The Bog
By Zac Dunn
Art by Bub Davis
Published Issue 142, October 2025
“The Bog” by Zac Dunn was inspired by the art piece “Hide and Seek” by Bub Davis.
The stench was eye-watering as they cast off into the chowder-thick fog. Hours of wandering and scavenging rubble had finally led them to the edge of an urban archipelago of junk and debris. The rotting wood of fallen trees made rowing out past the perimeter of the murky bog difficult.
“You boys will find nothing but trouble out there!” quipped Avis, the doting aunt who was charged with them. “Just last week two boys who set out scavenging were found all mangled! Like some wretched beast took bites and spit them out! Promise me you won’t try to wander out past the edge of the bog looking for scrap ever again!”
Broken pieces of the amusement park looked down on them as they passed through the long empty flooded parking lots. Street lamps that once cast shadows now bore long mossy beards that swung in the wind. The creaking of rusted metal groaned as they paddled slowly so as not to catch a snag of algae that split in the wake of the bow before closing again obscuring the path back.
As the water became murkier they could feel a low rumble. Like a mighty aqualung chugging below the liquid’s surface. It was unnerving and made them both pause. Surely they would find something worth this incursion into such dubious conditions. The boat began to knock as though something was beating it nervously.
“I don’t think we came this way before, maybe we should turn back— ” the younger brother exclaimed as rain drops became buckets that fell from the sky. “We can hide under the old bridge up ahead and see if this storm breaks soon,” the big brother calmly replied. They slowly made their way under the section that was still standing. The rain pounded down for what felt like an eternity.
Once the storm passed they made their way back toward the mossy embrace of the bog’s entrance. A dense fog rolled in making navigation very difficult. Before they knew it their path was obscured by more fresh broken metal and wood as they paddled into the maze of gnarled wreckage.
Slowly they could feel the deep thudding upon the boat again. It grew louder now causing the skiff to pulse and shake, and casting out a sense of dread. A strange, low hissing sound suddenly caught their attention. Two large eyes and a foul, stinking mouth gazed back at them four hull lengths away. It was something huge but seemed curious and annoyed by the look of its gaze and slowing breaths.
A certain metallic sheen covered its body like fish scales in the sun. Its mouth drew in huge gulps of murky water, sifting whatever life and sustenance it could find. Teeth like tusks jutted out, looking as though they had been decaying in the mud for months. A horrid smelled began to waft back with each deep pull of the filthy water.
Both boys blinked and watched as the creature slowly blinked back before sinking out of sight. The thumping on the boat resumed and they desperately rowed back until a clearing in the wreckage allowed them to proceed away from the sunken junk, back toward the quiet embrace of the bog.
Zac Dunn is a psycho-social mechanic, father, musician and dreamer. Check out his music and follow him on X | Instagram | Tumblr.
Ian “Bub” Davis is a self-taught, multi-disciplinary traditional artist based in Seattle. His work blends surrealism with social commentary, often investigating complex themes such as identity, class and dystopian realities. While Bub explores various artistic mediums, he most frequently works with charcoal and graphite on paper, crafting detailed, emotionally charged compositions that highlight both technical skill and conceptual depth. See more of his work on his site and on Instagram.
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