Paul J. Fleming's Blog, page 4

Alone in the Dark

Something was down here in the tunnels with him.
He was sure of it.
Not that he’d seen any evidence of a creature or person, but the sound which dogged his steps along the long, narrow tunnels seemed like the scuffle of little feet, yet when he turned and cast his light about there was nothing there.
Nothing but coarse, jagged rock which had been roughly hewn by pickaxe blades many years before. He had little knowledge of local history for the area so had no clue as to who made the tunnels, or why they’d chosen to craft such a labyrinth but knew first hand that it was a place the daylight could not reach.
All he had was his trusty flashlight which cast only a small pool of light against the darkness which lurked all about.
He didn’t know how far he’d strayed from the safety of the world above, but he’d left a trail of sticks in his wake that could be easily followed out to the yawning cave mouth when his exploration was done. He’d followed it back to the point where four of the roughly carved tunnels seemed to merge, but there was no sight of it any further in any of the three openings he now had to choose from.
The trail was gone.
That noise again, from somewhere behind him.
He whirled about and stabbed out with his torch, the beam of light exposing more rock and dirt as far as it could manage before being consumed by the darkness, but nothing to dissuade the fear which clawed its way up into his conscious mind.
He was being stalked.
He swallowed down the urge to turn and run, for he had no idea which way to go.
Would he plunge deeper into the caves or find his way out into the safety of daylight once more? Back into the waiting company of friends who’d dared him to go in and explore? How full of confidence and bravado he’d been back then, so filled with a sense of security which now evaded his grasp.
He wished they’d never come upon the cave entrance, or that their goading had not forced him within. He could be back in their cabin beside the roaring log fire, his friends all around and the darkness outside, but no. He was down in the tunnels with the darkness all around.
Something brushed lightly upon his neck.
He spun around. Was it a breeze, or something else? He wanted to go home.
The sound of each breath in and out marred the silence which surrounded him, interspersed with the thought that he could hear his own pounding heartbeat echo back from the rocky walls. Once more he saw nothing and felt very much alone.
The pool of light flickered for a moment, then blinked out of existence.
He swore softly and sunk to his knees as he slapped the side of his trusty torch trying to coax it back into life.
From somewhere in the distance a drop of water plunged down into a tiny pool and echoed against the quiet while a slight ethereal moan rose up as a breeze made its way though the winding, aged tunnels burrowed deep beneath the earth, a damp, musty scent trailing in its wake.
He froze as the sound of scuffling could be heard once more, this time without mistake and it seemed to be moving toward him.

Quick Story Challenge
Alone in the Dark – © 2021 Paul J. Fleming

Not aimed at any particular market or word count, I just did this one for fun. Basically for practice.
Neither the antagonist nor protagonist are properly defined, but rather simply ‘someone in the dark’ thinks they hear ‘something in the dark’. It’s more about the actual setting and the scene-setting than the characters. The sense of being alone and separated from the rest of the human race, facing a potential threat.
More practice needed.

Watery Grave

Mark tore his right arm free and quickly set about removing the bonds which held him to the chair, horribly aware of the water which poured in through the small porthole windows at the far end of the cabin, moving ever closer across the slanted deck toward his feet.
Whoever tied him to that chair had clearly intended for him to go down with the ship.
With a final tug, he pulled the last rope free and lurched over toward the door, his hand firmly upon the handle as he pulled but the door refused to budge.
He tried again, with more ferocity than before but with the same unyielding result.
The door was locked.
He was still trapped.
Panic surged up from deep within as he glanced back toward the rising water which continued to creep across the angled deck towards his feet, then about the room in search of another way out, but none of the portholes was large enough to fit through.
He turned back to the door, pounded his fists against the unyielding surface and shouted out for help as the icy water slowly seeped into his boots.
Was this really how his story would end?

200 Word Story Challenge
Watery Grave – © 2021 Paul J. Fleming

After taking part in the 100 word micro fiction challenge, I scoured the other Genre/Action/Word combinations and a few short tales began to unravel in my tiny brain.
I did feel very constricted by the 100 word limit, so chose to up the count a little (yes, a bit of a cheat but – who cares?). Thanks to NYC Midnight for the prompts. I may work through a few of these as little exercises to dust off ‘the little grey cells‘.

Measure of Prevention

He lowered the small ring box as her words sliced through the air and pierced deep into his chest.
She’d led him along like all those others and now the pain he felt turned to anger as he stood up.
He had no doubt she’d return and tell people about his proposal of marriage which would lead to scorn and ridicule, but only if she were allowed to.
She turned away with a shake of her head but her laughter only fueled his deadly intent.
The box fell away as his hand found the giant knife sheathed on his belt.

100 WordMicrofiction – NYC Midnight
Measure of Prevention – © 2021 Paul J. Fleming

This was my entry into the 100-word Micro-fiction challenge, in which we were split into groups and provided a Genre, Action and Word to use for our creation.
For my grouping, the Genre was Horror, the Action was Proposing Marriage and the word that should be included was Giant.

I will be the first to admit that the small clip above does not ooze with gore or send chills down the spine, but I was a bit lost – I mean, another group pulled “Sci-Fi”, “watching Television” and “smooth” whilst another received “Historical Fiction”, “Wiggling Toes” and “Waste”. For some reason, my own allocation just drew a large blank in my mind.

