I awoke only a few moments later, my cheek was bleeding a little. I thought back to running away from the camp, how I sprinted faster than I ever had, and was actually running for my life. It was strange that I even escaped at all, those men were strong, and there were many. They could have easily caught me, couldn't they? Perhaps it was the fear that was running through my blood, that made my body feel as though I could do nothing more but run. I stood up and tried to summon the door of light, but every time any light appeared in front of me at all, I felt like a hand reached into my throat and prevented any air from reaching me. I tried to swallow the pain and keep moving forward but the air felt so thin, I lost my focus and started to feel dizzy. I felt too weak to even summon the door again, but I tried anyway, and when I did, I felt a crack at the arch of my foot. I immediately jumped backwards and the door disappeared. I tried one more time and when the door reappeared, I tried to force myself through, but when I did, my entire leg went numb, and couldn't move further through the door. Once again, I lost complete control of the door, and it disappeared. My leg throbbed, now.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS GOING ON?!" I shouted, half expecting someone to emerge from the bushes and tell me what I did wrong, because, this was the realms after all.

No one came.

I kept walking straight, clueless about where I was going, feeling completely sorry for myself and how clueless I was.

I must have been walking for over an hour, and I saw nothing but trees, animals that didn't speak, nor did I see any people, but even on a normal visit to the realms, I wouldn't expect to see people. Suddenly, without warning, I was hit by an icy, stinging wind. The wind whooshed past me, and seemed to hiss in a bloodcurdling voice. It was quite obvious where I was now; I was at the border of the Winterlands. I was not dressed for a place with such a climate. I was meant to come here, I knew that much. There were many places I could have ended up in, and the Winterlands were just one of the many, I was lead here by the realms. And like a confirmation to the notion, a fleecy cloak appeared at my feet, along with a pair of thick boots, and a wool dress.

"Damn this place." I muttered to myself as I started to put on the boots. Then a tight slap struck my cheek, nearly knocking me off of my feet, but I knew from the familiar hiss, that it was the wind of the Winterlands. Then more gusts of wind came, knocking me around as though I was a piece of meat. The hissing became louder, and I soon realized that those hisses were words.

"Return with helpers."

"Go back, and return. You MUST RETURN!"

"You are not capable to do this alone."

"Return with helpers, for peace."

"Your escape was no coincidence."

"You must return, you haven't a choice."

"Summon light. Summon the light. And return."

"We await your return."

And with the final stinging gust of wind, I ran in the other direction, anywhere warmer, where the winds couldn't follow me. I tried to summon the door, and this time it was a painless effort, but the wind was coming closer, so I moved faster. I could hear the wind trying to follow me through the door, and shouting, "RETURN! Or we will enter without your help!"

I was behind the restaurant again, the sky was a deep, dark blue, I could see a few stars. "DUNG!" I shouted. "DUNG!" I shouted again as I started running towards the apartment.

"Gemma?" Said two voices, it was Norman and Dung. They emerged from the apartment door; I could hear Mr. Raven growling in the back about how Norman always caused chaos.

"Go inside! I must speak to you." I said.

***

"Now Gemma, I'd call you crazy, but my wife likes you, so I'm not going to call you crazy."

"Thank you, Norman." I said, so used to Norman's absurd comments that I'd feel a bit uneasy if he hadn't said something odd.

Dung stayed quiet. His eyes seemed to be studying the floorboards, and his silence frightened more than anything else.

"Dung?" I asked quietly.

"I need proof Gemma, I'm sorry, but I do, I've heard stories…but it always seemed like something I would never need to think about."

"I understand, I will give you proof when I take you with me. They just kept saying 'return with friends'."

"Why?" Norman asked.

I restrained my laughter, it was like asking why misfortune existed at all. "I must tell you both now, and remember that I am asking you because I have no one else even though I wouldn't want to burden you with what you will see. The realms are filled with desire, it's like the realms have a soul and all it wants to do is to have control over you. There is magic, there are things beyond our understanding and often times our naïve curiosity is exactly what leads to trouble. The realms are vicious, brutal, and beautiful all at the same time. It takes time to see the ugliness and hollowness that the realms are made of."

Dung sat quietly, he knew that what I was saying was not a matter that could be taken lightly.

Norman of course, was a little laid back "Can we eat before we go?" he asked.

***