Stone Soup Magazine for young readers, writers, and artists

All was not well, up in the heavens. Tensions were building for what to do with the humans, who had disrupted the natural balance, and now were upheaving nature itself. They had forgotten their ancient promises, and now, a reckoning was in hand. However, the gods were also split on how to deal with the human problem. On one hand, they had been the most complex creations that the gods had made yet, and could not be wasted, but they had broken the sacred law, so a severe punishment had to be inbound, as they got more and more reckless with their expansion.  So one of them took the decision into their own hands, appearing before the council of the gods to ask for the destruction of humankind. “We must smite them down before they get full of themselves! We must not lose sight of our main focus, our duty to preserve nature itself, our real greatest creations, not these creatures!” Indignant responses followed the bold statements. “Preposterous!” one of the council bellowed. “We have spent enough time and resources creating and maintaining the survival of these intelligent beings! We must not destroy them now, just when they have ensured survival independent of us!” The council agreed. They would not smite down the humans, despite the grave offense of their long-forgotten treaty. But the elders did not forget. Neither did they forgive.   The humans, though just starting to use primitive tools, knew something was coming when they saw a massive storm, a mass of towering clouds, approaching them. The elders were coming, with permission or not, to end the humans. However, little did the elders know that the council had sent their operatives to trail them, and soon, there was infighting, a furious debate among gods as it became apparent that the council had found out about their secret mission. Someone had betrayed them. Tensions were high, as a mutiny occurred at the top of the cloud, and the gods began to quarrel, they sent gusts of wind against one another. The elders prepared to use their weapon. When gods fight, it is a battle of wills that determines who comes out on top. Charges of negative and positive built up, the difference between the two wills increasing, until… snap. The elder’s weapon was shattered as a flash of light crackled from the cloud, and struck the land below, an ominous booming sound following. The silence that followed was deafening. A huge scorch mark was all that remained of the white fire that had come from the sky, a reminder to the humans of the treaty, and the council began to speak. “For centuries, we have lived in harmony with nature. And as those centuries have passed, it seems as if you have forgotten your treaty with us, your devotion to protecting nature. Let this serve as a reminder to you of what happens when the delicate balance of nature is upheaved.” However, this also served as a reminder for the gods themselves, who had not meant to create such a powerful weapon. Today, whenever the gods have a heated debate or disagreement, and pressure builds up, lightning strikes, not necessarily us humans have done anything wrong, but as a sign that the ancient gods of nature are in conflict with one another.

