Chapter Text
There was a big puff of cold air that quickly melted away. I stumbled out into darkness. My consciousness not having completely returned to me, I wandered, trying to feel what was around me. Everything felt slippery and cold. I stopped, not wanting to lose the unsteady balance I had. After a few minutes though, it felt like my eyes were starting to adjust to my surroundings.
I did appear to be in a dark cave. Stalactites hanging too close for comfort. Then another thought occurred to me. I turned to see where I had emerged from. A large dimly lit tube still releasing vapor was embedded in the cave wall.
Looking back to what was in front of me, a tight tunnel led out of the small shelter I was currently residing in. It was cramped, but I made due. My small careful steps echoed off the stone walls. After at least a few minutes The dark tunnel opened a little wider to a small dome shaped room. The walls took on a wet ashen appearance, almost like that of liquid cement.
Emerging from the silence, a small buzz came from behind me. Sounding like two things hitting each other in rapid succession. My body flinched at the sound and I tried to whip myself around to see the source.
The sudden movement caused me to lose my already insufficient footing and fall to the ground. However, now I got to see the cause up close. Seeing the perpetrator didn’t help me much, though.
There were dozens of small brightly glowing dots. About the size of the first knuckle of my thumb. They were blinding, leaving dark patches in my vision when I closed my eyes. I vainly tried to back away, becoming more and more radical and desperate with my movements.
There weren’t many reasons for why things glow, but not many of them are weighted in my favor. I continued my feverish movements of trying to get away from whatever sat in front of me.
Suddenly, the things caped in glow lunged at me. Causing my movements to become even more frantic, trying to wip the odd creatures off of me. Sadly, my efforts were still fruitless as the glows had latched themselves onto my skin.
Then needles stabbed everywhere, piercing everywhere. My nerves lit on fire and my body started to shake and falter violently. I tried to scream. Tried to get any sound out through my shaking mouth, but the effort was wasted. I couldn’t make any sound other than shaky gasps pass through my lips.
Then, in the next second all the feelings were gone. I looked down through tired drooping eyes to see darkness surrounding me. No glowing creatures to be seen. I gasped in a fresh breath of humid, heavy air and it felt like my lungs had just been released from a powerful grip.
Relief dripped through my body as it finally realized whatever had happened was over. I tried to rise again; I was also half expecting to fall right back down to the soft, wet earth. However, to my surprise, I rose effortlessly and found a strong footing. I was able to start making my surroundings out in only seconds, as if someone had shown a dim lamp through the cave.
Now that I could see, I could make out an opening leading to what looked to be sunlight, but from everything else that had happened in the odd cave, I can’t say for sure. I kept walking, still cautious with my footing, so as to not slip again. As I kept walking closer to the free light, my hand glided along the long stretch of tunnel. I began to notice the walls lose their slippery wet feel, becoming a crumbling, warm, dry stone.
As my feet crossed the threshold of the cave to the outside, I had to shield my eyes from the burning sun. After being in the cave for a while must have affected my vision because my sight couldn’t have been better than that of a mole.
After a moment I found myself upon a grassy green hill. The hills seemed to extend forever, like a sea of soft green blankets with the occasional tree piercing through the grass. The sudden need to explore the landscape around me took over, and I began half running- half tumbling down from my current high point.
“Ah!” I exclaimed as I hit something hard and solid mid tumble. I looked up to see the obstacle, and was greeted by a magnificent golden-brown building. The meeting of the walls was secured by large walnut trees that sprouted small bright leaves, covering the pointed roof in a lively lime green. I’d intersected with the building close to its strong metal doors. Again an urge to explore and see everything filled me and immediately rose to my feet.
Apparently I hadn’t gotten over my tumble completely because my steps were still shaky and uncertain, but I made my best effort to drag my feet over the large metal doors.
I carefully pushed the bronze doors open by the swinging handles decorated with little creatures kin to the ones sheltered in glow from the cave. I almost had to squint when I opened the doors. The inside glittered with sunbeams shining in through unseen sky lights, as if the sun itself was embedded in the roof.
The rays of sunlight danced upon the many walnut wood shelves; each holding rows and rows of books. However that is the only normal detail in the building that looked to be a library. Around many of the shelves, were thorny vines bearing small, but detailed, flowers.
