Relent

Eldred wrapped his trunk around the horse’s ribs and slammed it to the ground again. “Until I can’t no more, me!” Eldred trumpeted, ruffling the horse’s mane with the breeze. Bending a forelimb back, Eldred proceeded to kick the prone horse in the chest. Lidia the mouse winced as something inside the horse made a cracking sound. The horse was Read More

Evolved Elephants

by Hibah Shabkhez “Elephants never do homework.” “Elephants never wear mittens.” “Elephants never wash their—” “What’s going on here?” I asked, taking in the gigantic baby-pink elephant freshly taped to the fridge, and the other, even larger one which was being filled in with a concentration and vigour only a six-year-old artist could possess. “After mermaids, dolphins and seagulls, the Read More

Fret

My obligations pile up faster than I can deal with them, and I don’t know what I’m going to do. Although I don’t sweat, I can feel my hot spots revving into high gear. My pulse is racing, and I want either a mud bath or a huge bunch of bananas. You can’t fight instinct sometimes. Personal comfort has to Read More

Collect

“That’s a conch from Turks and Caicos,” says James. “The red one’s a dried starfish from St. Thomas. Ah, and that one was a hermit crab. We watched it drop this one and move into a new home.” “Wow, James. What a cool bunch of shells.” Elfred puts the conch down. “What made you keep them all?” “Well, most of Read More

Elephants Never Conjugate

by Landon Knepp Babosa whooshed past on his customized rollerblades. “Yo patinar!” he shouted, a pugnacious smirk underneath his trunk. “It’s patino, you little jerk!” Elbert replied from his perch. The highly-educated toucan could not abide self-satisfaction derived from half-assed research. Babosa turned and came back for another pass. “Muy patinar!” Elbert fought the urge to pull out his feathers. Read More

Exist

Dear Luke, Sunset turned the cove into gold this evening, and I thought of you. I know you must hate me. And I don’t mean to open old wounds by writing. But stepping out the door, my heart exclaimed, “I wish Luke were here to see this!” Yet, even as longing filled me, I remembered your voice, telling me the Read More

elephants never pity

by Jennifer Wilson elephants never feel like this lost and looking for the bones of their mothers, extant flesh hooding their eyes with tears while their body rots beneath them O give me sleep, lumbering and heavy with a grey vastness to eclipse the universe give me bones cold enough to feel the skin I have left, to keep it Read More

Forswear

“No food during the day at all?” asked Phurnell. “Nah, dude,” replied Malik. “We eat as a family to prepare for the day. And then no food till sundown when we break fast as a family.” “And you got through 30 days of that?” “Yeah, 30 days plus a half day waiting for the new moon.” “That’s hard,” mused Phurnell. Read More

Cement

“Phabian, they’ve already finished the foundation! Why won’t you celebrate with me?” “Because it’s unnatural, you can’t convince me otherwise.” “But Phabian, you agreed. You said you wanted to do this with me.” “No, Jennifer, I said that I loved you and that I’d do whatever would make you happy. At no time did I express a desire to build Read More

Get Bred

They’ve been wanting to play matchmaker for so long. Now, he has arrived: Phomello, the alpha male that was promised. Eshe can imagine the office hens clucking away. Already they’ve spoken of futures they have no right to compose. “Hey, Eshe, do they really do trunk-tying at pachyderm weddings?” “David’s has a new line of plus-size dresses, did you hear?” Read More