by D. H. Quinn
“I know, I just thought I should help in any way I can. You all have been through so much as imposed on by humankind,” I mumble out and manage to feel disgusted with myself. I am reminding myself of a beauty queen wanting world peace. It’s not that simple and I don’t have all the answers.
Aleksander examines me closely, seeing right through me. His words confirm this, “it’s okay to be afraid,” he says.
“I am not afraid of her,” I spit.
“There are worse things out there. It is how she operates. She offers protection and in return she expects things. I don’t want to be out there either.” His body turns towards me, his eyes lock on mine.
We are diving into dangerous territory. If Jack came down at this moment who knew what her fury would be. The way everyone shrank around her frightened me. What is she capable of?
“So are you like Arden then?” I decidedly change the subject. I want to know more about Jack but I am not prepared currently. Aleksander scrunches his nose and sticks out his tongue and a small smile forms on my lips before I can stop it. “I meant do you not participate in human’s dreams?” I clarify.
“Yeah, well I am in your dream now.” He shrugs.
“That is not what I meant. I don’t decide what you do,” I pause then ask, “do I?” I am unsure of the whole situation.
Aleksander laughs and the sound is pleasant to my ears. “No, you don’t. I decide on my own.”
“That’s good,.”
“If you say so.”
“I mean not being forced to others’ will all the time.”
He sighs deeply. “It's not like that. Dream walkers were made for dreams. They exist solely for that purpose.”
“That hardly seems fair,” I say as I shake my head. “I mean this is your real life here, you should get to choose.”
“Is it real though?” His eyes glisten with a hidden meaning that I cannot grasp and then I hear the ding of the elevator. I instinctively take two large steps back from Aleksander for his sake more than mine. Aleksander’s face morphs back to grimness.
Jack and Arden exit off the elevator and Arden looks pale. “Found this one at the highest floor,” Jack’s tone is filled with bordem. “What were you two up to?” Jack asks raising a perfectly arched eyebrow at us.
“Just waiting,” I say and Aleksander nods.
“Interesting,” Jack replies and her tone indicates her suspicion. She walks towards the glass front door, “we must go,” she glances at Aleksander and he nods once again. “Arden will take you to your next assignment,” she addresses me and exits the building with Aleksander on her tail.
Arden is shaky. “Is everything alright?” I ask him.
“I don’t like being close to her.” He bites down on his lip. I am surprised someone finally admits this.
“I noticed. Why is that?”
Arden gazes up at the roof and I don’t believe he is going to answer me after such a long pause. “She reminds me of them,” he says, his voice low.
“Them who?” Arden just shakes his head sadly. This the most I will get out of him. He stares at the glass doors silently. Was Arden referencing the Mares or maybe the Mahrts? After my talk with Gavin though he could also be referring to humans. Still, Arden seems relatively okay being around me now.
“Should we go then?” I ask after a few awkward moments of silence. Arden heads out the door without a word and I follow.
We arrive at our next destination slowly and I fear I may awake before I get this task done. We stand in front of a large cliff. A part of the city is on the other side. I look down at the jagged edge of the rocks. Sudden nausea rolls through me and I take a step back. A few people watch us from afar.
“We need a connection from here to there,” Arden points across the way.
Something glints from the bottom of the rocks. “Did this just happen?” I ask.
“Awhile back, yeah.” The glinting object is a piece of window and a metallic destroyed house.
“What happened to the ones that lived here?”
“Most of them are fine now. It was rough for them but,” Arden stops mid-sentence, shaking his head.
“I am sorry,” I say. “I am sorry if I am intruding too much into your world.” I feel ashamed once again. I have a million questions for him but I need to be considerate. I cannot continue barraging him.
He smiles at me and his face lights up. “I appreciate the sentiment,” he replies. I step back from the rift and sigh. I close my eyes and picture a bridge, wide, magnificent and sturdy. I open my eyes and hear a deafening thud. I look down at the rift and see my bridge sits at the bottom of this rift. The onlookers gasp, hopefully at my ability to create things rather than my complete and utter failure.
