Random stories

Insanity

Morning dew hung in the air, clinging to the trees and the rotting undergrowth. Harsh sunlight streamed through the branches and leaves, bathing the forest floor in dancing swathes of light. She had no recollection of how she arrived here; who she was.

Birdsong echoed above along with elegant snaps of twigs as the tiny creatures announced the daybreak. She took that as a sign to get moving. No memories remained, no matter how hard she tried to recall them. Whoever she was before she had wound up in this oblivion had simply ceased to exist. She soldiered on.

Hunger gnawed in her gut, thirst scratched at her throat, but there was nothing. Blood red berries accentuated the deep green of the eternal foliage; tempting, calling, mocking. They were poison. Plump but poisonous. She had seen it herself what they could do. A poor naïve bird had ingested some only to fall dead, fear lacing its frozen eyes. She did not want to die - not in that way at least - dehydration would be her demise. No river carved its way through the forest, no spring bubbled away. Only her lone footsteps broke the silence. Who was she?

The sun had not moved, never inching across the sky, retaining its intense stare over the open prison in which she found herself. Any sound of life had long vanished back the way she had came, yet she dared not turn back. A sick sense of dread began to settle on her chest, panic rising in her throat, fear turning into tears that stung at her eyes. Where was she? Who was she? Frantic steps slowed with the realisation that she was truly lost. There was seemingly no end to the forest and all its misery; no end to her suffering. She sunk to her knees in despair and defeat, bones aching, screaming for rest.

How long had it been? The sun had somehow dropped below the horizon without moving from its suspended state in the east. Silence boomed around her head and filtered out into the air around her. Only her breath kept her company. Her breath and... eyes.

Eyes. Eyes everywhere. In the branches, the undergrowth, the petals of the flowers. Scarlet, amber, opal and liquid silver. Fear, feral, unyielding, clawed tenaciously at her mind, freezing her before she threw herself onto her feet, bolting the other direction.

Her fingernails tore at the trees, snapping and shattering. Eyes. The Eyes. Violet eyes. Icy flame, a vicious kindness, flickering and shifting. The Eyes screamed insanity. A scream tore from her throat, all thoughts incinerated by the insanity consuming her. She ran, blindly, mindlessly, away from the eyes, away into the darkness.

Eventually she stopped, her legs giving out, collapsing underneath her. The tears flowed relentlessly. Nothing was left in her mind. Only a precipice of darkness. Who was she? No thoughts followed, no answers. Only insanity remained inside of a damaged shell.

Crawling. Pathetic movements. That's all she could manage. Tear stains lined her cheeks. This was all that was left. An empty mind and a frail skeletal frame. Who was she? Helpless, weak, nothing. The eyes had driven her insane. The forest had turned her mad. Who was she? She could vaguely make out the whispers of voices skittering and flitting on the wind. Brief sighs. One voice called out, tugging at her. Who was she? "Kiara," the voice sighed, "wake up."

This is just an idea I had for a story for English Language and I wanted to run with it and see where it went. As far as my ideas go, this is the one that kick started my passion for writing again. Feel free to leave any comments or suggestions.