0001 One after another

Once on a cold stormy night, heavy rain terrifyingly clattered around the neighborhood. The sound of thunder boomed and the crisp crackles of lightning blindingly lit up the gloomy atmosphere as I stormed through the night. It rained as if it were needles rather than condensed liquid. I haphazardly embraced it as how a Spartan would face a barrage of fire arrows but it felt more like thin icicles perforating all over my body, instead. Drenched and panting for my life at the cold night, I was blinded by a bright white light; my ears were ringing and in a split second, I found myself on four.

"What just happened?" I exclaimed, "What was that?!"

"Was that a vehicle? No!"

"Then could it be that I was just struck by a lightning?"

I chuckled from that insane thought; the latter wouldn't be rational of me for I am still alive but a part of me is still really convinced that I had been struck—although not directly. There's no way I would survive it. What am I? A novel protagonist? Anyhow, those were my initial thoughts. After that, I tried to get myself back into usual and clambered around despite being groggy; I felt some tingling but I couldn't tell which part of me had it so I tried to focus on it more in order to feel where the sharp sensation was. I reflexively gazed on my palms which the darkness of the night enveloped and felt it with my fingertips. It immediately sent a jolt of searing sensation to my whole existence; it was grazed by the asphalt pavement, I assume. "I'm still alive," I rejoiced with a letdown but then sneered upon realizing whoever with their sane mind does that. Figures, what a feeble resolve I have. I inhaled deeply and then gathered everything that was left of my courage and continued to trudge aimlessly.

"I can still do this," I mumbled. "I certainly will—"

"Why are you doing this?" my subconsciousness retorted

"Huh? What do you mean, why?"

"Reflect upon yourself, pathetic man! You always crow on things you promised you would do! And yet—"

"No!" I snapped back, "Now I get it. This is your entire fault! You've been dragging me to undoing—"

*incomprehensible dissension continues*

As I continued to dissent with my psyche, I heard another faint voice as if it were provoking me. I turned a deaf ear to it at first for I thought it's just me again but then it soon grew to bug me.

"What a poor state has befallen upon you," pitied from a tiny voice. I turned to the direction of the voice and I couldn't believe my eyes for what I had seen—I got dumbstruck. I felt yet another sensation where I couldn't dwell on as if the chilling night wasn't enough to condemn me. I found myself back at the vicinity of the place where I ran off. The place where I least wanted to be: Home. Well, it really is absurd when you call a place home where you can't even feel at home.

"Oh, you came back!" squeaked from that voice again, "Don't you have another roof for your head? Are you cold? Or must be hungry?"

I scoured over the entire area like a veteran mercenary on high guard in hopes of finding out the offender. I, still dazed from earlier, stepped onto something sponge-like and simultaneously jolted by a screeching sound. I staggered, and fell on my back. My heart racing up to my head; throbbing to a certain extent because upon hearing, I immediately knew it wasn't a sound that can be possibly be heard in earth. I started to feel my body burn despite the chilling night. Am I even perspiring? You bet! My body is quivering yet I am certain that it is not because of the shivery night. I cleared my eyes from the heavy rain and then caught a glimpse of an ominous, black, ghastly figure right in front of me. I then started to get drowsy, my consciousness whittling. The last thing I saw before I had finally shut my eyes was that black, fiery contour with two pointy figures perched atop.

~~

At last, I somewhat regained my consciousness although, everything around me was engulfed in pitch black. Where am I? Is this purgatory? Did I die? A lot of questions swam through my head. I then heard echoic voices of a man and a woman blabbering something I couldn't make out. It reverberated in the darkness and made me woozy. I instinctively tried to move my arms but to my surprise, I couldn't! I tried to move my legs but they felt heavy as if I was trying to budge a trunk. Why can't I move my body? I started to panic. Is this what they call sleep-paralysis? I subconsciously imagined vile figures: Slender man—No! Freddie Krueger. My head was throbbing like it could explode at any second from now; my heart started to play blast beats of a death metal album then I suddenly started to have difficulties in breathing.

While struggling for my life yet again, I realized that dying isn't pleasant. My concept of dying is just a delusion; one of my sick fantasies where I thought I'll slowly fade away peacefully from this world like smelling a sweet-nostalgic scent of a death flower—Hell no! Cut the crap here. You start to get a taste of hell in the early stages of death! I swear! I was too naïve to set my heart on a death wish. "Oh God, if you could still ever hear me, please spare me a life!" I begged. "This time… this time, I— AAAAGGHHHHH!"

