I noticed that there weren't many newbies on this thread, so I didn't bother myself. Buuuttt then figured that maybe everyone else is thinking the same thing, so stop being a loser and go say hi to these nice people. So, I am an 'amateur' writer (is that a thing?), from England (don't hold it against me). I have been writing all my life (the pen holding years anywho) and entering competitions for about a year now - in between having babies and homeschooling (fun btw you should try it).

I am also just discovering that it is still possible to be socially awkward whilst typing so I will see myself out.

Daphne_H \m/

Home is where you belong.

But what if you don’t belong anywhere?

* * * * * *

You imagine that you are a warrior.

The last line of defence against a demon hoard.

The survival of the world rests on your shoulders.

So you must fight the demons and win.

Day-in, day-out.

You bleed, you tire.

You are exhausted, you barely have the strength to lift your sword.

But you must fight.

You can’t let the demons win.

So you fight a war with no hope of winning.

No hope of end.

You are at war forever, a soldier eternal.

Sometimes play-acting can help.

After all, warrior sounds better than mental patient.

* * * * * *

Some days are bad.

Others are worse.

You count in your head.

The number of people who will actually give a shit at your funeral.

On better days, the count can be six or seven.

On the worst days the count is just one.

But you know that you have to still fight on. You must. For that count of one.

So you soldier on.

The warrior fights the demons alone, day after day.

But he prays each day, to a god that he barely believes in.

For an angel who can drive the demons away.

But those prayers go unanswered.

And the warrior loses hope.

* * * * * *

One day, the battle is more vicious than it has ever been before.

The exhaustion of the fighting leaves the warrior numb, wounded beyond repair.

He knows that he is at the end of the line.

That it’s the end.

At that very moment the sky opens up and a beam of light shines through.

God has answered his prayers.

With an angel, whose brilliance and light drives the demons away, back to the dark pits where they belong.

The warrior is saved.

* * * * * *

Finally, the warrior is home.

With the help of the angel, the warrior recovers.

His wounds are healed.

He is almost whole.

And he knows now that with an angel by his side, his demons are no longer as powerful as they were.

He hopes, he believes.

He is a fool.

* * * * * *

Demons are cunning.

They are not so easily defeated.

They are patient, they persevere.

They chip away slowly as much as they can at the warrior while avoiding the angel’s halo.

And the warrior does the rest for them.

In his frustration at not being whole, the warrior forgets how broken he used to be.

He lashes out at his only protection.

His angel.

The angel, wounded and hurt by the warrior’s uncalled for cruelty, retreats back to heaven.

And warrior is left on his own, to fight his demons once more alone.

* * * * * *

The warrior despairs.

Now he understands the true depth of darkness – the complete and total power of the demons.

He understands that he doesn’t deserve angels or their light.

That he is too broken even for angels to heal.

That demons are what he deserves.

That the eternal battle is his destiny.

The demon hoard comes rushing at him.

He drops his swords and surrenders.

* * * * * *

The demons over power the warrior.

The demons take over.

The warrior starts smiling, laughing.

The irony of it is just too much for him.

His entire life, he searched and craved for understanding, to belong, for a home.

He feels it – the anxiety, the fear, the self-loathing and misery – filling his mind, taking over his entire being.

Home is where you belong.

He is with his demons.

He is finally home.

#shortstory #dark

maybe i loved you once

in a memory i had forgotten

but like water

it has rushed away from me

and left me cold

i forgot to fill the vase of flowers

and kiss you at sunset

i can’t tell if i still call for you

the way i used to

and i can’t tell if i want to

please find another woman

who will melt with you

the way i never could

-elled

I'm no longer willing to argue

I'm no longer willing to cry

I'm no longer willing to forgive the times

you left with no goodbye.

I'm no longer willing to pretend things are perfect

I'm no longer willing to ignore all the signs

I'm no longer willing to accept that "us",

means leaving myself behind.

I'm no longer willing to give chances

I'm no longer willing to hold my breath

I'm no longer willing to love you...

to keep loving you to death.

They say that danger is attractive

yet anger is bad

what should i do

if maddness

is all of what i'll ever have

i'd like to blame you

but i know it's only half true

since even though you're crazy

i chose to stay with you

what should i do

what should i choose

whatever choice i'll just loose

i'd wish to stay with you

but i doubt that i'll survive

yet i feel so lonely

when you're not by my side

do i like hits

or wish for poison

your toxic love got me

i can't seem to run

it's a prison and

don't wanna move on

you're like my religion

am i insane

i enjoy pain

or you manipulated me

too much to ever be sane

i do wish to run and hide

with you no longer by my side

but i feel so empty

as if you were a part of me

Death, I think about it constantly and it terrifies me like nothing else. I have sinned so much; I would understand if the lord sent me to the pits of hell for the things I have done. Perhaps, he would forgive me, because he knows my heart and sees I’m just an innocent soul that allowed myself to be persuaded by wrong things? I would love to go to heaven and live in peace for the rest of my afterlife with Jesus and his angels, and death is the only way. I am willing to change just to be sure if I die I will be going to a better place instead of stressing about burning in hell.