Rupert's Journey

Boom! I hear a thundering noise from somewhere. Did a meteor fall out there? What was that? It’s definitely not safe here, wherever I am. I look up and see a bright glow through the thick fabric that might be the sun. Boom! A similar noise goes off. I decide I have to get outside and see what’s happening. I’m not about to stay in here. I start to scurry along and reach one end of the tent. Yes, I said scurry. I’m shuffling along on all fours. This isn’t normal. Yes, it is normal, a voice in my head says. I have always gone on all fours. What other way is there? Who said that? I have lost my mind. I try to make sense of my situation. No, it doesn’t quite feel the same, though I’m surely not myself. This sucks. I look around, but I can’t see any door or flap. Boom! A noise thunders again. I begin to panic. “There’s no way out!” I squeak. Seriously, I squeaked. I have no time to try to understand why this is. I turn and scurry to the other side. I can see no exit here either. I start to frantically push against the tent wall along the perimeter, and after a few seconds, whoosh! I slide down, and plop! I land. It’s a surprisingly soft landing, though I’m sure I must have fallen ten stories at least! I’m now standing on a rough, soft surface. I think back to what it was like the previous morning. This surface is very similar, but even thicker and deeper. Yes, it could be carpet. I look around. The light is unbearable! It’s so bright it’s eating away at my eyes. I must find shelter. I turn and squint up to see a high ledge behind me completely open underneath, and I run under it. Boom! Another thundering noise echoes. Where am I now? How could I be under a tent one moment, and free-falling the next? And now I’m under some ponderous overhead structure. What are those noises? Is the bright light from the sun? It appears to be very close. I look over to see a giant brown pillar seeming to support the vast structure overhead. I scurry over to it and find that it has a huge wood grain pattern. What kind of giant tree was this made from? Boom… Boom… Boom… Boom, I hear smaller eruptions in succession and growing louder. Whatever it is, I realize it’s coming closer. I turn toward the noise and scurry over to that side to see what’s going on, terrified of what it might be. Are the smaller noises related to the big ones? Boom… Boom… Boom… Boom, the sound comes closer. Boom… Boom!!! Boom!!! Out of the foggy distance I begin to recognize… Oh, no! A mammoth creature beyond dimension ever so slowly strides closer. It’s so big its upper extremities fade into mist. I can only generally make out two massive legs as large as a brontosaurus, but it has huge flat feet the size of cars! I panic and find myself running in circles, even out into the searing brightness. Aaauuurrr! The blundering monster roars, and Boom!!! Boom!!! Boom… Boom… The thundering rumbles away. I only panic more at all this commotion, but manage to scurry back away from the light and under the shelter. Boom… Boom… Boom… Boom, the thundering footsteps of the colossus fade away. My heart is pounding, and I shuffle back over to the massive wooden pillar I had examined before, for some modicum of security.