(Continues from Simplicity in Hell’s Casino)

About halfway up my spiritual tether, the inevitable question attacked me, and I paused my ascent out of hell.

What anchored me and what spawned the tether?
Finding it changed me from a pale feather
floating on chance’s breeze in the aether.
Climbing its corded leather from nether
planes, I wonder who we are together
for I am nothing without my tether. 

And knowing that scares the unlife out of me. Unfortunately, I had no time to ponder the nature of the eternal and whether or not my tether connected to a god-like being. I had a winged problem soaring my way jaws extended to take a bite out of my ghostly hide. Hightailing up my tether, I searched for links to detach. The last fistful I’d thrown had knocked the creature for a loop. But alas, I’d run through my story collection and the links had changed to leather reminiscent of a braided belt. Still, I fumbled about searching for a projectile to throw.

I needed some weaponry, preferably one of the distance variety. A good RPG would do. This hand-to-hand thing is tough to manage since my fist phases through everything I touch including the bat-winged demon diving at me. But I punched it anyway, and my fist passed right through its snout. The knife gripped in its claws slashed across my ribs, and a transparent liquid oozed out. Fantastic. My soul could bleed.

How much damage could a ghost sustain? I was about to find out.

Find the earlier parts of this series here.

For OctPoWRiMo, 31 poems in 31 days–all part of one story.

This story will continue for the November Notes Writing Challenge hosted by  Sarah Doughty of Heartstring Eulogies and Rosema of A Reading Writer. Do check out the writing of these lovely ladies!

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Love my writing? Pick up Curse Breaker: Enchanted today: 

After an enchanted tree abducts Sarn, he’s thrust into a mystery revolving around a double homicide. Can Sarn protect his son, keep his masters happy and help the dead boy haunting him?

Look inside to find out. Read the first 15 chapters for free.