The Tree

A man's dying thoughts

He laid there, the burning blanketing his skin. This was the work of the sun he had worshipped days, maybe weeks, ago. He had been there so long he lost all reasoning of time. This god, this provider had been slowly destroying him. Was this a mercy killing, or was it just laughing at his destruction?

As a boy, he ran in its warm embrace, laughing. Laughing evolved into loving as he came of age. Pain of the heart took hold of him as he remembered Her, the one who first knew of him, and his strength. He remembered the touch of her lips as he left the village. His heart sank low as he remembered the promise. He said, with the utmost confidence, that he would return. He knew now that he would only see her again in the veil. The painful tears burned as they fell. Eventually his pain sent him into the darkness.

Cawing of the scavenger woke him. He looked into its eyes and saw vulture's pity. This creature, a devourer of the dead, had sympathy for the mighty warrior. The bird nodded and took flight. The scavenger would not eat him, not for the sacrifice he was making. He knew this sacrifice was necessary, and would have gladly ripped his heart out. This death, this slow wasting was a greater pain then he could have imagined. Eventually the warrior fell back into his dreams, back into her arms.

Once again, the burning woke him. Once again, he could not flail as he wished, he could not scream as he wished. He could only lay there, crying as he waited for the end. It would not come quickly. No, the tree, the life source needed his pain. It was its source. This was the greatest betrayal of all. This mockery, this sadism from his life giver dug deep into him.

He watched as the bare limbs sprouted in light green buds. His pain, his dreams and his very soul was the source for these babes. He prayed to the tree that his pain, his suffering would be enough to sate its hunger. He fell back into the darkness one last time, knowing that he had not given enough. He could not have. He was only a man.

© 2011 Amund Schofield

Author's Note

pay attention to grammar, and tell me if you see anywhere that I should expand the story.

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FantasyWriter01

What a story! Loved it! If you want to know grammar, in the first paragraph there's the word worshipped. That's spelled like this: worshiped.
Excellent detail and description. Just edit it a bit, and you'll have a great story!
I want to hear more! The ending was suspenseful and made me want to read more of your stories and read more to this one! Keep writing, and good luck!!