Death and The Maiden - PJ Lynch
Death had spent all of eternity helping those who have left one life to pass in to the next. Although Death loved this job, he grew tired and lonely. Each day the same thing with no benefit to him. He began to search for a connection to something, anything. He tried various options. He attempted to speak to those who were about to pass, but they were afraid. He tried to sing to those who were not yet dead, but they screamed in fear. It was not long until Death discovered that by simply touching those who were passing through he could see their souls, feel what they felt and finally, have a connection to something. He had never experienced such beauty. Each soul a different kaleidoscope of colours, shapes, movement and sometimes, on those who were particularly soulful, music.
Death never had the chance at having his own soul and so he quickly found himself consumed by the souls of others. An addiction he could never give up. Each hour he would hold the hand of another passing body and feel everything they felt. Sadness, joy, regret, fear…these were all new experiences to Death. Each accompanied by a movement of colour and sound. He could feel, hear and see their last moments and never in your wildest dreams would you be able to imagine how beautiful it was.
One day Death took the hand of a young maiden. Before Death could understand what had happened he was consumed in sorrow. He had felt sorrow many times before but this was deeper. There was anguish here. Consumed by her soul, Death found himself surrounded by a dark cloud. A living cloud which pulsated with each new emotion that ran through the young maiden’s soul. She was wrapped in turmoil and dripping in remorse. As desperately as he tried, he could not let go of the young maiden’s hand and before he could understand it, he had her in his arms. Shards of dark, smouldering glass shot up all around them before collapsing into a murky ocean, fluctuating with each last heartbeat that the maiden felt. Death could feel himself sinking deeper and deeper into this abyss, filled with despair. How could such a young, beautiful maiden have so much darkness within her soul?
Death wept the lower they sank until eventually his feet felt the ground beneath him. It was dark and empty like a large cave. As they stood in the centre of this cave he was left with one emotion. Loneliness clung to every inch of that dark cavern and they could not escape it, no matter how hard they tried.
To his surprise the young maiden looked up at Death and smiled. How is she not afraid? How could someone with so much darkness be the first person to smile at Death? That is when he felt it. For the first time, she was not alone. She had Death by her side.
