ara pehlivanian

As some of you may be aware, I aspire to eventually write a novel. So in an effort to exercise my authoring abilities I’ve decided to write (very) short stories from time to time and post them here. This of course will allow me to practice while hopefully garnering constructive criticism.

For those who are about to read: Enjoy.

Slowly, ever so slowly, the oblivion began to fade. What had been an intangible void reluctantly began to give way to darkness. Though it wasn’t much, it was still identifiable and so welcome. Next came the cloudy awareness of self, a mind trying to make sense of its environs. Familiarity was one of the first things it reported, as though the oblivion had temporarily receded several times before. Hovering on the edge of consciousness and hungry for sensory input it tried to focus through the pervading haze in order to get its bearings.

Its first attempts were met with failure. No response. Just darkness. Then, gradually those connected to it began to report in. One by one, they made their presence known: lungs (labouring), throat (sore), mouth (dry), arms (heavy), and so on. Finally, in a muddled chorus, the whole of them communicated complete exhaustion, as though every last one of them had been exerted to their limit. Then, one by one they began to fade, disappearing in the returning oblivion.

This time it was different though. Rather than fading to nothingness, the darkness gave way to images, inexplicable dreams, each more frightening than the one before. The net effect of which was a paralyzing terror causing the mind to reach out to its subordinates in desperation.

The lungs were the first to respond, with a sudden and deep gasp of air filling them. The dormant muscles in the back came to life arching tightly to assist the lungs in maximizing their capacity for oxygen. The heart by now was pounding at a feverish pace.

Then it happened.

The eyelids snapped open widely, letting in a flood of light through the unprepared pupils. The resulting overload on the retinas translated into a sharp stabbing sensation in the brain. That’s when the entire body slacked.

Some time passed while the mind absently pondered it’s awakening. Little by little, it began to venture into higher levels of thought culminating in one distinct question: “Who am I?”