Here I sit in the dark, just me and my laptop. There is not a sound to be heard on this night – no traffic up and down the street, no sound of the neighborhood animals, no sounds of humans to break the silence. So here I sit in the dark telling my tale in an almost unnatural darkness that has enveloped the house and the world that surrounds it...
To my left a candle flickers so that I have enough light to tell the tale of this night. I can imagine myself being a scribe in a monastery in some far off corner of a kingdom that has long ago ceased to exist. And here I sit transcribing some ancient document that I have completely memorized from the many times that I have done so during my lifetime. Every word is a story unto itself, every punctuation an insect scurrying across the words, every paragraph a cliff to peer from off into the distance, every page another life to live. And so I have gone medieval upon my laptop...
And a sound cuts through the silence and reminds me that there is still life beyond these castle walls. At first the sound is hard to recognize - so distant and so faint. It grows slowly, coming closer and closer. And then I recognize the sound for I have heard it so many times before. It is the roar of a dragon as it flies over the countryside in search of treasure or food or quite possibly both. I sit careful to not make a sound so that it doesn't mistake me for a midnight snack and I pray that this castle isn't inviting enough for it to steal my wealth. After a few tense moments, the dragon is gone; and this little far-off corner of the kingdom is again returned to silence...
I and I lone am brave enough to conquer this unnatural darkness that has descended upon this realm. It is I who is brave enough to stand before the Armies of Darkness and force them to yield to my will. It is I who must defend this castle and all who may have taken refuge within from the horrors that hide within the darkness. It is I who shall survive this onslaught and tell the tale so all the world may know what abominations dwell within the cover of night and that devour the weak and helpless...
And so it is as I await the return of electricity in this far-off corner of this kingdom...
edgar allan poe