‘Tis one more thing I should share about these flowering vines. It’s what makes them peculiar. They appear to be made of folded paper, and the paper covered in writing, as if coming right from the books. Moreover, the vines seemed to sprout from some of the books.
I took a few steps in, and just as I’d done so I was hit with a wave of scents. It smelled pleasant, calm, and reclusive. Mostly the smell of paper was evident, along with a dash of something sweet. Though, I wasn’t sure on the specifics, it reminded me a lot of honey or caramel. A soft and sweet feeling, but with a strong flavor.
I was half expecting the wooden floor boards to immediately groan under my feet, but everything stayed perfectly sound. My eyes darted through the shelves. Each shelf was practically identical to the one before. I looked over to the walls covered in metal designs, swirls and swoops as if painted by brush and hand.
With my eyes distracted, my lower body moved on autopilot. Moved right into one of the shelves. I looked from my new vantage point on the floor to see a few books fell off the shelves. With all the falling and crashing, and what I thought sounded sort of like a hiss, caused quite a ruckus.
I put my hands and feet flush to the floor, hushing my thoughts and closing my eyes. I was trying to shut off my other senses to help focus on touch. I knew the floor wouldn’t make a noise even if a few tons of steel found themselves on top of it. Thus I was trying to feel the vibrations of any footsteps that might reach me.
After a minute of nothing I opened my eyes. The light hurt a bit, but not as badly as it had in the cave. I moved to the books that had fallen from the shelves. I didn’t want anyone to know that I might have ruined one of their books. Although, as I got closer I saw that the books had fallen open, revealing the most gorgeous flower I had ever seen. The deep blue petals curled around and over the nectar center of the flower, before peeling out near the top. I reached my hands to the petals, the felt just like satin, delicate, soft, and light
I felt like I had to smell it, as if I couldn’t bring any other action to my body. So, I did and as I did I never wanted to stop. It was even more delightful in the smell than the sight.
It smelt like how you’d imagine a deep blue sky. The color felt kin to that of the flower. I could feel the sun too. The warmth was so inviting it made me want to hold onto it forever. The adrenaline of freedom and thrill. Two silhouettes flying. One looked cautious and careful with his movements, flying low and close to the sea that lay below. The other, however, seemed more relaxed, carefree, enjoying the sun and its glory as they soared high above the water. In the distance stood a strong, stone tower. It felt cramped and trapped. I could feel the cold dead air in my lungs.
Then there was a noise. A warning, but that never stopped the figure flying up high in the air. The sun’s warmth was even greater, even more comforting. Next came a weightless sensation. This was different from flying, at least then you could feel the air under the wings holding you up, but now there was nothing. I could feel my saliva become bitter as a falling sensation took over. Looking up I could see the sun, but I was falling farther and farther from its warm embrace. In the outskirts of my vision I could see pieces of what had held me in the air not long ago. There was a sudden cold sensation and then nothing.
I opened my eyes. I never realized I had closed them. I was still in the library, sitting above the flower bearing book. I got up, and now was the time my legs chose to shudder. I decided getting out was more important than trying to fix the books. I ran down as well as I could through a gap in the shelves. I moved quickly past rows and rows of books, not wanting to stop and smell every rose I passed.
I stopped in my tracks. Something had moved. I don’t think it was a person. Another book falling perhaps, but as I turned I came face to face with a large red and yellow lily, bright like a star- shaped fire. It had definitely not been like that before. I was about to back away when I unintentionally took a breath in.
The warm, bright feeling took over my lungs. I saw cozy sights, pies, ripe fruits, cakes, sitting by a nice calm fireplace, but when I tried to feel more everything got cold. I couldn’t help but shiver. My airways were no longer filled with a comforting warmth like before, now they were frozen solid, and filled with snow. The longing for warmth was like nothing I had ever felt before.
I felt a thin piece of wood in my hands. A match. It hit a brick and lit up with an even stronger blaze. The wonderful food and sweets returned to me, this time along with a cheery family of four, happy and laughing giddy. I kept warming my hands on the match, but this one as well eventually went out. Before the cold could creep back in, I grabbed all the matches left and struck them against stone.
