I swear by Apollo thanatos, hunched forward to gather heat from the dying embers, grasps a fleeting thought for long enough to share itPhysician and Asclepius and Hygieia with his brother, hypnos. their kin, the oneiroi, whisper quietly amongst themselves nearby, building silent worlds in the darkness.and Panaceia and all the gods and goddesses, "if you prod him with a fork and he still squeals,making them my witnesses, then you know you've got a live one... but,"that I will fulfil according to my ability "if there he lies without a trace of fire in his veins, well.and judgment this oath and this covenantyou snatch him right up."

a cold, gentle wind passes, and with it, the voice of their mother, nyx. "if only your desire for what ran inside those veinsTo hold him who has taught me this art as equal to my parents and to live my life in partnership surpassed your desire to emulate your brother,"with him, and if he is in need of money to give him a share of mine, and to regard his offspring as equal "your words would be less silken and your lips more crimson, as the fine example set by your sisters' affinity"to my brothers in male lineage and to teach them this art - if they desire to learn it - "for the blood of those who no longer have use for the confines of mortality."

hypnos, pensively regarding the swirl of burning ash dancing about in the atmosphere before him, replies quietly,without fee and covenant; to give a share of precepts almost to himself, "consumed by its taste, warmth, the urgency with which it appears and is eagerly devoured... aching for ownership of the pulse itself before a dying wish ebbs away to nothing. so often", he intones in an indecipherable rhythm, "those wishes were gifts, handspun creations from my own enchanted looms. if only they knew that such payment was their fate,"and oral instruction and all the other learning to my sons and to the sons of him who has instructed me "would they have been so enraptured by their dreams?" thanatos laughs, looking kindly uponand to pupils who have signed the covenant and have the wistful image of youth that mirrors his own delicate countenance. "come brother, it is time to get to work."taken an oath according to the medical law, but no one else.

Fire in the Phrase
An Unfinished Original Work of Literary Brio
Author Unknown

"Only if you're a good boy," she said, full cherry lips curving into a winsome yet mischievous smile. In a room that had become saturated by the idle chatter of overstimulated minds, the words were clearly audible, despite her unusually quiet tone of voice.

Frostbitten clouds began to roll darkly over the horizon, hastening the slumber of an indifferent winter sun. A crepuscular spell seemed to fall over the inhabitants of the city below, transforming the bustling avenue into a mass of lugubrious shadows hastening toward unspoken destinations.

He was suddenly in a bind, loath as he was to offend his newly betrothed who sat only an arm's length away. She was a fiery Italian brunette, possessed of eviscerating wit and a penchant for litigious behavior (she once sued a grocery store chain into oblivion for "allowing" a can of Campbell's to tumble from the top shelf, leaving a rather dainty scar on her otherwise flawless forehead). Her perpetual jealous fury led to various bite-and-scratch encounters, not
all of which had been entirely unpleasant. He did, however, find himself leaning toward a more refined path to pleasure, and had begun to enjoy the present conversation.

A good boy, he thought, composing a revised version of the phrase as a vision of his own propensity for creative mischief. The words "bad" and "girl" figured prominently in the revision process, as did several more evocative phrases and concepts. Rather than incur the inevitable wrath of the Implacable Wife, he took mental note of the unmentionable scene unfolding behind his eyes and decided to write a little something about it later.