Prologue : A night to forget

"Die!"

"Remember that you are just a soul without purpose, leading a modest life. You are nobody. You aren’t known for what you really are. Give up everything and return to nothingness!"

As these words struck Iwao’s ears, he cried instantly. Not tears of sadness, but tears of joy. As they streamed down his face, he thought that only in a dream could he confront himself with the harsh reality that was his life.

He was standing there, alone, in a dark space. No one, nothing – emptiness was everywhere. It was just him. The only things left in this space were the echo of the strange voice and his own crying. 

The terrifying – yet at the same time calming – mood created by all these elements was propitious for deep thinking. What should Iwao do? As he searched through his memories, he tried to find an answer. 

Why could this voice, in just a few words, strike him so deeply in the heart? Despair. The despair of trying everyday to survive in the jungle that was life. Of trying to prove who he was beneath the mask he wore. He was trying to show an open door to anyone willing to walk through it, to see who he really was behind the shelter he had built for himself.

"If this could be real... Please let me go. No one's waiting for me on the other side. Come take me. Don't leave me just hanging here in the dark. I'm scared... I try everyday to put up a good front – on my look, on my grades, on my work, on my life. I try to please them all. I'm not happy! That’s not what I want. I want to do the things I love, not those I was forced to do to meet the expectations of everyone."

While he was yelling, his voice choked because of the tears that couldn't be stopped anymore. He was emptying himself of all the sorrow, sadness, and loneliness he had always felt inside his bleeding heart.

If this was a dream made up by his mind, he thought he could do what he wanted. Maybe it would not be real, but just this once, he wanted to do what he wanted – not what others told him to do.

He decided to follow the advice of the voice and die, but he couldn't find the strength to move an inch. Was it because he was in a dream, or maybe... was it really a dream?

Suddenly, the dark space became so bright that anyone outside of a dream would have gone blind. Then, a shelter built itself around Iwao. He was trapped inside. The air started to feel like a cage. Anxiety began its way inside of him. Something was coming. Something big.

"NO! NOT AGAIN! WHY? WHY ARE YOU HERE!? LEAVE ME ALO-"

"Leave you alone, my dear? Oh, there must have been some confusion here, I see.

I

Will

Never

Leave

You!"

That strange and malicious voice rang inside Iwao's head. It was like nails grinding on steel. Iwao was yelling in agony, his heart was beating faster and faster. He fell to his knees – something he was now able to do, unlike earlier when he couldn't move an inch.

One by one, the lights in the shelter went out, leaving just one on. Nothing. Something was coming. Iwao was vomiting.

There! There it was. A hideous creature. Two meters tall, with brown eyes. A wolf-like monster, standing on its two hind legs. Above its ears stood two horns linked by a rope, on which hung rocks as bright as the moon. But the most peculiar characteristic of this abomination was its smile. A chilling smile, rising to both ears, accentuated by its two bloody, wide-open eyes. 

It stood still, watching Iwao as he vomited his heart out. The creature took the opportunity to tease him while he was in a weak position.

"You know, Iwao, haven't you ever wondered why you can't wake up from your nightmares when I am here? It's because you were the one who created me. YOU gave me the power and superiority over your weak mind! YOU are the one who cages yourself in your own nightmares. You like me, don't you? If that weren’t the case, we wouldn't be here. You like the fact that I am the only one who understands what you want, what you have been through. I-"

"Shut up!"

Iwao, recovering from all his emotions, couldn't stand the condescending speech of the nightmare creature. He was panting, terrified of talking to the one who was the origin of all his nocturnal terrors.

"I never wanted to create you. You are an error, something that should have never seen the light. Yes, I can't wake up until you leave. That happens more and more often, and I don't know what to do. Everyone would take me for a liar or a madman if I told them what I live through in my nightmares. So even if I fear you... even if I die in my sleep of a heart attack, I will fight with all I can."

The creature was truly amazed by Iwao’s will. “What an amazing child!” It thought to itself.

"Good spirit! Love that. But you will lose for sure. I am everywhere in you. I'm now a completely independent part of you. Fear me!"

The walls of the shelter disappeared, leaving the two of them in the bright light of the surrounding space. The radiance contrasted sharply with the dark appearance of the monster. Iwao couldn’t take his eyes off it, as though looking away would make him lose all anchorage in this utterly empty space.

The creature turned around and told Iwao one last thing.

"Enough entertainment for tonight. You don't please me enough with your pitiful speeches. Wake up and repeat the cycle once again."

Darkness.

Then, eyes wide open.

Birds singing.

Iwao was sweating and crying.

The nightmare was over.