They screamed with a fury much more powerful than the others had on their own. I saw the family, the food, the fire, but something else was there too. A small familiar figure, they felt like comfort, like love. I ran to them and we walked away into the warmth.
Then like how it had felt earlier, I was sent away from my body, and I could see what had really been happening. I saw burnt matches, and a girl with a frozen, stiff smile on her face. I still felt the warmth, maybe she did too. Then it started to get warmer, and warmer, and warmer. I felt as if I was melting from the heat. I needed cool air. I needed to breathe. Calm fresh air met my tongue as I found myself back in the library. The flower had turned and backed away onto the shelf it had been growing on.
I needed to leave. No more flowers. I didn’t think I’d be able to stand another one of those flashes, but the universe didn’t weigh its scales in my favor as I saw a large red aster lunge at me and release what could only be a kind of pollen. I started to fall, and that was the last thing I could feel. An image started to form. A thick wooded forest with bright flashes of red between the trees.
The red knew this forest. The fact made obvious by the steady and certain steps they took through the wood. There was a feeling of urgency, but also a contradicting feeling of security. There was a basket gripped in their hand. Sweat scents of sugar and spices wafted up from it.
Apparently making it to their destination, red stopped, they were at the edge of a clearing, in which stood a small cottage. After walking up to the door, red gave three short knocks. The response was a shrill voice. It gave me a large sense of unease. Although, red didn’t seem perturbed at all, quickly opening the door.
Still holding the basket she stepped over closer to the bed. In it was a wolf, horrendously dressed in a sleeping gown, yet red still didn’t seem to notice anything off. In fact red’s eyes barely glazed over the wolf, staring at nothing in particular. That’s it. Red was blind.
Red called out to the bedded figure, referring to it as “grandma.” Finally, being closer to the figure even red could feel that something was off. Red quizzed the wolf about things they had done, things she should know. Suddenly after one of the wolf’s responses, red flinched, and tried to back away, but it was too late. Then red was gone.
The vines of the library had gripped onto my ankles and a few others had almost wrapped around my wrists. They felt a lot more dry and rough than I thought they would be. I had imagined a cold, slippery feeling, but this was almost like… paper.
I jerked my arms back towards me, apparently startling the plant, because of this I was able to wrench my arms free from my arms’ bonds, although my legs were still held fast. I reached my hands down in an attempt to rip the vines from my legs, but just as my hands were only inches the vines slinked back into shelves.
With my legs now free, I dashed towards the wall I thought held the door. My fingertips brushed against the door’s handle before I was pulled backward by a new vine piercing my leg. No, no, no, I can’t do this again, but I was already being pulled into another dreamstate.
There was a deal and a hope for wealth and happiness. There was a sudden piercing, feeling of greed, wanting more and more. That greed took over everything. I want out. The greed was even enough to- I WANT OUT - to kill love.
A burst of lightning took over my vision, and behind the flashes was the library and its vines that looked like they had tried to come closer to me, but were stopped, as if pulled back from behind with something. As much as my curiosity ate away at me, my desire to live forced it down. This time as my fingers linked with the door, I was able to push through, back to the sunlight I had bathed in earlier.
The free air never felt so good. Along with the free air came the sound of voices. I never felt happier to hear that sound. I practically tumbled down the hill towards it. There stood four figures, one girl had long dirty blonde hair that shimmered a hidden red whenever the sun touched it just right, and pale skin with the occasional dark freckle. Another was a boy who had short light brown/ dark blonde strands sitting on clear tan skin. Standing close to him was a taller figure with short, curly, pitch black hair on top of darker skin splattered with light freckles, framing golden eyes. Lastly, on the far right stood a girl with a wider stature, adorned with cold, light blue, that curled near her neck.
All of them were dressed in what looked to be worn and weathered clothes that had seen better days. I only then realized that I had only been wearing a loose blue t-shirt with shorts that hugged tight to my legs.
The dark blonde boy looked to me and said, “Name’s Aiden and you are?”
My throat felt dry, it hadn’t been used in a while. “Stat. My name’s Stat.” I said slow and careful, every word almost on the edge of collapse.