The Last Word

My first stab at Flash Fiction. 150 words exactly.

The Last Word

Once, there was a kingdom that valued words over all else. Children were read to from birth; libraries lived on every corner and storytellers were revered as royalty. Into this land appeared a spiteful demon. It’s language was coarse and it’s hatred of stories, all encompassing. It began to devour them, word by word.

At first they did not notice phrases disappearing, but within a short while, the people grew terrified as their vocabulary disintegrated. Very soon they could barely speak at all. A wiseman was summoned to capture the demon and banish it from the land. He devised a cunning trap that soon ensnared the vile creature.

The demon was furious to be caught and swore that he would have the last word, but the people were pleased with themselves and they banished him far away. Soon normality returned along with their stories, and they all lived happily ever...

Reviews

[Steve Wilson]

I liked it, both from the "children's story" aspect and also from the darker viewpoint, where it can easily be applied to instances of book burning that have occurred periodically throughout history.