The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!
She comes to me as the first rays of dawn cascade down her shoulders and swirl at her feet with each purposeful stride. Soon she will cloy her way deep under the lush earth to rest beneath the bones of all those who dare to threaten her on my watch.
Eons before, I rode with my Mistress down from the mountains in the sky to this land of soft yet crunchy creatures. We wandered fertile lands, Her terrifying beauty commanding all those who laid eyes upon her. My purpose has always been to keep them at a distance worthy of my Goddess.
Back in the beginning millennia, it was simple. Her mere presence sent even the most brazen cowering in awe. But with each new civilization, they grew more desirous of Her. They erected monuments to Her, worshiped Her, sacrificed for Her, and sent their assassins to try to claim Her power as their own. Even in those moments though, the reverence was still there.
Then something happened and our time on this mortal plane changed. The soft and crunchy creatures stopped believing. Those that did believe hunted my Mistress down, not for power, but because they thought us monsters.
We were forced to hide, gone too long from our home upon the mountain to return, we were stuck here. Through their fear and hate they turned us into the very things they fear.
She still wanders among them at night, learning their ever-changing ways, and I remain on watch through the days as she slumbers beneath their bones. She leaves them there as a warning, and a snack for me. With billions swarming about in this tiny realm, I don’t worry about running out of soft and crunchy snacks any time soon.
Fiction © Copyright Bailey Hunter
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com
More about Bailey Hunter:
Bailey is a publisher with Dark Recesses Press.
Dark Recesses Press is a publishing house dedicated to providing high quality dark fiction in its many forms to the reader. Our end goal is to impress and entertain, no matter what dark recesses we dare shine our light on.
A darkly cool story.