This post is part of Writer’s Digest February Flash Fiction Challenge. Flash Fiction is a short, often under 1,000 words, style of writing. I hope you enjoy my 28 contributions!
Day 24 Prompt: Create a Myth
High up on a hill overlooking the River Tyne in Scotland, there was erected a shrine dedicated to the little-known goddess, Aileena. On the morning of the first harvest every year, young Daracha would journey from her village, nearly five miles away, to the shrine of Aileena. She would offer a tribute of root vegetables and rich topsoil and pray for a hearty harvest for her family and her community. As the day wore on, Daracha would complete her ceremonious offering, then camp at the shrine as light faded, only to awake and make the journey home at first light the following day.
One season, on Daracha’s fourth year paying tribute to Aileena, she was stirred from her sleep by a commotion and the sound of thousands of voices. Awake now, she peered down towards the River Tyne, hiding behind one of the massive stone pillars comprising the shrine. Off in the distance, some two miles away, she bore witness to a foreign army amassing along the banks of the moonlit river. She could make out hundreds of tents and unrecognizable standards, waving in the breeze, illuminated ominously by dimming fires.
Determined to warn her village of the impending invasion, Daracha extinguished her small fire and began to run in the direction of her home. However, without light from the sun, Daracha soon became lost. First light was still hours away, but she had no time to waste. Daracha fell to her knees and raised her hands to the sky, begging her dear Aileena to guide her home. Suddenly, a swarm of fireflies rose from the ground and descended from the sky, providing Daracha with direction and enough light to make it home.
By the next afternoon, when the foreign enemy began its journey north towards Daracha’s village, a collection of dozens of allied armies stood on the ridge on the northern side of the River Tyne, blocking their march forward. For decades, Roman armies attempted to break north into Scotland, but failed, thanks to the heroic midnight journey of young Daracha. Hadrian’s Wall was soon erected, a colossal acknowledgement of Rome’s failure to conquer Scotland.
Locals familiar with the little-known tale of Daracha and the goddess Aileena, do not call it Hadrian’s Wall, but instead call the ancient barrier Daracha’s Wall, a tribute to the little girl who saved Scotland.
