Posts from — November 2009

Ta da!

Sorry it’s so short. Sick, distracted and taking care of 2 little people can do that. But, here it is. Part 7. Look forward to part 8 as it will be wrapping up soon.
——————-

Running at full speed, Mae Dayton knew that she registered as little more than a blur to the untrained eyes of most humans. Even so, she swiveled her head in all directions as she passed the populous areas on the way to the current headquarters of SIFRAS. Paranoia was healthy in her line of work. She tried amusing herself as she imagined what Sugar would say if she could see her. Just as quickly, her good cheer faded as she remembered that her sister was not by her side.

She had been forsaken by the last person on the planet with whom she shared a blood bond.

The armor blazed hotter, forcing Mae to clench her teeth and forcefully draw a ragged breath through her nose. She knew her cellular structure was breaking down, but willed her body to last until she dealt that corrupt bunch of pseudo-scientists and crackpots the punishment they deserved.

As if reacting to her anger, the scar on Mae’s lower abdomen twitched, sending a curiously calming sensation through her body. She took it as a sign that she was getting close to her target, and slowed down to a swift jog before stopping all together. Through the red haze of her armor, she took stock of her surroundings.

Just over that hill, she thought to herself. Just over that hill lies SIFRAS.They deserve every single bit of damage I’m going to give them. Fuckers. They destroyed my family. Now I will destroy theirs. Do unto others, right? Goddess be praised; justice will be served on this day!

She took a few cautious steps and stopped again when a wave of pain sliced through her body. She bent double, dropping her weapons; they dissolved and returned to its original orange, gelatinous state. The puddle sat quivering, as if waiting for instruction.

Mae groaned as sweat beaded her forehead. The temperature was rising inside of the suit. Her vision blurred, and she could hear nothing over the roar inside of her own head. Her breathing was fast and uneven, and her gut twisted and turned.

I wish I could take this damn thing off! she shouted inside of her skull. As if answering her command, the armor retracted itself, shrinking into spirals, stars, and squiggles. She hissed as the strange designs melted onto her body and embedded themselves into her skin, but felt instantly cooler as a light breeze ran across her exposed body.

After what seemed to her like days, but was probably no more than twenty or so minutes, the pain subsided. Sound returned to the world around her. She stretched out her hand, and the stuff on the ground rose, becoming, once again, a long staff. It flew to her, and she used it to stand. Shaking with the effort, she hauled herself upright and cursed.

I kept you alive. I sacrificed my safety and sanity to take care of you. I’ve lost my mother, my daughter, and now, probably you, too.

“Damn you, Sugar,” she spat.

“I love you, too, Mae Day.”

Sorry.

See, what had happened was.. Seriously. I got sick (no swine flu for me, thanks!) with a very bad cold.. after nursing both of my children through theirs.  I am finally recovered.. mostly.. I’ve gotten behind on updating “Prey To Lose” and, to be truthful, I’m stuck.

The ideas for that story just won’t flow properly. I know I left it hanging, with Mae all armored up and Sugar shaking in her boots, but I’m really, truly stuck. Gues this means I’m taking a quick break from it.

In the meantime, I have actually started another story, plus some poems, and I’m in the middle of reading the 12 books I checked out this past Library Day. So, fear not, as soon my creative constipation passes, Mae Day and Sugar will return bigger, badder, and bolder than ever.

Insha’Allah (Lord willing).

Peace and blessings be upon you.

~Sumayyah~

Short, sweet, and suspenseful. I’m lovin’ it!

————————————————

Sugar blinked rapidly in disbelief. As she stared at her twin, she found herself announcing “I’m going home.”

Mae looked surprised. “You won’t fight with me?”

“Fight? Against SIFRAS? Have you lost your Goddess given mind!? Is your death wish that deep?” With every question, the younger woman’s voice rose higher. Pacing now, awkwardly thanks to the heavy boots and tight pants, she considered the possibility that whatever creature juice her sister had just consumed had fried her brain. Fight against SIFRAS. SIFRAS! The very organization that dedicated itself to the capture, study and disposal of several extraterrestrial species that the average Earth dweller still knew nothing about. Sugar groaned as a dull throbbing pain sprang up behind her eyes. She stopped pacing and slumped into a heap on the ground.

