The Dreamer: The Book of Godspells

CHAPTER FIVE

I struggled to wake up, feeling my body curled into a fetal position on a hard surface, my conscious mind slowly becoming aware. Though I knew my body was there, I couldn't move, no matter how hard I tried. It was like being trapped in a sleep paralysis, aware of sleeping but powerless to break free.

"Wake up! Move... Do anything!" I urged myself, panic setting in as I felt a sudden vibration at my side, like the rumble of something beneath me.

Was this paralysis?

Suddenly, my body jerked. The vibration intensified, followed by a bump that lifted me off the ground and miraculously freed me. My eyes snapped open, my body sprawled out in a star-like position, and I broke out in a sweat. Catching my breath, I glanced around to find myself on a... train?

"Where am I?" I muttered aloud, the words finally audible this time. Slowly, I pushed myself up using the red velvet seats around me, taking in my surroundings and grasping the reality that I was awake, at least for now. I saw people—or rather, white hooded figures—sitting in pairs at each set of velvet seats facing each other.

My hand still rested on the seat, the color as deep as red and only inches away from the hooded figure beside me. I felt heat radiating from its body, like I had placed my hand next to a flame. Quickly withdrawing my hand from the heat, I stood up and surveyed my surroundings. I was alert, though uncertain why. It was strange, being the only thing in motion besides the train itself. The figures around me all wore masks across their mouths, little skin visible besides their eyes and the upper part of their noses. They appeared serene, as if unaffected by the train's movements.

Glancing out of the crystal rose glass windows, I noticed the shape looked awfully familiar. Yet, I couldn't recall how I knew the shape or where I was. The train sped by so fast that all I could see were blurry flashes of... a forest of green, tall, white, and black trees, and a river in the distance, its waters shimmering silver. It flowed parallel to the train's uninvited and undetermined destination. Upon closer inspection, I noticed specks of dust falling, like slow-motion flakes, while the train rushed past this unfamiliar place. A sense of déjà vu washed over me, as if I had been here before, but how? I looked around for clues but found none.

Where was I?

Stepping back from the window, I felt something hit my foot on the ground. I looked down and picked up a small, brown leather-bound book that lay where I had been lying moments ago. I must have had it with me when... whatever had brought me here now?

The book was small, bound in brown leather with a red velvet string matching the color of the train seats, and etched writing on the cover: "Book of Godspells." I ran my hand over each letter, feeling a strange familiarity. It was as if all of this was somehow familiar, or at least parts of it, yet I had no recollection of anything prior. It felt like my memories had been erased, or perhaps I never had any to begin with. Or maybe I was just dreaming. That had to be it, but then why did I feel so aware of everything if it were only a dream?

Afraid to look in the book again, I tucked it under my arm. I didn't want to see what was inside, but I didn't want to lose it either. Trying to keep my balance in the shifting train, I made my way toward the end of the compartment. Looking out of the floor-to-ceiling window at the rear, I noticed compartment after compartment through each identical window, like a twisted mirror.

I could see part of the side of the train, noticing that it was a deep white, with engraved feathers and carvings of gold infinity spirals and arrows. It looked like something you would see in a fairy tale movie... something surreal.

Just as I leaned closer to the window, the train shifted again, and I started to fall into the door. Thinking it would catch my fall, instead, it opened at my touch, and the next thing I knew, I was falling. I felt a rush of air threatening my lungs, then, as if time shifted, a firm hand grabbed my waist, pulling me back into the train. The minute my body left the door, it automatically closed as if it had never opened in the first place. My whole body shook, and my mind whirled. I couldn't believe I was still alive.