PLEASE COME IN......If you dare

Ahoy Wandering Cyber Explorer,

You have stepped aboard a ghost ship...be careful where you walk, Sailor. There are things unleashed and they do bite. Don’t be afraid. You’ve come this far...

If you dare, please feel free and welcome to browse our hallowed decks full of the best our Wordsmiths have offered up from their souls.

*We have been taking a long literary slumber but are still very artistically active.

Please come visit us at The Artist Challenge.

We’ll be waiting for you.
The Crew of the Inferno

The Joke

The Writers of

THE INFERNO

present:

Gallery 34

'The Joke'

April 2, 2011

Attention Readers: To use any of the work you see in this gallery in another publication, contact the writer at their website link listed with their work.

The work in The Inferno is created for a mature audience. Some pieces may not be suitable for children or those sensitive to adult subject matter. Viewers visit our site at their own discretion.

The Joke - Riika Infinityy

Doppelgangers of Comedy

My Fellow Passengers

Please Wait...

Loading In Progress...

Dimension: Dayka

Current Location: Rikayana

"You have arrived at your alter world successfully..."

Alter world?

Are you serious?

A boat trip turned into

traveling across dimensions?

No way...

"Would you mind take a photo for us?"

A turn of fate and

I am looking at myself

Shock. Surprise.

A camera lay gently on my hands

Reacting on its own

The eyes of wonder and fantasy

"Delilah! Save meeeeee! Noooo!"

Apparently I saw Celestyna

drowning in Dayana's hair of water...

*shook head*

Eh, isn't that my alter ego self, Celestyna?

One that I had drawn long ago?

If Celestyna is here,

means...

"This is the most amazing sauna ever! Hehehe..."

And there is Delilah enjoying herself in

my hair of flames...

*shook head*

I knew it! Delilah is here as well!

Wait a minute, why is my hair on fire?!

I went over the camera and look

at my other self.

Different. Strange.

"What a nice weather, warm and cozy. Ah~~~~"

Oh my, didn't she realize she is sleeping

in a pool of flames?

What is Celestyna doing over there?

"Oh, Butterfly! Bling Bling!!!"

I gave an annoyed yet awkward look (=_=")

Celestyna was catching butterflies

as she is turning around

my hands

Sorry,

make that my

doppelganger's hand.

"Look at me! I can balance so easily *_*"

Hope you don't fall, Delilah.

It is going to look bad if you do.

She is holding a cute umbrella.

Oh wait a minute,

what am I thinking?!

I am supposed to get out of

this strange dimension!

"To infinity and beyond!"

Celestyna was concentrating

real hard to get up to

Dayana's shoulder

Where is the infinity she is going anyways?

Oh man, this is crazy!

I need to get out of here...

Uh-oh, no way...

It is time to run!!!!

"Riika, wake up and stop dreaming!"

A cup of water

cleared my mind

Reality is back

with a strange photo

I fell off my chair

immediately

It was the picture that I didn't take in time

It wasn't a dream

It is the return of Celestyna and Delilah.

Our fellow alter ego selves of comedy

Celestyna popped out of the photo

and her eyes sparkled with stars

"To infinity and beyond!"

Noooooo! This is not happening!

What am I thinking?!

*shook head*

.

.

.

~The End~

*Story & Artwork with additional

Credit to Dayana for the drawings of Delilah

(Please click on image for greater detail)

Deadly Butterfly Betrayal

Inspiration: Two years ago, Dayana (Tributes of Sonia Editor) and I had a project of creating our alter ego selves and drawing them out as a stick-girl figures to highlight things and events that happened in our lives. Both Celestyna and Delilah were made for comedy, and guess what? They are back once again!

The Joke - Vikki North

My Dear Mother

To My Dear Mother,

We have always been so close and I have tried to be a good and loyal son. I want to take the opportunity to tell you, and pray you will understand, that I have certain needs that you cannot supply. I love you dearly but I must cut the cord between us now. I hope you are not heart broken. I have met a young woman and I shall be spending time with her this evening. Please don't be upset. I shall be back home and in my room before midnight.