“They killed my daughter,” Mae stated.

“You don’t know that!” Sugar countered.

“They killed our mother. They enslaved us. They indiscriminately maim and kill the things that they do not understand.”

The younger twin flinched under the force of the verbal onslaught, but could not, would not, be drawn into her sister’s madness. “You’re crazy,” she muttered.

“I’m crazy?” Mae Dayton raised her eyebrows. “I’m not the one eradicating entire life systems.”

“They’re just.. afraid..”

“So we should suffer? NEVER! Who made them gods over us? Who told them that this planet was theirs to rule? Who commanded them to ravage the heavens and dispose of what they do not need? I am sick, sick sick of bowing to these puny humans who only know how to destroy. They have ruined me, and and destroyed two of the three people that I love in this world. And now. They. Will. PAY!” With those words, the flaming red lines and squiggles covering Mae Dayton’s body began to glow brighter.

Sugar watched in horror as the flame symbols changed shape and danced. Each one rose, hovering slightly above their wielder’s flesh.Within seconds, the lines and figures expanded, and melded seamlessly together, covering her sister’s body completely, from the top of her head down to the steel toe of her boots.

The figure standing opposite Sugar was no longer her twin, but a warrior in red armor. To complete the image the staff-neck-ornament-living-orange-blob-thing (Sugar could not be too sure what it was, as she had never in her life seen anything like it) seeped through the armor and crawled down Mae’s arm. Separating itself, it became a sword for the right hand, and a mace for the left.

Mae Dayton, no, the Fire Wielder, threw back her head and laughed.

“Well, hell,” Sugar said.

The armored figure turned to her. “Still you will not join me?” Her voice was deeper, throatier, and sounded nothing like the loving sister Sugar was sure she had known inside and out.

Shaking her head, she responded, “You’re really serious, aren’t you? Taking on SIFRAS.. Just what are you thinking, Mae?”

“I am thinking,” the warrior said sarcastically, “that it’s time for some payback. You know, revenge?”

“Do you think your daughter would have wanted this?”

The warrior slashed her sword through the air, as if to cut down the hurtful words. “Silence! Don’t pretend that you know anything about this. Are you joining me or not?”

“I’m going home,” Sugar said, repeating her earlier declaration.

“Coward,” the sister-warrior scoffed. She turned her back on her twin and the complex that held her  earliest memories of home. “Remember this,” she tossed over her shoulder. “If I fail, and SIFRAS wins, you’re next.” Releasing a cry of rage, the Fire Wielder jogged down the hill towards the city, picking up speed as she went. All too soon, she vanished from sight.

“Well, hell,” Sugar sighed. “You could have taken your car. Damn fool.”

Hate is a strong word, but I must use it here. I HATE intolerance. I HATE bigotry. I HATE self-righteous people that can’t see the forest for the trees. I HATE seeing the pain in people’s eyes when they realize that they are alone, that they have been abandoned by those that they tried to love.

Feel me?
———————-

sorrow speaks

i am
drowning in tears
not meant for me
i cry
for the misbegotten
the ill-treated and abused
the ones with no tongues
whose voices have died
the ones who look out
with empty eyes
and curse the world
that denies
who imagined this
cookie cutter atrocity
into being
with regurgitated ideals
clogging the drains of freedom
and good sense
we don’t talk the same
we don’t dress the same
and that is why
we play this game
your God
my God
the gods that walk the earth
your sin
my pleasure
my joy
your pain
and yet
my tears still fall
we abandon those
we need us most
in the name of faith
and claim it good
and pure
condemn those souls
that are hanging on
aching for a cure
we deny the masses
what we hold dear
and do so proudly
saying it’s
the will of The Word
my tears will not cease
want for your brother
what you want for yourself
is paid lip service
and nothing more
feel the hurt
of those forgotten
and left behind
drown with me
in this pool of tears
sinking with
dreams deferred

I am currently reading this slender volume titled “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran. It is filled with gems that speak to us of life and making it worthwhile. Some of my favorite quotes are:

“For in truth it is life that gives unto life – while you, who deem yourself a giver, are but a witness.”

