Northern Lights

“Over one year the Sun appears to us on Earth to follow a route through twelve-star constellations we call the Zodiac. If there is this dark star—or whatever it is because at this stage we don't know—coming in, then the evidence points to its current location at the feet of Virgo.” Karl paused to check his supervisor's reaction. “That's where we would see it if we could. It might be a brown dwarf.” Michael raised his eyebrows and frowned. The table gave a threatening creak as he shifted his…

getting as close as he could without escaping his prison. Ruby Ann hadn’t realized it, but she moved, too. One foot followed the other, bringing her closer to him until she could reach out and touch him. Or he could touch her. Her breathing became labored, her heart pounding in her chest and she felt hot. Too hot. She remembered seeing him for the first time the previous night, watching him as a wolf and then the man walking around after his transformation, completely naked. The thought made a…

Darkness. That's all I could feel; all I could see. Then suddenly, it was light. I had always had these random black-outs as a child. The doctors always told me and my mother not to worry about it. When I finally came all the way back into the now, I was at home on my oh-so-familiar street. I looked at my wrist to see what time it was. 9:02 am. I had to be at work in less than an hour. I started to walk down the street, seeing all of my neighbors bustling around. Some were leaving for work,…

One of the first things I noticed as I walked past the famous San Francisco cable cars was his sign. “It’s tradition to tip San Francisco’s street performers because they actually do shit crap to earn money, rather than begging for nothing!” He was sitting on a white rice bucket with a harmonica pressed firmly between his lips, howling out a random assortment of notes. He would occasionally interject with his version of the blues. His lyrics immediately caused us to erupt into a fit of laughter.…

I have resided here since the early 1800s. Each year I have the opportunity to see the seasons change and enjoy the beautiful scenery. However, the intensity of each season has had a harsh effect on me. The new railroad systems and water access made the area popular in the beginning. I used to watch people enjoy the land. Most of them were wealthy and came from the cities. They loved playing cards in the new round building that was built shortly after the first fire. The casino was also a…

Many different novels have objects that represent more than what they normally mean. The novel Dark Places by Gillian Flynn is about a young woman whose family was killed when she was 7 years old. She soon converges with the Kill Club, who says her brother had not killed her family. Libby Day embarks on the adventure of finding the truth of that cold night in January 1986. The three main objects in the novel Dark Places are an axe, a knife and the letter. The first object, an axe was used to…

A Visible Sign of an Intangible Hope The green light at the end of the dock in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald symbolizes a false dream not able to be attained by material means, but only when remembering where one came from can the true dream be found. Often when trying to find oneself, all sense of one's true being is lost in trying to become who they aren't. This is expressed through Nick in the story. Throughout the story it is reiterated that Nick has a Midwest type of…

Everything was silent. The only noise you could hear was the wind whistling and the sound of raindrops crashing down on the window. The night sky was black as ink, there was not a single star to be seen and there he was standing in the dark all alone watching the atmosphere change ferociously. The howling of the wind grew louder every minute. The raindrops grew larger. It was wet, dark, humid and scary. Mo saw the destruction of the Earth occur right beneath his eyes. Then all of a suddenthe…

Spooks Diary Today I had the first battle of my spooks career against Mother Malkin.That’s right one of the strongest witches in the country. It all started when I’d come back from finishing my work.I’d turned the corner and it opened into a frightening scene.There was Snout holding Ellie and Jack’s baby and a brandishing a huge knife in his other hand. I was so nervous and shocked that my ears started burning like red hot coal embers.I had to do something. That was when I made a huge mistake…

Rinka arched her head and looked over to the bed where her mother and father were soundly sleeping. Feeling comforted by the sight, she once again closed her eyes, but those horrific visions were still fresh in her mind. Rinka realized that the nightmares were becoming more frequent over the past few weeks and even months once she really thought about the many nights of lost sleep. From conversations she’d overheard from her tribal elders and her kinfolk, she knew that the people in Roman…