Before I figured everything out, I was already screaming all of my heart out when I felt something cold and slimy snaked to my right ear. The next thing I knew, I was already up on my feet, stupefied. I stood blankly for a minute. My hands and knees were shaking and I then cackled irresistibly. "What was that?! Was it a dream?!", I continued to giggle while trying my best to contemplate what had happened; it felt like I was about to go crazy. I tried to stop all the shaking from my limbs but I couldn't. I ended up absentmindedly wandered the gloomy realm I was at and I just presumed that it was a some sort of a hallway because of how narrow it was. The room was dark but I could still see a dim lit area just a few yards ahead of me. I worked my way towards it while making the wall as a guide and a support as I try not to wobble.

Upon reaching a certain point, I stopped feeling the wall and before I could think of anything, I lost my footing. Luckily or apparently, I was still able to grab on to something. If I hadn't, I no longer know. Things just happened one after another that I could barely keep on track. Well, it shouldn't be unsurprising for the current state that I am on now—and then I caught a waft of a cold breeze sending a chill to the nape of my neck down to my spine chipping away the strength of my arms.

It had stopped raining and the wind parted the clouds for the moon to shine. I started to see my shadow and with all surprise, I found myself clinging from a high building. Despite hanging for my not so dear life, the moon tonight seemed to be lovelier than ever that it even made me not feel how numb my arms were.

"For a beauty like you, is such a waste to be only appreciated at times," my flattery to the moon upon gazing. Seeing the moon once more shine so bright made me realized that there is still beauty and hope in every storm. I felt the warmth inside my heart comforting my sorrowful life.

"I really am lame,"

Now that I'm back to my senses, I hauled myself back up. My palms etched yet again with dust and other debris prompted me to check my surroundings. It is still dark but I could now make out the premises; a lobby from an abandoned building, I suppose. Given my fall moments ago, I am up to a couple of floors, I guess. I checked the area of my fall and saw that I tripped over a massive hole on the wall. How did I even get here? I'm sure I was just—forget it. That being said, I remembered that ominous thing earlier. Thinking about it made me flustered and to release all my pent up energy, I kicked a fragment of the deteriorated wall. I muffled a loud whimper as my foot hit the fragment. It continued to soar deep inside the building reverberating as it hits anything on its way. Hopping from the pain on my foot, I missed landing on the floor and fell yet again to my demise.

As I fell, time seemed to slowdown. I could feel my heart pounding slowly as my breathing prolonged. Oddly, my vision seemed to be sharper than usual. The moonlit night became vivid; I could now tell how the wall broke down on its own by looking at the fissures I hadn't realized before.

"This time is for real,"

I had my eyes set at the moon for one last time. "You really are beautiful." I then closed my eyes and whispered. "I just wanted to be happy"

After that, something compelled me to open up my eyes—maybe it was my desire to just gaze at the moon; to commemorate it as a final scene to remember in my forthcoming eternal slumber. To my right, I saw a figure looming above me; a wide shadowy figure. Could this be the reaper fetching me already? At some point, I neither felt any regrets nor any resistance to death. Ah, could this be my answered prayer? To die peacefully? Thank you, I prayed. I extended my arms and reached my hands towards it as if signaling it to come and embrace me.

As it got closer, I could now slowly make out its appearance—a woman with wings! It can't be! My mind must have been playing some tricks! But anyway, I'm already on the brink of death; I at least deserve to be escorted by a beautiful and lovely reaper to the afterlife. Ah~ it couldn't be more than fulfilling—are reapers even supposed to look like this? Well, I ain't complaining. Despite the moon shining brightly, I still couldn't see her face but the only thing that stood out was her eyes; it was gleaming like an amber. For a while, I felt my heart once again skipped a beat as if it's being revived. I took my arm back and felt the anew incomprehensible warmth I am feeling on my chest just when she was about to take my hand.

'Frolicking in the meadows'—is what I truly felt when I met her amber eyes. Somehow, it lit a fire to my cold and burnt reserves that made me once again feel an emotion I had long forgotten. It was indeed oddly incomprehensible. Sadly, I wasted a chance to touch her hand and most likely I will never ever have another chance. Hah~ just when I was about to feel no hesitance of passing, I now regret not being able to reach her hand.

