Night Tale

I walk into the dark room.
As I cross the floor a chill runs through me.
There is a coldness to the air.
I stop at the window.
My hand stops for a moment as it touches the soft silk of the black curtain.
Slowly I draw the curtain back.
Everything is quiet and still.
Nothing to see except the soft glow of the moon casting shadows on the lawn and across the empty street.
I turn from the window and walk to my chair.
I slowly sit down on the green velvet chair.
As I stare out of the window I listen to the sound of silence that is surrounding me.
The orange glow of the moon is cast about me as though threatening to consume me at a moment's notice.
I close my eyes.
I feel the night begin to creep into my body.
I listen more closely now.
I do not want to miss a single word the silence has to offer.
Slowly I surrender, allowing the night to consume me.
Every fiber of my being is on full alert as the night touches my very core.
Suddenly I smell a change in the air.
It is a musky, earthy smell.
I keep my eyes closed and continue to sit very still.
The scent becomes stronger.
Suddenly I feel a hand on my shoulder.
That is odd, for I am alone in the house.
The hand lingers on my shoulder.
I continue to keep still.
Slowly the hand touches my face.
A warmth runs through my entire being.
I want to open my eyes and speak, but I do not dare.
For if I do, I may break this moment and it will be lost forever, never to return.
The hand slowly pulls away.
Silently I beg for it to stay.
Suddenly there is a breeze that blows across the room.
I can feel its gentle fingers run through my long, black hair.
In the distance I can hear a dog bark.
The breeze fades away.
Slowly I open my eyes.
I walk over to the window.
I open the window and let the fresh air touch my face.
I look up at the sky.
The stars quietly are dancing, the moon is staring down at me.
I smile.
Quietly I say, "Yes, there is always an answer where there is faith."

Armageddon

The town clock struck twelve noon. You could hear the church bell in the distance. Suddenly there was a blinding flash of white hot light. The sky turned deep purple. The cold wind began to fiercely blow. Then suddenly darkness was all there was to be seen. Silence fell upon the earth. A bone chilling ominous feel swept the land and covered all that inhabited the land. Both man and beast, no one was hidden from its hideous grasp. People stood in awe. They just stared into unimaginable disbelief. Everyone, everything was caught unaware. Like silent statues everyone, everything stood in petrified fear for they did not know what was about to happen. The mighty tiger crouched low to the ground and waited in fearful anticipation to pounce ion the unseen foe that stood before it. The fierce wolf bowed down and laid its head upon the ground awaiting orders from an unseen master.

Suddenly there was a deafening clap of thunder. The darkness lifted. All returned to as it had been. People continued in amazement, trying to comprehend what had happened. All returned to normal. Time passed by as though nothing had happened.

Soon the church bell rang. It was three O'clock. There was a loud thunderous noise that threatened to deafen all whose ears it touched. The sun turned from bight yellow to orange to red. Scorching heat beat down upon everyone and everything that was upon the earth.

Suddenly the earth shook violently as darkness covered the sky. The earth continued to violently move, threatening to swallow all that was upon it. There was another deafening thunderous noise. The moon was bight white. A bone chilling cold radiated from it. Slowly it turned yellow, then orange, then blue, then purple, and finally red. As the moon turned blood red, fiery heat radiated from it. Its fiery fingers touched everyone and everything that was upon the earth, threatening to singe all that was in its path.

The tiger slowly rose. It was quickly lifted toward the sky as if a hand had reached down and picked the creature up. The wolf stood still watching as fear made its entire being tremble at the awesome sight.

People stood in shocked amazement. They wanted to run. They wanted to scream. All they could do was stand still in silent paralyzed fear. Suddenly the moon was gone and total darkness was upon the earth. All was silent. A church bell rang four times. There was a blinding flash of light. The sun reappeared. All returned to as it had been. People continued to try to push the horrid scene from their mind. Many came to the conclusion it was only their imagination. No one dared to speak of it.

Life continued as it always had. Man and beast forgot the horrifying ordeal. For three days every man and every beast lived their normal lives.

On the fourth day the sun was shinning. The day was warm. Every being was going on with its life. The town clock struck two O'clock in the afternoon. Darkness fell upon the earth. A chill crept over all the land. All was silent as every living creature waited in terrified anticipation. None could imagine what was about to come to pass.

The tiger laid motionless under the willow tress. The wolf bowed down and laid its head upon the ground. Everything stared into the darkness hoping to find an answer as to what was happening. There was no answer to be found. Only darkness and deafening silence.

Suddenly there was a bright light in the sky. All eyes looked up to see the moon shining brightly. An ominous orange glow surrounded it. The wolf slowly raised its head. As the wolf sat there staring at the moon, drops of red blood began to fall upon its head. Every creature wanted to run and hide, but all that saw the sight were paralyzed. They had to remain and watch the hideous sight. As the wolf opened its mouth to howl purple blood ran out. The blood dripped dripped down the outside of the wolf's throat to fall upon the ground. A howl did not come. Only a thunderous deafening roar, the likes that never had been heard before. Suddenly there was a blinding flash of light. All was silent once again. In the spot where the wolf had sat there was only a pool of purple blood. There was no other sign that the wolf had ever been there.

