“Etched in Stone”
Author’s Note: This is a Take Ten to Write story and has not been proofread for errors. If I feel inspired or if there’s interest in the story, I’ll post a revised, edited, and extended version at a later date. Happy reading!
Dust rises around me as I pick my way through the rubble. Bodies litter the ground, just barely recognizable beneath the thick layer of ash.
It’s eerily silent. The only sound is my footsteps against the chunks of hard cement that used to be a street. My steps echo around me, creating a dizzying sensation as I walk.
The top of my hand skims the corner of the building as I round the corner. My hand would’ve thought that nothing had changed, if not for my brain telling it that the top half of the building no longer exists.
A few more paces, then a turn right. And there it is. Home.
Somehow, the doorway is still there, but that’s it. The rest of the building is completely gone, blasted to oblivion.
I push my way through what remains of the front gate. The door falls off its hinges as I pass through. I drop it down into the dirt.
I stop beneath the doorway and stare at the archway above me. The stone still stands, though blackened and burnt. I place a hand on the right side of the arch. My thumb moves across the stone until it finds its mark.
I wipe the soot from the stone. They’re all still there.
That one familiar sight breaks me. My legs fail to hold me up. As my knees impact the ground, a sob escapes.
I wish that their lives could be as permanent as their names scratched into the doorway. But they’re not. They weren’t. They’re gone. All of them.
I’m alone.
Final Comments: I had a really hard time with the wording in this one. I really liked the song though!
Overall Rating: 😬
"Back in the Tower"
