There was nothing visible against an endless pitch. His consciousness blinked awake his awareness Questions were fluttering through him as he felt weightless, drifting through the endless infinity. Memory was absent, but the questions still pondered. ”Where am I. Wh-what, what happened?” There was numbness about his body, but he looked down. There was no body. He was just a flicker of light. He was only … aware.
A fragment gleamed in the distance. His curiousness pulled him closer and upon arrival he realized it was some sort of reflective black glass. The dark surrendered to his light. Within the mirror, he saw the silhouette of a wolf. It was only a projection of something he once was. What had happened? He tried to think past beyond this moment. He thought hard. Somehow he knew if he waited too long to remember, he would never get another change again – and he’d drift off – his energy returning to the universe, free of destiny.
Freedom. He could just… choose not to fight for memory. He could just drift away and feel at peace. Whatever he was before, he sensed was trifled with pain and riddled with deep oppression. But what If he didn’t need to remember it. He could just … let the abyss take him and dance within the stars forever. But something kept tugging at him.
Darius… the whisper was so faint, he didn’t really know if it was true. Darius. The tone of it was familiar. Come find me. His heart began to throb, he’d almost forgotten what it felt like. Darius, don’t forget. You must not forget. You’re trapped…
There was a sudden burst of light beyond the mirror, greater than himself. It was blinding; pure. A series of mumbling crackles ignited in the distance like crashing thunder. The light was spiraling towards him, reaching out with twisted beams as the ripped against the pitch. He didn’t move, he waited. And as it reached him, he allowed it to embrace his being. Darius allowed the light to find him. Forgetting about it was impossible. And as the beams intertwined around him, Darius remembered his name. He remembered his past, and he remembered his purpose. Vivid recollections came to him, and he finally realized that he was trapped in a false infinity.
The Sun had fallen generations ago. Plummeted down and was reborn a human babe who grew to be a dictator amongst humans after the world had collapsed. He’d grown impatient with the human infestation that had penetrated their rot within his child, Earth. He’d left the moon, his wife within the sky above to hold order. But, his plan was not to save the Earth, but to find the moon’s wolves and open a portal that would
“What’s the matter, love?” Darius calls me out in my head. He’s nearly the spinning image of Robert, the way he comforts me, that small and cautious smile. I created him based off my dying husband, in order to cope with the nagging knowledge of my love life’s ending. I don’t want to answer Darius in my head. My heart already hurts after hearing what the doctors tell me. ten more years. We’ve been together seven. I’ve never been a single night without him, in that time span. I’ve never been with any other man than him. And in ten, he’ll be gone forever. “Love, you can tell me, we need to get through this together. You need to tell me, so I can be there for you when he’s gone, so we can finish telling his amazing story.” I feel crazy, giving my own creation the silent treatment. Normally that’s his job through the occasional writer’s blocks.
“Robert is dying. Even through everything we’ve been working on, everything we’ve tried. He’s still dying.” I let Darius hear it. And my mind already knows what he’s going to say.
“You’re afraid of something that hasn’t even happened yet.” I know if Darius were really here, he’d sit next to me, as he would when interacting with any other writer’s character. He’d sit next to me, take my hand in his and glance up at the sky – a signature gesture. “If you worry too much about the future, you’re going to miss the present and wish to go back to the past when it finally happens.” He’s right, I’m right.
“But It hurts.” I confess and I glance to Robert in the hospital bed as he coughs violently. His oxygen stat is at 88. Too low to even think about taking him home. God we just want to go home…
“Do you remember that song?” Darius asks. The one by Tony Anderson – The Way Home?” I know the one he’s talking about. I take out my phone, scroll through my playlist ‘Moon Light’ and select it. “The song starts off with heartbeats.” Darius begins. I know the story, but I need Darius to tell me. “A man kept the recordings of his wife and unborn child’s heartbeats.” I listen as the first heartbeat sets the song off. It’s quick, small and full of love.” I smile. It’s the baby’s heartbeat. And then a deeper heartbeat joins in. The mother’s. “But when the mother and child died in during the delivery, the man lost his entire world.” I feel the lump in my throat form as Darius reminds me of that small bit. I look to Robert on the bed. “He fell into a deep depression and gave up on a lot of things he once loved.” I know that feeling all to well. I know I almost gave up writing on behalf of the looming sadness to losing my lover. “But, when he told a songwriter that he kept the recordings of his wife and baby’s heartbeats, the song writer encouraged him to use it in something new.” I know what Darius is getting at, because much of himself is created on behalf of the experiences I’d shared with Robert. “And so, he created this song, a tribute to his lost family. Something to inspire strength into anyone it can reach. He called it, A Way Home, because those heartbeats lead him back to the home in his heart.” I can feel myself tear up, but I laugh to myself with realization on just how powerful I can become too if I spread forth my own messages, just like this artist.
