“The Hungry Void” by David C. Kopaska-Merkel
Remember that time,
We were nine or ten,
Playing tag in the Station,
Nina ran into the Gark ship,
And no one found her, ever,
But then you and I,
We saw her years later,
Juggling cleavers
With The Brothers Jenga,
She had four grown children
On stage with her,
Who didn’t look remotely human,
Nor did she, any more,
We tried to get backstage
To speak to her,
To what happenedHow’ve you been?
But security was intense,
Someone had eaten
Minister Ahn’s face right off
Just a few months before.
Then the Brothers broke up,
And we never saw her again,
Again.
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David C. Kopaska-Merkel assumed human form in the ’50s. As a cover, he edited Star*line in the late ’90s, and won the Rhysling award (long poem) in 2006 for “The Tin Men” (a collaboration with Kendall Evans). His poetry has been published in venues including Asimov’s, Strange Horizons, Polu Texni, Primate Cuisine, and Night Cry. He has written 31 books, and edits Dreams and Nightmares magazine; @DavidKM on Twitter. |