Darkness in Mind

By A. E. Churchyard

The mind is a strange place. Darkness and Light are normally equally balanced within, but when the balance tilts toward the Darkness, dangerous things can happen...

This collection of Short Stories comes to you from A. E. Churchyard's Darkness. Follow her as she walks the paths less trod within... just make sure you bring a torch... teddy bears optional.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Teigr Books
• Release date: Jan 31, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201232108

A. E. Churchyard

A.E. Churchyard thought she was a Teacher, until Life pointed out to her that she is actually a writer. As her Cats, Kids and Partner approved, she decided to agree with Life. Currently she is working on a paranormal novella and a science fiction novel. As “Kira Morgana” she is in the middle of a five book Fantasy Novella Series, as well as a number of other projects, including a Children’s Rhyming Story Series collaboration with Maria K. As if that weren’t enough, she volunteers at local Guide and Brownie Units She does all this from a body in South Wales, UK. Where her mind is, she hasn’t yet worked out, but it must be somewhere pretty scary…

Book preview

Introduction

Everyone has a dark side to their personality. It's the voice in your head encouraging you to eat your partner's chocolate stash or play the CD you bought them before they get it. It's the side that appears when you get drunk and suggests stupid stunts to impress the ladies.

For a writer, that side can be very useful at times...

Each tale was written for a reason. I had a prompt and was allowed to run wild with the story, delving into the darkness of my psyche in order to bring emotions through in my work. It was a cathartic process, but worth doing, especially as I realised (while writing these stories) where my real interests lay.

After you've read these stories, you'll never quite look at me in the same light again. For in this book, my dark side is given full rein and allowed to charge into the forest of my mind...

Enjoy.

A. E. C

A Happy Haunted House

This story marked a milestone in my writing career. It was the first one to be published in an anthology and the first time I had ever written anything according to a prompt.

Created for House of Horror’s Mausoleum Memoirs Anthology, I was completely shocked when it was accepted. There is nothing scary about this story...

I WAS BORN IN A ROUNDHOUSE with thick wattle and daub walls, a thatch roof and a hole to carry the smoke from the hearth away. During the winter, all of my family, including our flock of sheep and goats, the two ponies, the pig and all five dogs would crowd inside to keep warm. It smelled a little but it was home.

I remember helping Mummy with the animals and the little growing patch in the back. We grew all sorts of plants and herbs and Mummy was very good at making people better with the herbs so we didn’t need to grow much for trade – just enough to feed ourselves, a slightly bigger patch for the tithe to Lord Vinst, two apple trees and some flowers.

Mummy liked flowers, She said that they were The Gods gift to Humans and that we should grow them to show our appreciation to The Gods. It must have worked because Daddy managed to get my big brother apprenticed to the Village Blacksmith when Ganno became a man.

That year we were given a bigger plot in the village as well – Mummy had room for a little hut to make her Herbals in and we had a bigger growing patch. We took our trees with us and planted another two as well. Mummy planted a bigger Flower and Herb garden and I was in charge of the Growing Patch. My little sister was big enough to look after the Tithe Patch and both us looked after the animals. We even got chickens.

Ganno lived at the Forge so we had lots of room in our new roundhouse. And when Winter came, the animals had their own house so we only had the dogs in with us. The Spring after Ganno got made Journeyman, Mummy and I made a little roundhouse with a lift off lid and we planted flowers all around it. We said Prayers to The Gods and sacrificed one of the chickens to them.

Mummy wouldn’t tell me why but one morning in late spring, the little house was full of bees! I found out the hard way because one of the dogs had had puppies and the puppy got out of our round house and ran into the little one.

I crawled in after it and pulled it out, but I got stung all over the place.

It hurt a lot, even with all the ointment Mummy rubbed on the stings and I felt very sleepy. Mummy made me drink a horrible tasting Herbal which woke me up again for a little bit. My arms and legs were all fat and blotchy with hard bumps and I was sick for a long time.

I think I must have been sick for a very long time because when I woke up again, Mummy couldn’t see me. Neither could Daddy or Ganno or my little sister. The only people who could see me were the animals. The dogs would cluster round me as I wandered around the Round house and Mummy would look at them and frown.

Three mornings after I woke up, I went out to play with the animals and saw Ganno and Daddy putting me on the Funeral Pyre! So I realised that I was dead. Strange, it didn’t hurt much – being burnt I mean, and as soon as my body was alight a beautiful woman on a big pony came to see me.

Hello little One. You need to come with me. She said, getting off her pony.

But Mummy will miss me! I cried, tears sliding down my cheeks.

She misses you very much, but she asked The Gods if you could come to Valhalla with me. The lady crouched down beside me and put her arms around me.

Only big warriors like Lord Vinst go to Valhalla. Not little girls. I replied, stamping my feet. The dogs around me growled in agreement.

