I loved incorporating a plethora of ‘sounds’ in this piece of homework.
The idea came from something I had recently written in my novel, but this flash fiction story is a lot more dramatic, with a twist at the end.
A dog howls, its whine cruel and unearthly. They cannot be far behind.
I gasp for air, my breath ragged as I race through the tree lined avenue.
Eyes blinded by tears, my heart pumping with fear. Leaves crunch raucously beneath my feet.
The pitter-patter of rain across the canopy intensifies into a low rumble. Rogue droplets beat down on the forest floor, pooling to form a raging torrent beneath my feet. The water gurgling and spluttering as it gullies down the path.
I am soaked, the swish of material now clings heavily to my body.
The wind whistles and shrieks through the avenue as the trees creak from the onslaught.
A flash of brilliant bright white above my head, followed by a deafening thunderous boom. I duck instinctively.
The ground crackles, blue sparks dance like fireflies around my ankles.
The track turns into a path of tangled roots and the canopy thickens. Brambles whip my face, tearing at my clothes as I struggle to fight my way through.
My lungs are at bursting point when I spy the cottage in the clearing.
Hope penetrates the foreboding.
But I stumble and lose my balance, knee twisting with a crunch as I go down.
Hands grate across the muddy path, screeching to a halt as my head collides with a thud on a protruding tree root.
I lie on a bed of leaves, the world now tipped sideways. White noise, before a veil of darkness envelopes me.
An unfamiliar but rhythmic bleep pierces the stillness…
I shield my eyes as I open them, the white sheets and fluorescent lights a blinding contrast to the dark and sinister woods.
I’m in a bed, tubes protruding from my arm.
A woman appears at my bedside.
I try to listen to the words, watch her lips forming shapes, but it is a mumble of incoherent sounds.
I stare at her in confusion, she is dressed in blue. I don’t recognise her.
A searing pain from just above my eye, I reach up, wince.
She is calling my name, her hand on my shoulder.
‘It was just a nightmare Elizabeth’ she speaks softly ‘trust me’.
My skin prickles…
Copyright © 2019 Lottie McKnight. All rights reserved.