Liyab

Aug

Catnap

AMID the disorganized array of tents and harried footsteps of people, a cat waits patiently. This cat liked many things. He liked taking naps in warm places. He liked being handed scraps of leftovers. But most of all, he loved being petted. He loved gentle touches on his fur, head,…

Aug

By The Flame Literary

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Ambrosia

A curse is sweeping the kingdom. No one knows where it came from; only that one day it had manifested through pus-dripping boils. With hundreds getting sick, the kingdom turned into a wasteland of dying livestock and people. All that remained strong was the impenetrable wall surrounding the castle. Desperate…

Jul

By The Flame Literary

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Backbreaking

photo by ELIJAH JOHN M. ENCINAS/ THE FLAME “MA, mag-eenroll ba ako?” my son asked me. I did not know how to answer. Work hard. This became my mantra as I continued working on-site with the promise of a higher salary. I never let the mountain of paperwork on my…

Jul

By The Flame Literary

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KOnekSYon

>YES2ANTITEROR BILL...Mdaming salamat tatAy...lagotkau ngaun mga sAlut s liponaN!!! *Share* C taTay nlng matino ngaun. Bat b andAming kontRa....pandemya nga maki2Sali p teroRista’t adik!!! Kaya tuMataas OCVID ehh...terorista lng tAkot z antierrorBill… MAGKaCOVED sNA CLA!!! <1 Message Request: SouthEast-Asian Coalition for National Security *Accept* <Good evening. Ito po ba si…

Jul

By The Flame Literary

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One for the Headlines

THIS current reality is eerily similar to something found within the pages of history. As if taken directly out of a dictator’s playbook, this regime repeats the tyrannic and despotic leadership that occurred four decades ago. They come after the journalists one by one—suppressing the fundamental rights to information, making…

Jul

By The Flame Literary

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Sea Monsters of the Night

THERE are tales about the sea where mermaids, monsters, and ghost ships haunt the wide expanse of water, especially at night. But in this world, mermaids and ghost ships remain only mere legends; and monsters are the only one that is real. As soon as the ember sky turns pitch…

Jun

By The Flame Literary

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Together, We Thrive

THIS time, my fingers finally have the strength to crack open my own fortress of secrecy. Out of bigoted spite and bitterness, I am forcefully shoved in a truck. I find myself gasping for air inside a cell; leaving me suffocated from the scent of fear and solitude. Beyond bars,…

Jun

By The Flame Literary

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Midnight Thoughts

Trigger Warning: rape, implied suicide EVERYTHING is dark. Someone calls my name. It asks me if I am okay. I jolt awake. I remember foggy memories of intrusive mouths and unwelcome hands touching me. Years have passed, but my nightmares remain all the same. I am almost an adult but…

Jun

By The Flame Literary

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Hanggahan

Hindi matatakpan ng mga makikinang na ilaw o malalambungan ng dilim ng gabi ang bawat kalsada at eskinita na iniikutan ng mga maniniil at mapang-api. Katulad ng mga banyagang imperyalistang sa ating mga daungan ay tumuntong noon, dala nila ay pagbabanta sa buhay at kalayaan ng inosente man o…

Jun

By The Flame Literary

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Silenced Chaos

THE afternoon was dull when he went outside. Perhaps he could not find peace in his own home for with each path he crosses, he sees the misery behind one's mask. His world was covered in sickness, chaos, and corruption—each rest he takes seems wasted since all his mornings remain…