Death Is Sometimes Kinder

Falling

Will Solace

Darkness. Why was it that stories always started in darkness?

Will was falling. He was falling and he didn't know why or where he was going and if he would ever stop. All he knew was the wind rushing past his ears, making his entire head hum like a swarm of bees and the darkness that seemed to seep into his soul.

He had been falling for hours. And he didn't know for how long, but it was beginning to reach Alice in Wonderland levels of insane. Except there were no beds to soften the fall and no books to grasp onto to pass the time.

After what felt like he'd been falling for a full twenty-four hours, Will truly began to wonder if there was a bottom, or if he would just fall forever. If he would starve to death and leave his carcass to plummet through the darkness and slowly rot away.

His eyes were closed and it was so dark that he didn't see the rapidly approaching ground until he slammed into it. Will didn't bounce or roll - he hit the ground hard. And the worst part was that he stayed conscious through it all. Not even the gods could spare him that small luxury.

A shattered scream tore from his throat as his body slammed on his side onto the solid ground with a resounding bang that echoed through the vast expanse of nothing. Dust curled up around his body where he landed. His vision went white as he felt multiple bones snap and shatter, the agony spreading rapidly throughout his body like fire, leaving him breathless.

With a pained cry, Will used his good arm to push against the ground and roll onto his back. He cried out as he landed, his toes curling and fingers scraping against the ground, leaving them raw and bloody.

Tears streaked from the corners of his eyes soaked into his curls as he stared up into the deep chasm he had fallen from. He was so far down, no light could ever be seen. Will let out an involuntary sob, not bothering to hold back.

After all, no one was there to hear his cries.

...

Will didn't know how long he sat there staring into the darkness, blood pooling around his head like a halo, tears streaming down his cheeks and his body far past numb, when he began to hear sounds. At first, he thought he was starting to go crazy - and the idea wasn't too far-fetched. Part of him wanted to continue to lay there and let whatever was out there to put him out of his misery. Will was so tired and hopeless and in so much pain, he seriously considered the idea.

He cursed his entire existence when he reached into his pockets and felt nothing - no knife, not even a scalpel. The sounds were getting closer, sounds he'd never heard before. He racked his brain to try and place the sound to all the monsters he'd read about, but nothing clicked.

Blessfully, he didn't have to wait long to find out. A shadow swept across his face, and he snapped his eyes open. Narrowing his eyes, he saw nothing. Despite that, he clambered to his feet. He cried out as he tried to put pressure on his right ankle, and stumbled into a nearby rock. Will looked down to see the tip of his bone pressing against the delicate skin of his ankle, threatening to rip through. His entire shin and calf were a nasty shade of pinkish-purple, blood trickling down from the cut where his bone snapped.

Will didn't have time to examine the rest of his injuries, and he knew it. Unable to put even the slightest amount of pressure on his broken ankle, he resorted to crawling behind the rock. A twig snapped and he froze, certain the sound didn't come from him. Twig? Frantically, he searched the ground until he spotted a sharp looking stick a few feet away.

Just as he reached out his arm, a voice rang out.

"William," it croaked, rough yet mystical. A goddess, he thought.