On Greece’s zenith

Resided beautiful goddesses and mighty gods

Living their lavish lives, fighting the monsters

While protecting the people from famines and floods

But when the Romans went up and so did the Persians

The Greek gods started to perish one by one

And by the time the New Testament came

Their reign was entirely gone

Save one

Eros lived, he somehow strived

For the reasons to fight in war from time to time alter

And the standards of beauty evolved

A human’s love is love and will hopefully remain forever

Eros thought it was all good, the world was in balance

But world wars came and so did Hitler

White men had to have everything

Somehow, history painted one disaster after another

Although bad things have happened before

And mankind has suffered but lived through and through

Somehow in the recent years, disasters piled up

More and more are happening, worse and worse too

By the time different sorts of love started appearing

Eros thought he would start to revive

But these sorts of love started being oppressed

He started to die

People stopped believing

In the goodness of others

Eros thought he could save them, tell them of love

But it was too late and he perished just like his father

He found himself on a field of azure

That’s all that was there

Save for a contract on the ground

And a pen to sign it if he dares

“Continue giving happiness and love to souls,”

The contract had clearly stated

“I’ll give you a store and some capital

All you have to do is promise no one leaves devastated.

You will give the people what they ask for

And you will live in fulfillment

But you can never step outside your emporium

Leaving your business will mean punishment.”

Eros looked around the bare field of blue

And signed the paper after much thought

Who wants to live alone

And have his existence for naught?

In a jiffy, he received a new name

Also a store and a new reason to live

He’s now Augustus Bishop with love and happiness

Which to perished souls he will clearly give

He thought love would flourish once more

Fill the people the happiness they need

In his new budding enterprise

He would give what their tiny hearts heed

His first customer came

A little girl in a pink dress

She didn’t talk much

But was clearly in distress

She asked for silence

But Eros couldn’t give her that

All he found in stock

Was a little bit of solitude in a bottle, way at the back

The little girl vanished in front of him

And he thought his job was done

Until someone came knocking at the door

A man who seemed so frantic, his sanity seemed gone

“Are you the proprietor?” he asked.

“Yes,” replied Eros, a bit startled by the questioning.

“Have you seen a little girl? One by the name of Schizein?

She was supposed to come in a while ago and I can’t have her missing!”

“Why? What’s with the girl? I just sold her solitude

To stop the voices in her head,” Eros said in his defense.

“What!? She was supposed to enter Heaven and then the voices will stop

Who told her to go to you and have fun in your little shop?”

“She was a tense little lady and I read in her mind

She was supposed to go to this other place

That sells knickknacks just like mine

Only that place was closed so she headed here as if in a chase.”

“She can’t head back to Earth!

She’ll be living on borrowed time!” said the man.

Soon enough we’ll run out of time to give her

And Heaven will be damned!”

Eros was confused

The man was frustrated

The peddler knew nothing

Of what the man had just stated

“Who are you anyway?” asked Eros.

“I am Saint Peter, I was supposed to meet Schizein.

If you see her, take her to Heaven’s gate

But now, I will just go out again.”

The businessman nodded

And the saint left, leaving Eros alone

His fault has just dawned on him

The thought of ruining Paradise chilled him to the bone

He knew he needed to help

So he stepped out the door

But just as he was about to

The floor swallowed him whole

The baby blue door disappeared from his sight

Down, down he went and flopped on a quagmire

He stood up quite fast after seeing a creature

Perched on a rock surrounded by fire

Satan’s three heads looked down upon him

“You idiot. You think I’d let you get away?” said the center head.

“Who are you?” Bishop asked. “Why am I here?”

He said as he stood up from the murky mossy bed.

“I am the one who gave you the store.

You really thought I’d let you give love back?

I just used you to get me in Schiezen’s head.”

Eros looked around, save for the fire, it was all pitch black.

“Wait, you’re the God of the Underworld?” asked Eros.

“No!” thundered all the heads.

“All your gods crumbled to dust years ago. You should have to.

But for some reason I don’t have any power to kill you.”