“I have time.” I note. “I still have time to absorb as much of this amazing man as I can, by living in the moment and sharing those moments with people.” Darius smiles at me in my head.
“Live by the moment.” He acknowledges. “Cherish the now. Love as deep as you can and help him live the rest of his days feeling a sense of peace.” Darius drifts back to sleep. I stand up and slide my chair closer to Robert. I notice that Robert has tears flooding his eyes. He’s torturing himself. Battling within his mind about how much he’s putting me through. But that’s not even an issue. God I just wish he knew how much that is not even an issue. I chose to be there. I chose to stay by his side, through everything we’d been through. So, I slip onto the hospital bed with him, wrap my arms around him and press my ears to his chest. His heartbeat quickens with my presence there. “Shhhh” I coo at him. “It’s okay sweetie. It’s okay, I’m here.” And as his heartbeat mellows out, I close my eyes and thank God I can still hear this sweet sound. It is the most beautiful music I will ever hear . . .
- -
I want to personally stress to you, the importance of your existence. All of you, as writers. Right now, this very moment, your moment is a critical time within this void that we are experiencing. And the entire reason why I am here writing this to you all now – is because this is what I was meant to do. I was given an insight and if I do not spread it to my chosen group of individuals, I will have failed my purpose. I have a message. One that has been growing inside of me since the moment I first learned how to spell.
Communication was given to us so that we can invest in understanding. And understanding was engraved in us so that we can establish a beacon of light. I’ve discovered so many talented writers on here, within this community. And I’ve pointed some of you out, some of you that I believe have captured a firm grasp on the basis of what sort of ‘understanding’ this universe needs right now. We are the voices for people who are too afraid to speak. We are the watchers who document experiences that can touch other people in their own individual ways. We are the historians who bring about truths, buried from society by the overseers who wish to keep us shackled. We are the predicters of the future, who stress warnings of worlds we can manifest if we are not careful. We are the superheroes who disguise pain and misunderstanding within our darkest antagonists and come to reveal it with a tragic concept, that the bad guys are not born that way. They’re a product of cruelty. And we are the beacons of light that are meant to expose the sufferings of millions and lead them together to brighten back up the darkest night. We are here to make a difference. Many of you are scared, unsure, unaware of your talents. But you have no idea how so very [ p o w e r f u l ] you are.
You have the chance to shape this broken world. Influence a sense of patience for the sore hearted and neglected. Show people how to see each other.
You have the ability to teach children the next lesson. Show them how to love and value each other. Brave the sentiments, that they are valued.
You have the potential to lead an audience to conquer their fears. Give them a hero, relatable to current conflict and teach them how to smash it.
You have the passion to connect people together. Show them, that beneath the layers of their physical, they’re made of the same stardust as you and I.
What matters is the message you will share. You all have a pen. Let it sway a story of unity. Let it battle against the negative that is disrupting the cosmos. Balance has been hijacked by an overabundance of it. We’re in a darker world than yesterday, fellow writers. And it’s not getting any brighter. Every day, we’ve lost another light. Every hour, we’re losing grip on what matters. Society has literally placed a matrix over our eyes and severed our bonds to one another. Every second the darkness is winning. The negative that beckons false thoughts, judgmental attitudes, pride ridden egos. It’s winning, and I’m calling on all of you to stand up against it. Join me in my Rebellion of Division. Don’t fall victim to the negative. Rise above it. It’s hard, but you know better. You. All. Know. Better. Fight it. Kill it. Stomp it out of your head, because I know you can. I know your hearts. I’ve seen the work you all produce, and your characters are the products of how battered people have become in this suffering place. Darius O’ Connell was a character I manifested to spread my work and wisdom to fellow writers through engagement of our characters. I’m not meant to publish books to the public. Not yet. Right now, I’m here for you. I’m here to help show you what is possible. I love you. I don’t know any of you, but damn it, I love you all. I’m asking you all to just keep doing what you are doing. Keep writing. Don’t stop. Ever. Keep writing the messages that you are writing. Come out of your shells. Shoot your work off into the larger public. Partake in some writing contests. Get your words out there and help inspire the people who are lost. Reach for them. Guide them. Be a beacon of light, because the more lights you ignite in other people, the further and further and further it will spread and who knows? Maybe, just maybe we’re the difference waiting to happen.
