5.30.12 Shadow's Defeat

It starts as a whisper.  High above the horizon.

Light like a candle, small and harmless.  I like it.

Then it grows.  Reaching into crevices and corners.  Reaching across my forest.

Reaching into my soul.

Every defect, every self inflicted scar showed red and vivid before the light.

I pull away, tears burning my face.

                Leave me leave me leave me! Take your light away!!

It grows brighter.  Now I see for all my efforts, this is what I could not do.

It’s dangerous.  Terrifying.

It lights the world from ground to sky. And tears the scars from my soul.

5.29.12 Shadow's Victory

I hold my dreams up to the sky, begging the stars to take them.  To light the world again.

                Fill this blackness with my light!   Chase the shadows with my might!

But there’s no answer to my cry.  The stars have gone.  My darkness chased them away.

I believed the lie, I killed the song inside my heart for a place to hide my dirty soul.

My heart is broken, its blood has stained my chest.

I force my way through the dark. Blind.

I close my teary eyes.  Weep.

I try to remember. Can’t

Was there ever any light?

5.28.12 Shadow's Beginning

There’s a shadow reaching to the sky.  Dark and grey and undefined, cast by nothing.  It’s conjured up by the blood of those hiding from the scream of their shame.

Up it rises.  To cover the sun.  Make day as dark as night.

Always night but no more stars.  Terror ruins every dream.  Chains like vines grow here.  This is the perfect place to hide a blackened soul.

                Pour your blood into the pot.  Make the shadow thicker.
                Give your soul its gloomy shelter.

I cower in darkness, hands bleeding.

Tied to the ground, weeping.

Where is my promised rest?

Fire (for 5.20.12 and 5.21.12)

I am roughly forced into a kneeling position. The sickening smell of a burnt field wafts up to me as my knees hit the ground.

“This boy killed the Shadow!” I hear a roar of anguished anger from what must be a legion of warriors. When the yelling dies down the first voice speaks again.

“Now he must pay for the life he has taken.” cries of agreement echo from the crowd. “You are here to witness his death.” I feel something it my head, then drip down my face.

He spat on me!

The crowd erupts into loud cheers.

“Remove the blindfold, and look me in the face!” I challenge.

In reply, something heavy and damp is draped over me.

“He thought destroying the Shadow would end the attack, but he was wrong! The attack will end only when the entire world is conquered, and pays tribute to us.”

The crow roars again.

“So now he will burn with his country!”

I hear the faint crackle of fire.

The cloak grows warm…then hot.

“Be warned, you Legions!” I yell. “The world will fight back. This is only the beginning of a rebellion. We will not be ruled by tyrants!”

Fate (for 5.18.12)

I crouch with my hands tied behind me. The ropes dig into my wrists, causing them to bleed. The warriors of the Shadow sit around the rekindled fire.

“What do we do with the boy?” one growls.

“Kill ‘im!” they shout.

“How?” says the first.

“Burn ‘im alive! Cut off ‘is head! Stab ‘im, just like ‘e stabbed the Shadow!”

These and many other gruesome ideas of how to kill me roar from the crowd.

One of the warriors looks over at me, and harshly hushes the others.

My fate is set. The manner of my death remains a mystery.

Death (for 5.17.12)

He stares up at me from his chair. His snake-like eyes looked surprised. His face continually grows paler, making the handprint stand out.

I can hear the steady pound of feet as they run towards the tent.

I continue the song:

“One moment can define a man,

Or make a man its slave.”

They come closer. Then the footsteps stop. The tent flat is torn open, and three warriors step into the tent. One kneels down next to the Shadow, futilely trying to save him, but I know he is dead.

I begin to laugh uncontrollably. Am I going mad?

Confrontation (for 5.16.12)

I stare into his eyes, unmoving.

“Killing you might not stop the attack, but without you, your army has no leader”

The Shadow laughs.

“Look at you. You are nothing more than a boy clutching a stolen knife.” He rises from his chair, his voice rising with him. “Do you think a boy can kill me? Do you really think that you will get away with it?”

I can feel the camp stirring. I must do something. And fast.

I begin to sing:

“One knife can slay a tyrant

One dead can mark the brave…”

Then I throw my knife.

In person (for 5.15.12)

I pull back the tent flap and stare at the Shadow. He doesn’t turn, just continues drinking from his cup.

“I expected someone to come. Do you really think killing me would stop the attack? Nothing can stop it now. It has already started.” Then he turns.

I first notice the appalling red handprint, across his nose, eyes and forehead.

His face is hideous in an unexplainable way. He still looks like a man, not disfigured in any way, but at the same time, he looks strange, demon like.

