The Poison

• Clement Chan, Grade 10, James Ruse Agricultural High School
• Short Story
• 2009

Finalist in the 'World of Words 2009' competition

Her black glistening eyes cheerlessly reflected the sun’s intense light, yet echoed none of its warmth; radiating only despair. Morning had arrived at last, but she had barely slept at all last night. By now, the viscous greasy slime had found its way over her entire body, and even tunnelled its way into the membrane surrounding her eyes, mouth and lungs too, burning inexorably with every passing second. She felt the searing fire of pain in her body flare up constantly, and her energy gradually draining away. The only reprieve was the rare bliss of sleep that briefly punctuated her torture, but even then the memory of her pain was never too far away.

Her pup had not fared much better, though the coating of oil on his body was noticeably thinner. She had spent the night trying to groom his skin, desperately licking off as much of the grease as possible even though she knew that she herself was dreadfully ill.

The other sea lions who had also hauled onto the beach in a futile attempt to escape the oil spill had begged her not to do it. Yes; it was the only way to remove the oil, they told her, but once ingested it would completely devastate her internal organs, rendering her helpless. They told her that once it entered her lungs, she would not be able to breathe properly and would collapse into coughing spasms. They told her she would die.

But she told them that if she did not clean off the suffocating noxious oil her pup would freeze to death from hypothermia. And so in spite of the endless inferno that ravaged her insides, she continued to lick the oil off him, ingesting more and more of the lethal poison. She knew she had to save him no matter what.

“Mummy,” he weakly asked her that evening. “What is happening? Won’t anybody come to save us?”

She smiled sadly at her son.

“Humans are the reason we have ended up like this. And they are the only ones who can help us. But they will not come. They do not care.”

Later that night, she was able forget her worries and fall into a deep, blissful sleep. She left her agony and suffering behind, and slept in peace for the first time in days. And in her calm slumber she dreamt. A dream where the creatures of world loved and cared for one another; a world abounding in harmony and beauty.

A world free from the carelessness and icy indifference of man.

The first drops of sunlight trickled into the world, but it did nothing to cast away the cold that enveloped the world.

Her black glistening eyes blankly reflected the sun’s already intense light, yet echoed none of its warmth. Morning had arrived at last, but she was already gone.