Arden looks down at the bridge. “We need it up here.” His face is stern.
“I know. I am sorry,” I laugh. Something else at the bottom of this gorge catches my eye. Movement, something moved down there. “Are you sure no one is down there?” I peer into the black space below us. I look up and Arden shakes his head vehemently. He bites down on his bottom lip.
I take a deep calming breath and refocus on the bridge. I close my eyes and picture the same exact bridge but longer and exactly filling the space it needs to. I open my eyes and sigh in relief as the bridge appears in front of me, covering the rift. The onlookers whisper with concerned faces. Arden is a few strides away from me now.
I step back from the bridge and step to the side. The bridge is perfectly in place. I glance down at the gorge with a gut-wrenching feeling that the sudden shift in the atmosphere has something to do whatever is down there. Multiple shadows dance below and I know what they are, Mahrts. My creation attracts them. They gather around the bridge at the bottom. Some look up at my new creation and then at me.
Hands press against my back and then a strong push and I am falling into the gorge. I scream as my arms and legs swing wildly, as if I am attempting to fly. The ground rushes towards me. A particularly sharp boulder sits in my landing path. I wake up just as the impact hits my chest.
I jump up with a start in my bed and my dog startles up as well. I pet him and slowly take breaths to lower my heart rate. Did Arden push me again? Why would he push me after I just helped him? Then I remember the Mahrts. They were looking at me, they were going to come for me. My alarm rings at that exact moment. I quickly silence it and get out of bed, lucky to have awaken before I hit the ground.
I complete my morning routine rather slowly, arriving 15 minutes late into the office. Luckily, most of my coworkers are not the nosy type and hardly notice my tardiness. I get through my work rather sluggishly as well but luckily I do not have much that I need to do. I head out for lunch at exactly 12:01pm.
I end up at the same 4 restaurants when I decide to eat out. The prices at these places are affordable and the food is relatively tasty. I like to dine alone to enjoy the time by myself. Today, I find myself in front of my favorite burger joint with the freshest fries. Burgers and greasy fries are not the healthiest choice but they help when I feel stressed.
I immediately feel a gaze on me when I enter the building. I glance around briskly and see a young woman staring straight at me. I try to keep my eyes forward on the menu although I already know what I am going to get. There is a decent line from the lunchtime rush and I figure the woman must be looking at someone she knows. The line moves and I cannot control the sideways glance I give her. Her eyes connect with mine and she does not break it. A shiver runs through me.
“Miss,” the cashier calls and I am broken out of our connection. I quickly order my food to go as I no longer feel comfortable dinning in. I wait at the counter for my food and refuse to turn around. When I finally do, I turn around quickly with my bag of food and head to the door, the woman is gone and the tension relaxes in my body.
Once I exit the restaurant, I hear someone call out in the parking lot. “Hey!” The same woman that was in the restaurant is standing by my car. I want to directly tell he
r I am not interested in whatever she wants, whether that be to sell me something or to convert me to her religion but the politeness in me does not allow that. I give a small wave and smile. “Can I talk to you?” She asks.
She seems harmless enough. She wears on over sized cardigan, tight black jeans and small heeled black boots. She is a couple inches shorter than my five foot six and looks to be a year older than my brother’s age. Her hair is long, wavy and very dark. Her face is pretty and somewhat familiar and I pause without saying anything. What is so familiar about her face? She clenches and unclenches her hands as I examine her.
“I am sorry do I know you?” I ask. I grip my keys tightly, fiddling uncomfortably with the bag of food in my hand. I unlock my door, ready to put my food down.
“Not exactly. Look I know this is strange but can I go with you?” She glances back at the restaurant fearfully and then I see him, a figure in the window stares out at us. He seems to be a black shadow and I figure it is a trick of the light.
“Are you in danger?” I ask her as my gaze returns to her face.
