A Dream

Her lungs were burning. She was running as fast as she could down the long, dark corridor lit up by the full moon. The castle she was in had been built with no windows. It was completely open on the right hand side with only tall cement beams-designed like Roman pillars -separating her from the outside world. To her left, there was brick wall covered in vines and old paintings of unfamiliar faces and large, arched wooden doors. She kept running because she was afraid. She did not know what she was afraid of, nor did she know where she was going. But, she did know stopping was not an option- and neither was looking back. There was a sensation of hopelessness, as though there was a lingering concern that she would never reach her destination in time. But she did not stop.

The moonlight shone through the beams and she could feel it touch her skin, then dissappear and return again as she passed through each block of light. She turned her head and looked over at the Moon and felt her heart warm as though it could return a loving gaze. The Moon called to her in such a way that it always seemed to awaken her higher self - that inner ghost belonging to the most distant realms - so she revered it, hoping that it would give her more strength to carry on.

She looked back down the corridor and noticed a particular door and understood it had been was she had sought. She picked up speed now, having locked in on her goal and eagerly moved foward knowing there would be an end to this reign of terror. The door moved swiftly towards her and as she approached, panic set in. She noticed that door was covered in chains. She slowed down and stopped abruptly moving her hands quickly over the chains and began pulling at them frantically and banging on the door, screaming, “Please!”

Suddenly, as though someone above heard her pleas, the chains had disappeared and the door, now realeased from its bonds, opened itself for her. She could smell the old oak wood as she stepped back and allowed it to swing wide.

Through the arched doorway was another world. Here, it was now the late evening and she could smell the sweet spring air and felt a gust of wind blow directly towards her causing the beads of sweat on her skin to chill her. She quickly entered and slammed the door behind her. As she let out a sigh of relief, and placed her hand on her chest knowing that she had reached safety, she scanned the room. To her this rooom was paradise; a sanctuary. The walls to either side were large bookshelves equipped with ladders and filled. There were large potted plants and a small wooden desk on the right side and a little reading nook with a old brown sofa and table to the left. Directly ahead of her was open, with two large beams on either side, but covered by gently swaying thin strips of white fabric reaching from the ceiling to the floor. She could see, through the thin material, that there was a balcony beyond them so she slowly moved through the space towards it.

As she walked through the drapes, an entire world was relvealed. A large dreamy landscape complete with lush green rolling hills a creek and pink, purple and gold clouds illuminated by the setting sun. The scene was so majestic she gasped for air, wishing she could reach out and touch this world -Hold it in her arms and capture it’s image in her mind forever. The sun cast beams of light through the clouds slowly disapating before touching the earth. She looked, stared, wondered, gasped and thought, “this must be heaven”.

She then looked down to inspect what was below her, and to her amazement, there was nothing but darkness. Directly beneath her was a large hole that had been made so deep into the earth that the blackness within it was devoid of possible comprehension. It was as though it was an absence of light entirely, a void. It reminded her of what she could imagine there was at the beginning of all things; and what will undoubtably be at the end.

This “void” was surrounded by marble stones elegantly placed together to form geometric patterns, and at the mouth of the hole was a large dragon head looking down into the depths of nothingness -!as though it was guarding not only what was below it, but also above.

She looked back up again, at the world, the sky and looked back down at the Void and realized that she was between them, purposefully placed.