The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

Patterns  
by Alex Grehy

Everyone knows about

fairy rings,

how you should

never step

.

inside a perfect circle.

But near perfect?

Is an oval still a portal?

.

The cunning fae know the way

to entice human souls, know, 

the fascinating lure of chaos.

.

Slight imperfections draw

your eye, broken patterns

distract, attract your judgment.

.

They know how your eyes seek the

heart of the mandala, ignoring the 

swirling maelstrom all around. 

.

They know how little attention you pay

to what lurks inside the tunnel 

when a light shines like hope at the far end.

.

You run, carefree, the path is so straight,

the twisted, non-fractal landscape, safe.

Above, trees bow to the faery queen,

branches lace into a flawless dome,

below, roots cup, complete the circle,

a perfect circle, a perfect trap.

.

Fiction © Copyright Alex Grehy
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com

More from author Alex Grehy:

Spread: Tales of Deadly Flora

Green Thumbs Beware!

Plants are beautiful, peaceful, abundant, and life-sustaining…

But what if something sinister took root in the soil, awakening to unleash slashing thorns, squeezing vines, or haunting greenery that lured you in? Perhaps blooms on distant planets could claim your heart, hitch a ride to Earth on a meteor, or simply poison you with their essence. Imagine a world where scientists produced our own demise in a lab, set spores free to infect, even bred ferns to be our friends only to witness the privilege perverted. When faced with botanical terror, will humanity fight to survive, or will they curl and wither like leaves in the fall?

Read ten speculative tales ripe with dangerous flora to find out.

Available on Amazon!