The Pen is Earthier

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By dawn the next day the foreboding of the previous day’s plunging barometer had manifested itself into the makings of a storm. Dark clouds lolled in the air. Moving slothlike across the darkening sky, threatening us cowering humans here on terrafirma.

But this was no ordinary weather front and the overly curious man among us hoisted his only child, a manchild, up onto his shoulders and stepped out of the shelter. He walked with child to the barricade and stood listening, waiting, smelling the air every now and then as if to pick up the scent of the invaders before we could see them.

I beckoned to him and called him to return to the shelter lest he lead the invaders to our bolthole. He heard me. I know he did because the child reacted and squirmed around to peer in the direction of my voice. The curious father idiot, faked deafness or simply plum ignored my calling.

He put his child in danger each second he remained at the barricade. The fool.

And this is how I came to leave the shelter to go rescue the child for its mother was apoplectic with fear and her natural motherly instincts were screaming out to protect the only child she had birthed in her union with The Fool.

I scurried into the strange light across the sandy beach to ward the barricade. When I was within arms length of the man and child, he turned to confront me. As he did my eyes were caught by the light reflecting off a pen he had in his shirt’s breast pocket that was partially hidden from view by the calf of the child’s left leg.

At the instant I opened my mouth to tell him to give me the child, there was a noise I had never heard before, a crack so loud I involuntarily brought my hands up to cover my ears. I blinked instinctively to save my sight from the blinding flash.

Lightening had struck and earthed itself on the pen that The Fool carried in his pocket. Burned flesh pervaded the air. A woman’s screams grew louder and more piercing. The mother was getting closer. I opened my eyes. Then wished I had not.

I slouched back to the shelter. What could I do?

The Pen is Earthier