What is dreaming and what is reality? I once read that everything we conceive around us is just an illusion our brains create. Of course brains need source material that our senses produce for them, but if the source is false so is our perception of it. If something can manipulate the electric synapses of our bodies we cannot know what is real and what is... a dream. Basically the only thing we can be certain is real is ourself. Everything else could be an illusion or dream and we're none the wiser.
But if I can't trust my senses what can I trust? As I wiped the drool off my face my collegue/friend Arath appeared beside me. "You ok?" He asked with a look of serius concern on his face. He placed his hand on my shoulder which made me shudder. "Yeah, it's nothing, just a dream. You know, been so tired lately that staying awake is a chore" I said and tried to put on a brave face. I knew it wouldn't fool anyone, but at least I could dodge any more questions that way. That's when I saw it.
I hadn't noticed it before but ever since I started to dream the nightmare, the shadows were longer, darker, menacing. The world itself had become more sinister and darker but I just hadn't noticed it. Not until now when I saw the creature in the shadow. It expanded behind Arath filling the whole wall and all I could do was freeze. I couldn't make out any outlines or defining features, I only felt the creature's presence. It felt like I was being stalked by a dangerous predator or balancing very high on a narrow ledge. My heart pounded like no tomorrow but I couldn't act even though I wanted to. What I felt was pure fear.
Arath said something I couldn't hear when the creature reached for him slowly. I saw how it covered Arath in the shadow for a brief moment. Then it disappeared and the room felt a bit brighter. Arath hadn't noticed anything strange it appeared. "Maybe you should just take the rest of the day off and rest. You're in no shape to...*ATCHOO* work. I guess I'm also coming down with something, hopefully it's not lethal" Arath said jokingly slapping me on the back. I said something I don't remember anymore but that was the last time I saw Arath. He was found dead the next day by his husband. Natural causes they said but I knew better.
After that incident my dreams changed. Once again I was walking in near darkness but this time I saw a hole before me. The very hole I'd fallen through so many times. For a moment I was mesmerized by this sudden turn of events, until I heard a raspy nasal voice "You finally figured it out. We're glad." It was the same shadow creature I saw during the day but now its features we're more defined.
It seemed to stretch impossibly wide filling the space around me but at the same time it seemed extremely narrow and skeletal-like. It was as far away from a human as an ant is from a dragon. Words escaped my head as I stood there baffled and stunned. The creature slithered nearer "You're useful to us and so you shall be spared. Nourish us and you shall be rewarded." For a moment I saw Arath's face appearing on the creature, writhing in agony. Then I woke up covered in cold sweat.
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