Past Writing: The Dream's Beckoning

Written: October 2023

Sometime in the dead of night, rain falls, hammering the roof of my hut. Thunder booms in the distance, and slowly, I drift asleep again. 

I walk forward, staring up at the heavens. The moon shines in the midnight sky. The night is serene. I stroll to the forest in the distance and the birds in the trees; I amble, foot on soft grass, a chorus of insects marching me on. It is not long before I arrive in front of the forest, the door of wood hiding in its shadows mysteries unknown. I stop and peer through, hoping to see something, find something. But there is nothing, except the distant rushing of a creek, and the lure of curiosity. 

Again, I walk forward, a gentle breeze of the moist forest air brushing my face and arms, the smell of the earth filling my nostrils. I sigh. Relaxing, I allow my eyes to shut. By miracle, I do not hit a tree, nor does anything trip me, as though the trees, insects, and birds part ways to make way for a returning king, celebrating.  

It is a while before I open my eyes again. The sound of the stream grows louder, almost in front of me. I could hear the gentle waves brushing against the bank. I walk along the bank, faint moonlight guiding me. The stream broadens until it reaches a pond. Moonlight dances on the clear, glassy water, lighting up the small clearing. 

Only an instant later, my eyes focus on a rock. No, not the rock itself, but the figure on the rock. Her back faces me, but her beauty is unmistakable. She is the moon, outshining all stars and defying the darkness with her beauty. Perfect is the only suitable word for her. 

She slowly turns, silver hair billowing, to fix me with her glassy eyes. Her lips part… 

And she sings! Her voice like burning silver, like moonlight reflecting off my eyes, like lightning striking from the sky, like the dark nights sitting alone in my hut, like a deer running from a wolf, like the footsteps of a giant, rocking the Earth. Her voice resounds across the moving water and stirring leaves. The words, although unrecognizable, make a fairy tune from the fantasies. 

As I stare at her, I notice subtle changes in her voice: like a beast withholding its anger, like the volcano before it erupts, like the silence before a storm, predator waiting for its prey, a knife behind a smile. Sensing danger, I try backing away and realize that my gaze fixes itself on her. My mind wants me to move, but my body does not and could not. Her face slowly twists, beautiful features becoming that of a demon. Her face twisted and distorted until it was bubbling, as if something inside wanted to come out; her eyes turned red with anger and hatred, blood-red wings extended from her back, and her hands became claws, sharp enough to tear the world in half. 

Clouds move in, covering everything in pure darkness. Rain pours down, the occasional lightning lights up the sky, casting a white glow on the monster’s face. Her song becomes agonizing, like a beast no longer held back, full of insanity and anger. An indescribable, nameless fear comes onto me upon hearing it. She raises her wings, and purple fire from the deepest abyss fills the expanse behind. The demon’s mouth opens suddenly, showing a gaping hole of oblivion. With one final unrecognizable word it lunges toward me, engulfing me—

I jolt awake, cold sweat dripping down my brow, finding nothing different.