Imprisoned Within
By pierrot_le_fou
Stars…luminous balls of hydrogen, burning billions of miles away. That’s what Keith regarded them as anyway. They were simply there. He didn’t really think of them as anything special. He wasn’t a sailor lost at sea. He wasn’t an artist looking for the perfect night sky. He was a detective for the National Police, why in the world would he need to look at stars?
But looking out across the moonlit night, Keith couldn’t escape their subtle beauty anymore. Lying down on the flat earth, he gazed up at the bright clusters wondering why they were so brilliant. Each one was like its own chaotic pulse, flaring and shimmering like brilliant jewels in the night. He had lost himself in the beauty of this place at first, but there was no way it could all be real.
Keith wondered how long he had been here in this serine cool landscape, trapped in an everlasting night. It had been a while, as he had trekked across the vast plateau and found that he was trapped by steep jagged mountains on all sides. Sometimes the world would drift into chaos as a powerful wind would rip across the lumpy dessert landscape and back him to taking shelter on the side of several massive sandstone rock formations.
Of all the things he had done, he had not yet climbed those massive structures. A small creek had split the mass of rock, opening a small narrow pathway for Keith to climb into. As he hiked into the narrows, he began finding a new appreciation for the powerful imagery in his mind. He had never himself personally experienced the wonders of nature, nor had he any desire to lose himself in the wild, but he couldn’t help but admire the beauty as he hiked up the pathway of the majestic sandstone walls.
Reaching the peak of his hike, he had but to climb a few more rocks to reach the top of the rock formation. As he clumsily flung himself upwards, a powerful wind forced him backwards. The strong tempest that had pushed him around on the flatlands was swirling viciously up here at the top. Regaining his hold on the rocks, he pushed himself back into the wind. As he struggled forward against the vicious winds, he saw something fluttering in the distance. It was a long flowing red cape draped across the shoulders of a man, standing tall and unwavering even in the middle of the vicious storm.
Keith struggled ahead, crawling across the ground so he wouldn’t be swept off his feet by the powerful whirlwind. As he neared him, he saw that it was the same man from his other dreams, the same person who had flung him into this world to begin with. He turned his body and looked back at Keith, as if he had been waiting for him to crawl there.
“Who the hell are you!” Keith shouted over the howling of the wind.
“Hmmm… that’s a silly question.” The man said quietly as he pulled a pair of wild pink sunglasses over his eyes. “As a matter of fact, everything about you being here is silly… what are you doing here? And why are you cowering like that?”
“You can’t feel that?” Keith yelled again over the dull roar of the wind.
“Huh? Oh, that wind. What the hell kinda weakling are you if you’re getting pushed around by that? Eh, what am I saying, you’re not supposed to be here, its no wonder they’re trying to take you away.”
“What? Who is “they”? What are you talking about!? Who are you!?!”
“Even as much as I’d love to self-promote. You have to leave this world immediately. They’re ready for you back where you belong, Keith.” He said smiling confidently at him.
“Huh? How do you know…” Keith uttered in confusion as the man began glowing.
The man’s aura illuminated the darkness, silencing the loud winds and giving Keith a feeling of weightlessness. Pulled gently into the air, Keith’s body began ascending into the distance as he watched the big smiling man fade away. In his place he saw the smiling faces of nearly a hundred of his fellow police officers all waving at him in a cheerful silence as well as a slew of other people all staring back at him with confidence. As they began to fade out of view, he saw Wyatt Matthews looking back at him, at his side was an older man dressed in a pirates costume looking back at their visitor. They both seemed at peace.
As Keith began to disappear from the world, he saw one last person. It was his partner, Allen Black.
Stars…luminous balls of hydrogen, burning billions of miles away. That’s what Keith regarded them as anyway. They were simply there. He didn’t really think of them as anything special. He wasn’t a sailor lost at sea. He wasn’t an artist looking for the perfect night sky. He was a detective for the National Police, why in the world would he need to look at stars?
But looking out across the moonlit night, Keith couldn’t escape their subtle beauty anymore. Lying down on the flat earth, he gazed up at the bright clusters wondering why they were so brilliant. Each one was like its own chaotic pulse, flaring and shimmering like brilliant jewels in the night. He had lost himself in the beauty of this place at first, but there was no way it could all be real.
Keith wondered how long he had been here in this serine cool landscape, trapped in an everlasting night. It had been a while, as he had trekked across the vast plateau and found that he was trapped by steep jagged mountains on all sides. Sometimes the world would drift into chaos as a powerful wind would rip across the lumpy dessert landscape and back him to taking shelter on the side of several massive sandstone rock formations.
Of all the things he had done, he had not yet climbed those massive structures. A small creek had split the mass of rock, opening a small narrow pathway for Keith to climb into. As he hiked into the narrows, he began finding a new appreciation for the powerful imagery in his mind. He had never himself personally experienced the wonders of nature, nor had he any desire to lose himself in the wild, but he couldn’t help but admire the beauty as he hiked up the pathway of the majestic sandstone walls.
Reaching the peak of his hike, he had but to climb a few more rocks to reach the top of the rock formation. As he clumsily flung himself upwards, a powerful wind forced him backwards. The strong tempest that had pushed him around on the flatlands was swirling viciously up here at the top. Regaining his hold on the rocks, he pushed himself back into the wind. As he struggled forward against the vicious winds, he saw something fluttering in the distance. It was a long flowing red cape draped across the shoulders of a man, standing tall and unwavering even in the middle of the vicious storm.
Keith struggled ahead, crawling across the ground so he wouldn’t be swept off his feet by the powerful whirlwind. As he neared him, he saw that it was the same man from his other dreams, the same person who had flung him into this world to begin with. He turned his body and looked back at Keith, as if he had been waiting for him to crawl there.
“Who the hell are you!” Keith shouted over the howling of the wind.
“Hmmm… that’s a silly question.” The man said quietly as he pulled a pair of wild pink sunglasses over his eyes. “As a matter of fact, everything about you being here is silly… what are you doing here? And why are you cowering like that?”
“You can’t feel that?” Keith yelled again over the dull roar of the wind.
“Huh? Oh, that wind. What the hell kinda weakling are you if you’re getting pushed around by that? Eh, what am I saying, you’re not supposed to be here, its no wonder they’re trying to take you away.”
“What? Who is “they”? What are you talking about!? Who are you!?!”
“Even as much as I’d love to self-promote. You have to leave this world immediately. They’re ready for you back where you belong, Keith.” He said smiling confidently at him.
“Huh? How do you know…” Keith uttered in confusion as the man began glowing.
The man’s aura illuminated the darkness, silencing the loud winds and giving Keith a feeling of weightlessness. Pulled gently into the air, Keith’s body began ascending into the distance as he watched the big smiling man fade away. In his place he saw the smiling faces of nearly a hundred of his fellow police officers all waving at him in a cheerful silence as well as a slew of other people all staring back at him with confidence. As they began to fade out of view, he saw Wyatt Matthews looking back at him, at his side was an older man dressed in a pirates costume looking back at their visitor. They both seemed at peace.
As Keith began to disappear from the world, he saw one last person. It was his partner, Allen Black.