He could hear music. There shouldn't be music, not here, not among so much death, but, still, even as he knew it wasn't possible he was sure he could hear it. Luka cocked his head as the notes seemed to swirl around him, the confusion of his already sky-high malarial fever melding with the shock of all they had been through. Could this be the sign that his time here was coming to an end? Could the music be a way for the angels to soothe whatever fears he might have about meeting his own death? As much as he hated to believe that the one thing he had dreamt about for far too many years might finally have found him, he wasn't sure that he was ready for it.
The music brought a sense of calm to him that he hadn't felt in some time. Gone was the fear that had gripped him as he'd watched Patrique fall beside him, instead, in it's place there was a familiarity that drew him back to his childhood. As he struggled to his knees he could easily imagine himself back in the safety and comfort of those days. No longer was he kneeling in the dirt, even the smell of death that had hung thick in the air as the sun beat down on them seemed to disappear. No, hearing the the music changed everything. As the prayers found their way to his lips he closed his eyes, in an instant it was as if everything that had happened since the Mai Mai's first attack became the dream. He could almost imagine he were once more in the Church of his youth, the smell of the censer's incense tickling his nose as the Priest paused to whisper his blessing, touching the sign of the cross to his forehead before moving past.
All too soon the illusion was gone, the spell broken as hurried voices around him destroyed the magic. It was only as he opened his eyes that he was aware of the Mai Mai surrounding him, it took longer to understand why. A priest...a priest? They thought he was a priest. It was only as they crossed themselves that it fully hit home, they pressed closer to him but not to steal his life from him as they had the others, they wanted his blessing. Of all the things he had thought illusions, could he have been wrong about the angels watching over him? It was the only way he could explain what was happening around him. For whatever reason they found his life worth saving, and he drew on their strength as he found the words to continue the prayers for those who now knelt around him.
2 comments:
Wonderful, especially with the video playing along as I read. I am always amazed how you manage to make the scenes you write so clear in my head as I read.
Thank you...it's nice to know that it affects people like that. When I write, I'm usually not satisfied unless I can read it and hear the actor's voice in my head, or visualize it myself. Thanks for taking time to comment.
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