Deliverence

  Icy wind rushed about and she shuddered.

      “Enough,” she whispered as she wrapped a thin blanket around herself. “This is enough.”

     ‘Yes,’ a disembodied voice spoke. It came from all four corners of the dark room at once. ‘Stay and sleep. Stay and rest.’

   Icicles formed on her fingertips but the girl shoved her hands into her armpits, sinking deeper into the blanket. “I shall sleep and when I wake up it will be warm.” She lay on her side and shut her eyes. Her lashes were cold strings against her cheeks and her breath, a puff of air. ‘Yes! Slumber and relief will come to you,’ the voice had risen an octave and sounded almost gleeful.

   In the inky silence, a rumble echoed. The girl’s hands fluttered over her stomach and tears pricked her eyes. “I’m hungry,” she whispered to the voice. 

   ‘It will pass.’

   “I’m starving.”

   ‘Remember my words. It will pass.’

   “But I’ve been empty since the beginning!” the girl shrieked. 

   A deafening roar broke out and the girl pursed her lips. A single tear slid down her cheek, falling to the floor. 

   ‘The master created me to protect you. So, believe my words for whatever I speak is for you.’

   “For me,” the girl repeated and put the blanket back on. “I am protected and this is enough.”

   ‘Yes, I will protect you and I am enough.’

   The girl’s fingers were tight around the corners of the blanket but her chest was weak. Her flesh and bones were solid but inside she was melting and burning. The voice was whispering but she repeated its words robotically. Outside she was cold but inside she was hot. She pressed a palm against her chest and felt her skin tear. A bone cracked. And then flesh squelched. Her fingers sank inside and touched something warm and metallic.

   With a rattling breath, she drew it out of her and saw a key resting in her palm. It was shining and golden. 

   ‘What have you done?’

   The girl raised the key. “Pretty,” she whispered.

   The temperature dropped and the wind turned harsh. ‘Give it to me. Let me destroy it.’

   “Why?” The girl gripped the key tighter.

   ‘Look around. Is it a part of us?’

   Obeying, the girl observed the darkness and then the worn blanket rumpled on her lap. “No,” she replied. “It’s empty and dark, but this is bright and beautiful.”

   ‘So, it’s dangerous. It is not like you so you should destroy it.’

   One finger loosened, and then another. The girl placed the key on the ground and bowed her head. A shadow emerged, its phantom hands reaching for the key. Within the girl, a thump sounded, and then another. Like a bolt of lightning, she snatched up the key and held it close. “But, it came out of me.”

   The phantom froze and the entire room seemed to be looking at her. 

   ‘What?’

   “You’re wrong! It’s a part of me. It’s mine!”

   Something shimmered on her right and she looked to see a tiny hole. A gasp broke out of her–not at the hole but at the slim streak of light piercing its way in. Dropping her blanket, she ran toward it. Her toes were almost caressed by the light before a shadow broke through the floor, rising like a formidable wall. 

       “Can I please go?” she asked.

       ‘No. It’s dangerous,’ the voice replied. ‘The master said that I must keep you safe.’

   “I have been waiting for the master since the beginning.” The girl’s voice shook. “I cannot wait anymore.”

   She pushed against the shadow but it did not budge. She banged against it and dragged her nails over it but still it did not move. Resting her head against it, she sobbed. “Can I please go?”

‘I cannot do anything unless the master orders it.’

Pulling at her hair in frustration, the girl screamed, “Who is the master and why hasn’t he come yet? Why has he left me here and what does he want?”

The voice was quiet and as if awoken from a decade of sleep, the girl blinked. 

“There is no master, is there?” she whispered.

The voice still didn’t speak and she fell on her knees. “I’ve been trapped in here for nothing. I’ve starved and I’ve shivered for nothing.” Anger flamed to life and she slowly pivoted, eyeing the whole room with hatred. “It is you who did this to me. You kept me here in this awful place!”

‘Was I the one who thought of this as home?’

The voice was closer than usual, crawling over her skin like spiders. Seeping into her ears and her skull. ‘You came to me for help and you asked me to protect you.’

Confusion made the girl’s head throb and she began gasping for breath. She did not remember what the voice spoke of but she had thought the voice was her friend, she had thought the voice had saved her and that it was right. 

‘You joined yourself so closely with me that you forgot who you were,’ the voice hissed into her ear.

The hair on the back of her neck prickled and she stiffened, afraid to move or even breathe. 

“I am the master,” she breathed.

Laughter exploded like fireworks and the temperature warmed slightly. ‘Finally you’re back. We’ve been waiting for you.’

The girl looked down at the key in her trembling hands. One finger curled around it, and then another. She knew exactly what she had to do. Stepping close to the wall again, she placed a hand on it and raised her chin. 

“Let me go,” she demanded. 

Like misty drapes, the shadows fell away and the girl could see the hole again. Gingerly, she tiptoed to it–afraid it might disappear–and then pushed the key into it. The door swung open and she inhaled sharply. Warm wind washed over her and the flowers sprawled across a grassy land. She hesitantly raised a foot and then set it down on the grass, making the blades crunch softly. The sweet scents of the flowers mingled and swarmed around her, dulling her senses.

She looked back into the room and beckoned to the voice. “No darkness shall remain,” she said with a smile. 

The shadows from all around the room came together and formed a massive roiling ball. It then shrunk to the size of a pea and the girl watched in fascination. It bulged and thinned until it formed the shape of a butterfly. The blackness fell away, leaving shimmering purple wings and slim little legs which now perched on the girl’s finger.

With an even wider smile, the girl finally turned her back on the room and let the door shut behind her. The key in her hand floated up and disappeared into fine golden powder but it didn’t bother her because she was home.