She nods. Everything within me tells me to help her. “Get in,” I tell her and she obeys. We drive back to my office in relative silence. “I am sorry I need to go back to work,” I say, indicating my office building. “But maybe you can call someone who can come get you.” I glance back at the parking lot and see no unfamiliar cars. “Was that man following you?”
“Yes, it was,” she says strangely.
She silently gazes out the window. Her eyes absently examine the height of the office building to the side of us. “So, do you have anyone?” I ask then add, “to come and get you?”
“I have my brother,” she says sadly and I get slight chills. Her voice sounds haunting.
“Do you want me to call him?”
She shakes her head, “that’s not possible.” She finally reaches for the door handle and opens the door and gets out. I get out of my car as well. “There’s a bus stop a few blocks down, I should be fine.” Quite a few people are walking down the street . She should be fine.
“Hey,” I call out to her and she turns around. “Be careful.”
“Thanks, Kamari,” she says and walks briskly away. I am too stunned to move until I remember my bag of food has my name on it. That must be where she got it. I shake my head at my silliness and then head inside my work building. The events of my lunch encounter play back in my mind. Specifically, when I asked her if he was following her, she had responded it not him. The thought is almost enough to take my mind off of replaying my dream from last night.
The rest of my day is uneventful. I walk my dog once again enjoying the cool weather but can’t help glancing over my shoulder. I fall asleep later than usual as I toss and turn. I am afraid of where I will be once I do enter the dreamworld.
I awake with my back pressed against cold stone and jagged rocks. My recently created bridge hovers above me. A sliver of moonlight is visible in the night sky. I pull myself up to a standing position. I have never seen nighttime in the city and the thought infuses me with nerves. The dark corners for all these monsters to lurk in. But I know where I am and that means I am already close to them. There are so many down here! The panic sets in.
The shadowy figures appear one by one. They watch me closely. I almost scream out in fear but hold it in. Don’t attract them! I cautiously step backwards until my back presses against the wall. I can make a ladder. The figures stand still for now and I keep my gaze down. Don’t give them the attention they want or need.
If I make a ladder though they will be drawn to me just as they had been drawn to the bridges. My heart pulses so loudly and I worry that they can hear it as well. A feral cry comes from one of them and I risk a glance up. A smallish figure clouded in darkness stands only a few feet in front of me. Its face twists upwards at the sky, its head tilts back and forth, its mouth is open and full of razor-sharp teeth. It freezes. It senses me. I have watched it for too long.
Its scream fills the silent night’s air. It finally lowers its head and orients towards me however it has no eyes. I decide then. I picture a tall ladder hanging from the top of this cliff to the bottom. All sorts of screams erupt now along with some hisses, buzzes and other terrifying noises I cannot place. I start climbing the ladder as quickly as I possibly can but they are instantly upon me.
Something grips my ankle. I look down and finally allow myself to scream. The razor teethed Mahrt pulls my foot down, its mouth wide open. I wiggle my foot free and manage to kick it hard in the head and I think I am going to escape until a grip takes hold on my other ankle. Claws dig deep into my flesh. I scream in agony and attempt to wriggle my foot free but there is no release and the pain worsens.
The creature that has a hold on me pulls me down in one swift movement. My hands reach out to grab onto the ladder but I am too far away from the wall now. I hit the floor with a cracking thud. My mind blurs and I honestly believe I will die in this moment. The Mahrts are upon me then. Claws grab at me and teeth tear into my flesh. The pain is unbearable and I scream in my mind to wake up in real life. Please release me from this!
I reach my arms up defensively over my face. Blood drips from them as they tear me apart. I no longer scream, I just cry, hoping for this all to end. Sudden pressure is on my legs. One of the creatures slither their way up my body. It has 8 beady eyes and greasy long hair. The creature’s teeth are rotting and pure black. Blood drips from its mouth.
I can’t move anymore so I just close my eyes, waiting for the end. “Wake up, please wake up!” I sob to myself. The pain slowly subsides and I think I am in the clear but I don’t feel the comfort of my own bed and I still feel the significant stings of open wounds. The sound of the Mahrts still rings in my ears.
I open my eyes to the darkness surrounding me. I look back towards the Mahrts that scream. They hungrily run to the other side of the rift. The figure they are running towards, is humanoid and seems to glow. The figure stands on the top of the cliff, their hands outstretched. Items fall from the cliff into the rift, clanging and popping all the way to the bottom. The figure is creating and they are giving me time.
I do not hesitate. I stand up and a wave of pain hits me but does not slow me down. I glance down at my body. I am covered in teeth marks, and scratches. Chunks of my leg and my left arm are missing. I grunt in pain as I grab the first step of the ladder and I begin to climb. One foot, one arm, moving keep moving. I tell myself. I am moving too slow.
I risk a glance down. The Mahrts are now at the bottom of where the figure stands at the cliff. The figure no longer drops items into the rift. I am likely out of time. I climb faster, forcing my arms and legs to move even though they burn with each reach. My left arm goes weak and twists uncomfortably and I scream in pain. I take hurried breaths and force all of my grip onto my right arm.
Does this ladder ever end? I panic more as I notice how much farther I have to go. Climb! Climb! The ladder moves. The Mahrts must have reached my ladder but my current concern is falling off from this height. Focus! I tell myself. And by some miracle I finally reach the top.
I look down the ladder and see various Mahrts climbing up it. Their limbs lanky and twitchy reach each step. My body wants to lie still but my mind jolts awake. They move quicker than possible, about half of the way up. I grab the top of the ladder and push it forward with all the strength I can muster. It doesn’t budge. I look around desperately, trying to think of a way out of this. No one is around me and I cannot physically run. I cannot escape this if the ladder does not move.
I close my eyes and breathe heavily. I can do this. I picture wheels at the bottom of my ladder and I sense the existence into this world. I push the ladder again which moves easily but now I have made the steps more horizontal and easier to climb. The Mahrts move quicker. I push the ladder harder screaming as my wounds stretch from the effort. The ladder finally starts to fall and props up halfway down the canyon. The Mahrts at the top of the ladder scream, attempting to j
ump and reach the top but failing miserably.
I am relieved at their actions knowing they would not attempt to lift the ladder again due to their not so bright nature. They all reach the top of the ladder and jump again and again from the halfway point, coming nowhere near the top. They attempt to climb over each other as well as clawing the sides of the walls. I sigh in relief and rollover to my other side. My eyes become heavy and I allow them to close.
In my dream within my dream there is only blackness. Nothing exists here except my own consciousness. I float around in silence. I wonder if this is what dreams would be like had the dream world never been created. I imagine this is what it must be like for dream walkers if they did sleep.
I come to in a puddle of my own blood. My breathing feels shallow and my head is heavy. My arms are somewhat clean of the scratches and bite marks but the large wounds are still present and bleeding profusely. My head spins and my eyes shut hard but I force them open. Bandages, my mind screams. Aleksander had bandaged me and I healed quickly. A roll of gauze appears in front of me and I pick it up and press it against my arm wound with a muffled cry. I wrap it tightly and imagine tape and then secure it. I do the same to large wounds on my legs with shaky hands.
I lay back down and the relief of the healing gauze flows through me. Once I feel well enough, I sit up and look over the cliff. The Mahrts have mostly dispersed except for the one who screams into the sky once again, the one with no eyes. I pull myself slowly upward, finally standing up. I look over to where the figure that saved me was but I cannot see through the bridge. The figure is long gone.
The sky is brightening. Daytime comes upon the dreamworld. How long had I been out? My mind screams angrily. Arden! Arden pushed me in there. It had to be a setup. Jack must have told him. Maybe she thought I would never get out. Maybe she thought she could get away with it. I walk towards the main street and plan to stay out of sight from any of them but instead I wake up in the real world.
I yawn as I come to and feel queasy. My body feels sore and bruised as if all the horrors that happened to me in my dream had really happened. I look over my body to be sure and find that I am intact thankfully. Jack said Mahrts could not hurt humans much but I could not trust a word out of her mouth.