In the dirt.

“It’s a maggot.” Jeremy said with a certainness that was obvious to mask his own in-conclusion as to what lay squirming beneath the soil.

“It ain’t! It’s too big to be.” Harold said looking down at the thing.

Little Harold’s red hair was frazzled from the days adventures. It dangled in ringlets at his forehead.

The day’s fun had been spent. First there were action figures fighting a war in the rain ruts which covered the Dirt border. The border rose to the street and encircled the soccer field on two sides. After the war a two-boy dirt clod fight had been fought. A fight surrendered when the boys ran into the orange groves which lined the south boundary of the field. Stopping in their tracks when they found the quivering mass.

They were no more than fifteen feet under the trees when they saw it. At first it looked just like a mound of dirt. But then the boys saw the segmented rows of white flesh undulating beneath the soil.

“Touch it” Jeremy said with a morbid curiosity.

Resting his hands on his knees and bending as close as comfortable. “No way.” His friend replayed.

Without understanding why, Jeremy pushed his friend. His friend’s hands hit the dirt and before the little spray of soil they sent up came back down, a tooth filled mouth emerged from the dirt. It latched on to Harold’s face and pulled him into the earth kicking with muffled screams.

It all happened faster than Jeremy could comprehend.
Jeremy looked down at bare but moving dirt. An older boy would have run screaming. But Jeremy was curious. He remembered Seth playing earlier alone against the kickball wall.

He found Seth picking a blackened red rubber ball, just about to leave.
“Hey I found something. You gotta see it.” Jeremy yelled at the older boy.

“what’d ya find.” The older boy said faking interest.

“A bug, it’s as big as your head!” Jeremy replied with enthusiasm.
“Bull shit.” Said Seth.

Leading him into the orange groves Jeremy didn’t waste his chance. He pushed the older boy. The larva devoured Seth to Jeremy’s awe stricken delight.

The thing beneath had noticeably grown. But after its last feast it shivered ferociously, breaking Jeremy’s hypnosis. The boy watched now as it grew tenfold. The thing rose above the earth into a glistening sack.
Jeremy backed into the tree behind him. A fear rose in him. Suddenly he knew what he had done was very wrong and that there was something coming.

A glistening gore-covered arm rose from the sack before him. Then the sack which more than doubled in size ripped its full length.

Jeremy turned in horror. Then a beautiful man with feathered wings rose from the sack before him.

After Kissing Jeremy on the forehead, the winged man flew and disappeared into the sky.

Jeremy was but a child. But with a simple kiss he knew; he knew he had started oblivion upon the earth.