I thought taking the shortcut through the construction site was a good idea at the time. A young boy looking for adventure as he made his way home. That is, until I fell down the gaping hole and couldn’t climb out, for all of my yelling and screaming, no one came. I didn’t expect the adventure I was really in for.
As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, as the moon began to rise above me, I saw what looked like a tunnel, so long that I couldn’t see the end through the dimly lit corridor. What the hell, I thought to myself, what harm could come from trying to find a way out if this led to one?
I walked for what seemed like miles, this never ending hollowed out cavern. There has to be a way out, there just has to be, why would someone build this just for it to go nowhere. That’s when I saw it, kind of ostrich shaped, fluffed up with feathers and a beak like a dodo, it was bigger than me and at first, it scared the hell out of me. As I gingerly walked towards it, “how did you get down here?” I asked, not expecting an answer. Just a squawk was all that came out of it’s mouth. “Come on then, let’s figure out a way to get out of here together. I’ll call you Frank”
I was starting to feel the pains of hunger as we walked forever, the thirst was almost unbareable. I started to hear other voices, thinking that it was in my head and that I must be going crazy. No, I really was hearing voices up ahead. I ran to the source and almost ran into a beast of a man, a tall muscular fellow, wearing a backpack and khakis, as though he was ready to climb a mountain. He was accompanied by 2 others, each one dress like him. “Whoa, how did you get here, my friend? And waht’s this ‘thing’ you have with you?” asked the giant. “I fell, I fell and couldn’t get back out, now I don’t know how to get back out. I met Why are you guys here?” As it turned out, they were on a mission to find a man, supposedly the wisest man in the universe. Because HE would surely show them the way to get out.
I didn’t notice how much Frank was salivating, I knew he was as hungry as I was. He refused to take any food the others offered. They kept eyeing him with cautious and wary looks. “He looks like he wants to eat you” said the shorter man of the group, as he laughed it off.
We decided to hunker down for the night as it didn’t seem like we would get out any time soon. I woke up to hear a noise, it sounded like a scuffle, as though someone was fighting. The next morning I couldn’t find Frank, the big man told me that he must have ran off in the night. My furry companion was gone. Though I knew what had really happened but didn’t know why.
We trudged along and finally a glimmer of light. Hope was in sight. “Yes! We found it!” I exclaimed “Now I can go home” The light grew bigger and brighter as we got closer, it was like a purple sky, littered with diamond stars. I was in awe, fascinated by its beauty but puzzled at how no one had ever talked about such a place. It looked like a sky with 50’s style diners all around, a quiet and humble space.
We set about asking people how to find the Mage, as he was known by the residents of this town, if you will. We talked to lots of people until someone finally gave us an inkling of where we might find such a powerful being. “I have a confession” said the big guy “what really happened with Frank. I have to tell you, try not to freak out, ok? I woke up in the middle of the night and he was about to bite your head, like he was about to eat you. If I hadn’t stopped him, you’d be dead. I’m sorry” I was taken aback and couldn’t believe that was the truth but at the same time I had suspected something was wrong with Frank.
The Mage was not how I thought he would look, he looked like a rather fat, jolly Santa, sat on a recliner, wearing a trucker hat, bright Hawaiian shirt, cargo shorts and sandals. THIS, this is the Mage? I thought, doubting how a man like this could know more that how to build a fire or tie his shoes.
“What is it you want?” asked the Mage. “I want to go home” I said “We are here to find a way to restore humanity to earth” said my companions “For these travelers, the way is clear, follow this path and all will be revealed” The group wished me well and left me alone with the Mage.
“So you want to go home?” “Yes, of course” “I have bad news boy. There is now way home for you. You are me and I am you. We never get out of here, we know all things because we cannot escape, don’t you know that’s where you’ve been headed this whole time? You died when you fell down that hole. However the crimes you committed before you fell were never forgiven and you doomed us to this eternity of misery. It may seem like a wonderful place, but the burden of knowing everyone else’s thoughts and actions past and future, weighs heavy on the mind and heart. It’s enough to turn even the sanest mind weak and insane. So now you know, we’re stuck and always will be. Welcome to Hell”