Free LONTAR issue #1 by Jason Erik Lundberg (editor) Page A

beside our fallen bodies
    and helped those failing slowly reach their end
    inside this torrid Theatre of the Dead.
    Swimming the richer river of our blood,
    we achieved apotheosis upon this earth
    and left with pride and moral elevation.

    10. Epilogue

    My lineage has passed, yet we live on
    upon the bedrock outcropping of the lookout  
    of Pelangi Mountain. We've been in stasis  
    since we spurned our bodies. Now, tourists come  
    to point out my pink fortress, once a palace,
    the cairn of rocks inside the bamboo grove.
    Though old art we tweak the light and stroke
    each face with the breeze. We marshal gulls
    as deer mince on the beach below the cliff
    where the Guardian snarls upright, still fierce and strong
    from dawn to dusk. Yes, we've ascended
    to a higher role, managing Nature's
    primal playhouse from our plane. While guides
    retell my tale, we ripen pineapples
    on shirts, alight the yellow butterflies
    from ladies' frocks, (if they would choose to see.)
    Some are moved. Most have no art now,
    or sense of history, yet salutation
    is still our way today: we are old souls
    who bore it all and did not choose to run.
    Yes, we have joined our awful Guardian.
    Our home is tranquil, green—a double Heaven.
    History binds me to this higher haunt
    built upon a dragon's back of bones.
    A suicided king can never leave, yet
    Pelangi Peak stands tall and still means rainbow .
    Sometimes, in the droplets on hibiscus
    or mountain bells, you catch a glimpse of us.
    Our presence breathes in pine and rock and moss.
    We scrape inside the wind along the cliff,
    we grow like nutmegs on the tree of life.
    In the kitchen, grate our grams of sweetness,
    blend pleasure in the finest gourmet dish.
    Sprinkle grace with daintiness and enjoy  
    the middle brown that mixes in with all.

The Immortal Pharmacist
    Ang Si Min

    Ang Si Min (Singapore) is easily identifiable as the tall one, sometimes mistaken to be male. Dabbles in linguistics, history, physics and archaeology. Terribly geeky, and frequently distracted by the conversations in her head. Dreams of traveling in a blue box. Amateur writer, long-time cross-stitcher. Intently learning human social interactions, though maybe not quite there yet.

    For H—who heard my first Rabbit-on-the-Moon story

    The rabbit on the moon toils —
    pounding pestle against mortar
    grinding herbs and mixing medicine —
    eye drops for Er Lang Shen,
    anti-flea shampoo for Sun Wu Kong,
    heat stroke lotion for Houyi,
    burn salve for Yen Luo Wang,
    high blood pressure pills for the Eastern Sea Dragon King.
    The prescription does not end.
    Chang-e helps sometimes,
    gathering and processing herbs —
    lingzhi, luo han guo, danggui
    cinnamon, licorice, wolfberry,
    mahuang, dihuang, dahuang,
    ginseng, chrysanthemum, peony . . .
    Yü-tu turns all of them to
    pills, powders, potions.
    (Mostly) alone out there on the moon,
    Yü-tu wonders:
    Maybe, it's time for a holiday.
    Maybe, it's time to find a mate .  
    Yü-tu shakes his head.
    Such wishful thinking.
    But the thoughts do not go away.

    Notes (in order of appearance)
    Er Lang Shen —immortal, has a magical third eye on his forehead
    Sun Wu Kong —the legendary Monkey King
    Houyi —famous archer who shot down nine suns
    Yen Luo Wang —King of the Underworld
    Eastern Sea Dragon King —Dragon King of the Eastern Sea
    Chang-e —Houyi's wife who floated to the moon after an incident involving an immortality pill
    Yü-tu —means "Jade Rabbit" (the name of the rabbit on the moon)

Stainless Steel Nak
    Bryan Thao Worra

    An award-winning speculative poet, Bryan Thao Worra (Laos/USA) holds a Fellowship in Literature from the National Endowment for the Arts. A professional member of the Horror Writers Association and the Science Fiction Poetry Association, his work is taught internationally. He serves as the Creative Works Editor for the Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement. His books include On the Other Side of the Eye , BARROW , and