D A R K N E S S
composed by:
Coplan/IC
"Be still," Dennon whispered.
"What is it?"
"Shut up, Lynn!"
But again she asked, "What is it?"
Dennon glared at Lynn. The fable, long gone from his memory, had
once again popped into his mind. What a wretched tale it was. How had
it gone again? Oh yes. He remembered part of it:
"With the night came the darkness. With the darkness
came the evil. But it wasn't the evil that was feared,
for the evil could not exist without the night. Long
known to the people of the villiage, it was the darkness
that was to be feared. Anyone caught outside the villiage
walls once darkness fell was to be forgotten. If the
walls were to be kept open, everyone shall fall victim to
the darkness. Thus it be better that the few not wise
enough to return be sacraficed for the survival of the
villiage. Best to remain inside, away from the darkness,
away from the evil, away from the death."
Once again, Lynn questioned, "Dennon, what is it?"
"Do you remember that fable dad always told us?"
"Sort of...why? It's only a tale...it's not true...is it?"
Dennon fell silent. From on top of the hill, one could see the
villiage not more than a mile away. As the sun set, Dennon could see
that the town gates were now closed. There was no longer a way to get
back into town. He began to feel cold, he felt fear.
"Dennon...it isn't...true. It can't be true..."
"Shut up, Lynn!"
"But..."
"Lynn...have you ever seen a sunset from here before?"
"N-no"
"Beautiful isn't it? Don't you think Dad would bring us?"
"It is gorgeous. Why didn't he ever bring us here?"
"Lynn...because the fables are true."
Lynn's face became pale. Her eyes grew wide, and her mouth
remained open in astonishment. She shook her head in disbelief. They
can't be true...they just can't. She looked back at the village. Gates
were closed, everyone was inside. Everyone, except she and her brother.
Would they survive the night? Would they survive the darkness? Neither
Lynn nor Dennon could imagine what was in store for them.
"C'mon Lynn. We better find a place to stay the night."
Lynn paused for a moment. She looked at the village once more.
She no longer felt the need to see the sun slip behind the horizon.
Dennon was right...this was no safe place for them. Dennon started down
the hill, then glanced back at Lynn. "I'm comeing," she said. Then she
stumbled after him.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Hey all...hope you liked that little piece of that story. I wrote
that last year. It is actually much longer, a novella by the same
name (about 75 pages long). Enjoy the song...it's one of my favorites
thus far. As usual, comments and suggestions are welcome.
-Coplan
coplan@thunder.temple.edu
http://thunder.temple.edu/~coplan
-Immortal Coil
(sorry, our address is moveing around a bit...I'll include it once it
settles down in one place)
(c) Coplan of Immortal Coil, 1997