His eyes are animal like.

His eyes belong to a snake.

The Shadow's Attack (for 5.11.12)

The village awoke, just after dawn, to see the hillside black with soldiers. The dark warriors came, like lightning, in a steady stream of fire and weapons. There was no escaping their attack. They pillaged, slew, and burned the entire village. By night fall, the village was reduced to glowing embers, not a child or woman remained. The army sat around a great red fire, eating the rewards of their attack. They laughed at how feeble the villager’s attempts to save themselves were.
And as they sat around that great red fire, the thumbprint burned deeper into their forehead.

Before the Fire (for 5.10.12)

He strides before his waiting army, dressed in black armor. His face is painted black and he has a handprint in blood on his face. The Shadow glares at his men. They fidget under his gaze. His shouts echoed over the valley.

“Why do you quake under the gaze of your leader? Cowards! You must fight as you have trained. If your comrade turns to run, you kill him. There is no fear. If your comrade falls, you slay the one who killed him. There is no grief. If anyone gets in your way, kill them. There is no mercy.”

The Shadow part 3 (for 5.9.12)

Those soldiers were trained like no other warriors in the world. They were taught to murder the innocent without a moment of hesitation. They devoted their beings to the Shadow and furthering the cause of their leader. The only thing they lived for was the Shadow and they were willing to die for him. There was nothing that would give any of those warriors greater pleasure than to cut their one-time king, into bits for their new ruler. One dreadful day, the Shadow deemed his army ready for the attack.

The thumbprint of blood stained each of their foreheads forever.

The Shadow part 2 (for 5.8.12)

Slowly, over years and years, the Shadow created an army. Some say he had the most powerful army in the world… but you could also argue that he had the only army in the world. The king’s army had slowly gotten smaller and weaker, because many of his men deserted to prove the tales they heard of the Shadow’s powerful army. The Shadow promised those soldiers great riches, power and glory if they would only help him conquer the entire world. He marked his soldiers with a black smear across their face and his thumbprint in blood on their forehead.

The Shadow (for 5.7.12)

The Shadow was a man, an important man. But that was a very long time ago. Before he, or it, realized how powerful it could be...

He was adviser to the king and wealthy. Perhaps it owning a large, stone castle that created his eagerness for power and control, or perhaps he was always power hungry. No one knew what ignited his uncontrolled jealousy of the king, but it didn’t go unnoticed.

Fearful for his throne and life, the king banished his adviser and once trusted friend. Livid and brooding, the Shadow lived in the woods and slowly gained strength...

Alone (for 5.6.12)

The sky above swirls angrily. The air is heavy with the smell of smoke and the road is deserted. The song pounds through my mind. The song all grew up hearing, singing and enjoying now haunts me as I walk. I travel by night, alone. The Shadow has attacked many villages. How many remain? My heart sinks when I see a red glow spring up on the horizon.

Up ahead another village is burning. Up ahead The Shadow is killing and pillaging. Up ahead… I cast a tentative glance to the road behind me.

But there is no one there.

Chasing the Shadow (for 5.3.12)

It feels as if there are eyes watching. It feels like they are peering up from the charred fields by the road. Their footsteps echo on the hard-packed dirt; the footsteps of an army long since departed. The fire raged through the field, burning the village’s one means of payment. Of this village, not one had lived.

Far in the distance a red light glows. In the distance another village is burning. In the distance They are rejoicing with a feast. Another village has fallen. How many more are left? How many more must die?

Am I all that’s left?

the little, black copycat {5.4.12}

The childs face is aglow, her feet running as fast as they can, her footsteps blending with those running with her. her blonde hair is the color of sweet, golden hay, and when she smiles, i realize her two front are missing. all of a sudden, she stops, her smile disappearing from her face.
one boy notices, “TRACYY!! Whatsa matter?”
She points to the ground by her feet.
“He’s following me!!”
All of the children look at their feet, suddenly aware that they have people following them too.
One little girl speaks up, waving to the dark object that imitates her movements. "You wanna be friends?"
I do believe shadows make lovely acquaintances.

Behind the Shadow (for 5.2.12)

They came and went like lightning, leaving a shadow of destruction behind. They came with waves of fire and weapons, burning, pillaging, slaying. Now the walls of once majestic buildings are crumbled; and only the skeletons of the huts remain. Crows feast on the bodies strewn around the dark remains of the village.

A red light burns on the mountain. On that mountain they are rejoicing. On that mountain they are celebrating another village vanquished. On that mountain they feast. Their sickening joy fills my bones with rage, and turns my blood to fire and I realize…

I’m all that’s left.