Aren’s Poem Short Story: Beyond the Darkness

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There was something very special about where my family lived. The land was so rich, nature enveloped us like small children in its arms and we found peace in the lush green grass of the mountainside. My family were skilled; kind; warm… naive. Though I suppose, in hindsight, I may have inherited this, too. 

I told them many times before that I heard something in the cave, the one beyond the woods. They never listened, even laughed at me and told me I had such a vivid imagination, but I knew better! I told them over and over that I’d heard the beast’s rumbling breaths on every hunt I went on. I wasn’t crazy or imagining this. So, I planned to go on a very special hunt to prove my sanity. I would bring them the head of the beast and boast my greatness at the evening feast. 

Into the woods I went, sword and torch strapped to my back, without looking back and without fear. Perhaps I was a little scared, but wouldn’t you be if you were the one following the deep, beastly snore of a mystery monster in the mountains? The further up the river I stomped, the more hesitant my steps became. My gait was less of a stomp and more of a cautious tiptoe. 

The density of the trees eclipsed any sunlight until I approached the final stretch of my journey up to the mouth of the cave; the rock climb was perhaps the most dangerous part of the journey… or so I thought. Despite sliding a few times on some slippery rocks, I made it up to the ledge and stood square at the mouth of the cave. I was pantin and the snoring monster snored back, one long inhale matching three of my wheezes. 

I had no idea what was waiting for me beyond the darkness. 

On I decided to go, after a short pause, and I lit the torch I’d been carrying on my back. It illuminated the dark, damp cave. The only sounds were my carefully-placed footsteps on the withering rock, the beast’s breathing and the drips of water from the cave echoing through its entire structure. I thought for a brief moment about how big the cave may be and panic surged through me like electricity. 

'I’m going to get lost!' I thought desperately, spinning around to look the way I came. But I could still see the light at the entrance and the tension in my body eased slightly. 

I followed the cave round to the left and was met with a beautifully carved staircase. The beast’s heavy breathing was loud, louder than any snore I’d ever heard, but I still couldn’t see it. I stepped slowly, cautiously, down the staircase, my eyes glued to the emerging scene in front of me. 

I was in a large room and the first thing I noticed was that I was walking on tarnished silver. I forgot, for a moment, all about the beast as I looked around at all the gold and silver that was stacked around me. My breath caught, and I ran over to a necklace that had survived, a beautiful gold one with a shiny jewel. I dug through the pile, but I noticed a lot of the jewellery was melted and soldered together. 

Out of nowhere, I felt the ground shake. STOMP, shake. STOMP, shake, STOMP, shake. My expression dropped as I remembered the beast. However, now the breathing was not just nearby, it was now streaming down the back of my neck with an inhale so powerful that it sucked up strands of my hair, blowing them flat against my head again with each exhale. I was frozen. 

I eventually managed to find the willpower to turn around and I slowly pivoted, coming face to face with four large lizard-like feet. In my torchlight, they looked blood-red. I lifted my eyes, feeling like an ant next to this giant creature. Its skin was thick and scaly, its tail stretched further than I could see; it had wings tucked delicately into its body, though they were battered and torn; its neck was so long that I only managed to glance upon its face with my head tilted to the dark roof of the cave; its head was long, reptilian, and it stretched its mouth into a wide toothy smile as I looked into the dark eyes of the monster before me. 

I ran, dropping my torch. The beast roared and I felt again the rumbling and heard the thumps of each footstep the monster took. I stumbled with each step it took, scraping my legs and hands as I scrambled back up. I’d never run this fast before. My heart pounded louder than the beast’s steps in my ears and my vision blackened around the edge. 

I wasn’t thinking! How was I supposed to know what it could do? I ran down the hill, down the river, through the forest… and then I could no longer hear its footsteps. I looked around, but kept running. I wasn’t going to stop running until I was home. I just needed to get home. 

The sun was setting, and everyone was sitting around eating dinner. Our settlement wasn’t the largest, but we were all close and meal times were important to us. I could see them, but I couldn’t see the beast. I smiled briefly as I continued to run towards them, but a shadow suddenly cast itself over the place they were sitting. I looked up and, against the evening sunlight could see the outline of the beast, wings stretched, flying towards them. 

I stopped in my tracks. I shouted at them to run, but they didn’t hear me from so far away. The beast opened its giant mouth, teeth still stretched into a grin, and a large billow of flames dispersed, so hot it came out white and blue. The flames brushed over our lands, a soft kiss that left destruction in its wake. The fire whirled and wrapped around the houses and the trees, and I watched as it hastily turned our lush, green grass to ash and mud. 

Thank you for reading <3 I'm really sorry if it's not perfect, my life has been so crazy!