Peter and Krista looked at each other, knowing it was almost over. There was no food left in the house. Their fields were barren, their animals were dead. A curse had blighted this land, poisoning the water, killing the trees. Most of their neighbors had died of starvation or the choking sickness—or simply despair.
The couple lay down, holding hands, and waited for Death and his merciful release.
He was not long in coming. Swiftly he took their lives as he had taken so many from this once thriving valley. Tears rolled down his cheeks.
Even Death can cry.
Author’s note: When I first learned about these hundred word stories, I found the idea intriguing. In fact, I decided to do an entire book of drabbes, writing one every day for a year; then selecting those I thought were good enough to be published. Then my interest waned, other projects took my time, and I just quit in mid drab-
I like the soul of this one. It doesn’t have the flair of some spec fic stories, but it has the soul.