Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt:
Vine
The Submission:
Before long, the two reached an impassable wall; gnarled vines twisted high up to the misty sky, and they were faced with either turning back, traversing the outside in hopes of a door, or climbing their way up.
“I… I can’t do it…” Blake stammered, looking bashfully at his boots. “The height…”
Leon placed a hand on the young mage’s shoulder. “We’ll camp here for tonight,” he said. “May courage find your heart by the ‘morrow.”
While the swordsman slept soundly, Blake sat up in his blanket, transfixed by the knotted roots, and replayed the scene over and over. It was always the same: his father moved from handhold to handhold, deftly defying gravity as he scaled the marble cliffs, but for the leering, ragged crow that pecked feverishly at his very skin.
Of course, Blake had been but a boy, incapable of helping as his father plummeted to his death, but of all the dark forces in this world, heights still frozen his bones to the quick.
“You’ll fall,” an ominous whisper came on the wind. Blake looked up and swore he spied a crow against the dark emptiness of the abyss. “You’ll fall… You’ll fail.”
Blake frowned with resolve. “Mayhap,” he muttered. “But first, I’ll try!”
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Dr. K's Waiting Room 