Zombie Night

by Justin Reed

 

A Zombie Apocalypse has begun, and quick-moving modern zombies are marauding through town, searching for

some human flesh to feed on … fortunately for Ted, his apartment has a love platform, and the zombies are on his

TV screen. Drawn to the movies that frighten him, Ted’s left to ponder whether his “great irrational fear” of zombies

is so irrational after all.

 

 

Make Mad the Roaring Winds

by Garth von Buchholz

 

 

Darcy Lim’s a Human Resources officer making his way across the solar system in a solitary capsule, on his way

to an assignment on Osirus, a recently discovered Jupiterian moon. As he closes in on his destination after a 3-year trek, his mind is reaching the breaking point. He needs to find a way to seize control if he wants to make it with his

sanity intact, or perhaps it will turn into a 1-way trip into an insane asylum.

 

 

Kill Whitey

by Wes Trexler

 

Punch, who’s really a great guy, can’t catch a break. When he leaves his apartment he’s getting chased by his

neighbor Whitey, and the cops are banging on his door, snooping around his apartment, all over the small matter

of some bicycles Punch may or may not have stolen from said neighbor. To top it off, he’s received a summons

for jury duty. Hoping he won’t have to kill Whitey but determined to hold onto the bikes, Punch is locked in a battle

of wills that’s tilting out of his favor.

 

 

A Clash

by Melissa Ragsly

 

In A Clash, a wannabe rock-star chef and his non-supportive ex-girlfriend run into each other at a party on the night

he tries to figure out how to cook the perfect octopus. Looking for a little respect and his Clash tapes, he makes

his way to the ex’s garage in the Bronx, where he must find a way to win his culinary and relationship battles.

 

 

Into the Light

by Michael van Mantgem

 

After two twenty-something co-workers discuss the merits of group sex, the game is on when they actually

take the plunge.

 

 

D-Gen

by Timothy Ghorkin

 

Drinking and gambling when he’s not working security or extorting money from rich college students, the hero of

D-Gen, a college graduate himself, is having a tough time making it in Great Recession-era Philadelphia.

Will his luck change, or will he have to take drastic measures to change his fortunes?

 

 

You Take Care Now, Mary Jones

by Lynn Levin

 

Natalie Vest has a lot on her mind. Weeks from her college graduation, she’s busy finishing up her thesis, figuring

out her future and dodging her estranged mother. There’s also the problem of the elaborate credit card scam

she and her boyfriend have been running, which she’s finding may not be as foolproof as she once though.

 

 

The Leaves are Falling

by Tony Zito

 

A childless couple finds that the perfect house they just bought, with its 5 gorgeous maple trees, may be more

of a burden than they expected.

 

 

Poetry & Artwork

 

Issue #2 also features poetry from Sarah Bridgins, Lisette Eileen Cheresson and Nathaniel Hunt, along with

artwork from Veronica Chen and Alex Eckman-Lawn

 

 

Cover Art

by Dave Rankin

 

The Winter Issue of The Rag cover art was painted by the talented artist Dave Rankin who is the owner and artist at Effigy Skateboards. You can buy his art and his boards at effigyskateboards.com.

 

You can read more about Issue #1 here.