Short Story

Swallowed Up

Nancy's Notes 🖊️🎶

Written for Only Murders In My Mind
Weekly Writing Prompt #55. This week’s
inspiration is the photo seen below.

The sun dipped low in the sky, casting long shadows over the dense woods. Harry knew this area well so he was shocked when he stumbled upon a mysterious sight: a stone staircase, weathered and overgrown, snaking upwards. Something called to him and he slowly ascended the stairs as the trees around him seemed to shift. The chirping of birds faded, replaced by a low hum that vibrated through the air.

Halfway up, Harry noticed strange carvings on the stairs. He glanced back, but the path below was impossible to see, swallowed up by the encroaching darkness. As he climbed to the top, a clearing suddenly appeared. There before him was a perfect circle of ancient headstones pulsating with energy. Slowly the humming became louder to the point of being unbearable; Harry cried out for it to stop and covered his ears with his hands.

Just then the ground trembled and the staircase began to crumble beneath him. Harry turned and sprinted blindly back down, hitting the ground running and barely escaping the collapse. When he looked back, the staircase had vanished.

The memory of this mystery would remain with Harry forever and he knew one thing for certain: he would never return to this spot again.

NAR©2025
#OMIMM

This is “Sun Forest” by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Weekly Writing Prompt

All text and graphics are copyright for Nancy’s Notes 🖊️🎶, The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk, The Rhythm Section, et al., and are not to be used without permission. NAR©2017-present.

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