The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

Amplifying the Message  
by Rie Sheridan Rose 

When I see the world falling apart around me, I have a tendency to go hiking. It soothes my mind and opens my soul. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that I was strolling through the park that night. I had left my campground behind, unable to sleep because of worry. I mean, who wouldn’t be worried? The country is a mess.

So, I was strolling along, as I said, when I saw a glow in the distance. Curious, I wandered over to see what was going on.

A tree stood alone in the center of a clearing. It blazed with fire! I dashed forward. With all the conflagrations that have destroyed so much land of late, I needed to see what I could do to put out the flames. If it spread to the surrounding forest—

—but when I reached the tree, I could see the grass beneath the roots didn’t even look scorched. So weird…

When I got close to the tree, a voice boomed out, “Don’t come any closer!”

I froze. What the hell?

“Stand where you are,” it continued. “This is sacred ground. Do not defile it by coming any closer.”

This was strange…but it sounded familiar. “Where are you?”

“I am all around you.”

“Who are you?”

“I think you know.”

“Maybe…but I think I’d like to hear it from you.”

“If you insist.” The voice seemed a bit petulant now. “I am the Lord thy God.”

“Holy shit!”

“Indeed.” A tremendous sigh shook the burning branches. “But that’s not important right now. I need you to spread a message for me—amplify the signal, or whatever you humans say this century.”

“What?”

“I need you to tell people how to fix the problems you are facing at the moment.”

“Why me?”

“I dunno…you were the first person to see my message.”

“You mean the huge burning tree?”

“Yes. That message.”

“But…I’m just a pizza delivery guy.”

“Moses was just a shepherd when I contacted him.”

“Yeah, but—”

“Look, dude! I need you to spread this message, okay?”

“Why are you burning this nice tree? There’s a dead bush right over there. You thought it good enough for Moses…”

“I need you to amplify the signal. Things are much worse than they were.”

“The Egyptians were enslaving the whole Israelite nation!”

“Alright, alright. Yeah, things were bad then. But they are much worse now. The whole world is in danger of falling apart if we don’t do something about it.”

“Uh…okay. But I don’t see what I can do about it.”

“Tell people to change their ways!” thundered the voice. “Before it is too late!”

“Chill! I’ll try.”

So, here I am. Amplifying the message. We need to get our act together. I’d hate to see what He might decide to burn next…

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Fiction © Copyright Rie Sheridan Rose
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com

More from Author Rie Sheridan Rose:

Overheard in Hell:
Dark Poetry

Poems exploring hell and damnation. Tales of sorrow, vengeance, betrayal, and redemption. Ghosts, ghouls, and demons stalk these pages. Don’t read in a lonely house…in a darkened room by a single candle…

…unless you like the touch of an icy finger up your spine.

Available on Amazon!