Well your Mummy asked us to take you because you were a very good girl for rescuing the Puppy from the Bees. And you didn’t cry when she tried to heal you, so she says that you are as good as a warrior. The lady said.

Well... I thought for a moment, then asked Do I have to come straight away? I want to wait for Mummy. If I’m as good as a Warrior for standing up to the Bees, then she’s as good as a Warrior for fighting illnesses and curing people!

The lady looked worried and walked over to her pony. It looked like she was talking to herself or to her Pony. Over her shoulder I could see the Funeral Pyre, it had burnt down quite quickly and Mummy was stand by it crying. I wanted to run over to her, but I needed to know the answer to my question first.

The lady came back. Well I’ve been told that it is all right for you to stay here until I come back to collect you and your Mummy. The Gods think that she is as good as a warrior too.

I thanked her nicely and watched as she got on her big pony and rode away up into the sky. Then I ran over to Mummy and cuddled her. I think that she felt me because she whispered I asked the Gods to take you to Valhalla.

I am going to wait for you and we will go together. I told her. I’m not sure if she heard me but I did exactly what I said I would do. I waited.

I waited for a long time. I’d play with the dogs and ponies and I stopped any of the bees from stinging anyone else. I even had some fun in the winter by scooping up snow and dumping it on my little sister’s head as she walked underneath me in the apple trees. When Ganno came home two springs after I died to tell us that he had become a Master Blacksmith and would be taking over the Forge when his Master died, I scooped up big armfuls of apple blossom and showered it on him!

The Priests came to visit our roundhouse after that. They did lots of ceremonies and sacrificed one of that year’s puppies to find out what was happening. The sacrifice smoke in the house was very thick because they covered the smoke hole and only Mummy and Daddy were allowed to stay inside while the Priests chanted.

After a while I got bored and started swirling the smoke around to try and liven things up. The Priests stopped chanting and watched. Then the one with the long grey beard asked Spirit – who are you?

I’m Cicly of course, who did you expect? I answered, swirling the smoke around again and not really expecting him to hear me.

Cicly. Why did you not depart this plane when your earthly form was burned to send you to Valhalla. He asked.

I was a bit taken aback by that. I hadn’t expected him to hear me or even know I was supposed to go to Valhalla. I didn’t want to leave Mummy.

Cicly, I wanted you to go to Valhalla, you were very brave and you deserved it. Mummy said, the tears running down her face drawing lines in the soot from the smoke. She had not heard me but she was trying to make me feel better about dying anyway.

I swirled the smoke some more and made shapes of ponies and dogs in it while I thought about what I wanted to say. Finally I decided to tell mummy of the bargain I had made with the lady on the big pony.

The lady who came to get me said that I could wait here for you and then we could go together, The priest with the long grey beard scowled and I felt scared suddenly, She said that the Gods had agreed with me that you were as good as a warrior too!

The priests began chanting again and suddenly the lady who had come for me before was there. Greybeard said Lenneth, Battle Handmaiden of Odin, come before us and explain the meaning of the words of this spirit.

What is there to explain Greybeard? Odin himself decreed that Cicly could wait here on Middle Earth until her Mother Passed over and I came to collect both of them. Lenneth told them. She sounded angry but she smiled down at me.

But this is just a child. Surely Odin would require you to take her to the Underworld anyway? Greybeard asked. Mummy’s face dropped and she held onto Daddy tightly.

Lenneth frowned at the Priests who cowered away from her. Odin decrees that Cicly and her mother are to be received in Valhalla for acts of Bravery and Honour. It is not your place to suggest such things.

That seemed to settle that. Lenneth gave me a cuddle and then disappeared with a swirl of smoke. The priests uncovered the smoke hole and after that they left me alone. I stayed there and every year I would have snow fights with my little sister and the little brother who came along after that. I dropped armfuls of blossom on Ganno’s head each spring and his children too.

Our roundhouse became famous as a site of great blessing and healing and Mummy trained my little sister and her friend’s daughter to help her with the hordes of people who came for cures. Mummy and Daddy got older and older. My little brother went to be a Warrior in Lord Vinst’s War band. He was killed in a big battle with the Romans and Lenneth came for him as well. She told me so herself when she came to see me.

Finally Daddy died. He had been a simple woodworker and had not done anything to go to Valhalla for, but when Lenneth came for him I asked her where he was going.

He has lived a long and happy life and Odin is impressed enough with his skills that he wants him to come to Valhalla to carve him a special chair. She told me as we watched Ganno and the other men of the village put Daddy on the pyre. His spirit sat up and got down just before they put the torch to the wood under his body.

Daddy came over and gave me a big cuddle Thank you for staying with us Cicly. I wish that you had lived with us longer.

That’s ok Daddy, I’ve had a lot of fun waiting for Mummy.

Lenneth got up on her big pony