VOLUME 2020 ISSUE SPRING

Runes: Revived
Druid Hills High School
Art and Literary Magazine


Original Art by Amelia Osborne

2
 Runes: Revived


Dear Readers, Art Lovers, Writing Fans, and Creativity Enthusiasts:

Welcome back to the Druid Hills High School Art and Literary
Magazine! The last issue of Runes was released several years ago.
We’re excited to bring back this Druid Hills tradition, acting as a
creative outlet for students. It allows anyone to express themselves
and share their ideas, even without having art and literature
classes. Submissions are always open, and don’t feel afraid to
submit!

The Runes: Revived Editorial Board

Editor-in-Chief: Sophie Shepherd
Associate Editor of Design: Katherine Rosinski
Associate Editor of Book Reviews: Charlotte Walker
Associate Editor of Short Stories: Isabelle Fishbein
Associate Editor of Entertainment Reviews: Dylan Plemper
Associate Editor of Poetry and Tech Woman: Ava Hampton
Associate Editor of Poetry: Katherine Marshall
Associate Editor of Poetry: Brigitte Flannery
Associate Editor of Poetry: Shanil Issani
Associate Editor of Design: Amelia Osborne
Associate Editor: Muhammad Sosseh

Table of Contents
Original Poetry 5

Short Stories 18

Book & Entertainment Reviews 20

Original Art Throughout

Cover Original Art: Clarity by Karina Singh 3

Original
 Art: Blue Babe by Karina Singh

4

Midnight Hour
by Muhammad Sosseh
Over the graves he walked
For he had never learned
To fear the creatures of the night
Eyes watched from the shadows
Ears listened to his heartbeat
Ba - dump
Ba - dump
As he walked in his innocence
Never realizing his fatal mistake
The mist started to thicken
The moon got shrouded in darkness
Until all light was hidden
He started to hear noises in the dark
“Who’s there!” he yelled
As he lost his way
The fear started to form in his chest
He started to run panickedly to get out
But there seemed no escape to his
nightmare
Until to his excitement
He saw a figure wrapped in a shroud
He ran toward her
Yelling in his hope
He reached her
But she kept on walking forward
He grabbed her shoulder to turn her around
And what he saw made him wet his pants
Her face was rotting, death had not met her
well
Her skin was flaking away, as one would
have sunburned skin flake away
Except it came off in clumps
Her eyes were bulbous and hung bloated

from their sockets
Her teeth laid upon her thick grotesque
tongue
“It’s been so long since we’ve laid eyes on a
man” she blubbered in a thick gravelly voice
And out of the shadows two more of her
brethrens appeared
Each of them unique in a deformed sort of
way
“Oh what mortal is foolish enough to walk
upon our graves” muttered the one to the
left
“He must suffer for his deeds” whispered
the one to the right
“Yes he shall have to pay the sacrifice”
the one in the center said trembling in
excitement
“The sacrifice of his life!” all three of them
yelled
They rushed at him
To devour his soul
His youth
His humanity
And when they were were
All that was left
Was a bag of bones
That rattled in the wind
That layed there grimly
As a reminder
To anyone foolish enough
To walk without fear
During the midnight
5
 Vincent’s Starry Night
by Anonymous

The trees parted for

the man. Silent he stared
down, his dirty feet, crusty
limb-lashed blood caked. Looked
up, the darkness swirled,
lights danced.
He turned and saw a
steeple miles tall, with
floors and stages, windows
of light, a solid wall
of unbroken night, the
top receded out of
sight. What lies above
my eyes, he thought, amid
the clouds, and winds, and
stars, is there a point above
my trees, no one sees but
some believe, so he grabbed at
the first crevice, his foot groped
and hand reached out, up and up,
above the roofs where families
laughed, above the hills where
children rolled, above he watched
without a smile, he still pressed
met emptiness, legs pawing
for a hold, fingers tight
around a brick, the night
flew quick before his sight,
swirled fast in turmoil
and sick he grasped and caught a sill.
At last, he saw the
top, he scrambled on as
nothing called him back, but
he felt calm and the night fell
still, the psalm grew quiet as he
neared the top, he saw nothing but a
rounded
hill. He gasped atop the sky
high tower, with no steeple, no
cross, no point; at that moment
he knew, something to which the singers
had no clue, Vincent seized as the
night circled above his shining eyes.
And then he flew.

on, above denial. A window

lit his face with yellow, red, warmth,
a choir rejoiced,
the man looked on, through
the window, apart the song,
his feet clambered on, then

6
The Starry Night by
Vincent van Gogh
 

What color are my thoughts?

by Anonymous

I have a question.
What color are our thoughts?
Has it come to mind?
The question has been asked but we can never find
The answer that is or the reason to ask.
Are your thoughts purple or are they blue?
Green are the thoughts of a happy man.
Black is for brooding and thoughts of batman.
Red is for love or for blood or for hate.
Purple’s for memories of an awesome first date.
Blue is for sadness or sometimes just rain.
Yellow’s for fear or maybe some pain.
White is for purity boingity borange.
This part, I was dreading. What does rhyme with orange?
No matter what weird color you think,
Be it dull gray or beautiful pink,
This message stands for everyone here.
So calm down, make haste, o please lend an ear.
When you think of colors, in day or at night,
Be it dark thoughts or be them of light,
The colors of life are all truly clear.
Just stand, look around on what’s already here.
Sometimes it is hard or seems really weird,
Cause it’s true, the world is not to be feared.
Go outside, have fun, have fun in the sun.
Because this life that we have is our only one.
Some people think that life is a game.
In reality, it’s all quite the same.
Look what we have great fam and dumb friends.
Life’s an adventure with almost no end.

7
 The Butterfly
by Ava Hampton

You have the likes of a ruby fairy

Wings of deepest red, brightest elegance
Flutter near my face, so light and airy
You flit from here to there with arrogance
The flowers blessed with your graceful
presence
So lucky would I be to have petals
That you could land on me in this pleasance
And in my hair you would rest and settle
Beau papillon, bella farfalla
Beautiful butterfly of this garden
Mis sueños son de tus lindas alas
Your beauty worth all that I can bargain
You appear like that of a vision
Your perfect wings, vibrant shade of crimson.

8
Original Art by Amelia Osborne 

Dragonfly Girl
by Katherine Rosinski
I am a dragonfly girl
Pestering
Yet beautiful
An insect to remember
But my beauty is inside me.
So - I’m reminded-
Dragonflies
Are merely
A type
of
Bug. 9
 Against the World
by Hannah Jones
Closed.
Events long ago disturb the now.
Talking to cats he didn’t know how.
All alone, him against the world.
Closed.
A mother who left without a trace,
And a father he couldn’t look in the face.
All alone, him against the world.
Open.
A friendly face to help lead him through,
And a stone from long ago.
The two of them, against the world.
Open.
A friendly face to help lead him through,
And a woman, who died long ago.
The two of them, against the world.
Closed.
A bridge and a library,
A start and an end.
Two stories seeming to blend.
Original
Art by
Amelia
Osborne
Prfctwrld
by Cy Herdee
What is a perfect world, is it here now?
No. Here now is merely an illusion
An illusion trying to withhold life
A perfect world would not be here, Or
there.
It would simply be being and pure. No.
A perfect world would in fact be this one.
For life is pure, life can be beautiful
And it is. Music, art, dancing, singing
Are all part of the human condition
The human condition that we ourselves
Us as humans, us as human thrive in
Negativity can knock on your door
But it is your choice, your choice to
answer
But if you do, hate fear and doubt will
come
If you don’t. You might have a perfect
world.
 Searching 
Ethics by Anna Verlander
by Muhammad Sosseh
Ethics is dead, killed by the internet. I escaped for a new life
There are so many risk a click away. Then I found,
Three small dots can have you in a cold I’m searching to finish my old one,
sweat. Is it her?
A screenshot can ruin a regular day. I should not leave,
For I would be more lost than my goal,
The disconnect we feel in our actions Though, there is this gap,
Can leave someone else’s life in bedlum. That I must close.
Unintended negative reactions. The path is hard to follow,
Because our words are tainted with venom. It’s like trying to keep up with life,
Try as hard as you want, but
This easy access, leaves us with addicts You never know where the next turn will take
It leaves us with victims and criminals you.
And if we do not get this quickly fixed I know i’m not bright,
Then we will start to be more cynical Yet my dreams are as good as any,
The life that I’ve been looking for,
If we don’t fix this tremendous conflict Is not far ahead.
A disconnected world is what we picked. And in the end you’ll find
Most things,
go back to where they started,
Downfall Whether they want to or not.
by Anonymous
Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!
The fall of our lord has finally come
Which drizzled blood upon the Capitol Statement
Domestic fury and fierce civil strife has died by Katherine Rosinski
Liberty, freedom, and enfranchisement
I do not wish
Ambition’s debt is paid
To be
Shaking the bloody fingers of thy foes Sexist, racist,
However, our hearts see you not Judgmental
Alas, the fall of Caesar Or rude.
A fountain with several spouts of pure blood But we are not perfect
Ran through chaotic street And the world is flat.
If only hath one begged him to stay home
All conquests, glories, triumphs, spoils
Shrunk so low
As fire drives out fire
The fall of our lord hath finally come
11
Original Art: The Other Side by karina singh