On the other side of town all became dark. The moon appeared for a few minutes. It was a bright yellow color. After a few minutes passed, the moon slowly faded away. Once again all was in the grip of darkness. The lamb laid its head upon the leopard and closed its eyes.

All was still. Everything was held captive in the grip of silent darkness. A chill crept over the earth. Blue rain began to fall upon the earth. Slowly the rain turned purple. Then the rain turned black. As the black rain fell upon the earth the oceans turned to red blood. There was a sudden fierce gust of wind that swept over and upon the oceans. The oceans violently heaved spiting out all the creatures within. The moon reappeared. It was white hot. All the creatures fell into a deep sleep.

In the middle of the field stood a young woman. She was short and heavy. She had long black hair. She wore an orange and yellow gown made of fine silk. There was a bright flash of light. In the middle of the field now stood an old woman. She was tall and slender. She had blond hair. She wore a black and gold gown made of wool. The young woman slowly walked through the field. The air was cool. A gentle breeze blew. As her gown softly touched the sleeping creatures one by one they began to rise. They awoke to a lush green field. In the middle of the field was a babbling brook. The creatures ravenously began to eat. Their lean undernourished bodies quickly became fat and healthy.

There was deafening thunder and blinding lightning. The young woman had vanished. In her place was the old woman. As she quickly walked through the field the field became barren. Gone was the lush green grass. In its place was dry arid ground. The brook quickly became dry. The breeze stopped. The coolness faded and was replaced by a scorching heat. The creatures became parched. They searched for water. Their bodies began to overheat. The creatures could not handle the intense heat from the sun's rays. One by one they fell to the ground as their lives and souls were burned out of their beings.

The sun was very bright and very hot. All that could be seen was barren land. A wasteland of half eaten bones. There was no living creature to be found. It looked as though fire had swept over the earth and captured everything in its path. Suddenly the earth opened. It swallowed the bones. Slowly the earth closed over the bones.

The sun turned green. A bitter cold swept across the land. All was ominously silent. Suddenly there was a roar, like that of a lion. The sound came from the sky. The earth violently shook. The barren tree trunks tumbled to the ground. One by one, like match stick they fell. Suddenly the earth gave up its dead. Swarms of people and animals emerged from the ground. The people wore gray robes with red and purple stains on them. Their bodies were thin. Their bones could be seen through their skin. Soon the land looked like a sea of hideous beings. They were pale with hallow lifeless eyes. The people and animals wandered aimlessly about. They looked like hideous wind up toys going in circles with no special destination.

Suddenly the roar stopped. As silence filled the air the people and animals fell face first to the ground. The chill was replaced with a scorching heat. The bodies laid motionless upon the ground. When darkness fell upon the earth the moon and stars did not make an appearance. The earth was covered in total darkness.

The next morning the sun came out. It was bright red. The air was warm. There was a cool breeze. He entered the field. He walked slowly through the field. He touched the head of every being that laid upon the ground. The bodies slowly rose. Their eyes immediately looked upon him. He wore a snow white robe. His jet black hair was as shiny as silk. His emerald eyes radiantly sparkled. His smile was bright and warm like a ray of sun. Everyone who saw him fell down at his bare feet.

There was soft thunder and dim lightning. Drops of purple blood began to form on his white robe. Slowly the blood fell onto the heads of the people who wee bowed down at his feet. Suddenly his smile was gone. It was replaced with a hideous sneer. His emerald eyes turned to black stone. The people wanted to run, but were paralyzed. They were now caught in his evil grip. They were powerless to fight him. Th sun blazed. It relentlessly beat down upon the people. They wanted to scream out in agony, but their voices were gone. For the next five days he held them motionless in his evil grip. For five days they had to bow at his feet and look into his black eyes.

Suddenly the sun vanished. Although the sun had disappeared the searing heat remained. In the distance a wolf could be heard. Its hideous howl pierced the ears of the people. Still they could not move or speak. There was a blinding flash of light. When the light subsided the people were no longer there. In their place was a wolf sitting at his feet. He stood there with the same evil sneer and stone black eyes. The wolf opened its mouth to howl. Suddenly the earth opened up. As the wolf gave one last bone chilling howl the earth swallowed it. The earth reopened and out came a tiger. The tiger opened its mouth to roar. Instead there was no sound. It closed its mouth. Then once again the tiger opened its mouth. Still no sound came out. Instead an orange ooze seeped out. Everything became very still and quiet. Suddenly there was an ear splitting thunderous sound followed by a blinding flash of light. the sky turned deep green. The tiger fell to its knees. Suddenly the earth violently shook. The tiger was thrown up into the air and disappeared. Everything became deathly still. Darkness consumed the earth. Suddenly there was a red glow in the sky. Fire rained down upon the earth. What little was left upon the earth was totally destroyed. When the fire ceased, it was as if the earth never existed.