Spaghetti Sam was notorious for sneaking off during the day and leaving people tied up on the street, though the law enforcement didn’t acknowledge the strange claims. However, most of the neighborhood didn’t trust him much, as the one piece of evidence found at every single crime scene was a single rope of spaghetti. One day, when Detective Denny was going on his morning walk, he saw Pasta Parker tied up to a fire hydrant, blindfolded. “I said I liked macaroni better than spaghetti.” Pasta Parker wailed. “I really shouldn’t have said that.” “Don’t worry, I can help you, Pasta.” said Detective Denny. “Thank god someone finally decided to untie me!” Pasta said. “I’ll help you catch the perpetrator!” Denny looked around the crime scene, finding one singular strand of spaghetti. “It was Spaghetti Sam for sure!” Pasta Parker proclaimed indignantly. “Everyone knows that he ties people up using spaghetti! It is just that no one takes us seriously!” “I assure you, I am taking this very seriously, but I think the reason law enforcement hasn’t taken any prior actions is that Spaghetti Sam is a well established businessman.” Denny reassured, looking at the evidence very carefully. “However, I will look into it. I must take this back to my crime lab to examine.” “And I, Spaghetti Sam’s brother, shall help you!” Pasta Parker exclaimed, gladly following Denny to his home. Inside his lab, Denny pulled out other samples of past victims. Each of them were spaghetti ropes, almost indistinguishable from the one used to tie Pasta Parker up. But Denny was a thorough and patient detective, and knew there was more to this crime than it seemed. “You and Sam live in the same household, correct?” Denny asked. “Yes.” Parker answered. “What was the last conversation you had with Spaghetti Sam?” “It was last night. We were arguing over what type of grain to eat, along with our other brother, Macaroni Mason.” Parker recalled angrily. All evidence seemed to point toward Spaghetti Sam, but there was one more clue that Detective Denny hadn’t touched on yet. The blindfold. Looking at the blindfold carefully, Detective Denny saw that it seemed to be an intricate weave of spaghetti. Again, more evidence in the case against Spaghetti Sam. It was time to do a more thorough investigation on the prime suspect. “Let us talk to Spaghetti Sam,” Denny said. “Can you give me his address?” “Gladly.” Pasta Parker said fervently. Denny drove them both to the given address, and soon, they were on his doorstep, Parker fumbling around his pocket for his housekeys. His hand emerged empty-handed. “It seems that Sam took my housekeys after tying me up.” Pasta Parker exclaimed sheepishly. So they knocked on the thick pasta door of the menacing house, and Spaghetti Sam greeted them at the door. “Oh, brother!” Spaghetti Sam exclaimed. “I had been looking all around for you! Where did you go these last few hours?” “You know where I was!” Pasta Parker yelled, pointing his finger accusatorily. “Don’t pretend, you tied me up to a fire hydrant, and blindfolded me! You even stole my house keys!” Detective Denny restrained Pasta Parker before he could do anything brash. “I think that we should have a civilized discussion before we start pointing any fingers.” Denny stated. “Let us go to the living room to talk.” This was a classic test that Denny used on many occasions before this, and by watching the suspect’s reaction, he had caught many guilty criminals this way. However, Spaghetti Sam seemed calm and somewhat indignant, as if the claims Pasta Parker made were ridiculous. Again, Detective Denny thought, Sam had a lot of experience with the law, and was definitely capable of keeping a poker face. But Spaghetti Sam had never been through a full on interrogation before. Sam guided them to their seats in the living room with the gracious nature of a good host. This would not be an easy interrogation. “Pasta Parker had made some claims about you.” Detective Denny started, trying to keep the conversation from heating up. “What were you doing this morning, when Parker was taking his morning jog.” “Why, I was having my morning coffee at the local Cappuccino store.” Spaghetti Sam said with an easy grace that made Parker snarl. “The store is 30 minutes away, and I had left at 7:30 in the morning, 15 minutes before my dear brother starts his morning jog. In fact, it is somewhat routine, as you know, Parker.” “Parker, what do you have to say?” Detective Denny asked.  “Well, come to think of it, that is true.” Parker said, “But his drive to the Cappuccino Coffeeshop closely follows my morning jogging route at some places, so he could have pulled over and ambushed me.” Detective Denny checked the weather report for that morning. It was indeed foggy, perfect weather for such an ambush. “Have you ever tied people up before, Sam?” Denny asked strategically. “Well… yes.” Sam admitted. “But those are past mistakes, and ones that I have been reprimanded for by our eldest brother, Macaroni Mason. He seems to find satisfaction in catching others doing crimes, and being all crime and justice about it. He is a police officer, after all.” Detective Denny was quick on the uptake. “But you have never been sent to jail before, or even incriminated, have you?” Sam’s quick response surprised him. “Of course I have! Macaroni Mason has sent me to jail many times!” “That is true…” Pasta Parker admitted. “You have disappeared for a few days at times, though Mason always said it was unexplained business trips.” Detective Denny frowned. This was a new twist. It seemed like they had a new suspect to deal with. But first, the evidence warranted more investigation. Spaghetti Sam had a solid alibi. The three of them drove to Denny’s lab once again, where he pulled out his finer instruments. “I think that this is the job for a magnifinding glass.”

Moonlight  Dazzaling In white,  In the middleof the night Just close your eyes, And feel the vibes In the moonlight  Shouting in the quite  It feels so tight  When there is noone by your side  It’s moonlight  Forcing to ride, when i dont wanna be high  Just let me fight  You’re shattering my life  It’s moonlight floating on the sky I’ll shine so bright  If, they’ll let me rise All the fear inside  I’ll let them slide It’s moonlight  I know I’m right, but You’ll make it hide Maybe, one night I’ll be in the moonlight