Chapter 3: A Dark Dream
First mist, then suspense, clear and pure, then the sensation of descending from atop cloud, falling, falling, finally plunging into deep dreams, darkness blooming in my vision. What was that? Cold seemed to be inclosing on every part of my body with a mixture of rapid, repulsive motions that I could not identify. It swirled around me, hugging closely, like a light blanket of gentle caressing. This feeling was new, a tender, yet vehement touch, a feeling similar to … the waves of a sea!
I shot my eyes open, pupils darting about, and squeezed them shut immediately after finding myself submerged in dark inky water. Opening my eyes once more, the thought of danger flooded through my mind as if it were part of the water that surrounded me. I struggled to swim to the surface of the water, propelling myself using my legs, feet, and wildly swaying my arms back and forth. The water worked against me, swallowing me in each of my attempts to get to the surface for air. By this time, my poor lungs felt as if they had been flattened under a heavy boulder. I thought to myself, "Mon Dieu, I am going to drown!"
Again and again, I found myself in the dark water, the swirling black liquid that would swallow up my fate.
Just as I had given up on my future, a pair of voluminous, warm hands with an iron grasp had lifted me out of the darkness of the water. As my head left the suffocating water, I gasped and coughed for a breath of fresh air, like a fish hauled onto land. Every little noise seemed so loud, from the barely audible whistling of the wind, to the constant thunderous booming of the waves of the sea I had been in. Looking about for that pair of hands, I distinguished in the dim light a hand grabbing onto the rock I squatted on. Next came the other hand, and finally, a face, long and pointed slowly rose out of the dark liquid.
Midnight was falling upon us; the moon was liquid behind the trees. The man's eyes were hidden behind his white hood, and the rest of his face was of a deathly color. "We need to get to that rock!" he spoke slowly and with a slight slur, almost as if he had something in his mouth. I could barely make out the rigid, gray shape of the rock near the bank of the sea. The white foamy spray of the water blurred my vision as I inhaled deeply. Before I knew it, my arms were free of the rock I sat upon, my legs thrashing furiously about in the water, and my eyes shut so tight, it felt as if they would burst.
I was halfway down that truculent, forceful flow of water, when my left hand hit something hard- hard as a rock! Just at the same time, my eyes opened, flooded with water, and I felt a cold hand boost me from the depths of that sea. I was pushed upward onto the solid piece of land. It seemed a while before I could reopen my aching eyes, but then I saw the man in the water. My vision, which had swarmed before, now appeared as clear as day as I intensely watched that man swept among the waves, like a leaf easily carried downstream. I screamed and called to him without knowing what I had said. The breeze carried my words and everything- from the pounding sea, to the aggressive winds- seemed to blanket over my yelps. Even so, through that clamor, I heard the man so clearly as he spoke, "Gypsies… gypsies! Go now! Go--" And before the last of the words finally reached me, he was swept away by the hands of the waves and the mist of the winds.
I slowly walked towards the dense forest, and tried to recall what had occurred, but my mind kept replaying the vision of the man in the water and the secretive words he spoke. Gypsies…. I wondered if I was dreaming when he said that. Did he actually say gypsies? Then I remembered. I remembered everything so suddenly that my mind began to blink with questions.
What happened? My mind was able to redraw a piece of what might have occurred: I was racing to the back of the gypsy tent, the shouts of men echoing in my mind, as the trees faded slowly behind me. Hunger beat through my tired soul and I thought I could steal some food for myself.
The thought of food sent a wild gust of hunger dancing and spreading through me, stronger, and even more intense than before. Just then, I felt my foot sink into the ground and heard a splash. When I slowly lifted my soaking foot from the swirling dark liquid, I realized that this is the point where I probably fell. This quiet pool of water led straight to the river and waterfall. That meant that I was not far from the Gypsies!
More than before, I felt afraid. I groped through the tall plants and trees without glancing a moment back at the black water. I was unaware of where my legs were taking me, but my mind raced as well and I The darkness closed around me, swallowing every inch of my body and I began to see imaginary black shapes silently flowing by. My long legs pounded along to the beat of my heart.
"No more! I don't want anymore!" my voice echoed in the forest. Even my wavering voice seemed to be foreign, only adding to the other mysterious noises echoing throughout the silence until I heard a high and unbearable screech. I slowly stopped right behind a fairly large tree with its long branches shielding my face from the cool wind. When I glanced around the trunk of the tree in the direction I heard the scream come from, I vividly saw two gigantic and glassy eyes staring wildly back at me. The face was only two or three inches away from me when I fell to the floor shivering and frightened nearly to death. Its evil-looking eyes darted and searched me until my own eyes closed and I felt myself descend into a deep, dark, and unforgiving dream…
