A Unique Dream

A grassfield stretched endlessly, surrounded by a dense forest. The sky above was a brilliant blue, unmoved by anything beyond the treetops. I knew this was a dream, yet the cool, soft grass beneath me felt incredibly real.

I lay down, feeling the gentle breeze brush my face and counting the still clouds. Even the sun's warmth on my skin was soothing, but given the fact that staring at the sun hasn't made me go blind yet, it has to be a dream—a lucid one.

What should I do? Fly? Build a country? Or maybe something simpler. Crossing through the cosmos. Traveling to another planet is expensive in the real world. I'd never get another chance to do this.

"What should I do?"

In the middle of my thoughts, a noise came from the forest. The chirps of birds suddenly appear along with peculiar sounds. Clattering against each other at distinct pitch notes, the melody creates a symphony of some sort. The air was filled with a subtle tinkling, like tiny bells ringing in the distance. Each note seemed to hang in the air for a moment before blending seamlessly into the next.

"Are they windchimes? In a forest?"

The surroundings fell into a deafening silence. The grass underneath my fingers died out, and the gentle breeze suddenly became rough. The once clear sky appeared gloomy, and trees shifted closer, ultimately covering the gray skies.

As nightmarish as this may appear to many, for me, it's very bizarre, I should say. Counting down the time till I woke, the windchimes came back for a moment, then faded from my mind. As I blinked away the remnants of the dream, a glimpse of the real world appeared. Slowly giving myself a peek into my room, the sunset painted the room with a warm, amber hue. 

To the side of me, out the window from a distance, the skyscrapers always stood tall among the other city buildings. Once, the sunrise would have bathed me in a picturesque glow. But now, the city appeared as a coated canvas in purely yellow and gray.

"I miss those days."

It appeared much brighter now, as if it were higher than the city.

"My eyes!"

Falling to the other side of my bed, the moment brings back a memory. Sleeping with the sun directly beaming at you can still hurt. It was a bit immense, but the pain soon died down. I thought that I had set up a timer for when it rose; it should have woken me up, unless. With a simple look at the alarm, it says five fifty-nine o'clock.

"Wynter, don't you dare."

It blares its obnoxious alarm of ship sirens. Hitting the alarm out of annoyance, it falls from the desk in silence. Yet, as soon as I let my head fall back onto the pillow, the alarm sounded once more. Concealing myself between the pillows, the constant assault on my ears didn't stop.

"Argh! I get it; I'll get up! So stop it with the sirens!"

Once it stopped, a red holographic window materialized before me, accompanied by Wynter's soothing voice.

[Good morning, Miss Arial.] [I'm sorry for the abrupt wake up call.] [If I had not used ship sirens, you would not have woken up.]

"Morning."

Giving a polite but groggy greeting despite his wake up call, his voice was very soothing to my ears. Being able to hear his voice over the years may have given me a sense of security.

[Miss Arial, it's time to wake up.] [It's six o'clock.] [Also, here is a morning fact that you may like. Did you know that a chicken once lived for 18 months without its head? They say that Dike, the headless chicken-]

But then again, listening to his facts was starting to give me a headache.

"Wynter, please, spare me the facts and forget about it."

[Of course, Miss Arial] [Memory wipe in progress] […]

"…Not literally."

As Wynter floats on the top right of my eye, I can't help but feel a splintering pain in my head. It seems like the hangover is starting to kick in. Propped up on the side of my bed, Wynter had a morning fact that I could make use of. Drinking water, the most common and effective way to feel relieved.

Going for a drink, I had overlooked the fact that my alarm was on the floor, tripping over it and falling face first onto the ground. After collapsing to the floor, nausea came to me. knees down and hands on the floor, it suddenly became worse—the headache. For a few seconds, it was unbearable, but then the agony went to my stomach.

"Oh god."

Checking the room, my eyes landed on a small trashcan on the other side of the room. Even though the chances of it being a trashcan are low, I had no choice but to take my chances. With weakened legs, it was like gravity became a hundred times heavier on me; my legs shook like a twig just from putting pressure on them.

~Move it, dammit!~

"Hurmph!"

With only a hand to crawl towards the trashcan, it seemed like forever to get there, but when I looked up, it was there in front of me. Shoving my face inside, I hurled out all the rainbow glitter in my mouth. It felt never-ending as my gag reflex kept activating.

[Memory Wipe Complete.]

[Miss Arial.]

"Hurhghgh!"

[…Miss Arial, from what I can tell from this morning, you appear to be sensitive to the light of the sun and the sound of the old clock.]

"Wynter, please, not again."

[The squeezing of your stomach and the furrowing of your brows also suggest stomach discomfort and vertigo. You may be suffering from a headache in addition to your compulsive drinking.]

[A shower will be beneficial to your body as it will momentarily reduce some of your symptoms, such as sweating, overheating, and having your senses refreshed.]

[Would you like me to mention any more recently identified symptoms that have been linked to obsessive drinking?]

"No, Wynter! I-Hurghfh!"

