Pernicious- True Evil

Chapter 1

Sitting on the wooden swing, beneath the canopy of the sycamore tree, Astra stared blankly into the dry field speckled with floral weeds. The scent of manure filled her nostrils from a nearby muck pile that had become so large, it looked like a small hill. Not even the honeysuckle bushes that were suffocating the fence were able to even slightly mask a smell that strong.

Ominously thick clouds rolled on top of one another while thunder rolled from the distant tree covered mountains, warning all who lingered underneath, that it was about to unleash its fury upon the land. A sticky spring breeze whipped a few strands of hair over her face while in the distance a lone dog howled sorrowfully to its masters, begging for them to let him back in. Humidity strangled the air, causing misery to all those who remained outside, while the crickets that once chirped merrily only an hour before, now rested in a state of silence.

The dark and deep pressure which had built in her chest as soon as she'd seen her mother's corpse, refused to subside. How long was this sensation supposed to last? It had been months already, and she had tried everything to get through this—therapy, horseback riding, journaling, and pills—nothing worked.

People say a broken heart hurts. She never knew what they meant until now. Her heart ached, sometimes so much she could hardly breathe. The feeling of being numb seemed like an unattainable paradise. She longed for a morsel of relief but that morsel of relief, God refused to give to her. Instead, he sat in his kingdom watching her with amusement, while he held her mother's soul captive; the soul he'd ripped away from her.

People say 'time heals' but she had begun to believe the statement was a lie created from the mouths of those who were replete with nescience. When she closed her eyes she could see her mother's cold dead gaze staring back at her.

Thunder once again rumbled over the land as a gust of wind raked its fingers through the trembling leaves. The wind made its way towards a blooming cherry tree and ripped the buds from the branches, scattering them over the ground. It was comforting to know the flowers that once felt safe on the tree would now be rotting on the dirt. It was proof to Astra that nothing beautiful would ever last.

Rubbing her weary eyes, she yawned. It had been a while since she'd had a good night's sleep. Hell, she could hardly find the will to eat. Every night she stayed awake, staring blankly at her empty wall until she passed out, only to wake up screaming from the nightmares that tormented her. In order to even function she pushed these stygian emotions deeper, popping the pills she was told to take, hoping they would somehow ease her from this hell she was trapped in.

What made matters worse was at night, after she turned out the lights, she would see shadows moving around her room. Were they real? Or her imagination? Was she going mad? Every night since the accident she felt as though she was being watched by an evil presence.

Now that her life had changed so drastically, she detested being around anyone. She couldn't stand their pitying glances or how they whispered behind her back as if she didn't know what they are saying. Her destruction was their entertainment, a lunch time topic spoken about by people she once called her friends. While some used her as an excuse to make themselves seem more 'Godly,' praying loudly for her as they raised their hands up to the heavens in honor of their own form of self-glory, other's felt sorry for her and treated her as if she was nothing more than a crippled puppy.

The mere words, "Do you want to talk?" made her want to scream and break whatever object was nearest to her. No, she didn't want to talk. She had talked so much that there was nothing left to say that she hadn't said before. It didn't alleviate her pain; instead it had the opposite effect, reminding her of what happened, as if she didn't have enough memories to taunt her.