*Thud!*

~~

Cold... It's so cold! I instinctively reached out to my blanket, wrapped myself and rolled over to the other side of the bed. A dream? Ah, figures; nightmares really do suck. I snuggled to my pillow. Did I got myself and a new fabcon? *more sniffing* I wrapped my arms around it firmly—comfortably warm. It made me remember about that girl with amber eyes. Man, I still don't want to wake up; please continue to stay in my dreams ... I don't even know what to call her. Well, let's just call her "The Woman of My Dreams" for now. Upon my imaginations running wild, I burrowed my face deeper.

*Moans*

Oho~ that sounded so real and good! This every after a nightmare? why not! Okay, I thought that's too much sleep already. I then opened my eyes—"So bright,"—as if waking up in a whole new world. Ah, it's been ages since I had a good sleep. Now that my vision has adjusted, my pillow seemed different than usual. Did the cushions undo again? I sat up and to my surprise, I am now face to face with the woman of my dreams—though she's asleep. 'No way! No way!'

I stared at her for a good couple of minutes. A sleeping alluring reaper..?—what a sight for a morning! This isn't still a part of my dream, is it? No wonder why the pillow felt differently because I had been sleeping on her lap… b-but wait! Then does that mean that I had been snuggling onto her up until now!? And that sound I heard from earlier… was it her then? And if I had snuggled her while asleep, then that scent—I couldn't contain the idea of it—oh boy, calm down. She's wearing a long, white dress and her face covered by her lightning bolt yellow hair. I tried to wave the lock of hair out of the way to have a clear view but then I hesitated. I shouldn't be doing anything to her; what if she wakes up and misunderstands everything, will I get hacked by her scythe? By the way, I did not saw her with a scythe that night and also she had wings! Could this be a different person? Anyway, am I even alive or what? Uh~ I'm starting to get lightheaded.

I suppose that it's already morning with all the birds chirping and I suppose that I had spent the night at a high ground with all these leaves and trunks around the shed; there are no partitions here much less stuffs so it is barely a room with only 2 walls: the side where she's leaning on now and the side behind me which looked like a trunk from a tree. I stood up and examined the whole shed. The floor is made out of dark colored wooden planks. I walked towards the side with no walls and witnessed how high the altitude is. My acrophobia made me lose consciousness instantly and fell yet again.

I regained my consciousness as I was falling almost halfway down and somehow landed on four without a scratch. I didn't even bother how and why; the important thing is that I landed safely but it indeed reminded me of a cat. First things first, where exactly am I? I've been waking up to countless different scenarios now and I no longer even know if I'm really alive or what. Reality check: I can still feel hunger so that's more than enough to assure myself (do dead people feel hunger too??). Knowing how bare it is up there, I marched down under the canopies. I need to fill my growling stomach before I lose my consciousness again—no more unprecedented collapses please!

As I made my way down to this unknown domain, various birds are singing as if performing at an opera and the chirping of crickets made it sound like an applause from a crowd of audience. The dense green bushes and the moisture of the air here should be enough to make someone alone feel eerie but it had a different vibe to me: tranquility.

In some way, my back was gradually aching; I started to slouch until I had bent on four. Entirely unaware, I stretched like how a cat would. I didn't bother why and I just continued to stroll. After a few minutes, to my left, I found myself at a stream bank. The stream was clear as crystal; you could see the rocks beneath. Upon appreciation, I followed down the current, and ahead, I spotted a camp. I felt relieved upon discovering that there are people around and yet, my instincts told me to keep a low profile so I crouched behind the trees and hid near the bushes.

On first thoughts, these people are somewhat looks different; I don't know why I had thought of it that way but it was a gut feeling. I crept forward until I had settled a spot where I could have a clear view. There were numbers of makeshift tents tied on the trunks of trees; there were fire pits and cauldrons—oh boy, the thought of cooking made my stomach rumble. I wish I could get a feast with them after this—kids playing paper planes and chasing each other at the opposite bank; a squad composed of men and teenagers with firewood clutched onto their arms arrived. I could no longer bear my hunger when I got a whiff from those cauldrons and just when I was about to stand and reveal myself, I heard deep clicking sounds. I looked behind and before me is a sight that no one would dare witness up-close in the woods: a huge, black, hairy hound.