Glass Pieces

Garnet

The colors were wrong, was the first thought to emerge from the young woman's mind as she rubbed her eyes, everything both too dull and too bright all at the same time, assaulting her senses. Where am I?

Nothing was familiar, the young woman having somehow left the comfortable four walls of her bedroom, waking to find herself in this distorted forest. That was, if something so dead could be called that; there was no life to be found, bare trees extended as they towered over her, no life visible in the treetops nor the hard ground, no shuffle of animals, no buzz of insects, just nothing but this wasteland for as far as her eyes could see. There wasn't a single star in the sky to bring light either; it was just endless darkness among the ash-colored trees, a fog settling on the floor of the forest, with blue and black shadows stretching every which way. This silence plain wasn't natural, billowing with shades of darkness, the depth only increasing the longer Garnet's eyes looked into it.

Her head whirled as the entire world seemed to spin, the gray mist and eerie swirl of unnatural blue drifting with a sudden gust blowing, blowing -- growing from a strong breeze to a hurricane wind, whipping the dead tree branches, the bark groaning from such pressure. Garnet's bare feet tried to find footing in the ground but found no purchase as the howling gale pushed her backwards, falling to her knees as the wind overcame her in a last-ditch effort to not be completely lost to the storm. No mere human could withstand the sheer force, Garnet gaining only another second on the ground before she was tumbling into the hurricane winds. 

Blue eyes clenched shut, unable to watch herself be eaten alive by this raging storm, the howling wind screeching in her ears. She was carried helplessly, flying and falling all at once -- until it was suddenly over, her body meeting the ground once more with a sickening crack. 

"Wha--" The young woman whimpered, hand clutching her ribs as bright eyes hesitantly opened. Was she in a pit? There was now... nothing. Not even trees, just endless, unforgiving darkness. She couldn't even see her own hands, which way was up or down, which way could lead her out. Pain wracked her frame, a noise of distress blossoming in her chest. "HELLO?" She yelled, panic lacing through the words in desperation. Instead, her own words were only echoed back faintly. 

"HELP!" Garnet finally screamed, falling forward as her hands met the ground. There wasn't a whisper of any life other than the pounding of her heart in her ears. Her bottom lip quivered, fear hot in her blood. 

Death was a constant companion in her life, mortality a concept that crushed her innocence far too early. The reprieve of death was not a fate she feared; the unknown however, whatever lied in this darkness was terrifying as she laid alone, a chill seeping into her bones.

Suddenly, the thought crossed her mind of the one word she'd written in her notebook-- surviving. Surely, lying in the oppressing blackness of this place was not surviving, not even giving her the chance. With a huff, Garnet braced her aching side before stumbling to her feet, using a hand on the ground to straighten herself to a standing position rather than her blind vision. Steeling her nerves, the young woman used one arm to clutch her side, the other as a guide, steering her deeper into darkness.

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How long had she been walking? Her muscles ached, her side pulsed painfully, but Garnet continued to push forward. She had yet to encounter even a wall or barrier; only flat land with no end in sight. The young woman's lips were pursed in concentration, refusing to focus on the knot of fear in her stomach (for if she gave it any attention, it would grow to an impossible weight and she would crumble). 

Something buzzed in the back of Garnet's mind, but her concentration swatted at the noise, continuing to stumble forward towards... something, anything else than this pit. Freezing suddenly, the young woman's frame grew rigid. 

She heard buzzing.

The girl wheeled quickly on her heel, seeking the source of the noise, turning in a circle, then another, desperate to find the reason for the sound. 

She gasped as a single speck of light made itself known, floating just beyond her reach. Still she reached regardless, face light by the warm, alluring glow. Bare feet weakly padded forward, once, twice, until she was following the light that seemed to cut through the darkness and burn away all the fears that had swelled in her chest. Instead blue hues were wide with awe and curiosity, being led by this flickering brightness. 

Finally, the darkness ebbed away as an opening in the distance grew, the grey and blue haze of this strange world a welcomed sight. At the edge of the opening, the mouth of a cave that seemed to dip deep into the earth, a plummet to the core, the light finally paused. It had guided her out of the depths of this cave, through the unforgiving blackness, climbing over miles of ground. The young woman too came to a stop when she reached the end, the cavern's entrance arching over her while the tiny beacon flitted before her very face.

Garnet held her breath, fingertips reaching, brushing against the warmth glow as gently as her hands could manage. Despite the brilliance, there was no burn that accompanied her touch; instead, the radiance grew, from a speck to a ball ablaze, washing over her frame and engulfing her in the blissful peace that its presence brought. 

The young woman sighed as the light grew too bright for her eyes, shutting without fear as she allowed herself to disappear into the rays. 

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Jolting awake, Garnet sat upright. Her bedroom was dark other than the soft glow of her charging phone, the hum of her roommates' air conditioner rattling in the background. Swallowing thickly, the young woman reached for her phone, 4:51 AM blaring across the screen. With a huff, she fell back into her pillows, pulling her blankets tightly around her frame. The warmth, the peace -- all was gone now, shattered as reality sunk in and the dream faded away. By morning light, the dream would be less than a far-off memory; as would be the nightmare that surrounded it, the hideous darkness forgotten.