C Langford
((sick sense creature))
six refrains musical lace lac-
ily hunted seen draped upon
its breast pimpled extruded pouted sweat-
ily dissected fought wounds scored
snaked failing knife trailing
down scars ribs grooved
made keratin hooves stoned flutes
bludgeoned mace sound carved
into the quietest niche
***
niche needs pure fat fed milk-bred
sample dna scrolled slippage
brick cobblestone cinnamon slow
logo plastic lining a summary
scaled to liposuction a key sailed
past obstruction a sauce generated
fiction kinaesthetic truths in a closed
sick sense skin surfaced
lodged in street stones
stressed by shaved slightly off
***
slightly off pushed a thought through
energetic reelection bad suggestion
sick doves drowned time’s tail
soap foam and sordid stained
breath can’t touch its wound who
slapped itself who slides who
cries lick aural elide strain
down the side warm dream
coiled amber brown candle
burns under the soup slow
grows a seedling cervix conduit
canal t’wards the last light lit
before the shoal of cryptids
warmed up drawn up swam from
scum from foam from rogue
grime girl-girl boy-girl goat
bird born egg first thrown
contoured sculpted strung-out
hooked on bad breath halitosis
tails wings teeth cups foul
gums periodontal pockets
shaven plucked thicken thighs
under corkscrew clumps follicle
coils coils, the coils on creature’s
hocks fetlocks funnel shutter
shock, but it has senses,
senses, senses fail shock
––––
((sour stone breach))
six stones leaking sour smell
she found them wedged between
her gums the smell secret sauce secret
force forcefully found she found the
source toxic grey pulsing
sound roots ripped removed
at birth her hooves sharp
her mouth rotting fruit soup
simmered something changed
***
change needs rage rage feeds
sleepily vaguely suddenly wakefully
very wakefully enraged engorged
on sorrow sucking stones stuck
stuck between her bones bones
bones baroque banal generational
slip serration soothes unsaid
insults ingrown salted stone
shaved bone satellite thrown
from orbit by violent thrusts
***
thrusts pushed sort of dreamt who
found folded deflated baited denied
by authorities the authorities shuffled
papers pushed needles in gums
macerated wet skin damaged
dry air compromised barrier
degraded virally intoxicated
smell anger suck stones
placed in a soft pink grid
girded held absorbed engulfed
by bad breath bad breath bad
rot grows good if she lets it
spread the curse word love
the curse heard down where private
forests deep dark knots and grids
rope pulls something out
something born birthed
screaming smelling foul soupy
seeded in her mouth between
lips teeth gums stones tiny
foul stones periodontal pockets
torn plucked tweezed folds
of skin corkscrew clumps coiled
around pebbles, pebbles rage
sorrow pus infection dream
shock, but she has bad breath,
bad breath, stones dream shock
––––
(satyr bougainvillea)
baby baby wild mouse baby
lashes stones stacked pony
pony princess medley winding
rope untwithering towards
twinned switchback twittering
flapping tweezing knicker ‘tween
cheeks plasma o’ earthly din above
sparkled soapy cloud e nonsensical
youthful sepsis stone grey urine
throttle e slither terror slitter flutter
fry hag’s slip stye story read in seventh
grade overrun interior focus adidas
adidas stream ‘n dream no becometh
who is knowing being becoming cliffs
hang below sky sea rises under conditioning
undone cursed search freedom flight or
hidden church folded inside organs
calling to be washed clean green vodka
sunset weaving wet spiced untapestried
keep contagion containment growing
taming pruning brooding turning ankles
up at noses powdered under suns considered
time spent well oiled knees twisted hips tightly
wound standing under shaded soul beats would
be a loon’s errand they who peel irises or thin lids
feeling one for those folks who hunger which is
excitement of the stomach or the heavens knowing
aura no halo hovers unlike undiscovered only cared
for love
––––
C Langford is an artist who works with writing, performance and games. They live in Berlin, Germany and are a part of an experimental video game collective called Fantasia Malware.