Male Privilege
by Sophie Shepherd
People say it’s a tricky time When she’s at a bar,
To be a boy in America. A drink held in her hand,
With false accusations She must always be watching.
Flying left and right,
A boy must watch his back. A girl has to worry about having fun,
about risking vulnerability.
But a girl must watch her back too. A girl is always taught to watch her back,
When she’s walking home, Watch her back for the boys.
A key clenched in her fist,
She must be ready to defend herself.

12
 

The Flowers Have Invaded

by Anonymous
My garden has always been green,
Even with the reaching skeletal hand of winter;
An oasis of life untouched by weeds,
And the flowers are forbidden.

They are forbidden to touch or feel

By anyone except my white, slender hand,
And there is no controlling them;
They have been here since the garden of Eden.

If you try to squash them,

Crumple their fine, soft petals into powder,
Or even pick one to press in a book,
They will bring you down into earth with them.

And when your skin is eaten by maggots,

Your bones wither away into minerals,
They will feed on you and pop up once again
Like a weed that has been plucked repeatedly.

They are slowly creeping to the house,

Covering the walls and chandeliers in thorns,
And hang down like streamers purposely put there
As if I’m hosting a great gala for the roses.

How innocent they look:

The lily dressed in white like a bride,
The marigold that blankets the floor peacefully,
The chrysanthemum slowly crawling up my leg.

They are trying to suffocate me,

To squeeze the life out and feed on my corpse,
But to their ignorance, I’m the one keeping them alive;
I’m their forgotten, rotting salvation.

I nurse them and water them,

Encourage them to kill me;
They are nothing without me,
So perhaps it’s better if I die.

Perhaps it’s better if this evil is evaporated,

And the seeds buried in some rotten earth,
And at my funeral when my roots have been cut,
For the love of god don’t send me flowers.

13
 Blossoming
by Nick Akins

All the trees were enriched with color

Pink,white and red enlightened the scene
And the lone apple tree holding its own
The squirrels scamper wild
The whistle of the birds signal there curiosity
The ivy inches its way up the quaint house
The young boy heaves the ball across the dewy grass
The screams and cries of the brothers classic battles for the ball
The father stands and watches giving tips when he can
The mother sits idly by under the shade of the old dogwood tree
As the oppressive georgia heat transitions to the chill of the starry night
The exhausted kids finally retire to their rooms despite the begging for 30
minutes more
As the wind caresses and the critters frolic in the endless boughs of pink
and white.

