Have you ever thought about the word hope? What is hope? I’ve lived in Paradise all my life. So I’ve never had to seriously hope for something. Paradise isn’t so perfect anymore though.
There’s this sickness. It causes you to be fine one moment then go crazy the next. You don’t know what you’re doing. It’s terrifying. In stories I was told when I was little there was a gate that would free us from paradise. I hope those stories are right.
Paradise is peaceful. My favorite place is a valley named Shayon. It’s a lush valley with bright green grass that has the glow of life. The valley is surrounded by weeping willow trees. And off to one side, there is a pool of crystalline water that reflects the stars all the time. I love the koi fish that live in the pool. A fun fact is that Shayon is always warm and smells like rain most of the time. My favorite smell.
Shayon, the valley itself, has this beautiful shimmer about it. This shimmer starts right at the arching willow fronds that form the entrance. But it is because of the sickness I mentioned earlier that I must leave my home. I’m leaving… now.
There see? I think to myself. The first step is always the hardest.
I continue down an over grown path, through a forest I’ve only heard about in stories. And all I want to say is that the forest is dark. I will be walking and suddenly something will be in front of me. Or I’ll trip over something. I must be covered in bruises now. I’ve been walking for what seems like forever.
At some point after I left I arrive in a clearing. It’s still dark but there is a hazy sort of light. The light dapples the pine needle covered forest floor, muffling my footsteps.
There is a small wooden shed in this clearing. Half of the door is still on its hinges and the other half is probably long gone. I cautiously walk up to the shed and look inside.
There are lots of spider webs and other paraphernalia from forest creatures. A small wooden box in the center of the floor catches my attention.
I start to open the part of the door that is still there. The hinges creak, making me jump back and shriek in terror. I’ve never felt terror before. It’s a cold feeling. It almost makes me want to turn back. Almost.
I calm myself down and open the partial door. I only cringe this time at the sound. I kneel in front of the little wooden box. I open the box slowly, waiting for something to jump out at me. Nothing does.
I find a small key made of some sort of dark metal. It looks like an elaborate skeleton key and it has a ring on the end so it could go on a string. I use a string to tie it around my neck. It might be useful, who knows?
As I continue walking the trees start to thin out. It slowly gets lighter. But it is a muted light. I can now see the dirt path on which I traverse.
I stumble onto a giant circular slab of stone that is surrounded by stone pillars. There is a stone podium in the center and the floor is inscribed with strange symbols. Though, the thing that seems to be calling me is the tarnished silver chalice on the podium.
I walk up to the podium and notice that there are red and black gems set in the metal. A silver smith must have hand crafted the twisting vines that cover the chalice. Inside the chalice is a gold ethereal looking liquid.
I lift the chalice to my lips before I can even think about it. The gold liquid is thick and warm. It has a metallic, tangy taste. I return the chalice to its podium. Whatever I drank makes me feel gross, like it was morally wrong to drink it. I start to get dizzy.
I get off the big circular stone and sit down by the entrance to a huge cave. After a while the dizziness goes away. At that point I get up and walk into the cave.
It’s cold, and dank, and dark. It’s evil. I can feel it. I don’t like it here. As I walk, the air goes from stale to moist. I scream when I step in a freezing cold puddle. Then I laugh at myself. Its just water.
Suddenly the cave is lit up by a hole in the ceiling. And I can see that it’s not just a puddle. It’s an entire underground lake with dark murky water that doesn’t move, even when a breeze ruffles my hair and the hem of my white knee length dress.
It sounds like people are talking on the other side of the lake. I have to go talk to them because they might know about the gate! I run into the murky water and gasp at how cold it is on my skin. It makes my lungs contract and my muscles tighten.
I start swimming. I’m not the best swimmer but I should be ok. The other side of the lake isn’t that far. After a little bit something solid touches my foot and I shriek as I’m dragged under the surface.
Under the water the voices are louder. I kick out at the thing I can’t see. My foot connects and I claw my way to the surface.
I continue swimming as I listen to the sound of myself gasping for air echo off the walls. And the voices. They are quiet again now. And I realize that the people were asking for help. They must have drowned. I shiver.
At the far bank, I pull myself out of the water. I sit on the bank and water runs from my clothes and hair. After a little bit, I notice a light up ahead. I walk toward the light.
The cave ends at a valley. It’s different from Shayon. Not as calming and there’s an animal lying by a log. As soon as I step foot in the valley the animal –a fluffy white dog with tawny spots- starts barking at me.
I freeze and hold my hands out to the dog. The dog sniffs me over then licks my hands. The dog lies down on its side and looks at me expectantly. I crouch down and the scratch doggie’s belly. He’s such a good boy!
The dog frolics around and just has fun being a dog while I sit and eat some sort of sour red berries. A little while later I get up and start to leave and the dog follows me playfully.
“Do you want to come with me?” I ask the dog.
He barks in response and plunges forward into the dead forest ahead of us. We come to a clearing where skeleton trees reach for the sky with invisible hands. In the center of the clearing a little girl is huddled with her knees against her chest, crying.
“Can I help you?” I ask, slowly approaching the little girl.
“I want my puppy.” The girl says, looking up. Her skin is so pale that I can see her blue veins. Her eyes are bloodshot and her hair is oily and stringy. Tiny black cracks cover her skin.
I start to walk past her and some unseen force throws me back. I land on my back and look at the dull gray sky as I try to catch my breath.
When I start to get up the little girl rises suddenly and starts chanting in another language. Strong winds blow dead leaves around the clearing. The wind whips my hair around and my skirt is getting a little high. The girl’s tattered dress never moves though.
“Here,” I point to the dog, “You can have my dog.”
The wind dies down and the girl walks over to the dog. She starts petting him. I start to walk away but I stop when the girl speaks, “Ahead is the Iron Gate, the rest of your life awaits, the choices you will make.”
I run now. I’ve always been scared easily. Creepy messages are not something I want to stick around for, just saying.
The dead forest ends abruptly in a wheat field. The wheat is taller than I am. The sky is dark with heavy rain clouds. There’s a small dirt path leading into the field.
I finally make it to the Iron Gate. There’s a lock on it. The gates pattern matches the key I found earlier. I pull the key from my neck and unlock the gate.
The gate swings open smoothly and I’m blinded by a bright light. Suddenly my entire body is burning and it feels like my skin is melting off my body.
Blackness. Nothing…
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