“You are go for launch.” ย Our rockets activate, massive g-forces press usย into our seats, andย our space shuttle begins climbing the sky. ย First and second stage thrusters detach from our ship and fall back to earth . ย We’re about to celebrate when a voice from behind us pipes up, “Hey guys, would you like to hear my poem?” ย In the reflective glass of our instrument displays, we see the dyed-hair and pasty face of an Emo-poet. ย “WHAT THE HELL?” I scream. ย “Godammit, Stevens! ย Weren’t you in charge of pre-flight security checks?” ย Stevens tries to apologize but he’s too flabbergasted. ย The emo-poet begins chanting dark, shitty poetry. ย Alarms blare, red lights strobe, and our noses erupt with blood. ย I yell to our onboard computer, “Xenobiotic compromise! ย Initiate countermeasures!” ย The computer replies, “The only acceptable countermeasure is complete annihilation. ย Self-destruct initiated.” ย I scream, “WHAT? ย NO, WAIT!” ย But the computer is already counting down. ย In desperation, I open my eReader to Echo. ย Magic flash. ย A swirling, multihued portal appears behind the emo-poet, and I see the translucent outline of Chuck Norris emerge from it. ย Denim-sleeved arms reach out and snap the emo-poet’s neck, and then drag him into the portal. ย Before it closes and disappears, Chuck gives me a level stare and a thumbs-up. ย Stevens and I breathe a sigh of relief as the computer powers down the self-destruct.
Has your spacecraft been infiltrated by shitty poetry? ย Getย Echo Vol. 1 on Kindleย here: ย Vol. 1 on Kindle. ย Vol. 2 on Kindle here: ย Vol.2 on Kindle. Links for Vol.1 AND Vol.2 on Smashwords/Nook/iBooks/Kobo are available here: ย Echo on other platforms


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