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Thursday, January 12, 2012

#FridayFlash: Feast

Here's the second of my “one photo, three genres” prompt. This one is horror.



Feast

That tiny bird I caught yesterday is long gone. The only blood I’ve tasted in a week. My stomach rumbles.

I am so hungry. As always.

Curse the Fate and Powers, leading me to this hollow tree so many years ago! It seemed a good place to sleep, sheltered from the sun and away from prying eyes. But when I awoke, it was surrounded by this hated water and has been ever since. It is said that vampires cannot cross running water. I cannot touch water.

A ripple… fish sometimes find their way here, but the hunger cannot overcome my hatred of the water where they live. Once a fish jumped, and I caught it. I nearly fell into the water from whence it came, but claws and teeth held fast and I ate. So good… but this ripple is a turtle. They never come far enough out to catch, so I can only imagine what it would be like to crunch through that shell.

Voices. Human voices. I smell them, see them in the fading evening light, and curse the Powers anew. For they are young. Big enough to be a good meal, young enough that the sweetness has not been squeezed out of them.

One male, one female. They lay on a blanket and begin their mating ritual, pressing their mouths together, moving their hands here and there. So disgusting. Were I not trapped here, even sated, I would kill them both just to make it stop. Their clothing begins to fall away, as if to tantalize me. That stuff is tasty and nutritious as tree bark. But the flesh… oh, the flesh…

The female, now naked, springs up laughing and runs to the shore. The male follows, and she slips into the water… so close, yet out of reach. And if I let hunger do the thinking, what would happen if the other saw me and ran? I would be helpless to flee.

He follows her into the water, she retreats. Ever closer. My drool sizzles as it strikes the water. He catches her, and they press their mouths together once again. She wraps her legs around him as they join… so disgusting… they stagger into my tree, moaning and squirming.

I say a quick prayer of forgiveness to the Powers whom I have cursed for so long. I will be strong, perhaps strong enough to leap clear of this prison. If not, I can use their bones as stilts. I will be free tomorrow.

But today I feast.

21 comments:

  1. Really creepy, really great.

    Also, so different from last week's story, despite using the same picture prompt.

    "I can use their bones as stilts." Love this line!

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  2. Well done! You gave the sense of desperation real impact.

    And those poor people. All they wanted was a little exotic play time...

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  3. Great job! I too like the "I can use their bones as stilts." And the "But today I feast." is such a great, creepy line.

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  4. I can almost respect the speaker, having such patience to remain evil for so long.

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  5. "drool sizzles" "bones as stilts"
    Scary stuff Larry. I kept looking back at the photo to try and see if I could see the creature loitering in the dark arghh!

    Wonderful second story.

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  6. I wouldn't want to meet this creature...

    And so evil, well done! :).

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  7. I think you've got the perfect character for a German bedtime story here :D

    But yea, that thing was creepy as hell and I'm kinda thinking about putting in a mote now.

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  8. Thank you for making monsters creepy again.

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  9. Dark and delicious, I want this creature to be free, he has so much yet to do.

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  10. So creepy. I really liked this image: "My drool sizzles . . ."

    It's so different from the last one it's hard to believe they come from the same image.

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  11. Very Poe-ish...though horror is not really my thing...some really good image-creating lines, nice finish...Personally, I liked your "Three Sprites, One Silent" better, as well as the brighter clearer photo (which I know was probably intentional).

    I do look forward to your next story genre. Of course, I would want it to be comical or satirical, but I think the photo presents too much of a challenge for either of those. For now, I'll revel in trying to guess what genre you'll choose for your third story. You're a good writer, so I know it will be worth the read.

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  12. Hi all! The work firewall kicked in after lunch so I wasn't able to comment until now…

    Thanks Tim!

    Jack, that line came to me as I was finishing it up, trying to think how the monster would get to shore.

    Thanks, Tony. The boy thought he was getting lucky, but it was the monster instead. :-o

    Cherie, this one just begged for some good lines, I think. Thanks much.

    John, what else is there to do but hunger and hate when you're a monster trapped?

    Tom, I took to heart the adage "the scariest monster is the one you don't see." He's there, just really dark like the inside of the stump.

    Thanks Craig!

    Michael, I've seen a book of German fairy tales. Brrrr!

    Thanks and you're welcome, Louise!

    Steve, yeah, two teenagers aren't enough to fill that belly…

    Sonia, that's part of the challenge. It's a lot of fun so far.

    Rachel, welcome to the free-range insane asylum! I don't usually write dark stuff, but it's always good to stretch your boundaries, right? You're right about the picture: I desaturated and darkened it, then added a little sepia. I think it'll be back to the plain version next week. Thanks for the vote of confidence; I'm trying to decide between two stories. If they both turn out well, I might arbitrarily extend my challenge and post 'em both.

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  13. I like this project you're doing. This does feel very different to the one before,I think because of the narrator's distinctive voice.

    I feel sorry for the monster too.

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  14. Ooo Chilling, creepy. I liked the slow build up here, as you introduced your main character and still kept us guessing as to what it was.

    As one read one could see its eyes following the humans, hoping, waiting for that moment.

    Very good story.

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  15. I like what you've done here and the way you captured this world, and touched on vampires. For his sake, I hope he gets a drought. For my own, I'm not sure I'm that generous.

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  16. It seems the Powers have...a kind of...mercy, after all.

    Great lines throughout this, as mentioned by the others. The fierce determination within the monster is palpable. Scary.

    A full novel with this character would be terrible - in all the right senses of that word.

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  17. Excellent use of the prompt, Larry. That's what the little fornicators get. ;)

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  18. Really creepy, and so very different from the story last week. Amazing what you can get from the same photo!

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  19. Thanks, Peter! I don't think you have to feel sorry for the monster, he'll be chomping away for a while…

    Thanks, Helen! I'm still not sure what it is, maybe a goblin on steroids?

    Aiden, I'm sure the monster appreciates the sentiment… but it won't stop him from making a meal out of you. :-D

    KjM, haven't seen you in a while! Thanks much — not sure how a novel would go, but I never say never.

    Thanks, Icy. You just have to squint at it a few different ways to see the possibilities. ;-)

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  20. Wow my spine is tingling and hairs on my neck standing up. Great read but scared me :)

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