In any case, I feel quite happy to post this up before the judgement round completes because I made a glaring error and have fallen at the first hurdle. In my bid to reduce the words below the 100 word count I failed to make a final edit and swap the final line for the intended version. As such, the word “Giant” was missed out completely due to my furious editing as the deadline drew close. A learning experience! Don’t leave your edits to the last ten minutes!!
I’ve provided the final ‘intended’ version of the story above. The submitted last line which spelt my doom was:
“The small box fell away as his hand found the knife sheathed on his belt.”

As you can see, just two words of difference but ones which decided my fate. I wish the remaining authors all the best for the next round and shall endeavour to do better next time!

Lurker in the Shadows

You don’t see me lurking, wrapped as I am in the shadows.

I see you, though. I see you quite clearly and despair of your
daily efforts to keep up the front of everything going so well, when we both
know that really isn’t the truth.

I call to you so softly in those moments of quiet solitude
to pull you closer to my domain, to have you share in my world as you force me
to endure your own. I hear your thoughts clearly for we are one, you and I.

I am you, and I know your fears…

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100 Word Story Challenge
Lurker in the Shadows – © 2019 Paul J. Fleming

The Jewellery Box

I opened the next box which I’d pulled down from a shelf, my
mind steadfast against the contents and those feelings I’d buried away for
almost eight years. It wasn’t something I relished, but my daughter was eager
to know more about her late Gran and I was the one she turned to.

There was her jewellery box at the bottom and I pulled it
free, lifting the lid as I did so. The faint scent of her favourite perfume
drifted up and caught me completely unawares.

My daughter was quite surprised too as she’d not seen me cry before…

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100 Word Story Challenge
The Jewellery Box – © 2019 Paul J. Fleming

This particular Quick Read was based on true events which happened late summer/early august 2019. My daughter wanted to know more about her late Gran, as she was less than a year old when my Mum died.

I suppose you could say that I’ve learned to temper my reaction to the sight of my Mum in photos or videos, or the sound of her voice. I suppose I just wasn’t ready to be assailed by the familiar smell of the perfume she loved to wear…

The Dinner Party

I watched with a mix of malicious glee and anticipation as he walked around the edge of the room, then made his way in a casual manner toward the table of our intended victim.

I thought he wouldn’t dare make an attempt in so public a place, but my friend had assured me that he was made of much sterner stuff than I gave him credit for.

My mood soon shifted to one of sheer incredulity as he reached the target and deftly tipped his arm so that his drink fell upon her shoulder, to be followed by profuse apologies…

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100 Word Story Challenge
The Dinner Party – © 2019 Paul J. Fleming

One Dark Night

The path before me was shrouded in darkness and only visible
by the light of the moon which seemed uncommonly large and low in the dark sky
above.

A cold, damp breeze swirled all around as I pulled up the collar of my long, dark overcoat to try and reduce the chill on my neck, even though I was already cold to the bone. Despite the gloves I wore, my fingers ached as I forced them to move and my breath coalesced into soft, grey clouds before my face as I plunged onward.

I had a purpose, despite my fears…

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100 Word Story Challenge
One Dark Night – © 2019 Paul J. Fleming

A Mad Invention

“Look at this!” he enthused, and I was ushered towards the
low-slung workbench, which had pieces of paper strewn upon it filled with scribbles
and other scraps which seemed pushed carelessly over to one side. “What do you
think?”

I turned my gaze away from the contraption which took
centre-stage to glance up at my friend, my face a mask of diplomacy to hide my
concern for his state of mind.

“It’s a trap,” he remarked as if to dispel my confusion and I turned back to gaze upon the device he had made. “To catch those confounded little people…”

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100 Word Story Challenge
A Mad Invention – © 2019 Paul J. Fleming

The Train Station

The cold, damp air brought with it a musty, earthen scent as
I pulled myself up onto the platform and paused to glance around.

In its day, the underground station would’ve echoed with life as people bustled to and fro, their minds solely engaged in going to work and then the return journey home. Little did they think of the world outside their sphere of interest and how soon it would all be swept away.

Once there were trains which ran along the tracks that vanished into the darkness, but now those tunnels only gave shelter to the thousands of dispossessed.

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100 Word Story Challenge
The Train Station – © 2019 Paul J. Fleming

Overcoming a Phobia

For as long as I can recall I have scribbled small stories
and little tales which amused the mind, and gave rise to the concept of a
writing career from an early age but, dare I pull back the veil, brought with
it a distinct case of atychiphobia – fear of failure.

I didn’t understand at first. I’d post up my work for all to
see and then feel ill to my core as exposure increased, my words unworthy
within the field of fiction or fantasy.

It’s taken time for me to overcome that fear, but it still lingers – even now…

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100 Word Story Challenge
Overcoming a Phobia – © 2019 Paul J. Fleming

Note: I chose to go with a more factual slant here as I was engrossed in some research about the phobias people suffer and wanted to do something other than the normal arachnophobia, coulrophobia or claustrophobia… then I came upon atychiphobia, which is fear of failure.

I’d not imagined myself ‘afraid’ to the point of having a phobia, but the more I delved into it, the more I came to believe I had some classic symptoms and often went as far as to sabotage my own efforts to avoid the ultimate potential of failure. Hence I chose to write this piece based on myself and my own experience.

The list I used (and related links therein) for research can be found here:
https://www.healthline.com/health/list-of-phobias#treatment