The Lexington Hotel on the corner of Michigan and 22nd was difficult to miss. The brick and terracotta structure dwarfed the surrounding buildings, reducing them into insignificance. Nevertheless, the cab driver still saw fit to announce it as we pulled up at the front. (more…)
Extract from the Tourists’ Guide to Hell
Where to Stay
Hell does not have any tradition of hospitality whatsoever, unless one includes the type of hospitality that involves flails, nails being driven into eye-sockets and the over-use of red hot pokers; however the recent change in management style has seen a number of guest houses and hotels spring up. While the options are still fairly limited, there is enough to cater to most travellers’ tastes. Prices vary from the extortionate rates charged by some of the palaces that accept guests to the extremely cheap flop-houses that don’t actually offer a bed, but do offer a line to lean against while sleeping. (more…)
Theseus
The ship held the future of Athens in its wooden embrace. Theseus, Prince of Athens, heir to the throne, rode in the prow. The salt-laden air stung his face with its furious lash, but he refused to turn his gaze away. There it lay, the island of Crete. A peaceful coast have the lie to its true nature, the doom of all Athenians. If events continued as they had the past twenty years, Athens would be sucked dry of its youth, all victims to the appetite of the beast that lay inside the palace labyrinth. (more…)
For the Trees
James was woken that morning by an insistent tapping on his window. The image of someone standing on the roof of his extension, drumming against the glass, came unbidden into his mind. Of course it couldn’t be, that was just his paranoid imagination talking. Birds, it had to be birds, he tried to convince himself. Yet, even with this rational explanation in mind, he still could not completely dispel the notion from his head. (more…)
Grandma’s House
“Stay on the path, stay on the path,” Red muttered to herself over and over.
It was good advice, if only she’d been able to keep it. The problem was the path was no longer there. A bridge was supposed to take it across the river that ran through the middle of the woods. Unfortunately, all that remained of the bridge were two broken ends on either side. The recent rains must have swollen the river to such an extent that the timber supports had given way. The river was more or less back to normal now, it was a shame the same could not be said for the bridge. (more…)
