Yellow Mama E zine

Third in Line

 

by Christopher Hivner

 

The voice came up from the well,

mellifluous,

candy to our ears,

speaking our words

but in a voice

impossible for a human to make.

It was trapped,

“Help me,” it said,

with the tongue that encompassed

all the joy that’s ever existed.

We fought with one another

to be the first to help,

to be the voice’s savior.

 

The first man down

on a strong rope

splashed into the water.

Some of us waiting

thought we heard

him say,

“There’s no one down here.”

before all went silent.

When we pulled the rope up,

he was no longer connected.

A second man,

brave and strong,

tied the rope around his waist

and lowered himself quickly.

Time was an enemy,

he had to save

whoever was trapped.

A few minutes later

the rope came up a second time

empty.

 

“Help me,” the voice cried out again,

the words kissing our ears

like a lover

we never knew we needed.

One after another,

man and woman,

lowered themselves into the well.

Some shouted up,

“Where is she?”

“I don’t see anyone.”

“Pull me back.”

We pulled all back

but no one

ever returned.

 

“Help me.”

Those of us still at the scene

heard the voice

asking for help

and we wanted to.

We were afraid.

Thirty-seven people

have disappeared down the well,

made no sound,

didn’t cry out in pain,

just gone,

while the original voice

still entreated rescuers.

 

The battle we faced

was painful,

the pull of the voice

versus the chill of our fear,

but we’ve started again.

I’m fourth in line

and I hope I’m

the chosen one,

a hero for

the world to see.

The rope has returned

without the first person.

Now I’m third in line.

My moment

is soon at hand.

 

        Christopher Hivner is a lifelong resident of Pennsylvania in the United States. He has recently been published in The Horror Zine and Illumen. His book of horror/dark fantasy poems, Dark Oceans of Divinity, is available from Cyberwit.net or Amazon.

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Image: Base photo of a deep well (Pablo Hidalgo Aguilera/Unsplash) was subsequently processed in ToolWiz Photos/Fast filter/Art express; finalized in Prisma. Photo-art credit: John C. Mannone

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   John C. Mannone is a scientist, poet, lyrical essayist, fiction writer, and poetry editor who creates derivative visual art and photo art for speculative poems in Abyss & Apex, Silver Blade (on hiatus), and ADR Poetry (defunct). His photography/art appears on the anthology cover of the 2026 Tennessee Voices, inside Chattanooga Writers’ Guild anthologies, and on select collections. He currently serves on the artists staff of Yellow Mama Literary Magazine. His literary work appears widely in Artemis, Critical Humanities, The New England Journal of Medicine, and others. He’s the Poet Laureate for the City of Oak Ridge, TN (2026-2028).

 

https://jcmannone.wordpress.com/published-collections/

https://www.facebook.com/jcmannone

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