Guest Blogger: Andrew Antoff

Hey guys! I'm really excited for this post. It's my first guest blogger! Everyone, welcome ANDREW ANTOFF! (And the crowd goes wild!)

Andrew is an excellent writer. He's provided me with a sample of his work to put on my blog, and I really enjoy it. As a fellow writer, I know how hard it can be to depict the images he includes in his writing. I really want to write an introduction discussing all the technical beauties of this piece, but I decided that would probably bore you to death and that you'd rather just experience the piece for yourself. If you really like it, you can check out more of his work (really excellent stuff, so don't be shy!) at his blog, http://www.amberinglass.blogspot.com/.

So here it is! Enjoy!

The sky roared it’s protestation as I stepped outside to investigate the peculiar darkness settling outside my window. Directly above, the sky was still untouched and blue.

Crack.

Something flashed above my left shoulder drawing my attention. It was then I saw the sky to the southwest, a thick, filmy gray. Turning west, I saw the clouds smothered the horizon from south to north. As my eyes traveled the scope of their trail, all across the field of my vision they got progressively worse.

A daring 747 shot out from underneath the worst of the sky making its escape into the clear blue that was still above me. The airport was just there, below the darkest patch of black. I saw another plane circling around the outskirts of the storm, waiting to land. It veered suddenly and disappeared from view.

I took a seat in my lawn chair and watched the storm. The hairs on my neck stood on end, charged by the electricity from the heavens. There was another flash from the southwest, and seconds passed. I felt the answering cry across the battlefield, far to the north. It traveled through my body, rattled my teeth together, and deafened my ears.

THERE! Another flash, but I was watching for it; the sky divided in four--or was it five?--as the lightning branched from one purple bolt and split in different directions across the horizon.

There was a pop, like air displaced, as the bolts must have simultaneously, somewhere touched the ground, lost from my sight behind buildings and trees. I could feel the weather, but where I sat the sky was still pristine and clear.

It was then I noticed a flash from behind me, directly east. Turning, I saw a second storm front, completely unattached from the other. This one came from the coast, and was heading directly towards me.

It was not as large or as dark as the southwesterly in front of me, but thunder roared from it nonetheless. I turned my chair to face directly south, so that I could watch both sets of lightning as they sparred around me with each strike punctuated by an accompany blast of thunder that seemed instantaneous.

It was only then that I wondered, how safe I was sitting on an aluminum chair, beneath a tree, and some power lines as the heavens battled for my steadily vanishing, blue sky. Each side threatened to steal it; the opposing sides’ taunts both equally loud. It was hard to tell who took it first.

Staring directly up, I watched as the two fronts collided, and erased the trace of blue from all but memory. No sooner had they met, I was pelted by a curtain of heavy rain. I clambered for the safety of my doorway.

In the threshold I stood getting dripped on by the runoff from the roof. I wanted one last flash of lightning. I was waiting to see what side was the victor, but now that there was no more blue to quarrel over, neither seemed to be forthcoming with any more answers.

Too wet to continue I turned and went inside, and as I shut the door I saw a flash from the corner of my eye, taunting me.

“Who won?” I thought, turning to look. And then I heard the sirens and realized that it was nature.