Dark. Hard. Cold.
I wake up in darkness
and don’t know how I got here
or how long it’s been.
There’s no sun here
no moon, no stars
and even the memory
of earth and sky
has long since faded.
My mind clutches at these words
but their meaning slips through my fingers
like so many grains of sand.
Four iron walls surround me.
Iron chains bind my arms and neck.
I lie naked
bound to the concrete floor
with only a sliver of sullen light
slipping through a crack beneath the door.
I strain against the chains in vain
and the sting of concrete and iron
chills my flesh and bone
until I’m too cold to shiver.
Soon, I lie still and silent.
Minutes flow into hours
hours into days
days into weeks, months, years
with no measure for the passage of time
other than the rise and fall of my breath.
My muscles wither from lack of use
and my eyes grow dull from lack of light
and I become an empty husk
dry, hard, brittle, cold.
I feel my heartbeat falter
and I sigh a heavy sigh
letting the air slip from my lungs
one last time.
But then, I start to remember.
My faltering heartbeat
reminds me that I have a heart.
My long and labored sigh
reminds me that I have a pair of lungs
and a chest that rises and falls
with my every breath.
As I start to remember
my pulse quickens
and I take a deep breath.
Blood and breath flow through my body
and though the chill still fills me
I start to remember
the feeling of hot blood
flowing through firm flesh.
At first, I still lie motionless
my muscles too weak to move.
But my heart beats
and my chest rises and falls
with the ebb and flow
of a rising tide of breath.
Minutes flow into hours
hours into days
days into weeks, months, years
and my body burns with an inner fire
that no iron or concrete can chill.
My muscles twitch and writhe,
trembling at first
under the weight of my frail frame.
But my heart beats
strong and steady like a drum
and my chest rises and falls
and with each breath I take
I strain against the weight
stretching and strengthening every sinew
struggling to sit up and get up and kneel
until one day I find myself
standing in the shadows.
As soon as I stand,
I feel the chains on my wrists and neck
pulled taut.
I stretch and strain against my manacles
but the cold iron is unmoved
and the concrete holds the chains in place.
For a moment, my stomach churns
and I fall to one knee
shaking and quaking with clenched fists
eyes clenched shut
jaw clenched open in a silent scream.
But then I remember my voice
and my cold iron cell
echoes with a hoarse holler.
My heartbeat races at the sound
and I rise to my feet
straining against the chains.
I open my mouth
and throw back my head
and let loose a howl.
My howl is a clap of thunder
shattering the silence of the cell.
I howl, and the walls tremble.
I howl, and the chains creak and shriek.
I howl, and the concrete cracks and crumbles.
I flex my muscles, and my arms break free.
With my clenched fists
I snap the chain binding my neck
and as my hands reach for the collar
I feel the torc of an ancient god.
And then, I remember.
In the span of a heartbeat
the cold iron cell
is flooded with the light and heat
of an inner sun.
A crown of antlers sprouts from my head
and the concrete is devoured from below
by creeping vines and rich black soil.
The light reveals the door to my prison
and I charge at it with fists and horns.
With a single blow
cold iron yields to hot flesh and bone
and the door flies from its hinges.
I leap across the threshold
into the light of day
and fall to one knee
with arms stretching skyward.
Sunrise surrounds me
and the sky blazes with
shades of red, orange, and blue
and the air is ripe with
the scent of soil and oak
and the sound of rippling creeks
and leaves in the wind
and creatures crackling through brambles.
I breathe it all in
and rise to my feet
cradling the rising sun in one hand
and the setting moon in the other.
I run through forest and meadow
hill and valley
mountain and plain
singing songs of soil and water and sky.
Behind me
the chains lie broken and buried
and all around me
the plants grow wild
and the animals run free.