Dream Journal

Tearing Holes in the Room of Time

I woke with a start, flailing my limbs and tangling myself in crisp, white sheets. I struggled for a moment to free my arms and wiped the beaded sweat away from my forehead. Then laid still, staring blankly ahead at the flat wooden board fixed above my head, overlaid with small wooden ribs.

Other than that lonely frame, there was nothing else of color or form to keep my interest. The room, lacking even of a door, was completely and utterly bare.

White sheet corners draped over the edge of the upper bed, stark and lifeless. I pulled myself up to sit, when a shadow crossed my lap and my heart went aflutter in my chest. A blonde head turned upside down poked its way down from the upper bed. Two wide, unblinking eyes stared back into mine. I couldn't help but admire this delicate creature's soft features: milky skin, lustrous blonde hair coming to rest just beneath the ears, thin lips the color of seashells, and wide, wondering eyes as deep and blue as the oceans themselves.

"Hello," the creature said. I wanted to tell it that it was beautiful, but I couldn't seem to find the words. This creature was no mere human; not identifiable as either a male nor female, not flawed with the wear of the earth, not brimming with the overwhelming emotion that a person, like myself, might expect to see upon waking in a sealed room. I could not comprehend this creature, and so, did not try to. I remained quiet, pursing my lips hesitantly.

"Do you know where we are?" it asked sweetly, ever so slightly cocking its head. Its voice was soft and melodic, not remniscient of any distinct males or females that I knew. 

I immediately shook my head without taking my eyes away.

"Ah, such a shame. I will have to explain."

In one quick motion, that blonde head disappeared from my sight, withdrawn back to the upper bed. Silence reigned for an eternity- but I refused to seek a sound- until a soft whisper broke it: "perhaps we can have a bit of fun."

At the beck and cry of that word, "fun", spoken under the breath with such eerie composure, I pulled the coccoon of sheets away and rose to my feet. I wore white, a simple white garb, with long sleeves that covered the backs of my hands.

I grasped the ladder at the foot of the frame and ascended it, one careful step at a time. I curled my toes around the second wrung, and peered over the wooden frame. There the creature lay, silent and still.

"This room represents the stream of time as we know it. Solid and sturdy, unmarked and untouched. You lay sleeping inside it- unknowing and unchanging- until another entity awakens you, and makes you aware of its fragility."

I narrowed my eyes, watching for a vital sign: a breath, a heartbeat, gooseflesh raising on the creature's arms, but none were revealed to me. The simple, white gown falling to its knees never rustled. Then, head turned ever so slowly and its eyes set on me. Its short hair clung to its face, perfectly straight and untouched.

"You are one of the few who can manipulate time, which is why you have been called here. After my teachings have been passed down to you, you will be free to travel through time freely," said the creature, soft and emotionlessly. "Manipulating time is simple. First, you must have a firm grasp on where you stand in the time stream."

A milky hand extended from the sleeve of the gown and extended toward the wall. Its palm cupped the wall gently, as if it were in search of a heartbeat. The creature shut its eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Then you must understand the amount of time that has passed, or will pass, between now and the moment that you choose," it uttered, without opening its eyes, "and pull that amount of time away from the stream."

The flattened hand arched, knuckles white beneath the smooth skin of its hand, and delicate fingers turned to claws. Those claws dug their way into the wall, and the creature delicately rotated its wrist to gain deeper entrance. The fingers moved fluidly through the solid wall like it were a pool of milk, and began to withdraw. The wall began to crumble like white sand, trickling onto the mattress.