Haibun (the sun continues)

by michaelcahill

the sun continues
burning even as it sets
metaphor

She's pregnant and stumbling towards the sliding doors. Emergency! Yes, the oxygen tank's near empty. Priority is given to new life. Dead bodies are everywhere. The emergency room is full but it isn't busy. A lone masked attendant staggers forward. He escorts her to the hyperbolic chamber. She reclines and it is sealed. Oxygen flows in, the last of the oxygen. The attendant breathes his last.

A man swings a sledgehammer smashing the glass of chamber after chamber. The occupants quickly succumb to the toxic air. His own air tank runs dry and he dies. One chamber remains, containing the pregnant woman. She and her baby are all that remains of humanity. One question remains: Will the mother outlive the child or will the child outlive the mother.

Earth spins
in peaceful orbit
man's not missed

As she died, the pregnant woman daydreamed: A barren blue planet spins around a dwarf star. An emergency room in a hospital houses evidence there was once life.

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Haibun Style Mixed Prose/Poetry writing prompt entry

Writing Prompt
Please write a mixture of prose and poetry on the theme of A SINGLE DAY in an 'ACCIDENT & EMERGENCY' HOSPITAL DEPARTMENT.

Terse fragmented prose is preferred, with as little word wastage as possible.

You MUST include at least TWO 3-lined senryu (up to seventeen syllables in each) that reflect the theme and blend into the story.

NO ARTWORK OR SOUND EFFECTS.

NO AUTHOR NOTES.

MIN 150, MAX 250 WORDS.

'DEFINITION' ABOVE TITLE MUST INCLUDE A CLEARLY VISIBLE WORD COUNT, BUT NOTHING ELSE.

BLACK TYPE ON WHITE BACKGROUND ONLY.

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word count 175

Haibun (the sun continues)

by michaelcahill

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