"Birthing Orion"

Too fondly have I loved these stars; all these galaxies we once called ours. The relationship between the two goddesses is tempestuous at best. Seya is the embodiment of a galactic creation and Tia of cosmic destruction. They create and they destroy and then they do it all over again. Seya and Tia use their divine magic to make pulsars and nebula, to set planets spinning around stars and bind a galaxy together with a central black hole. But when one of Seya's favorite stars goes missing, she blames Tia. What was once a symbiotic cycle of life and death becomes a game of broken hearts and promises betrayed. These tensions and insecurities are explored in sonnets and villanelles; the arc of their love tracked in meter and verse. These poems touch on queer love, betrayal, trust, acceptance, and forgiveness cast against a backdrop of stardust and celestial detritus. A beautiful love story in verse.