Original Art by Amelia Osborne

 Disaster at the ATM
by Sophie Shepherd
Original Art: T-Rex by Shannon Gomez
I did not know
That would be my last day.
I went to the ATM
Simply to pay.

But as I took out my card,

I turned with a fright.
There were people behind me,
Stepping out of the night.

They had clubs and knives

And fists and teeth too.
So they hit me and bit me.
There was nothing I could do.

They left me right there,

Shivering in the cold,
All to take those
Well-earned sheets of gold.

A passerby found me
And called nine-one-one,
But the docs couldn’t save me.
The thieves had won.

One week later,

My funeral took place.
And I watched from the front
As tears rolled down my mom’s face.

I was put in the Earth,

sent to my final doom.
And now I can hear
A Name only Spoken in Whispers
As crowds march over my tomb. by Kairo Jolly
The crow calls my name.
His voice is clear, and it rings loud
Amongst these trees,
And towers of books,
The crow sings my name.

The man speaks my name.

His voice is gentle, like calm waters I’ve never felt before.
He transcends bodies and minds,
The winds of forest greens echos his voice,
As he murmurs my name.

The artist states my name.

His hands are hardened with years of clay and marble.
There’s poison on his tongue,
And venom in his voice,
When he curses my name.
 I sit, I Write
by Katherine Rosinski

I sit, I write
This

Hunched over
Pencil in hand

Scribbling thoughts
That come to mind

To soothe
My drumming heart.

Original A rt: B runi by

S hannon G omez

My One True Love

by Anonymous
Teenagers love to go out
And hang with their friends
Every Friday night and
Into the weekend.
They like to talk and chat
And gossip and scream.
But me, I don’t like that.
I have a different dream.
I want to return home
Every Friday night,
Then lay in my bed
And turn off the light.
I’ll pull out my screen,
press Youtube TV,
And watch all the shows
I miss during the week.
I know this sounds gloomy.
Believe me, I do,
But binging TV
Is my one love that’s true.

Baseball
by Nick Akins
Baseball, the wonderful sport of
baseball
America’s pastime to many
A sport for gentlemen and those
worthy
The crimson seams, and the dirty
white leather
The swing of the carved ebony wood
The crack of the bat leaves the
stander bys in awe
The ball skids in the dewy grass
The boy scampers around first
And on to second he goes
Wasting no time he rounds third
He throws himself into home
The dirt inflames the scene
The viewers hold their tongue in
apprehension
Safe is the call
The whoops and hollers of the
joyous crowd can be heard for miles
Even the idle town knows who the
victor is
Baseball, the wonderful sport of
baseball.

Oh The Muppets
by Will Goldsmith
Oh Kermit, Kermit, why are you gone?
Your show of Muppets will forever be with me.
I wish that I knew why they stopped airing you
I guess people just didn’t like
Good taste in comedy
Like you always provided
Miss Piggy, Miss Piggy, why did you leave?
Your fashion sense is always amazing.
Swedish Chef, Swedish Chef, what happened to you?
I’ve always just wanted a taste of your stew.
Oh Gonzo, Gonzo, why don’t you fly high?
You were at your best, banging out of a cannon.
Fozzie Bear, Fozzie Bear, please come make us laugh!
Please come make us laugh,
Please come make us laugh.
Oh Kermit, Kermit, why are you gone?
There were never too many songs about rainbows.
Morning
by Katherine Rosinski
I wake up, I eat
A muffin
Simple?
No! There is
Joy
Lurking around
The corner
Waiting
To spring up.
17
 Photos by Shanil Issani W h at h a p p e n e d i n t h e
was bring a full military contingent to check it out.
It was always easy to patch up, but then they had
to wait for centuries, sometimes longer before they
could keep planning the attack. His people were
getting restless! They needed the extra space that
Above offered.
He thought back over the last time that a
checkpoint had been breached, wondering if
maybe they needed to enhance the security at
the stations even more than they already had. But
maybe that wouldn’t work either! In fact, that could
just end up being a complete waste of time and
resources. After all, the last time there had been
inside help, so maybe what he really needed to
do was work on his own people, for that is what
they were, each one his descendant. He should

