E c h o e s - By Ilaria Kaharudin

Written By: Ilaria Kaharudin

Category: Poetry

Competition: Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026

Ilaria Kaharudin, writing under the name E c h o e s, presents a captivating piece titled "E c h o e s" as part of the Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026. This compelling work is a testament to Kaharudin's mastery in weaving intricate imagery and exploring profound themes. With each line, the reader is drawn into a world where echoes of the past reverberate through the present, inviting an introspective journey into the nature of identity and transformation.

About the Work

"E c h o e s" delves into the haunting realms of darkness and transformation, blending mythical motifs with vivid, dream-like imagery. The poem's atmospheric tone is underscored by its exploration of existential themes, inviting readers to ponder the boundaries between life and the ethereal. Kaharudin's use of rich, evocative language crafts a narrative that is both unsettling and mesmerizing, urging one to listen closely to the echoes of the night and the whispers of hidden fears.

E c h o e s

Original Submission by Ilaria Kaharudin

E c h o e s

Beware

“The universal belief is,

that a person sucked by a vampyre becomes a vampyre himself,

and sucks in his turn.”

* (Polidori, footnote)

“Listen––

can you hear her cries?”

e c h o e c h o

throughout the lullaby of the night.

we lay bundled in concrete walls of silence,

rolled in rough cotton sheets

our human forms caught

in the suspended circumference

of reality.

warm hands––

stroking fingers

speak

in the resounding hollow darkness,

a hereditary warning:

“do not venture into the night”

for at the base of the hill she resides,

fused with the crooked boughs

of the frangipani tree

I giggle in disbelief,

turning in my feathered grave,

I peer through the glass of my tomb,

twisted branches

flecked with skeletal petals

scraping.

Bewitched

“At midnight drain the stream of life;”

* (Byron, 762)

That night––I dream

of death

and his pale maiden,

clad in bone-white skin

that devours the soul

of the complete moon,

purnama

she floats upon

the saccharine scent of dreams,

in plumes of tuberose

and ushered wishes,

ivory blossoms that sing

to the celestial pearl

and wither under the sun.

the maiden hangs

in speckled moonlight,

under a starless canopy,

dipped in fragments of fallen moons,

she exhales

in erroneous ethereality.

whorls of inky tresses spilling over

gossamer robes,

her sensual silhouette shrouded.

unease claws

through me

––pinching,

carving crescent moons into my

corpse.

her eyes flash––studded rubies

in hollow bone,

orbs of fire

shattering the obsidian slate.

blood.

the need for it palpitates in her pupils,

I am lost in vermillion irises.

Bitten

"Sucks from my veins the streaming life,

And drains the fountain of my heart!

* (Stagg, 73-74)

a malevolent grin cuts

across her serene smile

as she contorts,

red filaments. masticated tendons.

eddied,

sallow skin slides

against my own.

serrated talons

caress

the delicate arch

of my throat

her ebony hair

enshrouds me

in the opalescent veil

of cloistering darkness.

paralysis.

her tongue crests the column

of my vitality,

fangs piercing

rivers

as she channels

streams of my ardent blood

through her spectral form.

nothingness

pervades me.

Bound

“Thy victims ere they yet expire

Shall know the demon for their sire,

As cursing thee, thou cursing them,

Thy flowers are withered on the stem”

* (Byron, 765-768)

I awake––

on a bed of nails,

tiny lacerations

puncturing my flesh

spilling

dr ip

ip

ipp

ing.

my throat has been stuffed

with mockeries of the moon,

glass pearls that orbit

the aperture of my speech,

marbles.

maybe I have lost them?

they blot out my trachea

as I strain

for desperate breath,

heaving––

I cannot

cry

nor open my mouth

to scream.

I am blanketed in carved silence

and the silk spilling of my own blood

coagulating

on iron needles

mati di-timpa tanah tambah!

there is dirt

in my sockets

soil packed,

into the hollow curvatures of my eyes

covering the casings of my cataracts,

stained clay.

I see the world

in slashes

of carmine.

my blood has seeped

into reality.

I am overcome by it.

I respire,

through the flayed skin of trees

and rinds of roots,

I am trapped

in the cloying scent

that reverberates of dreams.

daun lalang gulong-gulong

the leaves of weeds are rolling

carvings of wood encircle

my tongue,

I pilfer a futile breath,

the timber shavings

pricking the delicate cavern of my lungs.

my organs deliquesce––

congealing

like chilled vulcanite,

rubber weights

trapped

in my fleshy encasement.

I breathe in bark

and sticky sap,

caught within the whispers

of the trees,

the lilting tinkle

of frozen flowers

clinking

in the midnight silence.

I exist––

beyond the borders

of corporeal mortality,

bound by a vengeance

that is not my own,

slave to the relentless

carnal desire

of retribution.

I know nothing,

but this consuming craving

drowning every sense––

a guttural yearning

that cleaves

through the pillars of my ribs.

kan pelemang hati Jin Pontianak.

Buried

“And from my veins life's juices drain;”

* (Stagg, 82)

My semangat

is bleeding.

vermillion wine

staining my insides,

trickling. sloshing.

my mind swallows

percolations,

echoes of a past,

of life––of humanity

fragments,

earth. lips. cotton petals.

a memory––

mutilated by the sickle of time

presses incessantly

between my cranium,

it ruptures bone,

shredding the webbed veil

that tarnishes the slits of my sight.

a voice

dis…..torted

e c h o e s

“hear her cries”

“listen?”

before…

no.

panic howls

“can you”

Listen.

Listen.

Drip.

Drip.

fingers groping my brain

frigid palms

Drip.

blood vomits

from the perforation

at the back of my

skull.

metal

rupturing

elforyn bone.

shearing glossed locks

Drip.

“venture into

the night”

Drip.

Drip.

“Do”

“Not––”

“Listen.”

to her cries

About the Competition

The Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026, hosted by Hashtag Kalakar, is a celebrated platform for writers and poets around the world to showcase their creative talents. The competition encourages participants to push the boundaries of literary expression, inviting submissions that reflect diverse perspectives and innovative storytelling. This prestigious event continues to be a beacon for emerging voices in the literary arts.

Thank you, Ilaria Kaharudin, for sharing "E c h o e s" with the Global Poetry and Creative Writing Competition 2026. Your poem offers a profound exploration of themes that resonate with vivid imagery and emotional depth. We look forward to seeing more of your creative endeavors and the unique perspectives you bring to the world of poetry.

About Hashtag Kalakar

Hashtag Kalakar is a creative platform dedicated to providing artists, writers, singers and other creative talents with opportunities to showcase their work and reach wider audiences through competitions, features and creative initiatives.