Have faith in yourselves. Have respect for your fellow writers. Build a fighting spirit. Create the future through your words and inspire a new mindset for this world to fall on. You won’t know, until you try.
There was a fog rolling in from the north that enveloped the full moon’s light unto a night of pitch. The woods thickened with blinding shadows, forcing two young wolf brothers to hunt in a more visible clearing. They’d been outcasted from their pack and the drive from hunger oppressed them unto more bold territories. They pattered towards a small farm that rested at the feet of a moss encased butte. They could hear the sheep braying in the distance, jaws salving at the thought-taste of blood. The gray brother led the duo, his stormy eyes watching the heard behind the wicker fence. The sheep pitted their hooves to sod, growing slightly ill-eased. They’d captured the wolves’ scent. The grey brother searched for humans, then sniffed for wolfhounds. His brother, the rust wolf, whimpered against the pause – wanting so desperately to just charge and snatch a meal. But the eldest nipped at his younger brother, warning him to focus. He had his sights on an old ram near the closest corner of the sheeps-pen. He knew the ram might put up a fight, but if they went for him first, they would not have to worry about him charging them if they went after a dame. The brothers would have to stay low and sneak into the pen, diligently.
As the ram turned its back to them, the elder wolf hovered up and began trotting. He laid down swift, prancing steps, avoiding any eminent rustling. He trusted his youngest brother would observe and mimic. As they grew close, their hearts raced. They could almost taste the kill. Their hunger grew and eagerness set fire to their focus. The eldest prepared to lead the attack. His heart raced, eyes narrowing in, his muscles twitched…
But a low growl cooed in from behind wolf brothers. The bells on the sheep’s collars began to clank nervously as they hustled tightly together and panicked. The eldest wolf softly rose as he watched the heard disperse in terror. His younger brother whimpered and before the eldest was able to look, he was suddenly pinned to the ground on his back...
The black wolf was massive – nearly three times his own size. It stared down at him, golden eyes shimmering as if the moon’s light glittered through them. The black wolf only growled, it’s teeth barred slightly. The gray alpha was in a frozen-submit – his ears pinned and tail hoffed between his legs. There was nothing he could do. If he tried to fight, the giant wolf would rip out his throat before he was even able bare his own set of teeth. The younger brother tried to growl back, but it rattled in his throat weakly and squeaked through his maw as some half whimper. The black wolf turned his gaze on him and barred his teeth deeper. His eyes pulled the youngest wolf’s gaze in. There was a moment’s pause – a moment where the black beast let his eyes keep the peace. He would not hurt them, not unless they tried something against him. No, this was just a warning. Take your lives … and go. He seemed to say as he slowly let off the eldest brother and took a step back against the sheeps’ pen. As the eldest wolf brother rustled to his feet, he and his younger brother watched him in defense. They realized that he was guarding the sheep. There would be no free meal today, they knew. Or ever. Not on this farm. Slowly, they backed away and took off, fleeing back towards the woods…
Darius watched the brothers disperse, his breathing deep as he wanted so desperately to run off into the night with them. He longed for unity. But his pack was long gone—dead. And he was responsible for it. The sheep behind him began to settle down again. He glanced up at the full moon that slowly slipped through a patch of clouds. He could not help but bask in her light for a moment. He loved and hated her. But could not deny her light. It made him feel whole again, even for the slightest of a moment. But I will never sing to you again. He promised. Not after what she took from him.And when the fog began to blanket the moon once more, he gave her a snort and trotted off, back into the shadows…
”Darius . . .” The wind carried her voice to him. Gently, he poked his nose from beneath the pile of hay he’d buried himself in. He crashed into the sweeping rays of the moon and he closed his eyes as he felt her surround him. ”Darius, why do you hide from me?” He opened his eyes again and pulled away from her embrace. ”So many people need you, don’t you see?” She continued on, but Darius snorted and pulled himself back into the hay. And when he didn’t hear her voice again he opened his eyes and the night was dark again. She’d let him be and fell behind the clouds again. He whimpered lightly. I’ve never forgotten you, Darius. She reminded him. Don’t forget me. Don’t forget about . . . everyone else. And Darius lightly perked his ears up. Slowly he crawled out from beneath his hay bed and looked for her in the sky. The fog had finally captured her for the night, but in Darius’ heart he felt like something was wrong. A twitch in his tail caused it to sway and suddenly he took of running. He wasn’t sure where he was running to yet, but he felt it in his heart that he was racing towards where he needed to go. Something was happening. Something was coming. And it was finally time for Darius to become the moon's knight again . . .
