After the wolves killed the sheep, then Damien, I fled the backcountry. Without cricket and tree frog song, the silence grew too deep. I packed light: food for a lifetime, clothes and boots, and all the guns. One photo of my love, sewn into the pocket over my heart. The audio of our poetry.
On the last night, I siphoned 30 gallons of ethanol to power the ATV, and sloshed the rest around the perimeter of the house, the shed, the still. The timber flared with a loud wumph. The wolves gathered, mesmerized by the flames. Their low snarls trailed me as I drove from the forest, the evening star obscured by smoke.
It took three days to reach the City. From the top of the tower, I watched the horizon. The tinny pop of guns from the last of the resistance punctuated the low whine of advancing tanks. For some reason, these noises comforted me.
***
The cusp of a new year always brings out the dystopian in me. Inspired by the 52-250 Flash a Year Challenge Theme: Urban Convert.
Coming up next week: The Twelve Days of Books. Stay tuned. And stay warm! Peace, Linda
Posts
That was incredible. I love dystopian stories. You should have posted it at the 52/250 site too, so others would have seen it. Thanks for sharing. :)
ReplyDeletePowerful stuff Linda, you should do dystopian more often. I could hear that whoosh of the fire, feel the heat. So well done!
ReplyDeleteYour writing is always so beautiful, Linda, that I'm entranced from the first word. Another excellent bit of flash.
ReplyDeletecomfort comes from the strangest corners. cool take.
ReplyDeleteLinda, this was chilling! You created a world in so few words, as I've seen you do many times before. Vivid stuff.
ReplyDeleteJai
Food for a lifetime is light packing?
ReplyDeleteOtherwise, hey, sure! Damien's a rotten kid, hopefully those tanks are aiming against the Lake of Fire.
What a wonderful writer, I love the phrase 'tree frog song' among many other great lines. I really admire how you get the sense of atmosphere so quickly and make us care. Succint but effective descriptions too. We could take a masterclass from you. :-)
ReplyDeleteI loved this line:
ReplyDelete"I packed light: food for a lifetime, clothes and boots, and all the guns."
It encompasses so much-- "food for a lifetime" hints that she/he didn't expect life to last long, but "all the guns" says that she/he wasn't going down w/o a fight.
Really enjoyed this tale.
:0)
Slick stuff Linda.
ReplyDeleteHow do you manage to write such a 'deep' story in so few paragraphs????? *jealous*
ReplyDeleteExcellent story. The descriptions in this were fantastic.
ReplyDeleteThe Italian expression il bello abbozzo describes what you do: beautiful sketch. Incredible.
ReplyDeleteNice job. The descriptions were spot on. I especially enjoyed the tinny pop of guns punctuating the low whine of advancing tanks. Such poetry in that line.
ReplyDeleteDystopian indeed. Very vivid yet stark. Well done.
ReplyDelete~jon
short and powerful
ReplyDeleteRead mine?
http://magicnmiranda.blogspot.com/2010/12/waiting-one-night.html
This certainly has a dystophian whiff, not just in the ethanol. You've said so much in so little words - real talent. Looking fwd to next week.:)
ReplyDeleteA well-crafted glimpse at what could be a powerful story. Nicely done, Linda.
ReplyDeleteas ususal I heard the pops and felt the jaring ride, broken hearted all the way
ReplyDeleteI'm impressed. Please accept an award from me for having a very good blog. Please see my blog for details: http://darlassandcastles.blogspot.com/. I hope you have time to participate in the fun of promoting others. In the meantime, I'm happy to have found you on a random search through the blogosphere.
ReplyDeleteKiller piece, Linda...
ReplyDeleteA gripping sequence, delivered in bold strokes. Nice work.
ReplyDelete