Very suddenly the man became aware of his surroundings and consciousness, though he couldn’t shake the feeling that he has been there for a thousand years or more. He is dressed as his younger self, converses with green strings, faded denim jeans and a tight grey shirt with long sleeves. The only change from an outfit he is very familiar outfit is the cloak that seems to be starting around his shoulders and hanging around his ankles with the hood down. He does not know his name or how he got to this place. He takes a moment to look around because even though he knows his surroundings from countless times in this place he can’t shake the feeling that something is very different than the last time he was here. All the colors seem to be floating off of their surfaces and diffusing into an aura of rainbows and sparkles. After he has taken in his altered surroundings he looks to his right to the home he grew up in. There is no aura of color around this place in fact it is as though all color has left leaving only the decrepit greying shell of what he once called home. He does not feel fear for this place he simply knows there is nothing left for him here so without hesitation he begins on his way up the street towards what can only be described as his calling.
He can see the world move around him but does not feel as though he is walking. At the end of the street he looks around and all that is to the left is grey and dying and to the right the sun shines and the rainbow aura continues into the distance. There isn’t a question he must go right there is nothing to the left. He feels his calling grow stronger as he begins his walk down the long road and he lights a cigarette to pass the time. As he walks he can’t help but notice that even the smoke he exhales is subject to this aura that leads him to his calling. to his left now is a great field of golden plants with purple-blue flowers as far as he can see, they come no higher than his waist but since the ground they take root in is higher than the road he is on they come almost to his shoulder. These plants looked inviting but he felt something evil lurked inside these beautiful plants and that going in them would only lead him away from the calling. He instead reaches over and grabs a handful of the leaves off of one of the closer plants and puts them in his mouth so he can chew them as he walks.
The man continues to walk for hours until he begins to notice he is not alone, there is an oddly dressed woman following not too far behind him. “It’s about time,” he thinks to himself as he begins to walk back to where she is. As he gets closer to her he begins to notice the finer details about her. The woman is wearing boots that come halfway up her calf tight leather pants loosely stitched together at the sides a leather vest with fur inside that comes out at the shoulders and neck and gloves with no fingers that come midway up her forearms. There are feathers in her hair that is a slightly tangled mess that sticks out in different directions but not in a way that distracts from her obvious beauty. She has tribal tattoos swirling down her arms, up her neck and extending from her back around her midsection. She had a knife and a rope strapped onto her otherwise bare belt. The strangest thing about this woman was not her attire but rather her eyes they were black where his were white and the palest blue where his were brown, she had no pupils. This aside the woman’s beauty was stunning and the man knew he had met her before but could not remember when or where.
Upon reaching her he asks her who she is. The woman is silent, her expression is almost blank and only her eye contact lets him know that she is aware of him. “What has happened to this place? I don’t remember it like this.” She does not reply. For a moment they stand there in silence looking at one another as the wind blows through the plants beside the road. , not a word has been spoken but he feels that her name is Didrika, more than feels; it is as though without words she has told him. Then without warning she cocks her head to the side looks down the road and points at what looks like three figures standing in the distance. The man looks at the figures standing in the distance and then back at the woman, she will be accompanying him on this journey again she tells him this without her mouth. It would appear there is no need for talking here, well at least not from her because she talks briefly with him as they walk towards the figures. She tells him that his name is Todd and that she has been waiting for him to meet her today. She confirms what he has already suspected; that they have met before but learns that she knew he wouldn’t remember, but today was different she shares, “today is the first day that you will remember.”
After a short walk they reach the figures and it turns out that there are four people standing there not three. there is a meek looking man who is staring sorrowfully at the ground his son holds his hand and hiding behind his right leg. To his left is his emaciated wife holding their infant daughter. Todd knows all of these things without a word being spoken as though he has always known and needed only to see them to remember. They are dressed very plainly but the clothes are in very poor condition tattered and dirty. “Hello,” Todd says not really knowing what to expect. The family says nothing but the woman stares at him and the look in her eyes tells him that all hope has gone from her world. Her gaze is painful to Todd so he looks away before he begins to tear and as he looks away notices that the aura of rainbows ends at their feet, the air around them is that of decay and despair. Todd turns to walk away from this family they make him uncomfortable and he doesn’t want to be here anymore but he hears Didrika in his mind, “You must help them Todd or this will end as it always does, you will not reach the calling and you will not remember.” Todd doesn’t know quite what she means but he understands that these hopeless creatures need him because now all four of them even the infant are staring at him as though if he takes one more step away they will cease to exist so he takes a step closer to them. he squats down to the son and manages to muster a smile as he tells the boy who he is. then he looks the man in the eyes, those sad sorrowful eyes and explains all that he knows, “my name is Todd and I am going to help you but for me to do that you and your family have to follow me the calling is this way,” Todd points to the right, “and I fear we may not have much time to get there.” The man says nothing but all but the infant nod to him and so they set off.
This new part of the road has trees on either side that converge not too far in front of them with a small clearing where only underbrush grows. The foliage is just thick enough that Todd cannot see what lies beyond it. The aura is very thick in this area and it is flowing through the trees up into the air. As he looked behind him to check on the family that followed in his and Didrika’s wake he noticed that every step they family took left grey footprints on the colorful path. Todd realized that their presence had a profound impact on this beautiful aura that he and Didrika seemed to have no effect on. “It’s the sadness,” Didrika informs him, “all that they touch feels what they do.” Then she repeats, “You must help them Todd.” They reach the underbrush and begin to move through it, Didrika has no problem with this but Todd seems to get stuck by every branch and twig, when they touch his skin or catch his clothes he hears voices as though the plants are catching at him trying to keep him from going forward. They scream in panicked voices warning him of trials that lay ahead, of untold fear and pain if he continues. The aura dissipates as he makes his way through the thick underbrush. What once was a rainbow aura of good feelings has become an ominous aura of fear and darkness.
