8 February 2013
Based on an old piece that I wrote called 'Red lilies'. I like the idea, but not the way I'd written it, so I decided to alter it, and write it again...
Tendrils of her almost-white hair swirl around her face, like wisps of cloud enraged by the wind. She smiles knowingly, and mutters something under her breath. The waves lap at the ankles, pleading her to join them in the icy waters below, whispering to her softly. She obeys.
Slowly, her eyes closed, she wades forward into the sea until the water is hugging at her waist, salt staining her already ruined dress. I reach out; trying to tell her to turn back, but it’s too late. The bonds of this vision are too strong, and all I can do is watch, paralysed and alone. The water rises around her as she walks deeper into the waves. She seems calm, not noticing the endless clawing of the icy water at her chest, the sea scratching and shrieking, howling to the moon. Her face is pale, her skin translucent. Her whole being seems faded, like time has slowly washed out every speck of colour from her life.
Her feet stay planted firmly in the sand, and yet she still looks so delicate, like the slightest breeze could send her spiralling to the bottom of the ocean. I cough, and the edges of my vision start to blur, the whole world rippling violently. I scream, telling her to go, to leave this place but I’m frozen to the spot. The beach begins to fade, until all I can see is her pale face disappear beneath the waves.
***
The water laps at my feet, as if trying to tell me something. If I close my eyes, I can just about hear them, the waves whispering softly, telling me to follow them. I smile, and contemplate the idea. To be comforted by the tide, whispered to by the sea, protected by the ocean. A goddess of the waves.
The words are sweet on my tongue, and the very thought sets my mind on fire. A goddess. Eternally young, worshipped, remembered. I take a tentative step forward, wincing slightly as the water rises to my knees. Carefully, I unhook the turquoise pendant from my neck and throw it out into the waves. It glints gently in the sunlight, as if screaming for help and then sinks out of view. The salt water seeps into my cuts and grazes, a sharp pain flooding my senses, and overwhelming my thoughts. And yet I still walk. Forward, into the sea, the waves cradling me as I march onward, no longer noticing the pain. The waves rising above my head slowly, until I can smell, all I can taste, all I can feel, is the ocean.
*** I open my eyes, finally released from the cold grasp of the vision. Shaking hands pull back strands of almost-white hair from my face, revealing the turquoise stone hanging around my neck. It shimmers, a sharp contrast to the bleakness of the beach around me. Taking a deep breath, I close my eyes and head towards the ocean.
Visions. • Opuss № I