“It is well to give when asked, but it is better to give unasked; through understanding;…”

“It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.”

“For what are your possessions but things you keep and guard for fear you may need them tomorrow?”

“You work that you may keep pace with the earth and the soul of the earth.”

“For to be idle is to become a stranger unto the seasons, and to step out of life’s procession, that marches in majesty and proud submission towards the infinite.”

“Work is love made visible.”

“Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.”

“The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.”

“Forget not that modesty is for a shield against the eye of the unclean.”

“The righteous is not innocent of the deeds of the wicked…”

“You delight in laying down laws, yet you delight more in breaking them.”

“… you can muffle the drum, and you can loosen the strings of the lyre, but who shall command the skylark not to sing?”

“… yesterday is but today’s memory and tomorrow is today’s dream.”

“For what is evil but good tortured by its own hunger and thirst?”

Absolutely beautiful. However, don’t take my word for it; visit your local library or bookstore for a copy.

Unfortunately, dear readers, I have not had time to work on the next installment of “Prey To Lose” due to illness. Not only was I sick, but both of my children were sick as well! Alhamdulillah, we are all feeling much better now. So, as soon as I get everything sorted, get the kids back into their routines, and focus my mind, the next installment will be written, insha’Allah. In the meantime, feel free to check out the rest of the site.

~Sumayyah~

*laughs hysterically* Are you sure you’re ready for this? If so, read on!

———————————————–
Sugar Dayton watched helplessly as her twin writhed in agony on the ground. She stepped toward her sibling, intending to help, when the temperature around them rose rapidly. Frowning, Sugar looked at the sky, which was still clear, and then back to her sister. A small squeak escaped her lips when she saw what was happening.

Mae Dayton was on her knees, burning. Flames rose from her body, eating away at her clothing. Strange red symbols began to appear on her exposed flesh. She howled as each new line appeared, as if it was being carved into her. She opened her mouth to cough, and an orange, lava-like substance poured from between her lips. The puddle wiggled on the ground; shapes rose from it, half-formed, and then melted away.

“Oh. My. God. Mae,” Sugar choked out. Once again, she leaned her body in the direction of her sister. Her feet failed to obey her command to move, and she stood rooted to the spot, watching the horrifying spectacle playing out before her.

“Wa. Ter.”

“What?” Startled, Sugar strained to hear above the roar of the flames.

“Give. Me. Wa. Ter. I. Thrist. Hot. Wa. Ter,” Mae, if the flame-covered being could still be called Mae, begged.

“Water? You want water? Water? Water. Where is the water!?” In a panic, but pleased to finally have a task, Sugar returned to her vehicle. Flinging open the door, she dived into the backseat, seeking two of the six water bottles she had stashed there. Grabbing them, she turned and stood, smashing her forehead into the door frame in the process.

“Wa. Ter!” The command was urgent now.

Ignoring the pain between her eyes, Sugar successfully disengaged herself from the car, and ran to her sister. Opening one of the bottles, she poured the contents over her sister’s head and back.

“AHHHHHH!” Mae shrieked.

“YAAA!” Sugar screamed in return. “I’m sorry. Sorry. Did I hurt you? Mae? MAE!”

“More. Give me. More. Wa. Ter.” The voice coming from the being was beginning to sound like the woman she knew and loved, so Sugar complied. Opening the second bottle, she doused her sibling again.

The flames vanished. The quivering orange puddle rose and fell gently, as if it was drawing breath like a living creature. Mae raised her head and rose to a crouch. She was naked except for the strange red symbols, her clothes having been obliterated by the flame.

“Mae? Are you alright?” Sugar ventured.

Mae looked to the sky, grimaced, closed her eyes, and stretched out her arm. The orange mass flew into her hand, turning itself into a long staff. Using the newly created staff as leverage, the older woman rose slowly to her feet.

“What. The. Fuck. Just. Happened?” Sugar sputtered. She looked into the face that was a carbon copy of her own and froze.