After what seems to be a lifetime they make it through the foliage, and as Didrika and Todd step forward Todd is taken aback by the vast ocean before him. There is a planked bridge leading out over a body of water with steep banks that descends 50 feet below the bridge. as he takes in this new scenery he notices that the bridge is not complete, after about a hundred yards the bridge stops and there is another section about 50 yards from that that is turned perpendicular to the first section and about 50 yrds from that is another section that continues to the opposite bank. Todd is amazed by this landscape it is not at all how it was the last time he was here. He turns to check that the family has made it through the underbrush ok but they are standing right where it ends, the plants are wrapped around them holding them where they are, they are staring blankly at him. “This is where you must leave them Todd, they cannot leave this shore. They need you to go on to save them from this.” Todd isn’t exactly sure what “this” is but understands that he must continue without these sad beings in order to help them from their torment.
The sun is on the horizon to the left so that the shadow of the bridge falls to Todd’s right and as he looks around the steep bank todd notices that it is moving in certain places. “they are down there Todd, they were in the field by the road and they will destroy you if you let them.” Todd turns to Didrika questioningly. “They change their form to fit the landscape but they are always there. They can be called many things but you can call them the enemy. They are the incarnation of all your fears and they do not want you to reach the calling.” as Todd surveys the enemy more carefully he notices that they are in the form of a reptile similar to a crocodile or alligator but with a more human figure, they are hiding under the mud of the bank and he can see them in the water under the bridge as well. “We have to go Todd, there isn’t much time.” They set off down the bridge and Todd can’t help but to ask how they are going to cross. At first Didrika does not reply but as they reach the end of the first section of the bridge turns to Todd and he hears in his head, “follow me, the way will reveal itself.” then shejumps off the edge.
Todd jumps forward to grab Didrika’s arm but she is already gone. He screams after her as he looks over the edge and is surprised to see her looking up at him from a floating platform below. “Come on Todd, don’t be afraid,” he hears in his head. Todd steps off the ledge and feels the wind rush past him as he falls, his cloak billowing behind him until he hits the platform on his hands and knees. It sinks into the water and then bobs back up sending water flying up and in all directions. As the platform rises back out of the water Todd is surprised to find that he is holding a rope in his hand. As he looks at it he hears a scream in his head, “PULL!!!” Didrika yells at him. Todd realizes why she is panicking when he sees the creatures swimming towards him, he pulls as hard as he can and the platform begins to move. As he pulls them forward Didrika unsheathes her knife, it is long and curved first forward and then sharply back like an “s.” She takes a step back as one of the creatures launches itself from the water and onto the platform, “keep pulling!” Todd hears in his head. the creature stands a solid four feet taller than Didrika and causes the platform to sink where it stands, its eyes glow red as its tongue moves around its gaping jaw and it lets out a noise somewhere between a hiss and a roar. Didrika moves with incredible speed as she removes the beasts lower jaw with one quick swipe of her dagger. Its blood runs black and steams as it hits the platform and water at its feet. Didrika then slices the beast at its knees with two clean swipes and it falls off the platform into the water.
The platform is moving under the second part of the bridge by this point and Todd is still pulling as fast as he can, using every ounce of strength he can muster. Another creature is coming up behind them and Didrika moves to intercept it as it jumps, but then it sinks under the water and disappears from sight. They are 20 yards from the last portion of the bridge now. all of a sudden platform dips into the water on one side as the creature hits the left side from underneath, Todd falls in the water with the rope still in hand. he opens his eyes after a second or two and all he can see in the black of the water are the thousands of red eyes closing in on him. he kicks his feet as he tries to swim to the surface and hears a splash as Didrika jumps in after him. As he breaks the surface and grabs for the platform he feels one of the beasts grab his leg and pull him under again, he can feel the powerful grip of the beast crushing his leg as he sinks and then it loosens without letting go and he starts back to the surface for air. he gulps in the cool air as he breaks the surface a second time and hauls himself back onto the platform, Didrika is right behind him and he starts to pull again. As he pulls he notices that the creatures claw is still clutching his leg but has been severed at the forearm, he kicks it off in disgust. More beasts are closing in around the platform as they reach the last portion of the bridge and without hesitation Didrika takes the rope from her belt and throws it up to the bridge, it catches on the first throw and Todd hears in his head, “GO!” he does, Didrika is right behind him as he climbs and the beasts begin to crawl onto the platform. When they are about halfway up Didrika slices the rest of the rope off so the creatures cannot follow them and they climb the remainder of the rope.
Todd hauls himself onto the bridge and rolls forwards on his side and turns to help Didrika up when he kinds his feet. As soon as she is up he hears her shout in his head to run and he obeys this without question. As they sprint down the bridge Todd can see that the are running towards a pillar of light at the end of the bridge where it meets the land, its aura is powerful and compels him forward even faster. This must be the calling, Todd is sure of it. they sprint straight into the aura and Todd finds nothing more than a reflective orb on a podium in the center of the aura, it is singing to him compelling him to take it, “Grab it!” Didrika looks panicked for the first time and Todd takes the reflective sphere and all goes dark.
I shot up in bed sweating and out of breath. Panting in the dark I rub my eyes and sigh, “it’s only a dream,” I tell myself. My hands fall from my eyes to my greying stubble and I look around the room, a faint light illuminates my boring walls and I look at the clock, 3:14. “Odd, there are no lights on in my apartment.” I swing my feet over the edge of the bed to get up and look for the source of the light and I feel something roll around where I am sitting. when I look down to the object my eyes widen in horror, the sphere from my dream glows faintly on my bed.
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