do humans dream in cryosleep?

They say when you enter cryosleep that you dream the entire time.

I wouldn’t call it dreaming. It’s more like moments. Maybe it’s because we’re asleep so long. Our brains understand how much time is passing but since we’re not conscious, our normal dreams register like blips on an eternal radar.

I see the moment I decided to be put to sleep. Except I remember thinking that was the wrong way to think about it. “Wake up to a better future” was what all the advertisements were saying.

I see the agonizing process of my husband agreeing to go with me. Months of arguments, millions of moments of pain, sadness, and anger I watched play out again and again. Even my last look at him as they lulled us to sleep showed how scared he was.

Sometimes I see my family in the house we grew up in. My dad is there. We’re preparing dinner and everyone’s getting along. Then it fades as we sit down to eat.

But this moment is different. My husband is ahead of me and we’re climbing a mountain. He looks back at me as he’s taking my hand. He’s smiling.

It looks like we’re in Hawaii because there are jungles all around. Greens I’ve never seen before. Waterfalls misting into the humid air. Sunshine on his face.

The sunshine pulses a deep red. The greens of the jungle enmesh into a singular, opaque lime color. My husband is no longer smiling at me.

He is lying on the floor. Everything looks a hazy emerald color. I realize that I’m still inside of my chamber. I try to lift my hands - to reach for my husband - but they won’t come fast enough.

I remember this moment. A nightmare. I’m running from something but can’t make my legs move fast enough. My heart races. Move, damnit. But my limbs won’t respond.

I see my arms floating in front of my face. My fingers touch the glass - the edge of my chamber. I’m still too far away to reach him.

There is another pulse of red light. A warning siren.

A chamber beyond my husband opens up and dumps all of its liquid onto the mesh floor. I watch as a person tumbles from it and lands hard. They had cables and tubes attached to them but as they fall, they are all ripped from their body. They land, sputtering and coughing, choking, as they try to remember to breathe.

But they never catch their breath. Their skin turns splotchy and red. Their veins turn black and pop from their skin. Their eyes open wide as they spasm on the floor until they stop moving.

My eyes turn back to my husband and notice the black veins etching his face. His mouth is not open in a smile but a scream. His hand is clenched around my locket.

Another memory. On our first anniversary, he gave me the heart-shaped locket with his picture inside. He left the other side blank for our first child.

A child that would never come.

“Wake up to a better future.”

A future where disease would be eradicated. Life lived longer. Infertility solved. Everyone could have any future they desired. They just had to sleep long enough for it.

Another pulse of red light.

This time, my chamber opens.

No one noticed what was happening in the jungles because there was no one to sound the alarm. The first rumblings of it came from scientists who had cameras installed in remote locations to monitor rainfall and wildlife activity.

Then the reports started pouring in.

Unusual Plant Activity In Amazon A Sign of Global Warming?

Near-Extinct Insect Populations Now Thriving

New Species of Kudzu Discovered in Rainforests of Asia

Small Town Overgrown Overnight

Scientists Warn of Dangerous Air Quality Near Highly Forested Areas

It’s Not Just In The Jungles Anymore

By the time the death toll started, it had reached other continents.

Ivan sat at his desk watching the news. His coworker sat with his back to him, feet propped up on the control panel. He was slurping his coffee and smacking his doughnut. Ivan turned up the volume on the television.

“Monique, can you describe the situation in Singapore for us?”

“Bob, there’s no describing it. People are panicking. The World Health Organization says to flock to city areas and to stay away from the countrysides but it’s causing a massive strain on the city itself. Not to mention the reports coming in of how people are dying…”

“That’s right, we’ve heard reports of suffocation…”

“The situation in Singapore is nothing compared to Brazil. Scientists are theorizing that this new species of vine is emitting toxic gases that cause suffocation and extreme hypertension…”

“Good thing we’re far away from all that hullabaloo.”

“And what makes you think it won’t reach us if it’s already hopped from Singapore to Brazil, huh?”

“Suspended air travel. Duh.”

“But there’s more to it than that,” Ivan mumbled.

He could understand why his coworker felt that way. They were far underground in a cryosleep facility. Their main job was to monitor the cryo chambers in case anything went wrong. There was a huge observation window behind his head so they could easily see from the control panel down into the storage area for the cryo chambers. They were in control of about a hundred at a time.

Ivan liked this job because it was predictable. Secure. Far away from humanity. He imagined the people they kept alive probably felt the same way.

There was a smack behind Ivan and he turned to see what the noise was. His coworker was sitting straight up in his chair now, feet on the ground. That must have been what he’d heard. But what drew his attention was the flashing red light on the control panel.

It was labeled DEFCON 1.

“What the hell…” but his coworker started sputtering, choking on whatever his next word was supposed to be.

Ivan gaped as his coworker’s skin started to turn red, then purple from lack of oxygen. Black lines started forming on his skin where his veins should have been. He was clutching his throat, mouth wide open, trying to breathe when he collapsed. He didn’t move again.

Ivan stood. He looked down into the storage area to see rows of cryo chambers opening simultaneously. People were flopping on the ground like fish, all suffocating the way his coworker just had.

Ivan started to feel an itch in his throat.