Your Loving Son, James


To My Dear Son,

Do not despair. I received your letter and thank you for your honesty. I would like to take this opportunity to tell you that I also have certain needs that you cannot supply and pray you understand. I’ve rented your room to my hair dresser for a little extra cash-o-la! I would also like to inform you, that while you read this, I will be whopping it up with the man behind the curtain. Therefore, I will not be available for another sitting before noon tomorrow. Don’t wait up, Son.

P.S. - Hope the painting is a real winner for you!

Your Loving Mother


Painting & Story by Vikki North
The Red Chair Gallery

The Joke - Sarah Donnellan

Hoodwinked

With his Magic Elixir
He goes,
From town to town,
From door to door.

He has a lightness of step,
A wink in his eye,
And a slight tip of his hat.

“Hello, lovely Ma’am, kind Sir.”
He charms his way in,
And they are his to finesse.

“Have you ever wished to be
Cured of all your ails?”
He asks caring and concerned.

(Leaning in, he whispers…)
“Between us a secret shared,
For your worthiness,
I saw a mile away.”

(Pulling a small bottle out of his bag…)
“In here I have some magic,
A tonic cure-all.
I have here, my Magic Elixir!”

“Come, let’s look at your wallets.
Simply empty them
Into both my open hands. ”

“You are of the lucky few
Who do now possess
Power over what ails you.”

I beg of you to beware
Of that charming knock.
Please do not open the door!

And so,
With his Magic Elixir,
Let it be the next town.
Let it be the next door,
And not yours!

Sarah Donnellan
Artistic Rhythms

Inspiration: Many can relate to being hoodwinked by some kind of questionable salesperson. Years ago, I naively opened my door one day to let a charming gentleman demonstrate the wonders of HIS elixir on my frustratingly hard to get clean carpet. What was a miracle in the moment was probably bleach mixed with water and a regret mixed with a charge that I could not get undone!

*Image (from the 1890s) in Public Domain

Upcoming Challenge - The Joke

joke [johk]

–noun

1. something said or done to provoke laughter or cause amusement, as a witticism, a short and amusing anecdote, or a prankish act:.

2. something that is amusing or ridiculous, especially because of being ludicrously inadequate or a sham; a thing, situation, or person laughed at rather than taken seriously; farce. 

3. a matter that need not be taken very seriously; trifling matter.

'The Joke' is our next FREE

literary theme challenge

(writers and artists are welcome)

Interpret this

however you choose,

witty pirates!

*If you wish, please send along a relevant image and a few words about your inspiration*

Due date for 'The Joke' is SATURDAY, April 2, 2011

(by 7pm Central Time)

Send entries to the Mistress HERE.

Tender is the Night

The Writers of

THE INFERNO

present:

Gallery 33

'Tender is the Night'

March 19, 2011

Attention Readers: To use any of the work you see in this gallery in another publication, contact the writer at their website link listed with their work.

The work in The Inferno is created for a mature audience. Some pieces may not be suitable for children or those sensitive to adult subject matter. Viewers visit our site at their own discretion.

Tender is the Night - Lelan Gimnick

What Darkness Reveals

O Day! My judge, my examiner, you shrieking Harpy; go now to the opposite side of this blighted orb! Tarry you there and scrutinize with impish delight the malformations and fumblings of the wretched souls farthest from me. Long enough for this time have you bowed my head and beaded my brow under the weight of your ridicule. Your light gives life and comfort to those who care not about any matter save what they believe to see. No thought given to things which must be felt, heard, or inspired to have import- only the fleeting, bleating solace wrought from stark impressions of scathingly illuminated veneer. Mutely your denizens clamor, "Trouble me not with truth which is to be gleened from sweaty toil such as reasoning and deduction. Burn on, oh bright Day so that we may see all and think no more!"

Hasten to me now, Mistress Night! My confidant, my muse, you beautiful respite; come now and find me where I wait. Sojourn with me and ruminate awhile. Ponder the blessed calm; still, though teeming with Life. Bestow your forgiving cloaks of shadow upon stooped shoulder and weary soul. Whisper to me imaginings of peace and justice upon the vagrant wind. Shroud this rotting landscape and grant your sister, Earth, a few hours' reprieve from shame. Hide from me the lies of shallow perception and those who worship them. Delight with me as they scurry from your approach for fear of facing that from which daylight protects them. Fervently and reverently I whisper, "Pass to me your quiet ways and still truths; the way to discern absolute truth by peering beyond the image seen. Rest here, sweet Night and teach me of what darkness reveals."

Lelan Gimnick
Impossible Fantasy Studio Fine Art

Tender is the Night - Riika Infinityy

NYX

Born of Chaos

Shadow and Darkness

The lineage of doom and death

spread across her world

Retribution and Deception

never fade across

her past and present

The beginning of

the first born

mesmerizes the realm

by her chanting

and

when the dreamy night

came and felt

within the darkened soul

should

Nyx

the

Goddess of the night

appear in

the 'mansion' beyond the universe

and be kissed and loved by

the night of darkness

Riika Infinityy

Tender is the Night - Rusty Harden

"Cease Upon the Midnight"
original drawing by Rusty Harden

The Darkling Sky

Drinking in the midnight air
The stars above with twinkling glare
Euphoria and endless pain
Reconciling thoughts in vain
The reflection pool is quite deep
The serpents come, in wake or sleep

Hope grows pale but never dies
Happiness visits in disguise
Shameful glories mince and prim
Joyful sorrows to the brim
“Oh, to slip away unseen”
Plaintive cries become serene

Rusty Harden
A Brush With Rusty

Inspiration:
An awareness of our contradicting emotions that exists simultaneously. Fitzgerald's novel "Tender is the Night" gives us a view into that reality.

Tender is the Night - Ray Shuell

We Are Stardust We Are Golden

We are stardust we are golden
This I found out in my youth
The knee bone’s connected to the thighbone
This I also decided had truth

It’s all just one big jukebox
As we flip from track to track
We put in our coin and make a selection
And know there’s no turning back

Everything springs from dust and ashes
In the end that’s where it returns
In the heavens the planets dance to the music
Of stars that continue to burn

The song it continues to echo
In my head as another one starts
It’s a kind of immortality
Arriving as we depart.

Ray Shuell

Tender is the Night - Ann Field

The Tender Night Happy Therapist

Patient-
“ Doctor, how long will I have to stay here?”

Doctor-
“We’ll see. Running nude down a public street during the middle of the night and waving a flag that says ‘Be Happy!’ - is not an example of someone who has a handle on reality.”

Patient-
“That’s not true! It was completely rational and well planned! It’s certainly better to run naked at night -than in the middle of the day! Wouldn’t you agree?”

Doctor-
“Well….”

Patient-

“I love night time. It’s the perfect stage to bring happiness and I knew that’s what my nude parade would do. You see, Doctor, it’s the small things that make us happy. Don’t you agree?”

Doctor-

“Yes…well I would agree but…”

Patient-

“I consider myself the The Tender Night Happy Therapist. People tend to think about what they’ve accomplished at the end of the day and most are just not happy. They feel they haven’t had any fun and they’re bored. I simply give them something to talk about and get them out of their own self absorbed depressed thoughts.

One of my all time favorite happy schemes is to get on a city bus at the end of the day. I situate myself and then lift my little purse up and jiggle it around just to get everyone's attention. . Then I open it a crack, look inside and say… ‘Are you okay? Can you breathe in there?’

You should see the passenger's faces!”

Doctor-

“Why would you do that?”

Patient-

“They look at each other, connect and some even laugh out loud. They have something to talk about other than their woes. Tell you what Doctor. The next time you get in an elevator, tap someone on the shoulder and when they look around, pretend it wasn’t you. See what happens.”

Doctor-

“Well that’s enough for tonight. Your medication should be taking hold about now.”

The Doctor walked out of the room and got into the hospital elevator. Several of the night shift nurses crowded in and all stood stoic and quiet. As the elevator moved the Doctor tapped one on the shoulder. When the nurse looked around the Doctor acted innocent.

As he got off the elevator, he heard them whispering and giggling.

The Doctor smiled.

Ann Field

*Painting courtesy of the Red Chair Gallery
“F. Scott Fitzgerald”- Master Series
The Red Chair Gallery