The Fire Of Destiny

The Unexpected Night

On September 2, 1666, Thomas Farrinor, baker to King Charles II of England, made a mistake that cost him many lives. Under a sky of impeccable midnight velvet,under stars so vivid they drew my eyes heaven bound, the lyrics of the starry night played softly in my mind. As the light twinkled and the unheard music played, I found my eyes slowly drifting into a deep sleep.

Suddenly,I was woken up by the screaming of my sister Lilly. As my vision became clearer, I realized she was sitting in the corner of our room shaking vigorously. It was as if she had retreated inside of herself; instead of being here with me. And so I told her over and over that I was there for her, that I'd always be there. I told her softly that everything was going to be okay. By now, we were both standing in the corner of our room, shivering as the chilly yet warm wind blew through our window.

Just then I heard footsteps banging against the creaky wood. Not more than a second later, mother came bursting through the door sobbing, with father not far behind. She swept us both into her arms and hugged us tightly. It felt like an eternity before she let go. In her lenient and tender voice (while trying to hold in her tears) she told us that everything was going to be fine. She grabbed my sister by the hand, kissed me and father and ran out the room. He came to me and told me not to worry. I was instructed to put on my shoes and follow him, so I did. He guided me towards he door. I paused. What was I doing? What was happening? My dad knelt down beside me and kissed me on the forehead. "Listen son" he began. " This is going to be tough...there is a massive fire starting and we are informed it is coming towards us" He paused. I suddenly fell into darkness. What was going to happen? Suddenly I was pushed towards the door, and I fell hard on the ground. I must have blacked out then because all could hear were the screams of innocent children and women.

 I woke up a few seconds later to find the flames burning with colors I never thought it would. With each flare I knew another of my possessions was alight. It was the burning of all my celluloid memories, souvenirs of a life well spent and trinkets my father gave me from his long ago youth. The wooden floor was fast becoming ash and the vinyl siding was sliding down like chocolate in summer heat. The smoke was being carried to the left by the wind, raining down dirty ash like anti-snow. As the sirens become unnoticeable, wailing around the bypass, I watched like it was on TV, not my house, my home. It came to me that I had to run. I pulled myself together and trying not to think of the blood rushing down the side of my face, I began to sprint. After what seemed like forever, I stopped. I watched the deep flames of the enraged fire through blurry eyes. I couldn't breathe, nor could I hear even the simplicity of my heart racing in my chest. What was once stunning wilted under the ferocity of the flames. I was fighting the urge to cry but i couldn't hold it in. The thick acrid smell of the smoke made me feel as if i would suffocate.

Reluctantly, i turned away covering my nose with my t-shirt that was now filled with the putrid stench of smoke. After what felt like hours of continuous running i reached the top of a hill. I stopped to take a breath. I sat down breathing vigorously. I looked up at what once was my town, my home, my warm cozy bed which i was tucked into just a few hours ago, which was now alight with the scorching provoked flames. There was no one in sight. Not a single soul wandered the now isolated streets. As i stroked the short bright-green grass, the trees swayed playfully in the warm yet bleak wind.