A child joyfully kicked a ball towards a wall, laughing as it bounced back, falling back to their foot before being kicked once more.

The sun was bright. Blinding. Burning anything without protection. The rays of summer shining down on such a calm town, no cries of pain or suffering. Not anything. Pure silence. Aside from the child’s innocent laugh.

CAW

And that was when it ended.

The kid looked up to the bird, its black feathers consuming all light around it. The child reached out, not understanding the creatures darker presence.

CAW

It repeated, flying away before the child could get closer. The parents screamed, running out and clutching their child. It was too late. The reaper would be back to reap their reward. The parents ushered the child inside. “What were you thinking? Today was not to play, It was to do chores inside. We plan these days for a reason!” The mother yelled, angrily sifting through books and cabinets.

The child, Confused, Felt alone. He saw something beautiful. Something otherworldly, something fantastical. Yet his mother screamed. She raved and ranted, blaming it on the kid.

The next morning, like clockwork, the signs started. The child grew ill, a high fever and rashes along their limbs. The second morning, their limbs turned a red and burned. By the third, the child was too far gone to be saved with any cure. The child’s body, now charred and black, lay on his bed.

That night, as the child drifted to sleep, from the darkness emerged a single sound.

CAW

The mother watched as the bird flew inside and perched at the edge of the child’s bed, flapping gently. The mother pleaded to the reaper. “Please. My boy made a mistake. Spare him.” She cried, but the bird could do nothing.

A single

CAW

The bird flew away. And with it, another life.