Firestorm

The crowd was our only shelter

The wind above us was alive with fire

We ran all together for the bridge

The ground beneath us was alive
with twisting torsos,
hands grabbed at my ankles

We reached the river in a mass
too large to cross

The water was alive with struggling
faces, hands reaching
from the fiery reflection of sky

There was not a sound anywhere

I gripped the hand of the woman beside me
and we pressed toward the center

I squeezed past the pylon of the bridge
but the crowd pinned her
to the concrete

I freed my hand just in time

Those of us in front made the bridge
just as another crowd burst
between the pylons at the far end

Their eyes were alive with the fire
behind us

They cried out in a strange language
but among them I recognized
each of my enemies