This week’s prompt is a free write, so take the seed below and run with it. It doesn’t have to turn into anything (unless you want it to, of course), just let the words flow and see where they go.
Continue this opening sentence:
The river ran through what was once the nicer part of town.
Write as much or as little as you’d like.
But time took its toll and the economy continued to fall. Houses in disrepair dotted the streets.
ReplyDeleteTiberius walked over the bridge, cringing at the noise of his footsteps on the broken cobblestones. He had gone to the ruins of the house that he once had called his home, but nothing could be salvaged there, all was utterly lost. He did not know what had happened to his wife. He did not want to know perhaps. After those three years spent fighting in Gaule, he had learnt not to feel anymore.
ReplyDeleteThe river ran through what was once the nicer part of town, but the two strong earthquakes, plus a swarm of aftershocks, made rubble of many of the elegant homes lining the banks. The temblors rerouted the river's course for several months, flooding the lush yards and swamping brush and trees, before returning to its original path. The old monied families packed up and moved on, leaving piles of bricks, lumber, and slag to bleach and rot in the steamy summer heat. Soon thereafter, poor families came and erected makeshift houses from the remnants left behind. Within a year, a small community arose, phoenix-like, from the debris. It wasn't as it was before, stiff and manicured, but now kids played ball in vacant lots and hopscotch on the parts of the sidewalks that hadn't buckled and cracked. Life had returned along the banks of the silently flowing river. Not what you would term the nicer part of town any longer, but a part of town bubbling with life.
ReplyDeleteBroad oak trees and sparse thickets lined the banks that held the vibrant lifeline for the working folk that still depended on the river trade flowing into their community. All around beauty remained, from the rolling hills and woodland that hugged the old stone buildings with red tiled roofs to the grey flagstoned squares and vibrant walled gardens bursting with every color imaginable. The innermost quarters were still very much alive after countless generations. Beyond stood grand houses and small halls with domes and spires and stonework decorated with seemingly endless detail and elaborate design. It was here the rich merchants and small lords resided and conducted their business with the surrounding lands, towns and cities.
ReplyDelete