“Then get me out of here!” shouted Eros, his face burning up.

“I need to get back to the world and give them the love.

Humans might not know it but they need it to survive.

I don’t care if I die but love must be kept alive.”

And with that he vanished into thin air

Satan thought he crumbled, like his forefathers turned to dust

He let out a laugh that could be heard through the nine circles

And Eros found himself back up on Earth’s crust

He was rendered powerless

But thankfully still in one piece

With him back on Earth, will love be able to flourish again?

Or will it continue to cease?

For more on this series read:

The Curiosity Shop of Miss Adelaide Bell

(http://upismc.blogspot.com/2018/08/literary-curiosity-shop-of-miss.html)

Miss Adelaide Bell and the Nine Circles of Hell

(https://upismc.blogspot.com/2018/09/literary-miss-adelaide-bell-and-nine.html)

The Ethereal Emporium of Mister Augustus Bishop

(https://upismc.blogspot.com/2018/09/literary-submission-ethereal-emporium.html)

“I’m sorry, my father.”

Terra's vast, wide blue skies,

The unending heights we all recognize.

Long has man desired to soar these heights,

Wishing that from the sky he’d see the sights.

Limited by biology,

Man looked to technology.

He tried and failed, at first,

But failure only increased his thirst.

Man eventually had success,

Balloons carried him above the trees,

Jets allowed him to fly from place to place,

He even now looks to conquer the vastness of space.

However, if man took to the skies for curiosity,

Why did man use his jets to rain fire on fellow man with such ferocity?

Why did man use his supremacy of the skies to subjugate other nations?

Man's peaceful creations twisted and used for vile applications

Time to take flight.

It feels so right!

Nothing in sight.

Just my instinctive might.

Oh, what a day!

To feel the sun's ray.

Atop the hills, I lay.

With so many to say.

Flowers near in a clump.

Berries I eat are plump.

My energy is now pumped.

Now... time to jump!

But wait...

Here above I stand.

There below is land.

Courage please be in my hand

For I am about to run…

Towards the sky’s far strand.

Whoosh...

And now I fall,

like a tiny little spall,

from a cliff standing tall.

Uttering, no squall.

With no regrets at all!

But, soon as I fell.

All was not well.

For I didn't foretell.

My ever-nearing farewell.

Uh oh...

My end was now close.

I felt the wind’s strong blows.

To think I could dose,

My end with grandiose.

Oh no...

My eyes are closed shut.

Ha!… Aren't I in a rut

What a sad plot.

To my life’s short cut.

Then…

I suddenly stopped.

I felt the wind no more.

'Cause I stopped right before,

I hit the ground floor.

And death, I've outscored!

As I looked around,

I saw myself, floating above ground

Time's hands, not turning 'round.

This feeling – dumbfound,

that I had magic abound?

I tried to move freely

In the space’s air so breezy.

And tried to satisfy my curiosity.

From my floating state of actuality.

Then... it hit me.

A bird right at my head.

“Ouch,” I said.

After, of course, it bled.

Darn, this bird is such an airhead.

After which the bird flew away.

Along the blue coral bay,

As if it were astray.

Wait?!?

Did the bird have something to say?

As my gears kept turning.

With my mind, thinking.

I couldn't help realizing.

Did the bird mean, “flying”?

So I tried moving.

Arms and legs constantly flapping.

Like the bird, who was soaring.

Into the sky never-ending.

I slowly rose higher and higher.

Into the sky which I admire.

And louder came the sound of the angelic choir.

Accompanied by the trumpet, drum, and lyre.

Wow!

Everything felt surreal.

With the cloud's whisp so genteel.

Being pulled up by a reel

Near the sun's strong feel.

At last, here I was...

But suddenly

I woke up.

And entered my eyes, the gleam.

What? T'was all just a dream.

So real it seemed.

I was sad yet I still smiled.

For I was still beguiled.

By the fact, all was not real.

However still,

I had the courage to jump.

And afterwards like the bird...

I got to fly.