Liyab

Asphyxia
12
Sep
By The Flame Literary
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Asphyxia

Trigger Warning: transphobia, violence, murder The hands of a brute coil around her throat.  She gasps. She screams inside, I can’t brea—  Her delicate fingers held the ones cramping her neck. Pleas— With eyes turning bloodshot, she sees him. She sees his face—the last one she will see alive.   His…
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Disconnected
05
Sep
By The Flame Literary
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Disconnected

"THE principles of—" “not—“ “Everyone to—" Reconnecting. A familiar purple wheel emerges across the screen. It begins spinning as the voice of my professor fades. No Internet connection. The screen darkens. I disable my data and enable it again. Upon refreshing the page, I wait anxiously. I catch sight of…
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Ang Tatlong Bestida ni Ate
29
Aug
By The Flame Literary
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Ang Tatlong Bestida ni Ate

TATLONG beses ko lang nakitang magbestida si Ate. Ang unang beses ay nang ikasal siya. Naaalala ko pa ang yari ng gown; wari’y agos ng dagat ang pagkakabagsak ng puting seda. Ang mga beads nito’y nagmimistulang bituin kapag nasisinagan.  Ngunit higit pa sa gown, tanda ko ang abot langit na…
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Homeward
15
Aug
By The Flame Literary
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Homeward

I remember the silent drive to my hometown after the suspension was announced. I was itching to leave the campus right away to avoid being stuck in traffic. But little did I know, this would be my last time traversing these routes. If I only knew what was about to…
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Catnap
08
Aug
By The Flame Literary
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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,…
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Ambrosia
01
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…
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Backbreaking
25
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…
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KOnekSYon
17
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…
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One for the Headlines
11
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…
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