G
be able to convince his own people that he was
trustworthy, and that he only wanted the best for
eorge Frederick Cavendish was them. He knew that he could do it. He knew that
sitting in his office. In his own mind, it was he would have to do it. The only question was, how
a rather nondescript office. However, if would he do it? He hoped that he could just start a
one of us were to look at it, we might see simple campaign of some sort to bring them back
it otherwise. The walls of the office were to him. Sadly, though, he feared that he would
oddly textured, as though they had been have to use the tactic he hated most: imposing his
molded by bare hands. The desk behind power. Over the years, he had been forced to do it
which he sat looked more like a stump than plenty of times, each time a painful reminder that
a desk, not two feet from the ground. The any people will rebel from the power over them,
floor was earthen, and the rug which sat on even if that power truly does know what’s best. He
it looked to be made of the skin of hundreds would do it. He knew he would have to. But first, he
of toads. would try to convince them peacefully.
Georgie (he hated the name, yet everyone His thoughts were interrupted as a knock sounded
called him by it), the “Bighead” of Below, at the door
had a very important topic on his mind.
His military general had just delivered a “Enter,” responded Cavendish, his aged voice
message to him, telling him that there had somewhat muffled by the long beard that had
been a security breach at one of the access become his trademark since taking office. He
points to the Above lands. How he hated set down the crossword puzzle that he had been
the Above lands! It seemed to him that working on.
every time he took his eye off of an access Despite its old, withered appearance, the door
point for two centuries, some nosy, naive, opened soundlessly. A man stepped in, his knees
unwitting lesser human from the Above shaking. Though the president was not all that
lands found one of these checkpoints and intimidating physically, the aura that he gave off
decided that what they really needed to do could be felt just being near him.
18
P re s i d e nt ’s O ff i c e

