Day 92 Ruminating And Writing

Barn

He was glad to see the barn in the distance. The rain was coming down hard with a drizzle that soaked him through. He groaned and pushed onward over the moor. It had been a bloody morning. It still would continue to be one. One girl in his village had gone missing. He had been tracking the prints from her house to the moor until the rain caught him. With bad luck, he would be burning hot tomorrow from fever. Even a badge couldn’t shield him from the forces of nature.

The barn was full of hay. He took off his overcoat and hung it on the beam. He lay on the dry hay and took his boots off. It was still a few clicks away from the nearest house. The secluded barn was just a temporary location. He would have to wait for the rain to stop here, or wait until he was dry enough. He closed his eyes for a second and woke up to his snoring.

A dark figure was bending over him. The creature tilted its head, sniffing the air around him. It didn’t seem fazed by the fact that he had woken up. It was like he wasn’t a threat. The creature was huge. Bigger than Leery, who was as big as an ox. It had sharp claws and bat-like ears. The creature had huge red eyes that shone in the dark barn, hungry and curious.

He got the feeling that it had eaten a while ago, and it didn’t need to attack him. Not if he didn’t make any sudden movements. He got the sense that this was the thing that had taken Laura from her upstairs bedroom.

He slowly moved his hand down to his gun holster to snap the lock open.

The creature still swayed over him, transfixed by every move he made. He wished it didn’t suddenly change its mind that he was a threat or a good prey. He took the gun out. The creature still hovered over him, unalarmed.

He slowly lifted the gun between them. He dropped it as the creature let out a high-pitched scream that seemed to pin him against the hay. Then it leaped at him and bit into his neck. He tried to push it away from him, but the creature was unnaturally strong. His arm became heavier with every struggle he made, and soon he stopped fighting altogether. He felt his consciousness slip away like he was falling asleep.

Next, he woke up, and he was still in the barn, and the creature wasn’t there. He sighed. It had been just a bad dream. He got up, drew his boots on, and fetched his dried jacket. When he turned around, he saw the bloody mess around where he had lain. He reached for his gun, but let go as the metal on it burned his skin. He tried to take hold of it again, but he hissed from the burn. The hiss made his jaws ache, and something needle sharp pushed out where his teeth had been.

City

No time today.

The Ghost Path

Oh, I wanted to write this one, but I ran too long with the barn prompt, and I have to leave to work soon.

The Prompts are from the book A Year of Creative Writing Prompts.

My wrist is feeling a lot better. It doesn’t hurt so much to write. It’s getting better. I’m so happy. The compound effect of writing, climbing, doing yoga, and my other exercises puts so much strain on my wrist that now I have to be more mindful of it. It was scary not to be able to write as much and as freely as I wanted.

Thank you for reading! I wish you a day full of wonders and adventures ❤