The razor is slick in her hand 
and bright red 
as she pulls it out into the light 
and the air sighs around her 
as she licks the surface clean 

The corridor is slick 
covered in flesh 
and memories of times past 
shrieks of agony and terror 
spiral through the hallway 

There were many threads to begin with
coming out of her heart 
winding down through the passages 
ending up in room after room 
some of them fainter than others 
the strongest stand out 
as the most recent 
the most painful 

Quickly, she finds another source 
and enters the room 
finding a quivering girl 
holding onto the shards 
of a picture long smashed 

It's a man's face, 
distorted by the blood and tears 
from her face and hands 
soon to be nameless 
as are all the others 
cut out of her mind 
like a cancerous wound 

The little girl weeps 
silently rocking slowly back and forth 
until the dark one moves closer 

The keening sound of mourning 
begins as the picture is
torn from the little girl's grasp 
and the image extracted 
from the intricate frame 
made of flesh and bone 

There is a thread 
leading from the picture 
to the dark woman 

The flash of silver is quick 
and painful 
as the red thread 
flutters to the moist ground 

The little girl collapses 
finally smiling 
quickly fading to nothing 
and another useless, painful memory
is gone 
as the dark woman straigtens up 
to finish her task 

There are many more rooms to visit 
before the night is through.

Copyright 2000 Rogue