Mae Dayton had glowing red eyes and pulsating red symbols in various places on her body. As Sugar’s eyes traveled the length of her sister’s body, she saw many of these designs, on Mae’s face, her arms, her thighs. The mass of scars on her abdomen had rearranged themselves into an alien star.

Involuntarily, she staggered back two or three steps and asked, ‘What happened?”

“Should be obvious by now. I am a Fire Welder.” Mae tested her weight on each foot, and walked herself to her own car. She wondered if she could rest her staff against the metal and plastic vehicle without it burning, but before she could completely form the words in her mind, the “staff” returned briefly to its liquid state, and oozed up her arm. Coming to rest on her shoulder, it curled itself around her neck and took the form of an ornament.

“Well, alrighty, then.” Opening the trunk, she dug around until she found her bag of emergency gear. Unzipping it, she pulled out a pair of impossibly short leather shorts, which she immediately slipped on. She glanced down to admire herself. Perfect. She smiled, thinking how nicely the shorts allowed her new tattoos to stand out. Returning to the bag, she freed a mass of metal chains. Shaking it out, she held it up.

It was a shirt, well, vest, made of chain-mail that she’d had specially commissioned some time ago but had never worn.

“No time like the present.” She shrugged into it, quickly securing the latches that held it closed. Rummaging in the trunk once again, she found a pair of black military boots. Wishing she had a pair of soft cotton socks on hand, she jammed her feet into them and slammed the trunk closed. She sauntered back to her sister’s side, chuckling at the expression on her face.

“How did you do that? And what are you wearing?”

“Do what?”

“That thing with the orange stuff. It was a staff and now it’s sitting on your neck! How did you know that you could do that?” Sugar asked suspiciously.

“The same way I know that I can do THIS!” With that, Mae grabbed one of the glowing red lines on her arm. It unfurled, becoming a whip, which she cracked at her sister. Sugar hissed as the heated weapon made brief contact with her skin.

“Are you crazy!?” Sugar yelped.

Mae shrugged. As the weapon returned to her skin, it settled back into being nothing more dangerous than a red tattoo. “I just know. I told you, didn’t I? That when I drink a creature’s essence, I become it.”

“I’ve never seen you like this, though.”

“True, indeed. This time is very different,” Mae said darkly.

“Well, are we going hunting for this Fire Welder or not?”

“We are not,” Mae answered gravely.

“Huh?”

“Ah, Sugar. I thought by now you would understand. SIFRAS did not merely want us to find the Fire Welder they lost-”

“Misplaced,” Sugar mumbled.

“-lost,” Mae continued. “They wanted to create another one. Me. Which means they know what they’ve been doing to me all these years.”

“Which means… what?”

Mae looked sadly in her sister’s direction. “Which means they have no further use for me as a hunter.Which means my daughter is probably dead. Which means, they will all have to die.”

*shivers with anticipation* Oh, snap! It’s getting good, y’all. Keep reading.

————————————–
“The hell you say?” Sugar exploded.

“I said -”

“I heard what you said, dammit!”

“They why’d you ask?”

Sugar Dayton sank to the ground and landed with an audible thump. She ignored the small rocks and sticks wedged under her butt as she attempted to process the information bomb her sister had just dropped on her. Several times, her lips parted and slammed shut; words, for once, were failing her.

Mae sighed. “Drinking a vial of essence helps me track. Yeah, I can track without it, but drinking makes it easier. My senses are heightened, and I can do more than just follow them. I can feel them, you know? It took me a long time to figure it out. I can find them because I am them, in a sense. I get their powers, their thought processes, their desires.”

“Has it always been like this?” Sugar managed to choke out.

“It’s been getting stronger since-” She touched her belly and looked away rather than complete the sentence.

“But is it really killing you, Mae Day?” Her voice wobbled.

“Yeah. It is. Every single time I drink that shit, it alters my body chemistry. By now, I have the genetic codes of 27 different species inside of me. One day I’m going to drink, and I won’t be able to come back. When that happens, Sugar, kill me.”

“NO!” Sugar shot to her feet. “No, Mae! No.”