by Will Goldsmith
“Y-your honor,” the man managed to get out. strong leader for his military, and no matter
“President Cavendish,” Freddie corrected him. Even how charismatic Jones might be, even the
young folk like himself -- probably under a quarter charmed people knew that he was by no
millennium old -- still thought of the Bighead as the means an amazing military leader.
monarch he once was. And of course there was also the fact that,
“S-sorry, President.” with Surly dead, the forces had panicked
and let the attackers go! He couldn’t blame
“Did General Surly send you?” The General also them for it, without a good leader, but for
hated his name, but could not help it. Now that his mind to quiet, and to think about the
everyone knew him as General Y. U. Surly, there good of the people as a whole, he needed
was no going back. Even a name change (a to release some anger.
common occurrence as the people down Below
sought new identities in their artificially elongated He looked up at the man standing in front of
lives) wouldn’t help. People did and always would him.
know him as Surly, creator of Surly Inc., the largest “Would you like a cup of tea for your way
military supplier in the world. When he sold his out?” he asked.
company and joined the Forces, the force that he
would command would always be called Surly Inc. “Yessir,” was the excited reply.
“General Surly didn’t,” was the reply. “I do not A minute later, the young officer held a cup
report to him anymore. I report to General Jones.” of tea in his hand, poured from the pot the
he handed the President an envelope. “He asked president always kept on hand for times
me to give this to you. General Jones’ scouts up top like this, though he never drank it himself.
intercepted it.” The unlucky officer took a sip and dropped
dead.
“You mean Lieutenant General,” Cavendish said as
he slit the envelope open. Lieutenant General Jones President Cavendish returned to his
was an eager young man (only a thousand years crossword puzzle.
old!) who had risen through the ranks quickly,
earning the support of many of the young men who
served under him.
“General Jones,” said the young officer insistently.
“General Surly was found dead on the station after
a raid by an unknown entity from above. General
Jones took his place.”
If Cavendish had been slightly annoyed with how
stuck up the boy had seemed when he walked in,
now he was furious. Surly had been the best officer
ever to work under him! Jones could win the will of
the people, but the will of the people was worthless
if one could not win battles. His whole strategy
he had just begun to think up would be ruined if
he did not have Surly there, the only mind he had
ever met close to equal to his own. He needed a
19
 The Enneagram: Who Are You Anyway?
Book Review by Katherine Marshall
In his book, The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery, Ian Morgan
Cron describes the enneagram as an “ancient personality typing system that helps
people understand who they are and what makes them tick.” When I was first introduced
to the enneagram personality test this summer, I thought it was like some kind of fun
Buzzfeed quiz. Instead, my results displayed an uncomfortable amount of my tendencies
and characteristics. After answering about thirty questions, I was assigned a number
based on how my answers corresponded with the enneagram’s nine different personality
types. After examining my results and doing a considerable amount of self-assessment
and research about the different types, I’ve concluded that I am pure two, but what
does this all even mean? Let me explain with a little anecdote from my life. Earlier this
week, I was supposed to plug in my little brother’s Chromebook so that it could charge
overnight. I completely forgot, and in the morning, I was greeted with his inquiry of how
his computer could only be 50% charged if I had plugged it in. I felt stupid for forgetting to
do something so minuscule, and I offered to let him take my computer to school instead
because I wouldn’t be using mine that day. When he declined my offer, I got surprisingly
aggressive, saying something like “Why won’t you just let me help you?! It’s really not
that hard!” At that moment, my first thought was “wow, my enneagram could not be more
accurate.” Under stress, enneagram twos (like myself) adopt negative qualities of an 8,
getting aggressive and vengeful of past wrongs. The enneagram is not meant to dictate
how you act or think, but instead, it helps you to identify certain patterns in your actions
and why those patterns exist. Below, I’ve included a short description of each personality
from the enneagram institute as well as the link to the test. I’d recommend taking the test
and then using the descriptions to decide if you agree with your results. The enneagram
just gets more complex. There are abundant resources about how the numbers interact,
their wings (each number has two other numbers of which they can adopt certain
characteristics), and how they act under stress versus when they feel secure. I challenge
you to discover your type, and let your enneagram journey commence!

Tests:
https://enneagramtest.net/
https://www.truity.com/test/enneagram-personality-test

20
 

The Reformer: The Rational, Idealistic Type: Principled, Purposeful, Self-Controlled, and
Perfectionistic
The Helper: The Caring, Interpersonal Type: Demonstrative, Generous, People-Pleasing,
and Possessive
The Achiever: The Success-Oriented, Pragmatic Type: Adaptive, Excelling, Driven, and
Image-Conscious
The Individualist: The Sensitive, Withdrawn Type: Expressive, Dramatic, Self-Absorbed,
and Temperamental
The Investigator: The Intense, Cerebral Type: Perceptive, Innovative, Secretive, and
Isolated
The Loyalist: The Committed, Security-Oriented Type: Engaging, Responsible, Anxious,
and Suspicious
The Enthusiast: The Busy, Fun-Loving Type: Spontaneous, Versatile, Distractible, and
Scattered
The Challenger: The Powerful, Dominating Type: Self-Confident, Decisive, Willful, and
Confrontational
The Peacemaker: The Easygoing, Self-Effacing Type: Receptive, Reassuring, Agreeable,
and Complacent

