Jack

Michael D. Griffiths Yig , , , , , ,

The day had started slow, which suited Jack’s hung-over brain just fine. Lunch hour proved quiet and Jack thought he might make it through another morning shift at Scallywags without much trouble, but of course that’s when things go wrong.

Jack

About two in the afternoon something hit the pub, which caused it to rock like an unmanned boat in a hurricane. While Jack fought to just maintain his footing, bottles tumbled from the shelves behind the bar and shattered into shards of flying glass. The bartender on shift was a young, petite woman named Holly and she shrieked as the boozes exploded on both sides of her. Instead of trying to flee, she froze. Another cry tore from her when a large bottle of vodka cracked her forehead and drew blood.

Holly

With a growl, Jack hurried her way, but moving over an undulating floor proved anything but easy. He dodged falling chairs and scrambling costumers as he made his way toward her.

Napa Earthquake

When at last he reached the bar, Jack leaned forward and grabbed her by the waist. As if lifting a toy, he drew her over the bar and into the dubious safety of the rest of the restaurant. More shouts and crashes were heard, as Holly held onto him like a long lost lover.

Holly Blood

Then, as quickly as it had started, the shaking dwindled into nothing.

Miles, one of the waiters, rushed up to them. “That was an earthquake, right?”

“I don’t think it was God bowling,” Jack replied.

As if suddenly realizing how hard she’d been hugging him, Holly drew away as her face blushed red. “Um, sorry, but that was really scary.”

“Worse things could happen,” Jack said, “But right now we need to take care of you. Your forehead is bleeding,” looking down, he saw her bare legs covered with all various splashes of booze, “and your legs could be injured too.”

As Jack guided the trembling girl toward the first aid kit, the manager, Larry, came rushing over. “Hey wait, we can’t leave all our costumers out here alone.”

“You watch them then,” Jack said. “I’m not going to have Holly go into shock on me. I’m sure a thousand injured are going to be overloading the hospitals in minutes. We’re going to have to fair for ourselves here.”

Larry met his eye and then nodded. “Okay, but there’s broken glass everywhere. This place is a litigation sandwich that’s about to have a bite taken out of it.”

“I say we close the place. No one will be coming here after all that. Give me a minute to help Holly and then we’ll come around and see what needs to be done next.”

Jack knew he took a chance talking to the shift manager so bluntly, but it appeared to have paid off, for Miles and Larry took off and got busy talking to the patrons and cleaning.

Holly looked up at him with her light blue eyes. “Thanks for helping me back there. It could have gotten a lot worse.”

Looking up at the television, he saw that the storm in northern Arizona had increased in it fury. “We had better watch ourselves, it still could.”’

.

Yig's Thoughts

.

Turn in each weekly for more Yig based Dark Fantasy

.

.

Learn more about another incarnation of Jack here!

.

.Yig Triumphant

Fin

Michael D. Griffiths Yig , , , , , ,

Most people were never asked into Fin’s residence. Several reasons for this existed, but the most obvious remained the hundreds of aquariums that lined the walls, that and the lingering odor. Despite the hundreds of snakes he kept within the various glass cages, it was really the mice and rats that he breed, which caused the most offensive smells.

Yig C Chaos

He was just tossing a large mouse into his Southern Arizona Gopher Snake’s cage when the room began to shake. His eyes grew wide with alarm as the aquariums began to rock on the shelves. For the first time in months he wished he didn’t live alone, but rare was a woman, or even a man for that matter, who was willing to live amongst so many serpents.

Setting himself to do his best, Fin flung his body against two of the larger selves. They bounced and rattled, but he refused to let go. He braced his back into the units while white knuckled fingers gripped the shelves on either side of him. So far he’d been able to keep the two selves upright, but all around him others toppled to the floor. Glass shattered and snakes found their freedom. Soon dozens of their sleek forms coiled and slithered around him.

Their movements left him mesmerized. Greens, oranges, greys…all swirling, mixing together until he couldn’t tell where one serpent stopped and the next began.