Mae looked into her sister’s eyes. “Please.” She did not phrase it as a question, but as a statement.

The younger woman looked away. Belatedly, she realized she still held the case containing the liquid essence of the Fire Wielder. She looked at it with disgust, bile rising in her throat. She dropped it on the ground, and raised her foot above it. Anticipating the satisfying sound of shattering glass, she closed her eyes -

- and felt a pair of strong hands shove her backwards. She lost her balance and crashed into her vehicle.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Mae demanded.

“I was going to end it,” Sugar said stonily.”You can’t keep doing this.”

“You do something this stupid again, and you won’t have to worry about SIFRAS. I’ll kill you myself.”

“Why, Mae? Why are you so willing to go along with this?”

“Because I have the hope that if I do my job well, I’ll see my daughter before they dispose of me.” Bending down, Mae freed the small vial from its cushioned coffin. Straightening her spine, she stood, glancing at her sister out of the corner of her eye.

Sugar watched angrily as her older sibling brought the small glass container to her lips. “You’re a damn fool, Mae Day.”

The older woman shrugged. “Perhaps. Are you coming with me or not?”

“I must be a bigger fool then you,” she muttered.

Mae snorted. “That’s possible. Get in the car. You know I need a minute to adjust once I drink this.”

“So that’s how you’ve always hidden it from me.”

“What do you mean?”

“You always send me first, claiming you need to orient yourself. You don’t want me to see what happens to you. And when it wears off. You always send me away then, too.” Her eyes narrowed. “You’ve been dealing with this all by yourself for all of these years.”

“I always said you were the smart one.”

“Shut up, Mae.”

“You wanna see this? Fine. But I warn you now, it ain’t pretty.”

“You’re my sister.”

“Until I’m not,” Mae retorted. She inhaled deeply to steady her nerves, and then bit into the plastic tip of the vial of orange fluid. She drank quickly, downing the contents in a single gulp, relishing the burn.

The change hit her hard this time. She dropped the vial as her body began to convulse. Ripples of energy flowed over her, through her, around her. She dropped to her knees, coughing and gagging. Through the haze, she heard her sister calling her name. She tried lifting her hand to wave Sugar off, but found that she could not move. Her limbs seemed to weigh hundreds of pounds. Her vision started to blur, and a language she had never heard began to flow from her lips.

Oh, shit! Mae Dayton screamed to herself. This is gonna be very, very bad.

bedside manner

do you hear
do you see
do you feel me in your soul
in that place where
the sun rises and the darkness falls
where you giggle and laugh
and hug your knees
and pretend to be
a child again
do you feel my breath
against your ear
in that place where you feel safe
hello
hello
do my words reach you
does my voice
carry
through the tunnels
around the corners
over the walls
that you constructed when you withdrew
are you dreaming
are you trying
to live in the memories
of the moments
when you were here
do you understand
do you care
that you left us
behind
discarded us like old garments
that no longer fit
tossed us aside
over the bridge
under the bus
are you there
are you listening to us
give me a sign
a smile
a single-digit salute
huff and puff
snort and shake
please
please
please won’t you wake
do you feel my skin
next to yours
pressing down
offering you warmth
wrapping around you
holding you close
do my tears feel like rain
as they land on your face
can you feel my hope
evaporate
and my hand slide away
once i watch the light
dim
then fade

Quick update. It may not be the best that I can do, but it’ll have to do for now. This one was sort of emotional. Be warned. We’re delving a bit into the past of the Dayton sisters. Enjoy.
——————————————-

Sugar Dayton took one look at her sister’s face and grimaced. “Don’t you dare say anything. Besides, you bought it for me.”

Mae blew a thick stream of smoke in her younger sibling’s face. “Yeah, I paid for it, but I never thought you’d actually wear it.” She chuckled as Sugar tried to cover he exposed flesh and failed. “Looks good on you, though.”

