Written May 27 2007
A door swings open by aid of a gentle hand revealing dank, desolate hallway. It appeared not to have seen the light of day in at least a century.
The rhythmic sound of footsteps faded in and out from above. With every other step, a shaft of dust filtered through the ceiling cracks and fell to the ground, settling in a thin layer across the floor. There is a heart-wrenching wail from above, and it reverberates through the walls and shakes the very air; you shrink back.
The air seems to waver before your eyes, and then it shifts back into focus leaving a slightly dizzy feeling behind. The figure of a familiar young woman pads softly down the stairs. She turns at the bottom, and faces you. Her eyes widen in surprise and she stares at you.
Her figure is faded like a worn photograph and is transparent. The edges of her body seem to be intermixing with the air and converging with it. She runs towards you, her face unidentifiable and growing dimmer with every passing moment. A tear slips down her face and falls towards the ground. You watch in fascination as it melts into dust and fades into nothingness.
As she bounds towards you, her voice is lost in softened echoes, and her movements slow. Her hand outstretches in warning and she disintegrates into the air.
You take little heed and turn up the same staircase she had walked down so recently. A climbing sense of dread sweeps swiftly down your spine and you advance tentatively upward, as if some guiding force was nudging you on. Your hand slides coolly up the rough railing.
Each step draws the looming darkness nearer, and each step brings the uneasy reassurance of sound. The wood beneath your hand grows cold, and the air, still. The railing gives way to air, and the steps flatten out. You take a few steps forward, and grow drowsy. As if in a trance, you wander forward. Your limbs become numb and limp.
You feel as though you are drifting through space. You glance down at your feet and they fade into the floor. You re instantaneously awoken from your dreamy trance, in time to see your body slowly transmute into a colorful window, through which the floor taunts you with it’s solidity.
All consciousness returns and you turn towards the staircase. It seems a mile away. You head for it with lengthy strides. As you reach the path downward, it becomes apparent that you have lost all hope for some sort of reversal. You let out a cry of despair, and your hand comes to rest the railing, but all feeling is lost.
You walk dejectedly down the stairs, not making a sound. As you leave the staircase, you swivel about to walk down the hall.
You draw in a sharp breath as you gaze upon the sight before you. A woman in similar clothing is staring at you. It is you. You race forward, frantically shouting. Your warnings are lost to an echo.
Tears well at the corners of your eyes, and slip down your cheeks. You reach out an arm, in a last effort to prevent her from going up the staircase, and you disappear completely.
You mix in fluidity with the air, and are expanded into every nook and cranny. All shape and form is lost.
The image fades.
