Frozen faces in bartered lives bought and sold for an hour of tension. Tension that goes away but shadows your step like a landlord without trust.

Bought and sold timepieces that won't tell time. Bought and sold by an Arab in a suit and tie who smiles like a possum being killed with an axe.

Arabian insults fly as a generic cripple becomes frightened and looks away. He sees in the window glass of the Hammu Gali Jewelry Store a horseman approaching. The man in the window glass asks the cripple for directions. The cripple smiles and says, "Take me home." The horseman nods to the cripple and departs.

I looked again In to the peaceful glass Staring.... Staring....

Arabic fingers flutter about as Mister Gali speaks of a time that never was. As an afterthought, he spits. Somewhere a trumpet sounds.

Gali sells geek sheik pallets used to move boxes from Kansas City to Belfast, Ireland. Each pallet costs a hundred dollars but is traded for a good meal and a pack of smokes.

Hey man, I've got some smokes. Bought something else... I made a joke- And somebody laughed.

Kiddy porn merchants buy your town so that they can live in your house. Your children are naked and are playing with a dead dog. A horseman silently flies overhead as Bill the street urchin waddles over to you.

"What's up?" Bill says numbly.

"The Klan killed my wife...."

"What?"

Bill tries to smother a burp with a cough. Gags a little.

"No, not really. How's that dog of yours? Haven't seen it for a few days..."

Bill looks away and burp/coughs louder this time. A fly gets in his eye and he loses it.

"Damn fly!"

"The flies seem to be worse this year."

"Damn, that hurts. I gotta go. If you see my dog let me know."

"Oh I will."

Police arrest your children because it's their right. You take the receipt the police give you and thank them for helping to make a brighter tomorrow.

All roads are now four lanes and every driveway has an orange cone by it. Anyone that removes the orange cones is imprisoned, raped and placed on lifetime probation. "Enjoy! You have orange cones!" States the latest Comp-TV blip. The Comp-TV blocks the view of heaven from your Easy-Gyro chair. A horseman rides the clouds to the horizon.

I looked again Into the peaceful glass Staring- Just staring.....

Two old white whores ask for donations as you walk to the Super K for the Adrenal K-Gel: The gel that sells. You see every friend you have in the Super-K. They all insult you while pretending to still like you. You buy a gun the next day and fantasize about being on TV.

The Comp-TV goes bad. Go to blood bank. Slide in. Slide out. Neat. You sell blood for parts and fight off gay Nazi's as they try to pinch you.

Fresh meat products are now listed as class A narcotics. You buy half a turkey breast from a disabled veteran living under your neighbor's porch. You chant the world mantra, "All men are created equal until assumed otherwise." The veteran grins at the five-dollar bill. He'll buy some time with this.

Bill the street urchin finds his dog. Its skin is gone but Bill knows that it's Marlene. He holds the dog, crying. You laugh and go inside. Must be the meat.

All graveyards are now recycling centers. The centers are sponsored by the Republican Gay Coalition and Ace Hardware. You visit your daughter's grave and exchange a years worth of cans for a jug of bleach.

Your friends visit you but never say anything. You play with your gun that night and dream of having your own cartoon show.

I see within my eyes Pieces of metal And shards of brick. Maybe one day they'll settle. I'm looking again into the peaceful glass. Staring. Just staring. Staring into the dark glistening depths Staring into time. Reflecting.

Reflecting on the horseman overhead. Great clouds move through time and space only to appear in our world for but a brief moment. The horseman rides towards a great mountain filled with fire and wonder. Upon the way to the mountain, the horseman drinks from a shallow spring. The horse does like-wise. A great star moves across the sky as he walks with his horse.

The Horseman smiles as his horse strays onto an unknown path. He laughs and pats his horse. "It's going to be an interesting day." The horse seems to laugh as well.

Steven Henderson co-wrote "The Intelligence of an Entity" with Robby Garner back in Volume 13. He currently has a book for sale at virtualbookworm.com.