Turtle Prompt
The Withering Pool
Hello Pond Wanderers!
Well, the prompt is late. I know. I have been dealing with endless technical issues and stubborn obstacles to creativity. But… obstacles are meant to be overcome and so… better late than never!
Here is the prompt for this week. I know there are a lot of amazing challenges and prompts out there. We hope you will be inspired to jump into the Pond!
We are so excited to read your stories!
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The Withering Pool
Just outside the city, a highway crosses over a swampy expanse surrendered to neglect long ago. The land is dark. Dreary and tired from decades of exhaust fumes, oil slicks and discarded junk. No one remembers what lived there before buildings pierced the sky. Before long stretches of cement choked life from the soil. Drivers hurry across the overpass, windows closed, hoping never to know what lies beneath the black water.
What is known survives only in ancient astrological records.The planets have aligned in a rare convergence not seen in more than six millennia. A conjunction points to a single place, and a celestial corridor opens between Mercury and Earth.
***
Mercury circles the sun in silence. Small and barren, it is home to the deity Nabu, Scribe of the Gods and Keeper of the Tablets of Destiny. He uses the planet’s violent extremes to scry across the universe. Through the reflective surface of ice and water he watches, and records what he sees. Destiny is not his alone to decree, but he can influence its unfolding.
One Mercurian year equals six thousand years on Earth.
When Mercury tilts its axis towards Earth, Nabu turns his gaze to a small swamp on the distant planet. He loves the people of the marsh. Over the ages they have become his friends. He is excited to help when they harvest rice and prepare for the winter. He is proud of how they care for the land, and of the kindness that guides their hearts.
And so he looks through the ice as Mercury leans into summer.
***
Beneath the highway, a silver light bubbles up through the dark water of the swamp. A faint breeze stirs the withering reeds and yellowing wild grasses.
The marsh is empty, lonely, and sick.
No laughter carried on the wind, no boats resting along the banks, or glowing lanterns in the night.
Nabu narrows his gaze, searching the surface of the black water.
He wonders, who, or what, has silenced his friends.
******
Tell us a story of celestial corridors opening. What will be written when
the gods turn their gaze toward Earth.
PROMPT: THE WITHERING POOL
Genre: Open
Up to 2000 words.
I recommend this amazing poet’s piece about Renee Nicole Good. Excellent work: https://krisfeliciano.substack.com/p/murder-of-a-poet-a-poem?r=7ujb98&utm_medium=ios