The quaking started to subside and it he had managed to keep his two biggest selves upright, but it looked like he still had a huge task before him. Shaking his head to clear it, he moved away from the selves, but just as he did a smaller aquarium on the top shelve tumbled over the side and struck him in the temple. The world spun and the still quaking earth didn’t help things.

He fell to his knees and then toppled forwards. The snakes moved everywhere. They swarmed over his body and crawled into his clothes. Arcs of color blurred and fogged soon they covered his face as they buried him under their serpentine masses.

Coils

He reached out for his cell phone, but his fingers fell away as a darkness claimed him.

Yig snake

Learn more about Yig’s Heroes here

Douglas

Michael D. Griffiths Yig , , , ,

After pushing his glasses back to the bridge of his nose, Doulas took another bite of his dripping sandwich. He glanced out the window and shook his head when he didn’t see a single cloud. Nothing but baby boy blue out there, he thought to himself .

Shadowed Man

The television screen showed a different story. Rain fell in bucket sized drops. Already flooded roads flowed like rivers. He watched as a car was drawn through the streets by the water. He thought it did pretty well until it crashed into an overturned RV.

He took in what the announcer said, as he loaded a thick pinch of marijuana into a bowl. “Meteorologists are still baffled by the strange weather patterns taking place in Northern Arizona. A storm system has clung to the San Francisco Peaks and has hovered over Flagstaff for more than a day now.

Flood

“Shit, I hope Alex is okay,” he said aloud as he took a big hit and then handed the bowl to his girlfriend.

She brushed a thin lock of blonde hair behind her ear and took a hit without saying anything. When she had a cherry of red going, she said. “Wish we could get some rain.” She paused, took a second hit and then handed the empty blow back to hit. “Hey can you help me move some things out of my car, my mom says I can’t keep my futon at her house anymore so I have to go get it.”

Julie

He contemplated loading another bowl, but instead rose to his feet and led the way out into the bright desert afternoon. He noticed an odd stillness. Unlike to the north, the air hung heavy. Not so much as a twig moved. No birds song and even the noise of the passing traffic sounded muted.

Blaming his feelings on the weed, he quickly discovered that helping his girlfriend meant doing it all himself and her car was a mess. He grabbed a handful of old paper bags and headed toward the large plastic garbage receptacle.

Halfway there, the ground started to shake. If wasn’t too much as first, but then he found himself preforming an awkward dance just to stay on his feet.

His girlfriend didn’t fare as well and with a cry tumbled to the gravel between the cars.

“Julie,” he yelled and tried to make it to her. It proved a difficult task. The ground buckled under him and he tumbled back hitting his shoulder against the fence. Wincing in pain, he used the fence for support as the world went to hell around him.

He gasped as a telephone pole crashed to the ground sending off sparks. Another one, three houses down, did the same thing, but its sparks hit a pile of leaves and caught them ablaze. Within his own yard, potted plants tumbled to the sidewalk and shattered loudly. His husky began to howl like he was lamenting the end of days.

Fallen telephone Poles

Swearing under his breath, he managed to make it to Julia just as the quaking began to slow.

“What was that?” she asked wile rubbing at her bleeding knee.

“Earthquake I guess, but if you’re okay, I need to make sure that fire is out or this whole neighborhood could go up on flames.”

Again, he found his progress slowed for live power lines crisscrossed the pavement between him and the fire. They moved like the twitchings of a dying squid and he looked on with dismay as the fire grew.

“Hello!” he shouted. “There is a big fire out here.”

Some people were already out of their homes and a few of his neighbors reached the fire and put it out, but he doubted the small fire was the only problem he faced.

Julie appeared at his side. “The power is out and even the cell phones aren’t working.”

“Looks like you won’t be visiting your mother today.”

