{"id":64,"date":"2015-10-13T22:07:51","date_gmt":"2015-10-13T21:07:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64"},"modified":"2015-11-03T20:59:16","modified_gmt":"2015-11-03T20:59:16","slug":"weekly-short-story-update-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64","title":{"rendered":"Paradise, and the cold dark"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Paradise, and the cold dark<\/p>\n<p>She clumsily rose to her feet, the scent of roses surrounding her, enticing her with sweetness. This garden of eden was no paradise; there was only darkness, the illusion of light was fading, and with it, she too would simply wither away.<\/p>\n<p>The woman\u2019s head throbbed, pain pulsing and pulsing with no foreseeable end, with no limit.\u00a0 Cheery blossom drifted around her, whispering in hushed voices, &#8216;follow,&#8217; &#8216;follow&#8217;\u2026\u00a0 Beautiful light shone down upon emerald blades of grass, reflecting elegantly; it\u2019s light. Blinding yet radiant, and beautiful. White clouds floated along the ocean &#8211; blue stream that was the sky, a sea of perfect sapphire that stretched as far as the eye could see. Soon this would all crumble to dust in the wake of the end, and after that, only darkness could follow. The woman turned to face the lone cherry blossom tree in this field of paradise, and she smiled lightly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThy end, is nigh.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>~<\/p>\n<p>He woke with a start, the dream of falling fresh in his mind. Cold and darkness attacked him as his eyes darted, desperately searching for light. Drip. Drip. Water fell with a soft though as it splashed against stone, the sound bouncing across the cavern of nothingness, echoing through shadows. A damp, sinister wind swept through the cavern, calling, shouting, barking, &#8216;Run&#8217;, &#8216;Run!&#8217;. There must be light, he knew, and he knew that in the darkest of places, in the blackest of nights, the light only shone brightest.<\/p>\n<p>His head throbbed as he scampered to his feet, his movements were quick, undisciplined, fearful. Only darkness existed in this land of chaos, only darkness\u2026 But then, a spot of light. Another. Another. This world of darkness was crumbling, the absolute reality that all was darkness,\u00a0 was changing, and soon it would be no more, and with it, well, a creature of darkness held no place in the light.<\/p>\n<p>~<\/p>\n<p>The edge of paradise was crumbling, and she could see the precipice of darkness growing ever closer, and with it, two blue eyes; however, they were neither evil nor menacing, was she not destined for death?<\/p>\n<p>Visions of light smashed through the mouth of this hungry cavern, and with it, a beautiful creature became visible through his blank, empty eyes. Was he not destined for destruction?<\/p>\n<p>The darkness conjoined with the light, it mixed, the light drove away the darkness, yet it fed it more power, it cast more shadows.<\/p>\n<p>The woman stepped onto cold stone, the a shiver travelled up her spine.<\/p>\n<p>The man stepped onto emerald grass, the softness cushioned his bruised feet, as he protected his eyes from solar beauty.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHello?\u201d He asked as he caught sight of her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGreetings, one of darkness.\u201d She flashed a smile, and added a curt bow. His blue eyes blinked at her smile, as her pink orbs stared back into his sapphire pools.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy heart is but darkness, in a cage of black, but perhaps your white light is a key?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am but a key without a lock, without purpose. Perhaps this is my purpose?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Hope you enjoyed!<\/p>\n<div class=\"sharedaddy sd-sharing-enabled\"><div class=\"robots-nocontent sd-block sd-social sd-social-icon sd-sharing\"><h3 class=\"sd-title\">Share this:<\/h3><div class=\"sd-content\"><ul><li class=\"share-twitter\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-twitter-64\" class=\"share-twitter sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=twitter\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Twitter\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-facebook\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-facebook-64\" class=\"share-facebook sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=facebook\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Facebook\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-reddit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\" class=\"share-reddit sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=reddit\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Reddit\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-tumblr\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\" class=\"share-tumblr sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=tumblr\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Tumblr\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-skype\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-skype-64\" class=\"share-skype sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=skype\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Skype\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-custom share-custom-minds\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\" class=\"share-custom share-custom-minds sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=custom-1494369120\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Minds\"><span style=\"background-image:url(&quot;http:\/\/media.148apps.com\/icons\/82323440\/82323440_180.jpg&quot;);\"><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Minds (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-pinterest\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-pinterest-64\" class=\"share-pinterest sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=pinterest\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Pinterest\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-end\"><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Paradise, and the cold dark She clumsily rose to her feet, the scent of roses surrounding her, enticing her with sweetness. This garden of eden was no paradise; there was only darkness, the illusion of<\/p>\n<div class=\"sharedaddy sd-sharing-enabled\"><div class=\"robots-nocontent sd-block sd-social sd-social-icon sd-sharing\"><h3 class=\"sd-title\">Share this:<\/h3><div class=\"sd-content\"><ul><li class=\"share-twitter\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-twitter-64\" class=\"share-twitter sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=twitter\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Twitter\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-facebook\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-facebook-64\" class=\"share-facebook sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=facebook\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Facebook\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-reddit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\" class=\"share-reddit sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=reddit\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Reddit\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-tumblr\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\" class=\"share-tumblr sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=tumblr\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Tumblr\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-skype\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-skype-64\" class=\"share-skype sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=skype\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Skype\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-custom share-custom-minds\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"\" class=\"share-custom share-custom-minds sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=custom-1494369120\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Minds\"><span style=\"background-image:url(&quot;http:\/\/media.148apps.com\/icons\/82323440\/82323440_180.jpg&quot;);\"><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Minds (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-pinterest\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-shared=\"sharing-pinterest-64\" class=\"share-pinterest sd-button share-icon no-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=64&amp;share=pinterest\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Click to share on Pinterest\"><span><\/span><span class=\"sharing-screen-reader-text\">Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"share-end\"><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[5],"tags":[8,7,6],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6OILo-12","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":99,"url":"https:\/\/www.tompass.co.uk\/?p=99","url_meta":{"origin":64,"position":0},"title":"Just published my first book!","date":"5th March 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Paradise, Sunset and Nothingness is a 20k word\u00a0compilation of short stories, some of which you have seen on this site, which I have just published to amazon! 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