“We shall carry our legends into the stars and we’ll still need people
to do what needs to be done. Some dirty jobs never have vacancies—“
Pied Piper By Elizas3
Source: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/26425951/
Near Teegarden’s Star c
Piper’s the hottest thing
in the coldness of space.
She wears only black—
it hides the curved lines
of her uncanny event horizon.
Around her, the stars can’t shine.
She’s the hookup for everything,
from ether binge to a place to lie low.
There are rumors she sings sometimes
and it sounds different to all who hear her.
Some hear a choir of celestials,
others sultry torch songs,
and the unfortunates who don’t survive
hear the grinding of their bones.
Piper can be found far away
from her old town of Hamelin
where she no longer takes the children.
She let her hair grow out
and wears a subtler outfit—
but she still kills the rats.
by Pixie Bruner
Pixie Bruner, Pushcart nominated human writer and cancer survivor lives in Atlanta Georgia with her doppelgänger and alien cats. She has speculative poems published in fine publications in 3 universes. Her debut collection is “The Body As Haunted” (Authortunities Press). HWA/SFPA. She is the 2025 Rhysling Award Chair.