Douglas

Come back for more action as the world is swallow by the Apocalypse of Yig

Learn more about Yig’s Heroes Here

Jack in Darkness

Nathen

Michael D. Griffiths Yig , , , , ,

Nathan leaned back in his chair. His son had gone to school and he felt thankful for a little peace, but then chided himself for his thoughts a moment later. Who am I kidding? All I have is peace. Errr, the only thing worse than being unemployed and living in your mother’s basement is having to suffer through the indignity with a son in tow.

Pushing himself to his feet, he walked to the western door of his subterranean lair. The shadows clung to him, willing him back into their comfortable embrace. ‘Your goals can be put off for another day,’ they seemed to whisper. ‘The delights of electronic love awaits for you here. Movies, the web…video games.’

He ground his teeth and pushed the door open. The bright desert light assaulted his senses. The February heat felt good on his bones and he figured it was close to a perfect temperature outside.

Desert sky

Stepping out onto the packed earth, he let his toes clutch at the pebbles beneath his feet. To the east he saw the first signs of the Tucson Gem Show coming to life. Giant white tents could be seen on the other side of the wash. Soon thousands of people would be filling the city and creating the world’s largest gem and mineral show.

He watched as a new tent reached up into the air. It expanded like a man filling his chest with air. On cue, he breathed in the crisp smell of lingering sage. The wind tossed his hair as he stared over the empty complex. Outside of the gem show nothing stirred. Children were in school and adults were at their jobs. Everyone had something to do but him.

The dark fingers of shade called to him. It would be easy to forget about today and just piss it away like he’d done to so many others, but something had inspired him. A thread of motivation had entered into his conscious and he pulled on it like a drowning man grasping a stick.

Forest Jack

Setting himself, with a new feeling of motivation, he decided he would throw on his shoes and a new shirt so he could check out the show. There was no reason a man as broke as himself should go shopping, but it would be a chance for him and an excuse to get out. Walking around didn’t cost anything.

With a final nod, he headed back inside and tried not to look at the flat screen while he hurried into his shoes.

To be continued every week.

Yig Warrior

Learn more about Heroes of Yig Here

Coils of Yig… First post

Michael D. Griffiths Yig , , ,

This is a Yig based Speculative Fiction Tale. Think of it as a best case scenario.

Yig double helix

Alexander Bonerell sat on the side patio of his favorite new pub, Hops on Birch. A beer logo stamped umbrella stretched over the table, but he leaned back on his chair letting the struggling February sun attempt to warm his face. Taking a deep breath, he willed himself to relax and tried to forget his stress filled day.
It didn’t work.
He hoped a sip of IPA would help, but figured it would take another three pints to make a dent in his concerns.
Two small brown birds landed, snatched up the crumbs of a sandwich and flew off. For some reason they reminded him of the freedom his life lacked.
He had never wanted to live like this. As a youth he’d imagined himself walking across America or building his own log cabin in Alaska. Never would he have seen himself roped into some middle management job, with a wife and two kids, and a third on the way.
He loved his family, but didn’t really love his life.
Zane’s voice brought him back to the present and he didn’t mind the distraction. “So, I was hoping we could find some time to edit that You-tube vid we shot at Two Guns next week. Silent Kong says he can make it over to Sack’s house Monday.”
“That might work for me,” he said, trying to keep his frustration out of his voice. “But the evil gnome is getting wise to me leaving early and my lady is certainly wise to me coming home late.”
“Must be fun living with your balls in a vice.”
Alex watched a couple of college students stroll by. They looked like they had their whole lives in front of them and knew it. They could screw anyone they liked and then take off for a two week vacation if the urge hit them.
He felt like hitting them.
“The vice must not be too tight or I wouldn’t have another kid on the way,” he said, while placing his sunglasses back onto his face.
“Yeah, don’t remind me. Good luck trying to get you out for another shoot in the next five years and we need you. You have a natural talent. You’re just funny.”
“Yeah, but looks aren’t everything.”
“Right, hey I got my mobile wifi with me. Can you help me promote the last vid before you go? I’ll buy you another beer.”
Best deal I’ve heard today,” he said. After taking another sip of ale, he opened his laptop and let it warm up.

