A LEGION OF LECANOMANCERS

A LEGION OF LECANOMANCERS, by Devan Barlow

 

 

There is no bottom to this river

only floating shreds of fabric

garments of lecanomancers

before us

warped with age

with prophetical witnessing

 

From the realm’s corners

and crevices we came

each dragging our distinctive

dust

worries

baggage

 

At this river rumored

to hold answers

we share

histories

horrors

heartbreaks

 

Prepare to dip

beneath swift currents

centuries of lore

threaten to carry us

away in the arms

of a goddess

 

who strikes faster

than mosquitos stings

Foam and froth

threaten books of

prophecy we hope

will guide us yet

 

even un-drenched

their passages

confuse

contradict

confound

We empathize

 

embolden

while seeking signs from

sharp-scaled fish

assess the angles

jumped by glistening frogs

ponder if any creature

 

is ever truly

mer-mantic

When dusk delivers

new insects but

a paucity of insights

we dry off

 

still lacking answers

nevertheless

consoled by

the closeness

of others

who understand

 

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Devan Barlow is the author of the Curses & Curtains series of fairy tales-meet-musicals fantasy novels, as well as two collections of retellings. Her short fiction and poetry have appeared in various anthologies and magazine, and she was a 2025 Hugo Finalist for Poetry. She reads voraciously, and can often be found hanging out with her dog, drinking tea, and thinking about sea monsters