the well at the edge of midnight
Behind me the waves break in a grey-blue chaotic froth against a lonely shore that shows no evidence of caring, it's worn face the colour of pitted steel blending lightly into a thick comb of snow as the loom of the land rises away from the endless surf. Feet dragging in a steady, if langourous, rythm I travel without concern to the nearly limitless swathes of white and grey, to the play of pale azure and thick black studded sky, to the dance of sun and moon. How many empires have risen and topled while I have wandered aimless past the fringes of the world's end, heeding neither trail of shimmering light nor path of red volcanic ash spit from the depths...lost in a land breathing chilled menace and hatred old enough that even the grim stone peaks can scarce remember their black roots.
The fog of lost indifferance drops for a moment and I can see it spread around me, the vast glimmering stretch of frozen sea, ice-rimmed lips gently kissing a bleak horizon. The white hills and weathered peaks stand barely visible in the distance against the dim shade of evening.
The slow crack tears it's way across the empty expanse of gathering twilight like a child whose over-anxious steps have led it past the cliff's edge, like the sound of Ragnarok's first heaving sigh...like the sound of the world splitting. And I can feel the sea pulling at me, frozen silk fingers grasping with the unquenchable hunger of the deep. Axe flailing desperately through the murky waters I reach for anything, catching loose slabs of ice that slip and twist nimbly away, whose mocking laughter echoes as they rise and jump above the waves.
Sinking still deeper I can see the diamond tear rise from my pocket, floating upwards lazily as my air escapes in a million clustered bubbles vying for their own release. With a surge of hope I grab for the glittering diamond and feel it's firm angled facets against a roughened palm. Where are you?
The fog of lost indifferance drops for a moment and I can see it spread around me, the vast glimmering stretch of frozen sea, ice-rimmed lips gently kissing a bleak horizon. The white hills and weathered peaks stand barely visible in the distance against the dim shade of evening.
The slow crack tears it's way across the empty expanse of gathering twilight like a child whose over-anxious steps have led it past the cliff's edge, like the sound of Ragnarok's first heaving sigh...like the sound of the world splitting. And I can feel the sea pulling at me, frozen silk fingers grasping with the unquenchable hunger of the deep. Axe flailing desperately through the murky waters I reach for anything, catching loose slabs of ice that slip and twist nimbly away, whose mocking laughter echoes as they rise and jump above the waves.
Sinking still deeper I can see the diamond tear rise from my pocket, floating upwards lazily as my air escapes in a million clustered bubbles vying for their own release. With a surge of hope I grab for the glittering diamond and feel it's firm angled facets against a roughened palm. Where are you?