21
 The Politician:
You’ll Love It Even If You Hate Politics
TV Review by Sophie Shepherd
The setting was a church retreat in the
Georgia mountains, where we were
supposed to be engaging in enlightening
conversations with our peers. I usually
enjoyed doing that each year when the
annual high school retreat would roll
around once again. However, this time
was different. You see, on the bus ride
up to the mountains, I’d started watching
a new show that had popped up on My
Netflix Recommended
list a couple hours prior,
called The Politician. To
put it simply, my watch
had turned into more of a
hardcore binge.
Instead of joining
everyone in the common
room , I found myself
drawn to my bunk, where
I could continue my time
with the captivating show.
The show has a stellar
cast, including Gwyneth
Paltrow, Ben Platt, Zoey
Deutsch, Lucy Boynton,
Laura Dreyfus, and many
more. Ben Platt and Laura Dreyfuss had
both starred in the Emmy-winning musical
Dear Evan Hansen, and some of their
musical skills are featured in the Politician.
Particularly, Ben Platt sings four songs in
the show (one of which is his own), and-
-if nothing else--these compositions are
enough of a reason to watch it.
Ben Platt plays Payton Hobart, one of the
sons of an extremely wealthy family living
in Santa Barbara, California. His dream ever
since he was a boy was to become President
of the United States and, therefore, Payton
does everything in his power to provide
himself with the perfect path in order to
reach this goal. This includes going to
Harvard (and more specifically, getting
in without a payout from his father) and
becoming the student body president of
his elite private school--Saint Sebastian
High School. Payton and his team of
savvy political advisors
use ingenious strategies
fit for a real political
campaign to make sure
he achieves this position.
This includes appointing
cancer patient Infinity
Jackson as Payton’s vice
president in order to win
the sympathy vote at Saint
Sebastian. Throughout
the campaign, Payton and
his team undergo many
dramatic obstacles--
including Infinity not
actually having cancer--
and have to create many
cunning (and insanely
entertaining) plans to overcome them.
This dramatic comedy is . . . well . . .
comedically dramatic throughout each of
its eight Netflix episodes, and I can say
with full certainty that the Politician will
grasp your full attention for every minute
of them. Having said that, it may not be
the best idea to start the show right before
finals, for your test scores would fall almost
as hard as I fell for this show.
 
SEE:
A Show Where You Truly Know More of What’s Going on than
the Characters Do
TV Review by Sophie Shepherd

Since Game of Thrones ended, I’ve been searching for a new drama to satiate my desire
for beautifully-choreographed fights, intense music, and dramatic glances. I didn’t think
I was ever going to find one to fit all of these requirements, but with Apple TV+’s new
original series SEE, I think I finally have. This show, starring Jason Momoa (also known as
Aquaman), is set in a world where the population has almost been completely wiped out,
and those who remain have lost their sense of sight. This is part of what makes the show
so incredible: the audience can see everything that the characters can’t. It’s dramatic
irony at its finest! When Jason Momoa stalks towards some other (soon-to-be-dead)
person with a large weapon, the audience knows exactly what’s happening, but neither
of the characters do. It makes the suspense so much greater.

Because of this loss of sight, the human race has had to find alternative ways to
communicate, fight, travel, hunt, and survive, and the other four senses have been
heightened tremendously to compensate. For example, some can even hear when others
are lying. The ability to see has faded to a mere legend and is regarded by many as a
curse, as the work of witches. When a set of twins is born with the sense of sight, an
entire military force is sent out with the task of killing them. Luckily for the twins, skilled
fighter Baba Voss (Jason Momoa) is on their side and willing to battle anyone to protect
his children.

To be clear, watching Jason Momoa fight is reason enough to watch the show. If there’s
one part he’s excellent at playing, it’s the massive, muscular man who can not only beat
anyone in a brawl, but do so with
extreme grace, with almost dance-
like movements Just look at the parts
Momoa has played: Aquaman in
Aquaman, Declan Harp in Frontier,
Joe Braven in Braven, Khal Drogo in
Game of Thrones, and many other
similar roles. As Baba Voss, Momoa’s
qualities are only enhanced by his
blindness and his urge to protect his
children, who he perceives to be the
future of the human race. Like Baba
Voss, you will also be witnessing
history, as SEE is the future of dramatic
television.

