About the Contest

This story is an entry to @tristancarax’s 31Sentence Contest. If you fancy participating, you can find the contest here.

Prompt

Inspiration

“Nooo, please, have mercy,” Sam yelled in pain as blood oozed out of his nose.

The unabating rhythmic beep was the latest torture tool employed by the devil.

“Mercy,” Sam pleaded as the rhythm hastened.

“I am just getting started,” the devil thundered. “For all the goodwill you planned to spread in the world, you deserve severe punishment”.

“God, save….,” Sam gasped as he flew straight into the devil’s ragged fangs. It was either the beeps or the devil’s teeth which were gnawing through his head.

Beep beep beep beep…. beep beep beep beep… beep…

“Oh s**t,” Sam’s spirit transcended to the reality quite rapidly. The alarm clock was distressingly incessant.

Sam hit the clock with every intention of breaking it.

“Damn, clock,” Sam hated these nightmares. Just then he felt a hand on his shoulder. Sam realized that the dream was far from over.

“Relax, you are safe now,” the booming yet soothing voice said. “I wanted to help you sooner but then you wouldn’t allow me, until, of course, when you called out.

“What’s going on here? Sam’s body was refusing to cooperate with him, and he was trembling. “Who are you?”

“God.”

Sam was taken aback. He was now certain that he was still dreaming; a dream within a dream.

“Yes, it is a dream but not a dream either,” the voice announced. “But then we are here to discuss something important for you and humanity.”

“You say you are God, then what discussion do you need with me?” Sam conjured up some courage to speak. “I am a mere human.”

“Mere and human are antonyms.”

“Certainly, mere in front of God.”

“You are in my image. If you are mere, so am I.”

“Shall I turn?”

“It is your free will. Who stopped you from turning, Sam?”

“Firstly, I am not sure you are God. Second, I don’t think this conversation is real. Third, I just want to see who’s image I am in,” Sam’s sarcasm was apparent.

“Atta boy. Go ahead, my child. Turn around.”

“Oh, my good Lord!”

“Right here,” the voice thundered. The shimmering light was a magical combination of a rainbow illuminated with the radiance of the sun.

Sam was drowned in disbelief. First, the devil and now God – dream versus reality.

“You are a beautiful soul. Every time you do a good deed, you attract more to the fold. That is what I love, and the ego hates.”

“And you are telling me this because I have stopped doing good deeds since my mother’s death?”

“No, because you have stopped inspiring people to be more than what they are and, in turn, are losing your spirit.”

“And so, you send the devil to scare me and then save me so that I can follow your terms.”

“Devil? That’s your ego scaring you away from your greatest good. So, rise up and inspire.” Those two words echoed in incessant beeps until Sam woke up calling out:

RISE UP!

Image CourtesyImage by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay