By Kierra Riggenbach
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It wasn’t real. The moment I opened my eyes I knew it wasn’t. All around me, everywhere I looked, there was this off-colored white. I couldn’t tell how big it was; if it was a room or an abyss. It looked like it didn’t end, but at the same time, it seemed as if I could reach out and touch it. It didn’t make sense.
I stood in this white dressed in a hoodie and jeans. It was quiet, all except for a soft, distant hum. The hum was pleasant and calm, yet was somehow slightly haunting. I couldn’t place why that sound brought me a form of nostalgia. Nothing here made sense.
I looked down at myself. I…who was I? I was taken aback by the lack of remembrance of myself. How could I not remember? It was as if there was this fog in my mind, keeping my memories separate from my current thoughts. Added, somehow, from somewhere beyond my own body, I was able to look at myself; at least, I assumed it was me. In this way, this moment seemed like a dream, like when one dreams in third person. They are basically watching themself; I nodded slightly, deciding to stick with this theory for now.
At this point, I could only refer to myself in two ways; the me that was seeing all this from third person view, and the other (more physical, per say) me; the me that had the grey eyes and didn’t like it. One was from right here in this white room; the other was from far away from here but seemed so familiar, so close, so real. I couldn’t wrap my head around it.
I had auburn and dark brows and lashes. My eyes were a light sort of grey… I paused at that detail in my appearance. That part stirred an uneasy kind of feeling in me; somehow, I knew that I didn’t like that particular detail. Again, I felt a slight nostalgia at this.
Upon hearing a noise, I was snapped out of my daze. I looked around, searching for the source of the screech-like sound. It was an intimidating kind of roar; the kind that gives you shivers and makes you frantically look around hoping you’re not what the beast is after. I heard it again, this time closer.
I turned around and saw the weirdest creature of my life. It was like a giant lizard with paws and a crescent-shaped head. It looked directly at me, its eyes a bright, fire-like orange. I stopped breathing and time stood still for a moment as neither of us moved. Then, the creature craned its neck to me, nuzzling its huge head into my neck. I let out a laugh and reached my hand to stroke its long, soft fur.
"Hey there,” I said, my voice seeming distant and faint. The creature began tilting its head as I scratched a desired spot on its neck. Then, it rolled all the way over onto its back, tail wagging and long tongue licking its own eyes. I laughed and moved closer to pet the massive thing. Its belly was a tan color with soft grey stripes and bright white, almost glowing, spots. They looked like stars.
“What’s your name?” I asked. It seemed to understand what I’d asked as it rolled back over on its belly and showed me a spot on the top of its neck. Engraved in its fur was a series of numbers, yet somehow, I knew what they meant; this creature’s name was Bowie, and it was a creature known as a Crescent.
Just then, my moment with Bowie was interrupted with the noise of chatter behind us. I turned around to see a boy and a girl arguing while walking. The boy was dressed in armor and had a sword in his hand. He had on heavy boots, and a long, brown cloak. His clothes were heavy, meaning wherever he came from was cold. He had dark, straight hair and bright blue eyes.
As for the girl, she wore green, leaf-like clothes. Her hair was wrapped into a thick braid that fell on her shoulder. On her head rested a gold, crown-like item, beautifully twisted with a pure white gem that landed on the center of her forehead. Her eyes were deep brown, like that of rich soil.
“I assume you are
misleading us,” said the boy. “It seems we’ve made a large loop around the
area.” His voice was loud and contained a light accent. The girl sighed.
“Trust me, would you? The most rewarding journeys come at a cost-” As she said the words, the girl looked up and saw me and Bowie and she froze. The boy bumped into her as she stopped suddenly, then he spotted us, too.
“Who goes there?” He questioned, holding out his sword. I didn’t exactly know how to respond-I didn’t even know my name!
“Okay soldier-boy,” said the girl, lowering the blade of his sword and stepping forward to meet us. “My name is-”
“Kimber,” I interrupted, finishing her sentence. “And you’re Storien?” They both nodded, quizzical looks on their faces. I also found myself perplexed. How did I know of the creature? How did I know their names? It seemed I knew more of this place than I was aware of.
Kimber echoed my exact thoughts with her next words, “How did you know that? Who are you?” I shrugged.
“Honestly, I have no idea what’s going on. I woke up here in this white and met this creature, and that is all I can recall.”
“You haven’t heard of the Gears seizing, then?” Storien asked. My confused face must have answered for me. He continued, “The Grand Gears that run all of our worlds have seized up. This is the highest form of emergency and all of us, from all our realms and worlds, were called together to fight for the continuation of the gears turning.” That didn’t really clear anything up for me besides the fact that maybe I was also called from another world to help in this fight.
“Yes, and now we are on our way to find the gears, hence our confused state. The two of you are welcome to come along.” Kimber said as she looked around for where to go next. “Oh, I think I see something! This way.” She didn’t give time for a response as she started in the indicated direction, with Storien following her. I glanced to Bowie and decided going with them would be the right way to go. I needed to find out what all of this meant.
Kimber disappeared behind a wall of white, and that’s when I realized that this white wasn’t an abyss at all; it was a small room. The color and illusion of it had led me to believe that it didn’t end, but it did indeed. Amazed, I followed the rest of the group out of the White Room and upon rounding the corner, we were surrounded by trees in the thick of a forest. It wasn’t any kind of normal forest, however.
The trees were tall and had wispy, light green leaves that circled the trunk at the top. All of the branches were on the very bottom of each tree, stretching out and twisting together, which resulted in covering the ground completely. The sky wasn’t to be seen at all, but one could easily tell that it was a cloudy sort of day. Thunder rolled in the distance, and creatures could be heard faintly in all directions.
“We must follow the sound.” Storien said, taking the lead. We went on, dodging through the thick forest while attempting not to trip on the ground made of uneven, knotty branches. Finally, after several moments, we broke into the open and saw for ourselves the ominous sky we’d heard the groans of.
All around us, we now saw other people and creatures, walking towards the same thing; it was a large, dome-shaped building. It didn’t seem like it was built, however. There were four trees that made up the corners of the place. They looked twisted and all joined together at the very top. Between each tree was a glass-looking substance- but it was not glass. It was more transparent, slightly more reflective, and it completed the outline of this large place.
“There it is,” Kimber said, breathing an amazed sigh. “No one has ever seen this place until now.”
“It is indeed a sight to behold,” Storien agreed. Bowie made a grunt noise which sounded like an agreement to me. “It is unfortunate that the Grand Gears can only be seen under these dire circumstances.”
We all began towards the dome and were making progress deceptively quick. It seemed to be so much farther then it apparently was, and as we neared the entrance, many other people flocked inside. There was a sense of urgency that everyone held which I noticed even on the faces of these two seemingly fearless individuals that I’d befriended. I let out a breath, not sure what to expect. But it didn’t seem good.
Once stepping inside, there was a whole different kind of chaos that ensued. In the very middle of the dome, there was a large ball-shaped gear that hung from the ceiling and attached to a second, identical gear that came up from the ground. But neither of them was moving, as I sensed they should.
People (whom I somehow recognized, or at least had a slight recollection of) rushed and yelled in every direction, seeming to be doing everything in their power to find out what was wrong with the gears and how to fix it. There were people on creatures, flying about, assembling items on the gears. Everyone was doing something and seemed to know what to do. Even Kimber, Storien and Bowie got to work as we approached the gears.
As Storien had said, gathered here was a variety of people and creatures from different worlds. They all looked so extremely different, wore different, bright or dull clothes and had different means of trying to fix this single object- but that was what was incredible to me. I’d never seen so many drastically different individuals working together towards one singular goal- they were working together well, too.
There were the natural born leaders who gave orders, and others carried out willingly. The creatures provided strength, flight or other things, depending on what was needed. And it was working. The gears were beginning to gain a purple glow as it was being repaired. It seemed to be cracked in multiple places, and stalled at the point where the two gears met. At each and every point that was broken, there could be found someone trying to fix it. It was amazing.
Yet here I stood clueless. It seemed that I didn’t have that natural foreknowledge of what to do here.
“It’s almost there!”
“We need more strength!”
“We’re close; lets pull the gears!”
This seemed to be the moment that everything would work. The cracks in the gears had been filled, and now all that was left was to get the gears to rotate again. As the commands were being shouted, two dragon-like creatures, with people on their backs, flew to the connecting point of the gears and each one wrapped its long tail around one. Then, at the same time, they began in opposite directions. Like a snail inching along, they were getting the gears to move. Everyone began cheering as the creatures flew ever so slowly at first, then faster, faster, faster. Then, in only a second, the gears spun rapidly on their own and just as all the cheering got louder…
Nothing. No sound except for a close, soft hum. My eyes were closed and each breath was a quiet struggle. The previous noise and adventure I’d just taken now seemed a distant memory in the opposite setting I now found myself in. Slowly, I opened my eyes and it took a second to take it in; I was in a hospital room. Then, all at once, it came back to me and I remembered it all.
There had been an accident. A car accident. The memory of that tragic moment filled my mind and tears filled my eyes. I remembered the snow, the car finding no traction, the sudden jerk. I remembered the sirens, that awful sound. And now, I was alone. My family… I didn’t want to finish the thought as I considered what could have happened.
I looked down at myself and I realized the pain I was in, the way I could barely move. Tears streamed down my face as I remembered it all, and I laid my head back down. The room was dark save the light from the machines I was hooked up to and the bright moonlight that streamed in through the window.
I closed my eyes again, all at once wishing I was back in my dreamland. It was bright there. There was hope. I knew each person, I now realized. I knew them because I had made them.
Here, I was alone. Here, I didn’t know what would happen. Here, it was dark.
And that’s when I realized sometimes fantasy is better than reality.
Kierra is currently doing the IPP program at ICC. She is first and foremost a Christian and loves her family and friends deeply. She loves many activities including writing, reading, making art, signing, singing, and playing volleyball.