The duty of The Light
One Shot Short Story
Darkness surrounded all things at that point in time only the sound of a young child sobbing. Sitting under a street light was a young girl, six perhaps younger. The girl looked around her seeing nothing but darkness around her, the sounds of unnatural creatures in the shadows around her, the only thing keeping them away was the light of the lamp over her head. The girl suddenly jumped when the lamp above her sparked the light starting to sputter, the lamp having been damaged by a small demon trying to doom the small child. The small girl whimpered when faces started to emerge from the darkness around her, the light further sputtering till finally it was about to go out. The girl closed her eyes, hoping that this was all just a dream and that in doing so she'd wake up, in her bed at her home with her father just a room away. She opened her eyes again only to hear laughing the monsters just a hairs breath away the light now very dim and seconds from going out. The small child let out a scream when a hand reached out for her, the lamp over her shattering into shards the darkness now rushing to her, that is till a voice said a light from the darkness shining through,
“Go on now you lot, leave her alone.”
the girl looks up as the light approaches her, someone wrapped in a long white hooded cloak. The being before her swats away one of the shadows before walking over to her and comforting the child by patting her head. Kneeling down the person asks,
“Whats the matter little girl?”
The child wipes her nose then saying,
“Its dark out here, and I can't find my daddy.”
The figure looks off at something unseen for a moment then nods after which he sits down next to her. The girl looks up to the hooded figure as he sat down next to her, something about him calming her as the girl then felt like resting her head against his arm; the girl wiping her nose on her sleeve. The figure looks down his face still hidden in his hood asked looking down to her,
“So little one, what's your name?”
The girl responded weakly with,
“My daddy says I shouldn't talk to strangers.”
The figured nodded then said,
“Well what if I told you my name, then I wouldn't be a stranger would I?
The girl thought about it for a moment till she nodded the figure then saying as he held his hand,
“Well then, my name is Alex, now may I have your name?”
The girl nodded responding with,
“I'm Alice.”
they shook hands for a moment, the girl then once again resting her head against his arm, Alex once again looking off toward something the child could not see, Alex then saying,
“Tell you what why don't I sit here with you for a little while and see if your father comes by.”
The girl nods then says,
“That sounds ok, my daddy won't be mad if I stay here with you.”
The figure nodded and waited there with the girl for what felt like hours but was really only half of one till the fox then said after looking off in the distance again,
“Well little one, I don't think your father will be coming.”
The girl looked up at him tears in her eyes, clearly not what she wanted to hear, the figure then asked,
“Well tell you what, how about I take you to go see your mother?”
The girl wiped her eyes again then said,
“But my daddy told me that she had gotten sick, and had to be taken to a special hospital far away.”
Alex nodded the girl then asking,
“Can you really take me to go see my mommy?”
The hooded figure nods then standing up holding out his hand then saying,
“I'm one of the few who can, just take my hand and I'll show you the way.”
The girl looked around for a few seconds making sure her father was no where to be seen till she said taking Alex's hand,
“Ok, thank you mister Alex.”
The hooded figure nodded holding her hand tightly saying as he once again looked away toward something she could not see,
“Its not a problem little one, . . . .its the least I can do.”
As he lead her away the scene now revealed was heart breaking, it was a car accident the whole of the drivers side had been smashed in, the drive however managed to survive, a firemen saying to the rest of his crew,
“Its no good, the divers side door is totally smashed, get the jaws, we'll have to cut it.”
The rest nodded as the man next to him nearly gagged. The first man asking as he looked to the man that had backed up next to him,
“Whats wrong?”
the second man said shaking his head, then pulling out a shard of what looked to be a car seat,
“I think there was a child in the back seat.”
Both men looked back to the car, the back seat, or what was left of it was completely caved in, the poll the car had been knocked into fell over and landed flat across the back seats, anyone back there would have been smashed. Alex looked back once again closing tight his eyes as a tear fell then said,
“The very least I could do.”
The little girl now with a smile on her face looked up to the hooded figure as she asked,
“How long will it take to find mommy?”
Alex responds with,
“It'll take us about a day, but don't worry, if you get tired I'll carry you.”
The girl now revealed to be the pale flame of a soul nodded hopping and humming a little song as the hooded Fox lead her away, away from the mortal world and to the afterlife where she would be once more reunited with her mother, a sad thing that the cost of the reunion had to be her young life.
~end~
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