A Memory Lost

I sat there in the darkness, I didn't know where I was, or how I got there. It was so dark, but more than that. There was a feeling of emptiness, of nothingness. Then it changed subtly at first, I felt the lightest of breezes on my face. Shortly after that I was able to make out shapes, without any real definition, they seemed to be moving, but not moving. I was scared, but curious unsure what I was meant to do if anything. Could I move? It seems strange I'd been here for some time and hadn't thought of trying to move until now. I tried moving, I raised my hand. At least I performed the neurological actions required to do so. Did my arm move? I couldn't tell, any light had gone and I could see nothing again. Funny I didn't notice this change. It seems going from being able to make out shapes to seeing nothing would have been something I would have noticed. I lowered my hand the ground I was sat upon. I got all the neurological signals to suggest my hand had lowered and had met resistance at where the ground should have been. I felt smooth, well I thought it did anyway. Without seeing it I couldn't tell.

Suddenly there was an intense white light filling everything. It caused such pain in my eyes after they had adjusted to the dark as much as they possibly could. Where did the light come from? I began to think about speaking, asking where I was and why I was here. Would I get an answer? There was only one way to find out, but something was stopping me. Something in my mind was preventing me from speaking out. I couldn't work out what it was or why? That was when the light faded to a bearable level. everything came into focus. I was sat in the middle of a large room, mostly empty. The light appeared to be coming from everywhere, there was no light source that I could make out, the only things I could see in the room with me were the shapes I had detected in the dark, they looked like statues of some gruesome creatures. The nearest one to me slowly turned to face me, then it spoke.

"Raagh, ulgagak mooorhhfkd?"

It felt like a question. I didn't know how to respond so I just sat looking at it. It then spoke again in what seemed like a different language, One I still didn't know.

"e korero koe Māori ?" Again it was a question,but I was unable to answer so remained silent.

The creature kept repeating questions.

"Nǐ shuō zhōngguó huà?"

"TlhIngan Hol Dajatlh'a'?"

"Ydych chi'n siarad Cymraeg ?"

Until finally I understood what was being asked, the question was in my native tongue, with perfect diction.

"Do you speak Garacton?"

I responded "Of course I speak Garacton, it's the common language of the this galaxy and my native tongue."

"What era is this?" The creature asked again, it's shape changed slowly as it spoke until it began to resemble the people of my planet.

"It is fourth era of the second Empire, how do you not know this?" This seemed an unusual question.

"We are not a species of time as you see it." The creature began its reply. "We exist at all time and can freely interact with any part of it, We communicate with sentient beings from across all of time and space."

"How can you exist out of time?" I was beginning to get confused "Who are you? Where am I? What am I doing here?" I was getting more bold and the questions just blurted out like verbal diarrhoea.

The creatures face was expressionless, its next interaction came after a slight pause "We will answer all your questions before we are finished. Time is not real, it is a concept for your dimension and the sentient beings that exist within it. We have seen all of your time."

A voice then came from behind me, I turned to see another of the creatures which looked identical to the first it had taken the form of something from my world, but it looked strangely genderless.

"We are those who were always here, we are those who will always be there. We have a name in most languages, cultures and species from your dimension, but there are too may to name."

A third creature then spoke up from above me. I hadn't noticed a balcony around the room until now, but there it was clear as day with a handful of the creatures stood there.

"You are here, there and nowhere. Here does not exist in any way you can comprehend. We have tried to adjust what you perceive to be here to make you more comfortable. We must apologise, as is your custom, for the change in conditions when you arrived. There are lots of beings that come through here and we are never sure of the environment to give them."

"While we are aware of everything and have infinite knowledge sometimes recall can take some of what you perceive to be time." This voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

The first creature spoke again

"You are here because your finite existence has come to pass."

"I'm sorry?" I began to enquire "Are you saying I am dead?"

"That is a term you use for it. Yes" This was more a thought that appeared in my head rather than a voice that spoke. I was feeling very uneasy and scared.

"So what now? What happens now?" I had to ask.

"That is up to you. This is a choice all sentient being have when they get here." The first creature was talking again. I looked around and all the others had gone, as had the room and anything else.

"What is up to me?" I was getting nervous now.

"There are three options." The creature began to explain as it began to fade away "You may be reborn at some point in time and space as a new sentient as a blank slate. You rejoin the collective consciousness that we are. Or you may return to a time and place of your choosing."

"Wait," I asked "you mean to say I was once a part of your consciousness?"

"Everyone did, and in the end everyone will return to us."

"Will I remember any of this if I am reborn?"

"Not in most cases, but we cannot give a definitive answer to that."

"Then I will be reborn at the exact moment I died, on my home planet."

"hmm" the creature mused. "You are the only one who has always said that.

Everything was gone and I began to feel the sensation of being reborn. I remembered everything, and slowly memories began to slip away. Maybe one life I'll keep them all.