"Dreaming of the Drowning: A Surreal Journey Through Mountains and Sea"
The woman's announcement ended, and everything went black. The sudden darkness was disorienting, and he stumbled for a moment before falling to the ground. The cold ground sent shivers up his spine as he tried to get up, but his limbs felt heavy and unresponsive.
As he struggled to stand up, he felt a sense of panic wash over him. It was as if he was trapped underwater, unable to move his limbs, and struggling to catch his breath. He gasped for air, but it felt like he was drowning, suffocating in the darkness.
As he lay there, feeling like he was drowning in a bottomless ocean, slowly he drifted into a dreamlike state.
He found himself adrift in a dream about a boat, surrounded by an endless expanse of cold, dark water. The waves crashed against the hull of a large boat, sending sprays of icy water into the air.
The boat he dreamt of was made of old, weathered wood that looked like it could crumble at any moment. Dark brown in color, the boat itself was a worn vessel, made of creaky old wood that was coated in slimy green algae. Despite its decrepit appearance, the boat was surprisingly large, easily able to hold tens of people.
The boat sailed in a straight line through a wide river that cut through jagged mountains covered in a blanket of glistening snow. The mountains loomed high and lonesome, as if they had been there for eons, unseen by anyone. The boat's journey was lit only by the ghostly pale light of the moon, which bathed the mountains in an eerie glow.
As the boat journeyed through the mountains, the moon cast an eerie glow over the snow-covered peaks, creating a ghostly atmosphere. All around, the only sight was of mountains, stretching endlessly into the distance. And when one looked back, there was nothing but thick, impenetrable fog that threatened to swallow them whole.
But then, something caught his eye - a mountain that stood out from the rest. Its snow was black as pitch, with blue stripes that seemed to shimmer in the moonlight. As they drew closer, they noticed something even stranger: the remnants of old roads that led through the mountain.
At the end of the road, it split into two paths. To the left was dense, cold fog so thick that you could not see a meter ahead with the naked eye. To the right was also dense fog, but it seemed to be more transparent, revealing glimpses of strange and unfamiliar shapes lurking in the mist.
In an instant, the dream focused back onto the boat, and Lucas was shocked to see that there were not just one, but thousands of boats sailing towards the pitch-black mountain. People filled each vessel, and as he looked closer, he realized that he could see himself among the passengers unconscious on the floor.
The dream then honed in on Lucas, and with a sudden jolt, he woke up gasping for air. The scent of the sea wafted into his nostrils as he tried to make sense of his surroundings, and the cacophony of voices and shouts filled his ears.
As Lucas gasped for air, he looked around frantically, trying to make sense of his surroundings. The last thing he remembered was the announcement, then the dream, but now he was on a boat.
[...Welcome to The Drowning. Please prepare for your first trial. Good luck!]
"What the fuck is this?" he thought to himself, his mind racing with questions.
But before he could gather his thoughts, a voice interrupted his reverie. "Faster! Row faster, you idiots. We're almost there!" shouted one of the people aboard.
As Lucas tried to stand up, a person nearby kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. He doubled over in pain, gasping for breath.
"Hey, you! Get the fuck up!" the person shouted, giving him another rough shove.
Lucas's head was pounding and his senses were coming back slowly. The coldness of the water soaked his cloak, making him shiver violently.
Lucas struggled to stand up, his body feeling weak and heavy. He grasped the railings tightly to steady himself, his head spinning with dizziness.
"Yeah, this is definitely too much," he muttered under his breath, shaking his head in disbelief. The events of the day had been nothing short of surreal.
First, he had been attacked by an old man and thrown into the water, then he had drowned, only to wake up and find himself getting his fathers saliva into his mouth. And that wasn't even the end of it. Soon after, he saw huge chains that covered the entire sky, and then clocks started appearing out of nowhere. And now he found himself in the midst of a dream. It was all too much to process, and Lucas couldn't help but wonder what other strange occurrences lay in store for him.
Lucas decided to take a break and rest, taking the opportunity to gaze at the majestic mountains around him. As he sat there, he noticed a strange movement in one patch of snow. He squinted, trying to get a better look, but nothing seemed to be amiss. "Probably nothing," he muttered to himself.
Suddenly, one of the other passengers shouted, "We're here!" Lucas snapped out of his thoughts, realizing they had arrived at their destination. "I'll just take things as they come," he thought, preparing himself for whatever lay ahead.
Lucas looked around in amazement as he stepped off the boat onto the dock. The first thing he noticed was the air - it was crisp and cool, unlike anything he had ever experienced before.
As he looked around, Lucas saw that the dock was bustling with activity. People were coming and going, carrying crates and bags of all shapes and sizes. Some were loading them onto carts and wagons, while others were hoisting them onto their shoulders and carrying them away.
Lucas was amazed at how organized everything was. There were no chaotic crowds, no pushing or shoving, and everyone seemed to be going about their business in a calm, orderly fashion. It was as if they were all part of a well-oiled machine, each one playing their part without question or hesitation.
As he walked along, Lucas noticed that the people around him were all dressed in old-fashioned clothing. The men wore long coats and trousers, while the women wore dresses and bonnets. It was like he had stepped back in time, into a world that he had only read about in books.
Lucas wondered if he was dreaming, or if he had somehow been transported to another world. But then again, he thought, perhaps this was all just a simulation. After all, with technology as advanced as it was, anything was possible.
But before Lucas could ponder the possibilities any further, he was interrupted by a loud shout from the captain of the boat. "Attention everyone!" the captain yelled, his voice echoing across the dock. "We have arrived at-
But before the captain could finish his announcement, a loud piercing scream cut through the air. It sounded like metal scraping against metal, and it made Lucas's blood run cold. He looked around, trying to locate the source of the sound, and that's when he saw them.
Hundreds of hybrid spider crabs were crawling down the hill towards the dock.
Without a moment's hesitation, Lucas turned and ran in the opposite direction. He could hear the screams of other passengers as they fled in panic, and the sound of the spider crabs scuttling closer and closer behind him.
Lucas ran as fast as he could, his heart pounding in his chest. He needed to find somewhere to hide, somewhere to catch his breath and gather his thoughts. He knew that he couldn't outrun the spider crabs forever, and he needed to come up with a plan if he wanted to survive.