Chapter 2: Revealing
I awoke, not to the usual backdrop of white light irritatingly waking me from a rare treasure. Rather, awoke to what I now fear most. This. I do not know what this is, but only that I fear it.
I stumbled, letting my eyes adjust to the darkened place. Confusion set in, before I realized that I was right where I left off last time. The same imagery came to me as before.
The endless void around me, the rocky smooth and flat ground. And the cave like ceiling. Around me, high cliffs, with glowing red water flowing from cracks and crevices in their sides. The slight breeze coming back and forth letting deaths voice echo through this endless void. I walked around, stumbling mostly. I looked for a way down or up. I walked forward, passing streams of the glowing liquid, as it let off a weak source of heat.
I inspected the sheer rock surface in front of me, letting my right hand eventually hook along a way up as I walked forward. I took hold, hands sweating, as I climbed the nearly vertical way up. My hands gripped tightly to the top of the peak I had reached, not too high, in reality. I looked down at an obstacle crossed. Honestly unsure of whether or not there could be a purpose to anything here.
I walked forward, still wondering the danger or lethality of the glowing water. I could not find a simple item anywhere, a stick, a loose rock, nothing. I dug through the pockets I had, pulling out a crumpled up shopping list. I neared the fluid, a weak heat emanating from it. I dipped the paper in cautiously, waiting for what would happen.
It soon twisted and turned into shapes it should not have. It then combusted within the fluid, flaming near where I held it. I dropped the paper soon, letting its ashes scatter. Nothing could live here it seemed, in a place where there is no water, no food, and the only light source here is dangerous.
All around me, such a bleak, lonely place. Waterfalls of glowing light provided the only accompaniment here, while in some areas, without water it was pitch black. Walking through here, wondering if there could be a point to this place. I tripped, which was odd, considering that the only inclines or declines here were large cliffs.
I looked down, and saw an area in which it looked as if a large portion of rock was gone. Hopefully it could mean something… The idea that I must live in solitude for growing amounts of time scares me, and some form of communication is a reassuring thing.
I walked, continuing on wondering if I were to find anything else. I entered an area of complete darkness, moving without guidance of sight. In this lonely place, I can almost begin hearing things in my mind. A lonely shadow the only accompaniment of mine.
As I walked, another cliff appeared in the distance, an odd shaped one. It reminded me of the Washington Monument, and as I approached, the similarities became clear, this was no cliff.
I approached the rough, weathered obelisk. An old, spiritualistic feeling came as I neared it. I looked upon it, the half sunken obelisk entrenched within the… Soft ground? The ground, as I had not noticed before, became slightly soft, and I could now notice where it turned back into stone. A small circle of the sand like substance, entrenched by stone as it trapped this obelisk.
I moved my hands along the rough surface, a sandstone feeling to it. It was finely carved, with odd looking runic symbols carved into it. I moved across its length until it became too tall for me to reach. It was extremely large, and must have taken a great technology to build. It was as wide as three of me, and I don’t know how tall. Even when leaning, and partially sunken into the ground, it reached as high as an apartment complex. It also had a golden tip adorning the top of its triangular top.
Such an amazing feat, for me and its builders.
You never were alone.
Had I heard it? Was it a voice in my head? No. It was real. I turned around, but saw nothing as the image in my eyes turned to the white backdrop of morning waking me from a flash.
Morning, had come and gone for a month now.