get-attachment
Without looking up from his laptop, Zane said, “Damn, have you seen this thing about the comet? It’s all over the web. It came from no where and they say it has a tail the size of the moon or something.”
“No, I guess not. We can’t afford TV, remember.”
“Good times. Well, you should check it out. It’s pretty cool. They’re calling it the Serpentine because of its huge tail that seems to move almost like its swimming.”
“Swimming huh? Maybe they should call it the Sperm Wagon. It’s probably here to impregnate the Earth.”
“I think if it hit the Earth we’d all be toast,” Zane said.
“Well, I guess that would be one way to get my creditors off my back.”

* * *

The wind tore at him, but it only made he take the speed of the motorcycle up another ten miles an hour. He chuckled to himself as he passed an ambulance on I-40. Hope no one in there needed to get somewhere quickly.

Motorcycle Dark
Marco tended to avoid speed limits and today proved no exception.

He also tended to get into trouble more than once in a while and today proved no exception.
He cursed when red and blue flashing lights appeared in his side mirror.
“Son of a bitch.”
After considering trying to run, he thought better of the idea and began to slow his bike. He had taken it down to forty when his handlebars began to shake.
“What the hell,” he said aloud, thinking something must be going wrong with his bike, but then he saw all the cars around him going crazy.
Two cars collided in front of him and forced him to pull into the breakdown lane to keep from smashing into him.
Figuring that would prove more than enough to keep the cop busy, he chuckled to himself and speed on past the pile up.
Best earthquake of my life, he thought to himself as he left the breaking cars behind him and sped home.

Yig Hero in Print and Scales.

dddd

Yig The All-Father Snake

Michael D. Griffiths Uncategorized

Yig is the All Father snake, the Feathered Serpent. Some say he is the father of the universe, the entwined serpents that create the double helix of life. The twin snakes of the caduceus, give his servants the ability to harm or heal. But the followers of Yig are one with the Earth and seek to protect it and its creatures from all that would seek them harm, be they internal or external forces.

Yig represents the Male aspect of the Earth and creation. The Warrior that fights for its own, the struggle of life itself and recognizing that reality is shaped by beauty as well as savagery.

Where does humanity connect with its animal self? How much of that Primal instinct do we feel? How does it shape us? How do we shape it? If we accept it, can we use the strength of this Primal force to aid us?

Instead of seeking angels and higher beings for empowerment, could one instead look back? A strength comes from our past, our origins. There are goals set by life itself and when we enter the world of the living, we sense and feel this. Yet many lose their connection to this sacred path, some are blind to the flow of existence around them.

Yig is the protector of the world and the abundant life that springs from the bosom of Inanna the female creator. He and his followers seek to become one with the nature they defend. However, the Earth is above all, a teacher, a way to discover eternal truths and eternal goals. By becoming one with the Feathered Serpent, the All Father snake, we become warriors for and of the Earth.

Yig Big

Explore a hero of Yig’s adventures here

YIG

Michael D. Griffiths Yig , , , , ,

The green of the forest calls to me
Invoking the buried memories of my ancestors.
Life is created but only a handful know how or why
Life seeks looking forward, but to find the future one must also know the past.
I am the fish, the insect, the snake
Within all creatures remains the spark of creation.
The source of existence
The dance of the making
Some would seek to know
To find…to follow
Like above…like below
Back into the hollow we go
Water, Air, Fire, Earth
In existence long before our birth
Are we treasured or bringers of mirth
We want to rise above and prove our worth
Today we seek to journey into the knowing
Will little clue as to which way we should be going
Are there paths that you great Yig could be showing?
For we have no intension of slowing
Beyond our world, beyond even space
We know you dwell in that most holy place
Please take pity on this simple race
So that we may one day see your true face

Q

Learn More About Heroes of Yig Here