Her Fortress

by Jennie Wonderlin
Illustration by Elaine Irvine
 

Six feet under the ground wasn’t enough.

So she protected herself
      by taking what was available to begin building her fortress. First clearing out her natural resources: mud, sticks and stones. Then woven grass, knotted tree limbs, and recycled bird’s nests. Stacked higher and higher until she was completely encircled by her barrier. Only to be sure there was nothing living within an arm’s length radius.

But it wasn't enough.

With her feet on the sodden earth the wall was only at eye level. Exposed, she exhausted what she could salvage.
      First her go was her ability to listen.
      Followed by her desire to see light.
            Brick by brick her abilities and desires were condensed and cemented together. She stacked higher and higher.

                        Until soundproofed. Until blacked out.

But it wasn't enough..

Her fortress now stood six times her height. And yet she still felt unprotected.
So she built.
      Third she withdrew her hearing.
      Followed by her compassion.
            Piece by piece she took her concentrated audition and benevolence and built so high until she count feel the hear of the sun melt her raw skin and that her most congealed veins.
The warmth abruptly stopping just short of her heart.

                        But it wasn't enough.

At an unknown altitude she felt naked. So she gave all in.
      Fourth she run out her dehydrated saliva and drained her arctic blood.
      Fifth she extracted her hardly beating heart and removed her ailing brain.
      Sixth she severed her limbs and lacerated her tendons.
            She incinerated her insides until they were ash and pressurized them until they were diamonds. She took those diamonds and built until she felt clothed.

            She built until she entered a different stratosphere.
            She built until she was eye level with the moon.
            She built until she glimmered alongside the galaxy's glow

                        But it wasn't enough.

Somewhere unknown to man, she vaporized into nothing.
            Seventh, there were no brainwaves.
            Eighth, there was no pulse.
            Ninth, there was no breath.
            Tenth, she got what she wanted.
                  She was as far away to where no one could get to her. Her fortress so high

that no one dare to scale her wall.
And that was enough