Darkness No Longer
By Ken Chandler
Copyright © 2010
I could hear that the figure was very close. I turned, groping in the darkness to find a wall, a couch, anything that might tell me where in the room I was. Thump. A heavy footfall connected with wooden floorboards just behind me, then another. Nearer. My heart hammered in my chest. A bead of sweat stung my eye. I blinked hard. I reached out into the darkness. Thump. Thump. Thump. The smell of damp and foul rotting things assailed my senses. It was so close. Reaching for me.
The scream in my head jarred me awake. I was wet. My bed was soaked. The smell of damp and rotten things lingered all around me. I lay there for a long moment thinking. I heard the caw of a crow in the distance, and felt water lapping at my cheek. I realized I was dying, and this swamp was my bed. A luminous hand reached down and took mine, and I was in darkness no longer.
3 comments:
That's a little dark for you isn't it? I kinda like it.
dying in the swamp? i'm trying to figure out what the scenario is in the 2nd paragraph. but one gets the impression the ending is satisfactory for the character.
did you write this when you were sick? it sounds almost like it was written in a delirium
Thanks Eric, you sicko. : )
Beth, yeah, I was sick when I wrote it, or recovering... something like that. Not sure what I was thinking, but I vaguely remember thinking it was a young person who was a victim of a crime. Ick! The only thing I really like about this short story is the ending-- I love the idea that we are not without hope. Even in our bleakest moments we know who's watching over us, and who will take us into His embrace when we die.
Yes, it's a dark piece, but I hope it redeems itself at the end.
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