Lost in Time

Michael stood to turn the light off. Suddenly, tiredness fell upon him like the weight of the sky. He then collapsed to the bed, his eyes closing like shutters. He was hoping for a peaceful sleep, so he could tackle the next day.
He was sorely disappointed.
Suddenly, Michael was on land running alongside Charles and Heather. Of course, he knew that he really wasn’t there. It was a dream…or perhaps a nightmare. He had almost no control over his body. His legs burned from obvious sustained cardio. He couldn’t look around, but as he sprinted, he could make out the dense environment of the forest. It was thick with shrubs, with sticks and roots randomly protruding from the ground. They were clearly all tired, and covered in countless scrapes. They must have been running a really long time, because Charles and Heather’s faces were bloody and covered in dirt. Michael was afraid to know what he looked like.
“Jesus, where did the bloody place go?!” Heather screamed in both anger and helplessness.
They dodged a low-lying branch, and crashed through a passage of shrubbery. Michael wondered what they were running for…or rather, running from. Charles glanced back behind them. His eyes widened, and he pushed himself even harder. Heather barley caught up to him, Michael in very much the same position. Michael heard a loud thud, almost like a giant walking. The impact was so powerful, that he felt the ground slightly rumble beneath his sore feet. He glanced backwards, against his will. Through the dense foliage, he could make out the enormous shadow of a creature.
He couldn’t tell what it was, but he could interpret that it was powerful enough to be trampling through the forest. Strong enough to knock out trees like they were twigs. Michael could also understand that the terrifying beast was chasing them. He could only guess that it wasn’t in the mood to nuzzle them good night. With that image in his head, he turned to follow Charles and Heather.
Suddenly, an enormous roar tore through his eardrums, as frightening as it was large. The roar was so loud that he had to cover his ears, and leaves fell from the trees around them. Their pace swayed slightly, as the ache and pain hit them full blast. Yet, they didn’t stop running.
“There!” Charles yelled, pointing at a massive hedge that extended as far as they could see. Looking closely, Michael could just make out a small hole that they could fit through.
They directed their course to the vinery wall, with what little remaining energy the three of them had. The sun was high in the sky, and the radiation burned down upon them as they reached a breakage in the canopy. Michael heard the creature’s stomping close behind, shaking the earth with every step it took. And shaking his confidence. As they neared the wall, they entered the forest once more, except this time, Michael tripped over a root.
He tried to scream for help, but his body wouldn’t let him. Charles and Heather ran on, not noticing his absence. Or, perhaps they never even knew he had been behind them.
Feeling desperate and tired, Michael slowly got to his knees. Then, the growling form of the terrible beast was upon him.
Right as it was about to reach him, his dream shifted. Now, he was in a dark clearing. There was a blue glow, surrounded by the darkness of night. Trees hung around, like they were trying to reach for him. There was more detail off in the distance, but it was fuzzy and blurred. He still couldn’t control his body, but that didn’t stop him from being afraid.
He could make out three people beside him, but their forms were blurred, almost like looking through glasses that weren’t his. Suddenly, there was a harsh noise, and one of the people fell to the ground. His body remained petrified, even as the other two bodies moved, saying things that were slurred together and in-comprehensible by Michael.
All of a sudden, a bunch of shadows appeared in front of him. A quick glance around showed that he was surrounded. Then another person appeared in front of him. Again, he couldn’t make anything out of the person. A series of shrieks emanated from all of the shadows around him.
He knew that he should run; he tried to run. But his body wouldn’t allow that. Instead, he was forced to stay in that spot. He even didn’t move when a white blur appeared next to the person in front of him. Dread seemed to grip his soul as the white form came into view. It was almost like the other shadows, except white.
The worst part was when the white form lunged at him. He felt himself fall to the ground. Pain shot through his head, along with fear. He could feel the creature’s weight upon him. He could see the horrible image that would haunt his mind forever. He couldn’t put his arms up to defend himself. In fact, he couldn’t even scream for his life.
Instead, he watched in agony as the horrendous monster tore into his flesh. He could only watch as the creature’s hideous teeth sank into his chest. He was completely helpless to stop the blood-curdling sickle claws from spilling his intestines on the ground beside him.
Nothing could stop the terrorizing beast from consuming him, bite by bite, feeling nothing but hatred.