Exitence

War. Hate. Love. Indifference. No, indifference does not belong there. For if there is indifference there is no war, no hate, no love. They cannot exist because it all would be indifferent. Oh, I am so sorry. I did not mean to be rude. Let me introduce myself. My name is -. I am sorry. My name seems to have escaped me at this moment. My name. I used to know it well. Now there really is no need for a name. A name is meaningless, useless here. For there is no one, no thing to even care if I have a name. There is no one, no thing here. Just dark and cold. My new friends, Dark and Cold. Friends. I used to have friends. Or so I think I can vaguely recall someone or something that passed as a friend.

It is very dark and cold here. It is very dark and damp here. It is very dark and quiet here. Did I mention it is very dark here? One would think I would be used to the dark by now. But then again one would be mistaken. The dark is nothing new. I have had the dark for a very long time now. At least I am prone to think it has been a long span of time. Time an interesting concept. What is time really? Does time even exist here? Here. A dark and cold abyss. There is nothing but the dark here. I can walk and walk. I never bump into anyone or any thing except the dark. I have often put my hands out in search of a wall, any thing. Each time my hand is extended there nothing to feel, except the dark. I wander aimlessly. In the beginning I would often wonder if ti were day or if it were night. How many days were passing. Slowly the dark started to take over me. First my body. Then my mind. After some time I no Longer concerned myself with day or with night. The dark had crept upon me. Totally consuming my entire being. I feel tired all of the time. I never sleep. When I close my eyes sleep totally eludes me. Sleep. What a concept. What is sleep really? How does one know when one is awake and when one is asleep? When one thinks they are awake how can one be sure they are not merely partaking in an avid dream? Does life exist?  Is life not simply what one perceives it to be? Does death exist? Is death not simply what one perceives it to be? Is death sleep? Or is death simply a new life? It is very dark and cold here. Did I mention that fact previously?

Did you hear that? No, wait, listen. There it is again. That distant voice. When I first arrived here I used to hear it often. Now it is heard less. It speaks, yet I cannot understand the words it utters. Sometimes I wonder if I am supposed to understand the words. If I am meant to understand. Comprehension. Does it even exist? Is there such a thing as comprehension? it is very dark and cold here. Did I mention that fact before?

I must not have reach my goal. My nirvana so to speak. I find myself in the place. Whatever this place is. I used to have a wonderful, peaceful existence. When I disobeyed I was sent to earth to do my pennance. I thought I was doing a good job on earth. Suddenly my earthly existence ceased. Instead of returning to my original bliss I suddenly found myself here. That is the short version of how I found myself to be in this place. I really should tell you more of my past. It is very dark and cold here. Have I mentioned that?

Now about my previous existence. I used to live on a beautiful planet. If I were to tell you the name of the planet, unless you were from that planet, you would not recognize the name, and if you were from that planet, you already know the name. So there really is no need to bother with that detail. There was beauty all around. There was no negative in any thing. Negativity could never exist in any thing or anyone. I was a beautiful tiger. I roamed the fields and land. I was free. I was truly happy in mind, body, and soul. I was whole. For the most part I followed the rules. But there was one rule I had a difficult time following. We were never to go to the edge of the planet. We could walk close to the edge and look out and below, but we were never to go to the edge of the planet and look down. The day that my end there on that planet started to end started out as a beautiful day. Like so many days before I was playing and having a good time. Then it happened. It started out as an honest mistake. As I played I was not paying attention. Suddenly I myself on the edge of the planet. I looked down. I saw earth. It amused me. People, places, things so different from anything I had ever seen or experienced before. It all seemed so futile. Compared to my existence, life on earth was not something I wished to attain. It seemed so constrictive with all of the rules and regulations. The people seemed so self-centered, self-absorbed, and jaded. The earth itself had a foul, negative smell. As I looked upon the earth, without realizing what I was doing, I laughed. Suddenly there was a loud, deep voice behind me. I knew without a doubt it was the Ruler. I had angered him. I started to shake for fear of the punishment he was about to place upon me. Slowly I turned around. After what seem to be an eternity he gave me a warning. He told me to never go to the edge of the planet again. Never laugh at the people on earth. For if I ever did, I would lose everything. I would be banned to earth. I would have to start over as every human on earth has had to start, from birth on. The only way to return home would be for me to show I was worthy to return home. While on earth I would have to pass the tests that were placed before me. When I had proved myself to be kind, compassionate, tolerant, when I reached Nirvana I could return home. I was frightened. Nirvana is almost impossible to achieve. I swore I would obey. I would stay away from the edge of the planet and never mock the people on earth ever again. I was good. For several day I was very good. Then the thought of earth returned. The temptation became too strong. I went to the edge of the planet and looked down upon the earth. I studied every thing, everyone. Suddenly a laugh escaped me. This time I felt the laugh. I quickly turned around to apologize. It was too late. I had to be punished for disobeying and lying. I was banned from the planet and brought to earth. I was reborn as a human. For many years I lived as a human. I tried to pass every test that was placed in my path. I desperately wanted to return home. I continued for many years. Then one day everything was gone. I found myself in this place. At first I thought I had passed all of the tests. I had reached my Nirvana. Now so much time seems to have passed. I wonder if I have reached Nirvana or if I have reached some other state deep inside of the earth's core. It is very dark and cold here. Have I told you that fact previously?