Early Morning Walk

I awoke to the loud sounds of horns playing just below me. Mine eyes met the dimly lit ceiling, dazzling in a shimmering deep blue. I got up, flailing mine eyes around the room only to realize that I had been here once before. It was a room that I had recognized to be my own, yet it was a place I knew I had never physically been. It was the room of that wicked one who had taken my body as her own. At least now, it felt as though I had the freedom to move as I pleased, though I could not tell if it is just the script of this other person's dream or not, I was still somewhat grateful. I looked out the water stained window at the spectrum of vastly different colors, their hues bending with the racing water droplets. It was far brighter than anything I was use to, yet there was a serenity to the scene before me.

I pushed the thick blanket off myself before planting my feet on the chilling floor, feeling the crease between two large tiles on my toes. The air in the room felt stale, but not unbearable. My mind wandered, still attempting to conceive where this could possibly be in the world. The style of this room and the architecture of the outside were all too far from the reality I have come to know. I still could not fathom it, but that did not matter, for the dream must go on. I stood up, knowing I had to get ready to go, but for what, I knew not of it yet. I walked past the foot of the bed toward the open wardrobe I had seen once before. I reached out, already knowing what wears I felt were appropriate, yet somehow I knew these thoughts were not my own, despite being in my own head. I changed into what I had grabbed, the fabric and other materials of the wears being completely foreign to me. The jacket I had put on was shiny, yet its material was flexible unlike metal, and the tunic and pants I wore had fabric so unnaturally smooth that it felt as though I was wearing nothing. The wears of this person were also far too clean and have been kept in good condition, the complete opposite of what thou would comest to see in an ashen world. I began to have the same thoughts I had when I was previously here: this place is otherworldly.

After getting dressed, I walked toward the door leading out, but suddenly turned left to face a door I noticed not the first time. I pushed it open and pushed a switch to the right of me. A white light flashed into existence to reveal the contents of the small room. There was a white bowl full of water with a few rusted stains where it met the floor. A small tub against the wall, which to my knowledge, was once a sign of royalty, yet here it felt like it was nothing more than space being taken. Just ahead, there was a shiny, white, fountain shaped structure attached to the wall with a metallic faucet curved up and back down from its back. Just above the water-less fountain was a frame-less mirror stained in small dots around the border. I looked upon it, hoping to see the face of the person who had given me this strange dream, only to be greeted with a blur. The details of the face I borrowed were obscured, all except for one feature: a dark spot across my cheek. It was brown and purple and slightly swollen, the pain still lingering as if it was received recently. Ignoring it like it was nothing, I washed my face with the falling water from the shiny faucet, then covered the bruise with some skin colored powder, and did many other things that I was unfamiliar with, all for the sake of what looked to be hygiene and cosmetic. It was strange watching myself apply markings on my face, things that to my knowledge from stories, were reserved for royalty, yet someone living in such a tiny abode had done it like it was normal. After all the strangely queen-like preparations, I finally headed out the door.

I was greeted by a light breeze, its cold paling in comparison to winds of the ashen dunes. Tiny drops of water fell from the sky and onto my face, weather that I had never encountered, but knew of from my mother. I think it was called "rain." My shoes met the sturdy ground, water splashing in a shallow puddle. I found myself again gazing at the flame-less, colorful lights and the shiny wagons sounding their horns while moving on their own. People dressed in vastly different attire crowded the road ahead. Without a second thought, I joined them, effortlessly blending into the little waves of people.

The flashing lights passed me by, flickering against the dark sky. I cherished ever cold drop of water that graced my cheek, soothing the tingling pain of the bruise. Continuing down this familiar yet unfamiliar road, a man greeted me somewhat flirtatiously, though his face was as much a blur as my own. Automatically, I ignored him with a kind smile to which he laughed. As I walked past, he yelled something from behind me. I turned to see that his smile had faded and he mustered some sincere words.

"Hey... please stay safe. A woman like you shouldn't be walking around with a bruise like that." His tone just barely lighthearted. "I'm always here to talk when you want to."

I nodded and went on my way like it was just another routine thing to deal with. It was only after he had left my sight that I wondered how he could have possibly known about the bruise. Perhaps the powder I applied was not thick enough? Still, I witnessed how much was applied, yet he saw right through me.

The enclosed metal wagons sped by, their roars startling my inner thoughts but not my physical being. Suddenly, I found myself at the bottom of a staircase. I looked across the shiny black road to see that it led to an overhead bridge connecting the walkway on the other side of the road. I ascended, the wet plops of small pools following me up the stairs. I walked along the bridge, the walkway now devoid of anyone but myself. A few metal wagons roared past just underneath me. As I neared the center of the bridge, I looked outward, finally understanding why the world around me had suddenly gotten a bit brighter. The sky had changed. From the darkest blue that it once was to now a light gray. Along the horizon of the sharp angled and reflective buildings, a thick line of bright orange filled the band. It was a phenomena so otherworldly, something that would bring me to tears. I relished in the silent moment of beauty knowing that I would not see such a magnificent sight once my body wakes.

"A sky that is always changing, yet is as beautiful as yesterday and the days to come."

Those were the words from my mother's tales that described the sky before the calamity. In all my years I never thought I would bear witness to such a thing. Now I stand here in awe, laying my eyes on a mystical sky through the world of a stranger's dream.