Move

Edward’s mind was a twisted knot of images, words and emotions. As he tried to follow one train of thought, a hundred tangled ideas swallowed him up. Memories collided with the present; the present was engulfed in his fears; fears transformed into hideous monsters; their claws tearing and slashing.

His eyes blurred, the room spun. He could see but could not understand. It was as though the world had been stripped of all meaning. Someone was talking but he couldn’t hear the words. Their sounds got lost in the chaos of his thoughts.

Something started to take shape. Raising out of the depths, from some primitive recess of his mind, one urge started to take him. It shot through his body along his nerves, building up in his feet. It didn’t have meaning; it didn’t need to. His body understood it clearly.

Move. With what strength he had left, he lurched forward. His legs were awkward at first as they stumbled, his arms helping by clasping the wall, but each step brought new strength. Move. Soon he was out of the stall. A young girl half blocked the way, he ignored her, running for the exit. Move.

The shadows of the stables gave way to a lighter shade, a deep purple. A gentle breeze blew against Edward’s face. He stopped, looking left and right. A great domed building, gently shining white, loomed ahead. Voices drifted over from that way. Edward turned in the other direction and ran.

Tree leaves whispered above his head. Paved stones passed underneath. His feet carried him forward, discarding all other thoughts behind him. He couldn’t escape them for long, however, as his legs slowed, forced to stop at a long wall.

The long balustrade marked the end of the grounds of lawns, trees and paths. A steep hill dropped away on the other side. In front of him was a large city built on the banks of a small estuary. It could have been any old town in Europe, with narrow streets illuminated by streetlights. Except he couldn’t hear the distant hum of care engines. He hardly heard anything except the sound of the gentle waves lapping at the riverbank. On the river below only sailing ships where docked. The odd small figure walked up gangplanks or carried cargo to warehouses lining the wharves.

Edward squeezed tight the limestone balusters and crouched down, his head leaning against the top rail.

‘Edward,’ A voice behind him called out. ‘Edward, do you remember where your children were last time you saw them?’

Children? The memories of that morning came back to him; Claire dressing up as a famous princess; Thomas playing with his dinosaurs. As he left the house, Thomas ran up to him, gave him a hug and said, ‘I’ll see you later daddy.’

‘My Children are at home. I’ve got to get back. I need to see them.’ He stood up again and looked around as if he expected to see his house and family.

‘Were they safe?’ the voice said.

‘My mum was looking after them. I’m late. She is probably trying to call me right now. Where is my phone?’ Edward patted himself down. ‘Where’s my bag?’

‘So, your children are safe. Your mum is with them. What would they be doing now?’

‘It must be dinner time now, or maybe a bath. I’m not sure what time it is.’

‘So, your children are safe at home with your mum. They probably sitting around the table eating together. They are safe.’

‘That’s right.’ The mass of thoughts filling Edward’s skull become a little less oppressive. The restlessness in his legs eased, but instead his body felt heavy, as though his arms could drop right out of their sockets. He fell backwards, breathing hard.

A few metres in front of Edward, a young woman sat down, crossing her legs in front of her. She was young, younger than Edward, but there was something about her eyes. He struggled to look directly at her.

‘Edward,’ she said. ‘We are going to get you answers, OK? I’ll make sure of it. If you are up for it, can you explain a little more about what happened? We can go slowly. The more I understand about what happened to you, the better we will be able to move forward.’

‘OK, that makes sense. OK.’ Edward replied. ‘Erm, sorry, who are you?’

‘Thank you, Edward,’ She smiled at him. ‘And my name is Kira. We spoke earlier. Do you remember that? Good. Can you tell me about your last clear memory, before the stable and before the darkness and cold?’

‘There was a butterfly or moth. It seemed to shine. I followed it.’ Edward squinted  and squashed his face together between his two hands. ‘I think there was someone else there. No two people. It must have been. I only saw one, but he was talking. I didn’t understand him. He was speaking a different language.’

Edward sat silent for some time. Images flashed into his mind, but he had trouble putting them in order. His memories were like half a dozen jigsaw puzzles thrown together and muddled up.

‘The man was agitated. He shouted. His hair was dishevelled. His clothes dirty. I think he was crying. There was a light. I saw it. I pushed him out of the way. There were strings of light. They twisted round my arms. I ripped and tore at them.’

‘Thank you, Edward, that really helps.’ Kira said. ‘Can you tell me; did you hear any other voices that you understood? Any voices that spoke to you in English?’

‘I think...I think there might have been.’ Edward rang his fingers through his hair and pulled. ‘I think it was a man’s voice. It said, “You can see and break the strands? You’re interesting. Come with me.” I think that was it.’

‘Thank you, Edward. I think that is enough for today. Shall we find you something to eat or are you tired? Would you like to go to sleep? Or we can talk some more?’

Edward nodded, unable to find the strength to speak. He dimly remembered someone helping him up. It must have been Kira, but he didn’t notice her move. She held him up and half carried him as they walked. He wasn’t sure how long they had walked for or in what direction they went.

A dim light filled a room. Edward couldn’t remember how he got there. It must have had a bed in it because he felt a soft pillow against his face. It sucked him down, impossible to resist. He fell, fell into deep abyss, yet the ground never arrived. He floated there, slowly losing all thoughts and feeling, until there was nothing but the dark.