A Bedtime Ballad

Copyright © 2003 Ron Schwartz

 All rights reserved.

 

"The demons of darkness, of which I speak, look so hideous that many beings fail to recognize just how intelligent these creatures are.  They have two long slender wings, completely covered with scales, a thin skin covers them almost like fabric.  The outer edge of each wing is made of two long adjoining spines with two more extending from the center joint down to the bottom edge.  The wings make an unmistakable flap as they beat the air, its sound like the steady methodical beat of a snare drum slowly drawing nearer. But the wings seem abnormally small when you take into consideration the size of these creatures.  The rapid, repetitious beat of the wings  seem to have no limit in flexibility or resiliences and give these creatures a docile appearance.  When they hover, it is far from graceful and appears more like a jerking or bouncing dance.

 

The skulls of these creatures seem almost barren of fatty tissue and are covered by only a thin film of skin.  They have no hair at all: only the same shining scales which cover the rest of the body.  Their long, narrow jaws seem far too large for their heads and stretch the mouth into a grotesquely large size.  Four fangs protrude from their mouths, two from above and from two below, extending in a crossing pattern.  Probably the most striking feature about their skulls is the two large horns which seem to explode from the top of the forehead outward and slightly upward parallel to each other.  These horns form a slight curve upward near their ends, each having a small ring of skin encircling its base like a wrinkle.  The ears, while narrow, are very prominent and rise very high to a point, seeming to end where the large glowing red eyes begin. The high cheek bones are very pronounced, giving the creatures an impression of a continual sinister smile.  Their heads jerk incessantly from side to side, stopping to tilt for only a moment.  Deep groans and snarls are constantly uttered, almost as if these hideous creatures are in unending torment, what one might expect from a tormented soul, forever cursed to the fires of hell.

 

The creatures possess massive chests with enormous shoulders on top of very small waists.  The muscles surrounding the shoulders and upper back all but eliminate any vestige of a neck.  Each creature has two powerful arms which extend from under the wings with tremendous upper arm muscles. The little hips and two small legs give the impression that the creature was not meant to walk or stand.  In fact, the few times which I have seen these creatures at rest, they were hunched over in a squatting position, leaning on their arms with their long wings neatly folded behind their backs like so many arrows for a long bow.

 

Their tails are very long and spiny, each bony vertebrae seen through the thin skin all the way down to the end point. When the creatures hover, the tail seems to thrash about in a most violent fashion, as if striking an invisible foe.  The same thin skin that covers the tail covers every portion of these creatures except the horns and the talons.  There are twelve talons in all to be exact, three on each hand and three on each foot with long needle sharp points.  I have seen these creatures in almost every possible size. Their shapes varying slightly, but each is unmistakably alike.  And they are always that same fire red color.

 

Perhaps the most outstanding feature of these creatures is their indescribable, earpiercing screams.  The high pitched, unnerving shrieks obviously originated from the pits of hell.  The sound resembles a war cry and always precedes their appearance.  I have come to know it only too well.  Sometimes they come alone, sometimes in groups of four or more, but, be not mistaken, they will always come.  They laugh and mock me and have no shame.  They often ridicule each other almost as much as they do me.  Sometimes they will fight viciously amongst themselves like wild dogs fighting for the last morsel of a carcass.  Their animal-like instincts cause them to behave as if they have been maddened by the scent of blood, but their anger is self-perpetuating, and nothing in this world can give them peace.  It is as if these creatures have no fear at all, destined only to live out their miserable existence in a meaningless rage.  They are birthed from the loins of hell, without blood or life, and filled with nothing but evil and corruption.

 

So each night they come and always without any warning. I must always be ready and on my guard, for I never know from where or at what time these creatures will strike.  While everyone else is asleep, I watch and wait, but I show no fear, for the Mighty One is with me.  That is why I wear this sword, and that is why I wait here every single night.  I am commanded to stand here, and so here I will stand, beside this little boy's bed.  You see, his name is David... and I'm his angel."