Inanimate Demons

Tick, tick, tick…
          That sound, that hideous sound…
Tick, tick, tick…
          I gritted my teeth, rocked back and forth on the floor, shook my head, but nothing helped, and the hideous sound grated at my sanity despite my best efforts.
Tick, tick, tick…
          The damned clock kept ticking, my sanity kept slipping and the empty room suddenly seemed infinitely small and cramped.
Tick, tick, tick…
          I screamed and struggled, scratching at the walls, begging for mercy, but none came. My shouts echoed in the tiny room, and the white walls seemed to fall down on me, crushing me under their weight, covering me in darkness. And yet, faint as a whisper but ever present, the clock continued to torture me mockingly.
Tick, tick, tick…

          I awoke with a start, feeling like an eternity had passed. I smiled, elated to see a large digital clock on my side, its red numbers soothing my anxiety with their silent, magnificently silent, advance.
          Then, only after I had calmed down at last, a new vile sound burrowed into my brain, battering my senses and filling me once more with the rage I’d felt earlier.
Beep, beep, beep…
          What bitter irony! A machine meant to ensure my well being assured my descent into madness. I began to shake violently, heat and cold alternating through my body, so that no matter how I contorted my form, there was no respite from the tremors and no relief from the discomfort.
Beep, beep, beep…
          I tore the sheets from the bed and leaned forward, panting, heaving, crying, trying to drown out that awful noise.
Beep, beep, beep…
          I got up from the bed and began to pace around the room, pulling on my hair and gritting my teeth, but no amount of pain could soothe my suffering soul as that hideous noise continued to mock me.
Beep, beep, beep…
          I roared with an animal-like fury as I unleashed my wrath on the room, tossing equipment from end to end, kicking chairs into the air and tearing any paper I could find. Once I’d tossed the source of the infernal noise into the furthest wall and smashed it into pieces, I crashed through the door into an eerily empty hallway. Rushing towards the stairs, I still could not escape that noise, although it grew fainter and fainter as I climbed towards the roof.
Beep, beep, beep…

          I finally made it to the roof, where I inhaled the brisk air and looked out at the urban sprawl before me. The sun was just then announcing the new day, so all was quiet, beautifully quiet. My bare feet relished the feel of the cold tiles, still wet from the night’s rain, against naked skin. I closed my eyes and felt the sun’s nascent rays against my face, until suddenly, a noise came from behind me.
Drip, drip, drip…
          Again I grit my teeth and clenched my fists, simply hoping it would go away, but to no avail.
Drip, drip, drip…
          I opened my eyes and began to pace along the roof, hiding behind the air conditioner, hoping its soft, soothing hum would ease my torment and perhaps assuage my mind and allow me some peace, but it was all in vain.
Drip, drip, drip…
         I dropped to my knees and cursed the heavens, hatred for a cruel god brewing within me, as only such a god could allow me to suffer like this.
Drip, drip, drip…
          My breathing became heavy and slow, tears slowly trickling down my face. I stood and looked out once more towards the sun and the city sprawling in front of me. Inching closer and closer towards the edge, I looked around me, seeing how everything had come to life. The cars were already speeding along the road, the offices nearby had begun to fill with workers, and all in all everything was full of life and vigor. It was a reassuring thought, but nothing could dissuade me now, I knew what I had to do to escape that sound’s hideous torment.
Drip, drip, drip…
          Once more I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before stepping forward onto the ledge, and then I took that final step over the end; I plummeted quickly, the sounds of the fast approaching road growing louder and louder while my torturer’s terrible tune grew fainter and fainter. I smiled, thinking, knowing, that soon, very soon, I would finally be at peace.
Drip, drip, drip…

          God, however, had other plans for me, and I awoke several days later, still in pain from various broken bones from the botched suicide attempt. My hands and feet were bound, so that I could not repeat my previous stunt. The room, however seemed empty enough, and I was pleased that at least there was silence, or so I thought…
Tick, tick, tick…
          Above the door I spotted another clock, another tormentor, whose awful song bore into my brain like a drill, just as its predecessor had. But it was not alone.
Beep, beep, beep…
Tick, tick, tick…
          Of course, due to my injuries, I should have expected nothing less than the return of that second demon, though I could not turn my head far enough to see the machine from which resonated that noise. However, I did see an open window, through which a fresh draft flowed after another rainy night. In the window, little drops of water fell from above, just as I had, but unlike me, they did not feel pain as they hit a surface more solid than they were.
Drip, drip, drip…
Beep, beep, beep…
Tick, tick, tick…
          Eventually I could no longer discern one noise from another, as all three combined to better scrape away at the little sanity that I still had left.
Drip, beep, tick…
Drip, beep, tick…
Drip, beep, tick…
          I thrashed from side to side, screaming and shouting for help, hoping that somebody, anybody, would come to my aid. But nobody ever came, and I was left alone with all three of the mocking noises in my room. There was no peace for me, and even as I wept and sobbed, nothing reached my ears but those miserable, tormenting sounds, like bullies beating me as they laughed. I succumbed to my suffering, closing my eyes and hoping that peace would come, but there was nothing, nothing but those inanimate demons, inanimate yet terribly alive...
Drip, beep, tick…
Drip, beep, tick…
Drip, beep, tick…
Beeeeeeeeeeep…

END