Latest Stories
Most recently published stories on Vocal.
“After Witnessing 40 Wars, Why Did 2025 Feel Like the Most Troubling Year Yet?”
For someone who has witnessed four decades of global conflict—wars in the Middle East, civil unrest in Africa, political revolutions in Europe, and prolonged military engagements in Asia—fear is not unfamiliar. History has been turbulent, and the world has endured devastating moments, from the Cold War era to modern terrorism. Yet, for many seasoned observers, 2025 felt uniquely unsettling. The question arises: why did this year, despite not hosting a single world war, feel more disturbing than the previous forty conflicts combined?
By Irshad Abbasi 24 days ago in History
The Last Ottoman Sultan Who Carried a Pistol in His Pocket
Fear, Exile, and the Fall of an Empire: The Final Days of Mehmed VI --- The fall of the Ottoman Empire marked the end of one of history’s most powerful and enduring dynasties. For more than six centuries, the House of Osman ruled vast territories stretching across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Yet, in its final chapter, the empire’s last ruler lived not in splendor, but in fear. Mehmed VI, the final Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, was a man surrounded by uncertainty, political chaos, and real threats to his life. According to accounts from the turbulent years following World War I, he carried a pistol in his pocket, fearing assassination at any moment.
By Irshad Abbasi 24 days ago in History
John Lennon And Blackpool: A Life Threaded Through A Seaside Town
John Lennon’s connection to Blackpool begins long before the Beatles, long before the cameras and the roar of theatre crowds. It starts in the small, bright details of childhood holidays, in the smell of sea air and the glow of variety‑show stages, and it runs forward into one of the most painful scenes of his early life. Yet the story does not stop there. Blackpool also stands quietly at the origin of his first great love, his first wife, and the mother of his first child. The town becomes a kind of hidden axis in his life: a place of early joy, a site of rupture, a stage of triumph, and the birthplace of the woman who would share his formative years of fame.
By Julie O'Hara - Author, Poet and Spiritual Warrior24 days ago in History
China Urges Immediate Ceasefire After US, Israel Strike Iran. AI-Generated.
The Middle East has once again found itself on the edge of a widening war. Following coordinated military strikes by the United States and Israel on Iranian targets, global powers are scrambling to respond. Among the loudest voices calling for restraint is China, which has urged an immediate ceasefire and emphasized the need to respect Iran’s sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity.
By Sajida Sikandar24 days ago in The Swamp
Nothing in Stock
The automatic doors sighed open like they were tired of pretending. A burst of refrigerated air hit my face—cold enough to promise milk, to swear on the gospel of dairy—but the first thing I saw was a tower of cartons labeled WHOLE, stacked in perfect family rows, each one feather-light. A woman in a beige coat lifted one, gave it a little shake, and smiled.
By Flower InBloom24 days ago in Fiction
