land was scorched and the ground gave a molten hue. Embers sprinkled the landscape and lava poured from the volcano into the Ocean, creating steam as the heat touched the surface of the water. The sun was beginning to set and as it hit the scattered boulders with a crimson glow, he thought he could very well be among the land of the dead. Night enshrouded the island.

With a torch in hand, he kept moving. He could feel death creeping slowly and every now and again he would see a shadow move out of the corner of his eye. He walked through the charred forest until he reached the cliffside, jagged rocks awaiting him below. He slowly began his descent.

The Ocean greeted him as he walked down the narrow cliffside, finding it strange that a path had seemingly been carved into the rock. Lava began flowing from the cliff above and violently splashed down unto him; he felt a searing pain in his right arm. His flesh began to burn and melt. A wave crashed and his arm turned to steam. When the mist cleared, his arm was bone save for a few tendons still attached. He didn’t much feel the pain, adrenaline having done it’s work. As he got closer to the water, snow began to fall; how odd. Fire and Ice, two entities that typically don’t coexist. The snow swirled, blinding his vision and he awoke in a cold sweat. He did not remember drifting off and the ever present snow was gone; had it only been a dream? The wind whistled in a tone that almost sounded like whispers and rain began to pour; soon, thunder and lightning would follow. He entered a cave near the volcano.

Water fell on his head. It felt warm. As he went to wipe it off it lingered on his hand, refusing to yield. He moved his torch so he could see what appeared to be a red substance, with a smell of iron. He heard rushing water and looked to his right. A red river? He blinked and the water was crystal blue. Was he dreaming or was he awake? Thunder struck outside and the rain howled with the wind. The howling grew louder and louder, no longer seemingly coming from outside but rather deep within the cave. The torch flickered as a gust caught hold and the shadows danced around him. Three heads began to form; the Torch went out and there was silence.

And thus October has begun. As the blog continues to grow, I am grateful for the support. I enjoy writing and have been thrilled my poetry and short stories have been so well received. As I’ve brainstormed ideas for the blog, I decided on a month dedicated to the spooky and supernatural. This will be the first of hopefully many Octobers where I focus on the scary and the beauty of the changing of seasons. I hope you all enjoyed this short story inspired by Greek mythology! As a reminder, if you would like to support me as a creator, below is a link to my Patreon and Ko-Fi pages!

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If you like my content, consider following, liking, and sharing with others who might enjoy. And as always, thanks for reading! What are you most excited about for the month of October? What are you doing to celebrate the season? Let me know in the comments below!

New Horizon: Awakening

Before you dive in….

If you have not read part one, I highly recommend reading it… Here

If you have read part one, there is also a part two… Here

And that’s it, enjoy part three!

Henry awoke at dawn. The light was a soft orange and the sky was clear. His clothes were tattered and his shoes were all but gone. He needed a plan. The New Horizon was gone, leaving behind a debris field that was raining fire. Henry needed to scope out the expanse of the forest, which meant he would need to hike. Or climb…

A couple hours in, Henry’s feet were beginning to blister and any further, they would begin to bleed. Henry found a stream, which would have been a rare site when Henry was growing up.

As the climate became ravaged, creeks had all but dried up and the few large rivers that remained had all been dammed. Henry heard a gentle whistle through the air and closed his eyes as he listened to the trees dance. The wind tickled his face and for the first time in his life, Henry felt at peace. And then he remembered Annie and the team.

Charles, Fred, Joe, Laurie, and Annie. A small group, each qualified in their own right. Charles, was the Mechanic among other things. He had grown up in the Eastern Union, where the capital of the United States once stood. When the sea levels started to rise rapidly in the year 2035, leadership did nothing. By the year 2040, what was once Florida was all but underwater. Charles watched as the first flood barriers were built around major cities, carefully designed to counteract Tsunamis as the seas became more violent. As the barrier was being designed and close to completion in the year 2038, historical records indicate that the San Andreas Fault gave way, rendering the flood barriers mute as the West Coast was consumed by Ocean. When the design was finalized and completed in 2040, few were left to fully enjoy its protections.