The younger woman huffed. “Whatever. I just felt, well, dangerous today. Figured I’d dress the part.” She tugged at the red leather bustier, which was little more than two patches and several pieces of string. The matching low slung pants, also in red leather, felt suspiciously low. It required every ounce of self-confidence she had in her not to jump back in her vehicle and return home to in order to change her clothes. She shifted uncomfortably, annoyed at the unfamiliar restriction of the tight clothing, unconsciously untying and retying the laces on the front of her shirt. She raised one leg with the intention of resting her foot on the large boulder in front of her, but staggered with the weight of the steel-toed military issue boot. Sugar finally settled for dropping her pack on the ground, and leaning against the driver side door of her truck. Glancing over at her twin, she frowned.

Mae’s eyes were closed, her beautiful face twisted in pain. Both hands clutched her belly. She was breathing hard; beads of sweat appeared on her upper lip. The cigar that she just moments before held clamped tightly between her lips lay on the ground, smoldering and forgotten.

“Mae Day!” Sugar yelled. She pushed herself away from her vehicle and headed to her sister’s side.

Mae held up a shaking hand to halt the younger woman’s progress. “I fine,” she croaked. Clearing her throat, she repeated herself. “I’m fine. You got the dossier?”

“Let’s call this off. Or at least wait until you’re better.”

Mae snorted. “You know as well as I do, SIFRAS does not wait.”

“But Mae -”

“Stop. Alright? I said I’m fine. This is nothing. What are the specs for this little jaunt in the woods?”

Instead of answering, Sugar walked over to her sister and looked over the guard rail. Some yards away from where they stood, the weather-beaten ruins of a large complex sat forlornly. What little steel and glass remained gleamed in the day’s sunshine.

“Remember the first time they let us play outside?” Sugar asked, looking at the remains of their childhood home.

“What’s the point of remembering anything remotely good about those bastards? After all the bad things, the good is useless.”

“But you do remember, right?” she pressed. “Do you remember what you said to me?”

Mae said. “Of course I remember, Sugar. I promised to protect you and find us a way out.”

“And now, I’m going to give those words back to you.”

“Have you been in my stash? Cuz I swear, you’ve been smokin’ somethin’.”

“I’m serious, Mae Day. This can’t continue. They’ve done too much to you, to us. I know you’re nearing your limit -”

“You don’t know shit.”

“I know enough. This can’t continue.”

“What choice do we have, Sugar? Huh? Answer me that. We may be hard to kill, but they don’t have to kill us, do they? They can go on doing what they’ve been doing, and letting us live. That’s hell enough by itself.”

“Maybe we’re allowing them to use us-”

Mae cut her sister off. “Allowing them? Do you honestly think I would choose to live like this, to be used like this? They own us, Sugar. They branded us at birth. You may not remember, but I do. I inherited all of our mother’s memories.” She choked back tears. “Did you know, Sugar, how we were born into this world? They caught our pregnant mother running through these very hills and ripped us from her womb. The same way they ripped my daughter from mine.” The older Dayton pushed her pants down and yanked up her button down shirt, showing the younger woman the mess of scars crisscrossing her abdomen.

Sugar gasped, and started to shake. “No, no, no.” She swung her head back and forth with the denial, willing her sister’s mutilated flesh to be whole. “No, no, no,” she sobbed. Her tears were hot as they streamed down her face.

Mae fixed her clothes and turned her back on her sibling. “They own us, Sugar. Might as well get used to it and do they damn jobs they force us to. So what’s the specs on this one? Simple retrieval? Do they have a lead on the Fire Wielder?” Hearing the sound of footsteps and then a zipper, she turned to face her sister and jumped as a metal case was shoved in her face.

“Is this -?”

Sugar popped the case open, revealing the contents. Mae felt
the familiar sickness rise as she stared at the orange fluid.

“So I’m the bloodhound again, eh?” She tried to make light of the situation and failed.

“I’m so sorry, Mae Day. I will find a way out of this.”

“You want to find me a way out? Kill me.”

“What?” Sugar’s head snapped up and her tears dried instantly. “I could never-”

“If you don’t, they will. This shit-” Mae motioned at the vial. “-has been killing me for years. I wonder if they even know what they’re doing to me. Forcing me to drink the essence of these creatures doesn’t just give me the ability to track them.” She paused.

“Mae?”

“When I drink a creature’s essence, I become one of them.”