Welcome to Flashes of Sanity! Your weekly dose of flash fiction on 500 words or less.
This week’s entry: The Priest
Enjoy!
Aaron glanced at the cross.
“Dear merciful lord,” he said. “Show me the righteous path. Show me the road to your blessed garden. Show me how my gratitude best may serve you.”
He moved his hand from his forehead to his chest, and to his two shoulders.
Believers entered and left as sun moved between the painted glass windows. Aaron never left his place on the bench.
“Thank you for saving me,” he whispered over and over again. “Thank you.”
He didn’t even move when the daylight faded or the moon replaced its shining friend.
“Thank you.”
“Your prayers won’t matter when the world turns red…”
Nightly shadows fled as a light exploded in the room. Aaron flew back in his bench and fell down behind it.
“None of your prayers will matter.”
Aaron raised his hands to cover his face from the approaching light. The light shone though his skin, muscles and bones.
“Please, lord,” he whispered. “Please, I will do anything.”
“I am not your lord.” The light leaned so close it touched Aaron’s face with its shimmering fingers. “I am just his words.”
The light felt cold against Aaron’s cheek. Aaron pushed himself closer to the floor. He shivered.
“Arise for me son,” the light said. “Stand with pride in your back. You will guide the world through a new dawn, and through a world where only devils can thrive. You will be the lords final hope when all else seems forsaken.”
“Yes,” Aaron’s tongue stumbled behind his teeth, yet he managed to get up on his feet and look into what he supposed was the saint’s eyes. “Just tell me what to do.”
“All will come clear once the first signs of a world falling shows itself, we need you to be ready when that day comes. We need you to be prepared to light the path when only darkness exists.”
The light disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. Only its final words echoed between the thick stone walls.
“Be prepared to light the path when only darkness exists,” Aaron mumbled. He looked around at the shadows who once again found their nests in the moon light. “I will guide the world through a new dawn.”
Only an angel watched him from behind the clouds. The angle sighed at the sight of his disciple’s confused mumbling.
“Idiot,” Mort whispered. “Hopefully, this idiot stands a better chance than the others.”
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Copyright © David B. Johansson 2021
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