A Door in the Dark by Scott Reintgen

The wind swirls around a stick-thin girl, shoving the rain into her face so that it slaps at her cheeks. She is minuscule, short and skinny, her eyes a brilliant green that shines like emeralds. However, thick glasses hide their spectacular beauty, with lenses that dull her eyes' brightness and color. Her soft, wavy hair is a startling red, cutting off abruptly at the shoulders, giving her a childlike face to match her childlike body.

She is sitting, her thin dress sticking to her soaked skin as the rain pounds even more determinedly on her form, on the muddy ground. Thunder roars over her head, crackles of lightning striking the air. All she sees is darkness. For her, there is nothing but darkness.

She knows she is in danger of dying. The lightning is close, and if one tree catches on fire, the whole forest will burn. She has nowhere to hide if that happens, no one to call for help. Her cell phone lies beside her, dead from the constant downpour of water. However, it is easy for her to stay calm.

Life is not important to her anymore, though, so she does not care if she sizzles away.

A single tear evacuates her eye, swimming down her cheek, joining the rivers of water that rushes down her body. A living nightmare surrounds her, the terrible breeze slamming the rain into random destinations, the plants swaying. A tree is close to falling on her, leaning her way, precariously close to breaking away from its trunk.

She barely notices that she is crying heavily, her tears accompanying the storm's efforts to make her as miserable as possible. She feels dirty, the mud giving her a sick feeling in her stomach. On a whim, she wishes for a hot shower, with warm steam embracing her.

Movement is impossible for her.

She wants to end it here. Right now. It would be so easy... so sweet as the pains of life would fade away. She wonders why God had to give her the ugly face, the childlike form, and the snobby attitude that made so many people hate her.

Why does she have to be the unlucky one?

Now she cannot see, the rain blinding her. Her glasses slid off her nose, falling to the ground, the glass quickly sinking into the dirt. Unbelievably, the water starts to pour even harder from the hectic skies, temperature dropping by the second. Goosebumps appear on her arm. Her breaths become visible, clouds appearing in wisps directly in front of her.

The cold gets worse.

She looks to the ground, uncertain in her features. Is she really ready to let herself die here? Is it time for her to leave this world?

A tiny sliver of fear enters her thoughts.

She realizes quickly that these may be her last breaths. She tries to savor each of them, reaching with a delicate hand to try to catch the clouds that lingered before her. The question pounds in her head, making her dizzy.

Is she truly ready to die?

The thunder looms closer, the clouds overhead parting a little. Through the crack in the clouds, she can spot a full moon. She stares at it, awe searing through her at its beauty. It truly is a wonderful sight, the perfect circle illuminated by pure white light, the only incandescence currently in her world. It is symbolic of hope to her, hope that she will go on. Hope that everything will be okay.

Suddenly a hard rock pounds against her shoulder. She gasps in pain, her shoulder throbbing from the impact.

The moon vanishes as the dark clouds steal it away from her.

Another object lands on her knee, the same pain recurring. The girl remains in her position, pain etched in her face. She grabs the strange rock, holding it close to her eyes so she can see it. Her eyes widen.

"Hail," she whispers as another rock comes hurtling towards her. It is big, about the size of a nickel, falling at an incredible speed. It is aimed for her head.

She sees it coming, an amazing ball of energy, ready to deal the death blow. She is frozen. Death is finally here to take her away. This is what she wants, right? She should be happy. Deliverance from the pain, the endless suffering, is here.

The fear is the thing that is taking away her happiness.

There is a split silence, and then there is a howl in the night as the terrible ice rock clamors to meet its destination.

***

He can hear it. Its accelerated breathing pounds in his ears, signaling its close proximity.

He ventures closer to the presence, the thing that dares to be in his territory at this time. It is terrible timing for the intruder, whatever it is, for tonight he is at his strongest.