Shadow Into Light
Shadow Into Light
She sat on a boulder in the middle of a field of brightly colored blossoms, the gentle wind brushing through their petals in a wandering pattern. She smiled and watched creatures big and small scuttle past her on their way to their own adventure. The sun splintered down through the trees at her back, causing the morning dew on the grass to glisten like the jewels in a dragon’s horde.
Just as quickly as the moment arrived, however, it was gone. As if it were a dream, the flowers began to erode from the base of the girl’s stone outward in a tide of pollution. The girl noticed this and began to rise steadily from her perch. Smoothing out her tunic and casting her sheet of hair from her shoulders, she turned to greet her new visitor.
He loomed menacingly a mere meter away, watching. Waiting. Shadows billowed out from beneath his hood, searching for any life in the earth to snuff out. The girl checked the timepiece she had tucked in one of the folds of her traveling cape, and eyed the figure expectantly.
Neither said a word for an uncomfortable and unknown length of time, until the figure finally shattered the silence. As his voice rumbled through the corpses of flowers, several blue blossoms crept up from the earth.
“You’re alone again, girl. I see that not much has changed in the way of friends since we last spoke. You’re still the sad, lonely lass I met four years ago-”
“Far as you know.”
The figure faltered. “Er, pardon?”
“Far as you know I don’t have friends. You only know as much of me as I let you learn. So as far as you know, I’ve got no one.”
She checks her timepiece again, sighing gently. With about as much grace as a drunken penguin, she resumes her lounging on the mass of stone.
The silence continues its hypnotic hymn. As the silence continues and the figure finds its voice again, a small river of yellow daisies finds purchase in the soil.
The figure reaches into his many pockets and brandishes a stack of pictures and memories. “There will come a time when everyone will forget you ever existed. Everything you do in this life will all be for naught, child. You mean nothing to the world-”
Again he was cut off by the girl who, without as much as a glance his way, had snatched the pictures from his grasp. “By that point I will have lived my life. I will have finished my life’s work, made all the friends I needed to and loved all those I wanted to love. I will most certainly die, but I shall never do so alone. Family isn’t just blood, it is the love people have for you and you for them.”
As the woman spoke, dozens of ruby red roses bled from the darkened clay. By this point, the sun began peeking out from the curtain of clouds the figure had brought with him, once again pouring light and warmth into the earth. The figure grew restless, shifting from one waning shadow to another. Determined to win, he spat out one last thorny phrase.
“There will always be someone better than you. Nothing you can do will change that, so you should give up now!”
At this an explosion of green grass burst from the earth, finally shattering the darkness. The figure hissed as the exposure to light began to burn away at his skin. The girl finally turned to him and stared.
“Aye, but those people will always be my inspiration to better myself.” She sighed. “Honestly, you need to get a new hobby. Creeping into people’s lives and being a general nuisance to society will only get you so far in life.”
The figure let out one final deafening screech, to which the girls only reply was, “Yeah yeah, we know, you’re a great big scary shadow man. Now go annoy someone else.” and the man disappeared with one final remark. “I will be back, girl. I will destroy you.”
The girl laughed heartily. “At least I can count on your consistency, shadow.”
Just as quickly as the moment arrived, however, it was gone. As if it were a dream, the flowers began to erode from the base of the girl’s stone outward in a tide of pollution. The girl noticed this and began to rise steadily from her perch. Smoothing out her tunic and casting her sheet of hair from her shoulders, she turned to greet her new visitor.
He loomed menacingly a mere meter away, watching. Waiting. Shadows billowed out from beneath his hood, searching for any life in the earth to snuff out. The girl checked the timepiece she had tucked in one of the folds of her traveling cape, and eyed the figure expectantly.
Neither said a word for an uncomfortable and unknown length of time, until the figure finally shattered the silence. As his voice rumbled through the corpses of flowers, several blue blossoms crept up from the earth.
“You’re alone again, girl. I see that not much has changed in the way of friends since we last spoke. You’re still the sad, lonely lass I met four years ago-”
“Far as you know.”
The figure faltered. “Er, pardon?”
“Far as you know I don’t have friends. You only know as much of me as I let you learn. So as far as you know, I’ve got no one.”
She checks her timepiece again, sighing gently. With about as much grace as a drunken penguin, she resumes her lounging on the mass of stone.
The silence continues its hypnotic hymn. As the silence continues and the figure finds its voice again, a small river of yellow daisies finds purchase in the soil.
The figure reaches into his many pockets and brandishes a stack of pictures and memories. “There will come a time when everyone will forget you ever existed. Everything you do in this life will all be for naught, child. You mean nothing to the world-”
Again he was cut off by the girl who, without as much as a glance his way, had snatched the pictures from his grasp. “By that point I will have lived my life. I will have finished my life’s work, made all the friends I needed to and loved all those I wanted to love. I will most certainly die, but I shall never do so alone. Family isn’t just blood, it is the love people have for you and you for them.”
As the woman spoke, dozens of ruby red roses bled from the darkened clay. By this point, the sun began peeking out from the curtain of clouds the figure had brought with him, once again pouring light and warmth into the earth. The figure grew restless, shifting from one waning shadow to another. Determined to win, he spat out one last thorny phrase.
“There will always be someone better than you. Nothing you can do will change that, so you should give up now!”
At this an explosion of green grass burst from the earth, finally shattering the darkness. The figure hissed as the exposure to light began to burn away at his skin. The girl finally turned to him and stared.
“Aye, but those people will always be my inspiration to better myself.” She sighed. “Honestly, you need to get a new hobby. Creeping into people’s lives and being a general nuisance to society will only get you so far in life.”
The figure let out one final deafening screech, to which the girls only reply was, “Yeah yeah, we know, you’re a great big scary shadow man. Now go annoy someone else.” and the man disappeared with one final remark. “I will be back, girl. I will destroy you.”
The girl laughed heartily. “At least I can count on your consistency, shadow.”