Twisted Realms

Chapter 4: The Song Lake

Long grass floated languidly around her bare feet as though in water. Moving slowly, slowly, with a breeze that she could hardly even feel.
She raised her gaze to the high sky, ribbons of red and gold of dawn shimmering down to her eyes. As far as those eyes could see, the golden blur of the celestial world began to blend into a violet fabric... Dusk.
The dusk beyond was bright and beautiful. Deep crimson blended in with yellows and oranges reached out from the horizon to the violet expanse of sky. The purple brightened into the still pale blue of dusk that gently faded into the dark of night.
She blinked in wonder. When she opened her eyes, she was once again in the world in which Dusk met Dawn. Where Day and Night were friends and not foes.

This time, she wasn’t just situated along an empty plain of grass. She stood within a dense forest... dark on both sides of darkness and light due to the pale white moon and iridescent stars that shone from between their leaves. They were diamonds sticking out of the black like dandruff on hair. So many stars. So so so many. As many as individual grains of sand along a coast. She couldn’t begin to count.
The shapeless shadows in the trees swayed ever so gently, as though dancing to nonexistent music. They swooshed and swished and waved to her like saying hello.
And she realised something. The well was nowhere in sight. She didn’t know if it was more peculiar that it was not there, or that she had been subconsciously expecting it. And that she was disappointed that it had not appeared.
She swallowed her irritation– with herself or the well, she didn’t bother to decipher.

Something dawned on her. There was no sound, at all. Well, there was the sound of the trees swaying gingerly, but even as she trekked through the landscape, her feet didn’t make a squeak. It was as though she weren’t there.
Her attention was caught by a sudden glimmer through the underbrush. Amidst the forest of thickly spaced trees, was a glass lake. So still. So silent. So quiet. Not a single ripple marred its surface. It was like looking into solid ice and glass.
She moved over to it and gazed at its waters, mesmerised.
Something in the deepest parts of her gut told her to not dare.
Something told her not to step any closer…

For what if the lake could turn you into gold so that you would never move ever again?
Or what if the lake's water was like acid and could burn and disintegrate you within seconds of contact?
What if the lake could make you hallucinate and make you mad...
What if-
The ‘what if’ questions span in her head. Round and Round and Round and Round.
Goosebumps rose along the length of her smooth skin. Her lilac eyes flashed with fear… and curiosity.

She bent down to gaze at the glassine lake. However, instead of seeing her reflection, she saw black.
The water was writhing with darkness... with death.
She took startled steps back as though she’d seen a monster.

It was a trick. The lake had looked beautiful from afar, star-lit on one half and golden on the other half of the world. Yet up close, it was as dark as doom.
As dark as impending death.

She felt whispers crawl into her ears, and she froze.
What was that?
Her heart rammed into the cavern of her ribs. She ran trembling fingers through her hair. It must have been her imagination, she must have been-
“Come with us. Come and we will show you our beautiful seven lands.”
The voice was male and female all in one. A whisper that felt like spiders crawling all about her skin. Kamari’s eyes grew wider with every strained breath she took.
“Come. You belong with us.” The whispers grew louder, stronger, more demanding. But still... alluring.

She kept a steady gaze fixed onto the lake as she slowly backed away. Then, out of the dark writhing water there came a scaly clawed hand.
A hand so ugly she wanted to gurge out all the food from her stomach.
More hands jutted out of the water.
So many of them. So, so many.
And she tried to run but a harmonious melody caught her off guard.
The music brought invisible ropes that tied her to place. Tied her hands and legs so that they were rendered useless. Gripped her mind and soul so that she couldn't think on her own.
The music sang. Loud and crisp.
Tainting the silence that was already so loud.
Her eyes grew hazy as she listened, her lips trembled and her face paled.
“Come with us, Kamari.” The way that they called her name brought a crash of shivers over her. It was deep and intimate, as though they knew  her in a personal way. “Come to us. Come to the lake. Don’t you want to not remain trapped in your mundane life forever? Don’t you want to know what lies beneath the surface of reality?”
Heads began to materialise from the surface of the lake.
Some had voids of darkness as eyes, others had white orbs swirling in their heads, but each had long glistening hair. Despite coming from water, they all looked dry and untouched.
In her horror, she spotted a swirl of colours gleaming underneath. Tails.
They each had ugly scaly skin like fish, yet, despite being utterly hideous, they had the most charming voices Kamari ever heard. So clear, so potent. So special.
Each joined into the melody in a simple rising harmony, singing a tune in which Kamari felt her body move.
And she didn't fight this time. She couldn’t.
She moved slowly, but surely, towards her death.
Towards the black and solid mass of water...
Where she would be sure to drown.