Wednesday's Words on a Friday

 

The original Words for Wednesday was begun by Delores and eventually taken over by a moveable feast of participants when Delores had computer troubles. Sadly, Delores has now closed her blog forever due to other problems.

The aim of the words is to encourage us to write. A story, a poem, whatever comes to mind.

If you are posting an entry on your own blog, please let us know so we can come along to read it and add a few encouraging words.

This month the words/prompts are supplied by David M. Gascoigne and can be found here

This week's words/prompts are: 

1.beating  2.evidence  3.remaining  4.temperature  5.stench  

and/or: 

1.excessive  2.oppressive  3.exposure  4.dryland  5.cover

also including Charlotte's colour of the month pretty flower pink

Here is my story:

February 2245. The oppressive humidity once present this time of year, according to the history channel, was now a long distant memory.

The climate had shifted remarkably quickly; though the world had already been largely dryland when George was born one hundred years ago, it now more closely resembled Mars, with scorching temperature and excessive dust storms that turned the sky a pretty flower pink shade some evenings as the sun set.

The one remaining tree gave no cover from any exposure to the elements, since leaves no longer managed to sprout. The dead trunk would probably soon topple.

The stench of the recently dead in neighbouring homes was only more evidence that George himself couldn’t last much longer.

He trudged down once again to the dry riverbed, feeling his heart beating heavily as he searched one last time for water. He craved just one more mouthful of the precious liquid, but none was to be found.

He glanced back at the way he had come, and knowing he wouldn’t make it up the small incline again, he lay down on the smooth rocks and closed his eyes.

Death came quickly.