Hero I seem, Coward I fall

A short story about derived from ideas about Beowulf the story.

 

            Today is just another day, another day of death without escape. At night I stand awake and alert upon my high tower as I watch for invaders. These are not ordinary invaders I speak of. Not invaders of men or mass armies but those from the deepest depths of hell. No man could ever fathom such a sight unless seen from his own eye.

            From a foreign view, my job seems that of such up most importance but in reality it is one of nothing. When the sun sinks low and night creeps upon us, I stand and wait. It’s not every night that these foreign invaders scavenge our lands but when they do I am the first to know. I sight them from a far and warn our warriors of the on coming predators. Sometime my warnings are of help but mostly not. There is not much that can stop these evil creatures. Warrior’s swords and armor have no hold on the powers of our enemies. We stand and fight back with no hope of ever gaining such a victory. We stand back and watch as our country is mercilessly destroyed time and time again.

At night when things are quiet and I fear every moment I look ahead, I think of my useless life. I am given such a job of honor and duty but to those standards I can not uphold. There is no bravery, or honor or duty to the job in which I do. I sight an enemy and call for help. Never once have I jumped down from my protected stand and helped fight a battle along side our brave warriors. I stand in fear and hope that it will be the night in which no one arrives upon these shores. I am no man, only a coward!

Author's Note

Just another short story

Reviews

[No one]

Interesting. It seems less a short story than a few paragraphs dealing with the development of a single character. While I admired the honesty of the character, I kept waiting for him to jump into action and prove himself more of a man that he thinks he is. I was waiting for him to spot an intruder and leave his post, for example, to sneak up and murder the intruder before sounding any alarm. Often, in life, it is the greatest folly to try to prove to yourself and to others that you are courageous and selfless. It often ends in tragedy which affects yourself and those around you. I keep envisioning this character trying to take matters into his own hands, avoiding his post and playing the hero, but in essence merely leaving his post and allowing an unseen army to scale the wall he was supposed to be protecting.

I think you could definitely use this as a beginning to a longer story. That way the protagonist could have time to change, grow, make decisions based on these introspective thoughts about his worth and the importance of his job.
I look forward to reading more of your work.