Sucked In

by Tracy Davidson

He starts his missing son’s latest game. Something to distract him from constant worry, to see what his son played that day.

Graphics have changed since his childhood. His avatar walks through a post-apocalyptic landscape. Bodies burning, animals scavenging.

Far ahead, a faint figure jumps up and down, screaming at him to run.

Something drives him forward. The figure sharpens. His son’s avatar, disconcertingly realistic, even wearing his brand-new trainers.

“Dad, you should have gone back,” it says, tears on claw-marked cheeks.

But there’s no going back in this game…

At home, a worried mother reports her husband missing too.

Tracy Davidson

Tracy Davidson lives in Warwickshire, England, and writes poetry and flash fiction. Her work has appeared in various publications and anthologies, including: Poet’s Market, Mslexia, Black Hare Press, Modern Haiku, Femku Mag, Shooter, Journey to Crone, The Great Gatsby Anthology, WAR, and In Protest: 150 Poems for Human Rights.