Henry walked for about eight kilometres downstream before taking a rest. He was tired. The New Horizon was an extensive project, started in the year 2050 and launched in 2060 from Moonbase Alpha; the first (and last) of its kind. The team had been in the station for a year before now. God, how much had changed in a matter of moments. The trees rustled as Henry was lost in thought and a couple of leaves fell in the stream. Henry looked up into the canopy and saw shades of crimson, peach, and maroon. The cold breeze felt nice on his face. It was early September. Henry thought about the explosion and why it had happened… but he had rested too long… Henry stood up and continued downstream, if he could break through the canopy, then he might be able to locate the Blackbox.

And that’s a wrap. Almost to the date, it’s been two years since I’ve written the last chapter. Short stories are new for me and figuring out how to keep a story-line engaging is difficult. The plan for now is to continue the story and hopefully go for around 20 chapters. Ideally, it won’t take years to see another chapter and if the series does well, I’ll most likely update the story-line frequently.

If you like my content, consider following, liking, and sharing among your friends. Every like helps my content gain exposure and helps the blog grow. If you want to support me as a creator, consider donating to my Ko-Fi or Patreon:

Support This Blog!

As always, thanks for reading and let me know what you think below!

New Horizon: Earth Reborn

If you have not read part one, click here

Henry woke to the crackle of fire. He could feel the blood trickle down his face and when he touched his forehead, a bump where metal had met skull. To be honest, Henry was surprised he wasn’t dead.

Vision blurred, Henry shielded his eyes from the blaring sun. And as he stumbled forward, he tripped over what was left of New Horizon. Left foot, right foot. Right foot, left. What difference did it make? And with that thought, Henry tangled his feet and began to slide. Whizzing past him, a half intact escape pod. Hanging from pried metal, a first aid kit. Shit. Henry reached and went head over heel, falling with a crack. As Henry’s vision once again began to fade, he was greeted in the head with what could only be perceived as a flying med kit. And then darkness.

The leaves began to rustle and then howl. Henry drifted in and out of consciousness. He saw the bright light dim and turn a golden crimson, and then, when he finally awoke, a blueish, purple hue the likes of which he had never seen. 

And slowly the stars began to twinkle, each with their own distinct personality, as if dancing in celebration of some event that had never taken place.

Stars. How odd. In all of Henry’s years, the only time he had ever seen the stars was also the last; on the New Horizon. At least the wind was nothing new. Every storm brought sounds of the damned, a howling that quickly rose to a near scream; if one was not indoors during the storm, one might fear being swept away in what were once described Mega Storms, now all too common.

And yet, Henry did not feel the wind as he felt his way through the darkness. Stopping, Henry riffled through the first aid kit and found a flashlight. A few smacks later and it was on. It appeared damaged and flickered in the howling night. Henry saw what looked to be a hand reaching for his. Startled, Henry leaped back, disarming what appeared to be a branch. Stranger still, the branch had leaves.

My God. New Horizon actually worked. The Terraforming had given new life to what was once de… Before Henry could finish his thought, a crack of lighting and the boom of thunder as the tree in front of him burst into flames. God, was it beautiful. Standing what must of been 150 meters tall, a Giant Redwood (if the word giant could ever do it justice). The flames danced from branch to branch, illuminating the darkest night; a brief reprieve from a blanket of shadows.

A branch fell.

Then another.

And another.

Out of the corner of his eye, Henry thought he saw movement and a faint glow but when he turned around he was met with only darkness.

“strange, I could’ve sworn I saw movement. Probably nothing.”

Hiking a little ways yonder of the burning the tree, Henry gathered fallen leaves and made a rudimentary bed for the night. Tomorrow, he would brave this New World but tonight he had earned a well deserved rest.

*The wind began to howl even louder and screams turned quickly into shrieks. Henry began to shiver before fading into a deep slumber.*

If you like this content, please share with your friends! Give it a tweet, re-post, or simply a shout out and I’d be a happy man. I’m debating whether to make a part three. I love how the story is shaping up thus far and this is my first continuation of a short story. It just depends on how I want to allocate my time. And as always, if you have thoughts, feel free to leave a comment; I love discussion!

Funds to send Mike to Mars

I love producing content. As I grow as an individual, so does my content. What was once acceptable now isn’t. As such, more time is spent working on each post. I do all edits, research, and content creation. Whether it’s taking photos for a post one day to writing poetry the next, my blog is keeping me busy. Donations are appreciated and are used to invest in creative pursuits whether that be writing classes, art lessons, and anything in-between.

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