Mr. Misty-Eyed | Josh Dun

dream sequence | forty-three

Ash and dust filled my lungs as I continued to climb upward. My breaths were short and ragged as I reached up to get a hold on another sharp rock. The dried blood that painted the palms of my hands had turned brown and flakey as it sat on my skin.

The smoke from the fire hung around me, distorting my vision and making it impossible to tell how far I had come and how much higher I needed to go before I reached my destination. The air grew thin, but I continued on and for a second I paused to rub the back of my hand against my forehead to relieve the sweat that had built up. The air had begun to grow warmer the further I went.

The sound of falling rock echoed through the air and within seconds I fell. I slid down the mountain, bracing myself against the rocks. Every so often this would happen. The dismantled earth trying to tell me to go back, warning me to stay away from whatever was at the top of this mountain.

But I couldn't go back there. Not to that car or that never-ending road. I couldn't go back the dark forest or the icy lake. Anything would be better, so once again, I forced my shaking limbs to move onward.

My arms strained and my body tensed as I heaved myself onto an actual ledge. My fingers dug into the hard rock, scrambling to get my entire body onto the wide flat surface. As I fell back against the ground, a draft of cool fresh air invaded my lungs. Relief hit me as I stared up into the cloudy haze, the bleak grey above me beginning to hurt my eyes as though the sun was trying to break through it.

The pounding in my chest quickened and I stood abruptly. The idea of reaching fresh air was the only thought that ran through my brain. And as I forced myself to climb higher and higher the smoke from the fire began to disappear.

Crisp clean air was what I breathed in. My eyelashes fluttered in happiness at the sudden change. I clambered higher, the jagged rocks become smoother and tree roots began to pop out from around them. I could see the top now. The flat plateau I had been climbing toward was finally at arms reach.

I fell to my hands and knees, gasping in relief that I had finally made it. I could feel the sun as it beat down against my back, the ground that I landed on a great contrast to the roughness I was used to.

The soft moss felt so welcoming as it covered parts the smooth grey rocks. Tiny sprouts of tall grass and reeds scattered over the surface. But as I looked up to take in my new surroundings, my eyes grew wide at the sight of the massive tree that stood on the opposite end of the plateau.

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