Breaking Silence

• Lily Brincat, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2022

Emptiness filling space with silence. Bland buildings that you could see from miles away. This was their familiar environment. It all began with a voice echoing through the emptiness. The population was about 60 in this run down insignificant town appropriately named Silentium. Silence cornered the area on a stable ordinary day but this was something Red had to rectify.

In Silentium, it was practically illegal to ask or question anyone as signs covered every blank building demanding silence. Only Red had broken this deal. She was as perfect as a renaissance portrait on the inside, if only it was as obvious on the outside. So paint a portrait of a young warrior with chevron medals and a single silk uniform with shining iron plates embroidered into it. She had light brown resplendent hair losing its delight every day and her bright blue eyes had turned bleak and empty and no color showed.

Red was this unordinary being. The others in the town shielded the bleak corners and protested for unnecessary things until every imperfection was ‘perfected,’ and so she was unordinary. In this ‘perfect’ space Red had broken every rule in order to save the town from itself. Every boring mind had questioned her secretly but had never seen her abilities. Red’s defiance of the ordinary had provoked rumours.

Red had fought off any intruder and should have been thanked but instead the unwritten laws tried to impose silence. So for the rest of her recurring years she had decided to break the rules. Red was the only one who dared to have a voice but only a month had passed when the unexpected flooded in. Suddenly one night otherwise filled with boredom, everything felt different. At night the place was a whole new frightful destination.

Not one thing in sight felt ordinary except for the signs and the silence that became too freaky for her hometown. She peered out at every view when she noticed that her treasured chevron medals were gone. This felt like a trap. Red nervously whispered, “show yourself.” The young adult howled and shrieked, feeling terrified. In the corners she found undefined figures in dark cloaks and bolted to chase them. In some kind of language unknown to her the monsters had screeched in terror. Her 19 year old mind would have told her to run and be ordinary but her nearly adult inner protector and loyal self told her to venture on. A look closer and a pack of disturbed goblin creatures were prepared to attack but looked eager to hide.

Red wouldn't let these things get away she needed to be herself, her own rebel and fighter. So she did. She attacked and screamed so loud that the entire town awoke in fright. The battle was her and them but also her and Silentium. When she thought it was over for her, she had won and had protected everyone. Red was an unordinary being who dared to break the silence.