23
 Ranting Reviews!
Book review by Shelby Hughes

Ever since I saw the ad for the lit magazine, I knew I wanted to be a
part of it. Reading and writing have always been a passion of mine, so
I thought to join.

e
Now this is my first review. I’ve been reading all this time, but it’s

Al
mostly been continuations of books. I wanted to start fresh without
spoiling the previous books. Fair warning there will be spoilers for this

r
particular book, because it would be no fun without them.
t!

le
My first book under review will be Princess and the Fangirl by Ashley
Aler

oi
Poston. I read her previous book, Geekerella, in Junior year and liked
it. It gave insight into the lives of actors and the impact of fandom

Sp
culture with a classic Cinderella storyline. In this retelling, it takes the
story of the Prince and the Pauper with a fandom spin.
ler

The main characters are Jessica Stone, the famous Indie actress from
the first book who hates Starfield. Starfield could be compared to Star
Trek and Star Wars as major Sci-fi media with huge fanbases. And
Imogen Lovelace, a fan of Starfield, trying desperately to make an
Sp oi

impact. Important side characters are Ethan, Jessica’s best friend and
assistant, and Harper, Imogen’s internet friend.
Sadly, it has been a while since I picked up this book because I read it

Sp
over Thanksgiving break, but I remember the major moments. Overall
it was a good book and I recommend picking it up for anyone in need

oi
of a fairytale retelling or if you want a book about the lives of fans/

l
actors. I will say ahead of time that it is an LGBTQ book, so if anyone
is against that, do not pick it up. But if you don’t mind and want a
book of representation, POCs, race against the clock stakes, dealing
with self-worth, and fandom immersion: this book is for you.
The book starts off at ExcelsiCon, the annual Starfield convention,
with a frustrated Jessica Stone. She hates the convention, the fans
and Starfield. When she goes to the restroom to cool off, she is
misplaced with Imogen for a panel. Once the two girls switch back,
Jessica makes Imogen promise never to be her again and they go to
live their separate lives. But when the script for the next Starflame
movie gets leaked on the internet, Jessica decides she needs Imogen’s
help in finding the culprit. And the only way to do that is by switching
lives for the duration of the con.
r A
At the beginning of the book, I did not like Jessica. At all. She hated
Starflame and its fans without fully knowing the story behind it. But Sp oile
by the end, she grew on me. Character Development!! I related to
Imogen the most though. A girl struggling to find a purpose, who she
is, and what she wants to become in the future. She tries so hard
to get out of her younger brother’s shadow and be seen. Her only
relief is the fandom she grew up with and I found that personal on
another level. In this book, both characters see both sides of the same
fandom; realizing it’s not all good or not all bad.
The relationships between the main characters felt slow even
Sp o
though it was only four days. Ethan and Imogen couldn’t stand each
other in the beginning, but in the end, found a way back to each other iler
A
rt!
 p o i l e r A l e rt!
S
and expressed their true feelings. Jessica and Harper’s romance a
beautiful story. In Geekerella, there was a little nod to Jessica not
being straight, but in this it is fully explored. She states that she is
“straight-passing” and has had a relationship with another girl before,
t!

but it ended in heartbreak. Watching her learn the positive side of

er

the Starflame fandom while developing feelings for Harper was a

wonderful and refreshing sight.
The take away from this book would be don’t immediately hate
something before you even fully understand it, not everything is how
the media portrays it, and that some of the best stories are the ones
we need to see, that show flaw and triumph. rather than the ones that
win awards.
Sp
In conclusion, I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend oil
it to anyone in need of a quick pick me up, even if they are not into
fandom culture. From resent research, there will be another book set er
in this world with a Beauty and the Beast retelling. Stay tuned for that. Al
e
le
r
Al
er
t!

!
rt
le

Alert!
rA
le
oi
Sp

Ale
rt!
Original Digital Art by Anonymous
 

Special thanks to the contributors to the

Spring 2020 issue of Runes : Revived :

Nick Akins
Will Goldsmith
Shannon Gomez
Kairo Jolly
Hannah Jones
Cy Herdee
Ava Hampton
Shelby Hughes
Shanil Issani
Katherine Marshall
Amelia Osborne
Katherine Rosinski
Sophie Shepherd
Karina Singh
Muhammad Sosseh
Anna Verlander
And several anonymous contributors

27
 s:
ne ed
Ru iv
v
Re