On an empty stomach, the acidic feeling lingered. Waving a hand above me, I grabbed the table, lifting my head just over it.

When I looked in the mirror and saw myself in the reflection, my entire face was pale, as if it had been sent to hell and back. With my crazy eyes, shaking hands, and the touch of twigs and leaves buried beneath my hair, I might as well be a feral animal.

"Ugh, why is this happening to me?"

~Just what did I do last night to become like this?~

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During the night, unlike others who sleep to work the next day, I was always out in the woodland wilderness, walking on a dirt path in my backyard. On these walks, an alcoholic drink would be in my hand to warm me up.

"Ooo, hallo, little blippies."

Taking on these little midnight walks so many times, I gained the attention of some flickering balls of light that would float around me called elfes, not elves, L-Fes.

They are what you would consider to be fairies, but unlike the magical fairies that you know of, these biological entities are like mosquitoes, attracted to any warm-blooded beings at night; they follow you around, absorbing the heat that is emitted off the body. Funnily enough, considering how they were named, I always have a light laugh at who they remind me of.

"Heh, Elvis Presley. El…vish… Presley."

Hiccup

"Elvish Preshley!"

Reminded of him, I sang to the tune of one of the Emperor of Rock n Roll's songs.

"Wise Maann Saaaayyy!! Only Cloowwns rush in!"

On that night, all of the elfes that were just idling around me scattered, except for one that may be tone deaf to my singing. It sang along with me, guiding me through the woodland. Continuing on my path along with my little friend, I take notice of the ones that had scattered just seconds ago and regrouped in one particular spot.

"Hehehe. Come here, little blippies."

Step-by-step, sneakily approaching them. It seemed like they knew I was here. Me, a giant woman with a witch's laugh, who just moments ago was singing.

"Gotcha!"

They quickly scattered away, leaving me to trip over, face flat, onto the ground.

"…Ow."

Laying on the ground for a moment in silence, one by one bursts of laughter came out of them. With the state of mind I was in, I only took notice of the sound I made hitting the ground.

To my surprise, the floor under me was the deck of a bridge. Back up on my feet, I was in awe. Looking over the railing as my arms hung over the wooden railing, the scenery was astounding. Having clear night skies, along with the moon's reflection off the river, added a nice romantic feeling, especially the nocturnal white flowers blooming along the river.

The little elfes that weren't weirded out by me sat by my hand, enjoying the starry night with me. As we hummed at the same time, a streak of lights appeared above. It was a meteor shower.

"I know this! As the ancient saying goes, When you see a shooting star, cover your eyes, make a wish, and it will come true. Oh, please, please, let my life be as interesting as it has always been."

With a moment of silence, hoping for a dream to come true, I take a peek.

"… Nothing changed."

In an emotional spiral, the occasion brought me to tears for a few seconds, crying over the railing, and now, from happy to sad, it drove me to anger.

"You motherfuQ#%#$%#5!!"

A single bright meteor hanged back from it's other friends.

"What!? Are you upset that I yelled at your friends?! Come at me if you want a piece of me!"

Raising my first towards it, the still meteor was coming closer and faster than I would have thought. The anger turned into worry as the meteor began to look bigger.

"No, wait a second. I didn't mean it!"

Walking backwards and hitting the railing on the other side, the meteor flew right over the bridge. Looking at where the meteor had landed, it left a small trail in the river. In confusion, my whole body is shaken, but for only one reason.

"…Awesome!"

Racing off the bridge after the meteor, driven by instinct, I ran into the shallow river. As I drew closer, my eyes were fixated on its form. Unlike any other medium, instead of the typical faceted or flattened surfaces, this one had a shimmering surface with an eerie glow.

The only other way to think of it was as a pitch-black shape that implied a box. It was reflectionless, incomprehensibly smooth to the touch, and utterly creepy. So after checking it visually, there was only one proper way to respond to this situation. Hugging it.

"So smooooth. Hehehehe"

Feeling around this strange meteorite and pressing my ear against its surface, there was a sound; it sounded like gears rotating on the inside, each piece going at its own rhythm.

"Click, clack, click, clack… Aw, it shtopped."

Rubbing my whole face on it, I felt a shiver run down my spine as the vibration on the inside spread throughout my body. Backing my face and hand off of it, the black box splits open, revealing a translucent cylinder case with a crystal of no coloration floating in the middle.

Suspended above me, the crystal changed color each time from green to blue, white, black, and purple. Continuously changing until a certain simple color appears: red. It emits its red glow on me, hovering close to a specific area.

As I looked down at where it was going, all of the pain started to set in once I realized.

My body was being scorched alive as it gravitated towards my chest. Enveloped in searing flames, every inch of exposed skin prickled with intense heat. The air turned into a furnace, scorching every breath. My mouth, glued shut by the heat, tore from my silent screams. The heat seeped into my skin, causing it to ache and throb. It finally pierced my skin, burrowing into my chest as my ribs broke, making room for it. My consciousness faded away as the heat dissipated.

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"This can't be real."