Where Are They?
The Halls of Pandemonium - Day 17
The Halls of Pandemonium - Day 17
Prompt: Write a story or poem about a character who discovers that their past trauma is now manifesting physically on their body in horrifying ways…
Genre: Body horror
I’m taking part in the Halls of Pandemonium challenge, run by and Lord Devereaux. I may not take part every day, like I did in Flash Fiction February, but I will have fun and see how I go!
I nearly wasn’t ready to write a dark story today, but made sure I kept it on the short side.
The same as last time, every like, comment and restack earns points towards the challenge, so if you enjoy what you read, please let me and others know!
And don’t forget to check out some of the other stories in the challenge!
Lucky jumped as the cell door slammed behind him. He’d heard about this place, but hoped he’d never end up here.
But Lucky stayed positive. Someone would be there to get him soon.
He scratched around his collar as he looked around. There were a few more like him, looking almost cheerful, just waiting until they could go home. But looking closer, he started noticing the quieter, more subdued ones. The ones cowering at the back of their cells, almost out of sight.
At mealtimes, he got the chance to examine them a bit more closely, though some still dragged their bowls into the dark back corners of their cells.
He started noticing marks on some of them, silver scars that reflected in the moonlight. Dying alone, read one. Don’t they love me? read another.
I’m lonely. Love me. Play with me. Again and again, echoes of the same pleas. Some slight imprints, others deep scars that would never go away. And when he looked in their eyes, Lucky could see a deep yearning.
As the days went by, he began to lose hope. Why wasn’t anyone coming? Every time the door opened, he looked out expectantly, but it was never for him.
Days turned into weeks. His tail had long given up wagging when the door opened. Then one day, as he was scratching, he paused and looked at his paw. A silvery scar was starting to appear.
‘Where are they?’
Thank you for reading.
Disclaimer: I sometimes use AI as a sounding board during edits, but all writing is my own.
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You had me in tears in the 1st paragraph....