Bliss in Darkness

Scarlet Letter

Once again, I cleared my mind and focused on my predicament. I felt better then ever physically, but mentally I was exhausted. I took a long look at the desolate surroundings. The whole area was a shade of grey that seemed to draw my view and pull me in. It was if this horrible death I had caused had become natural for me. I felt at home, even though I just committed some form of mass murder on the whole damn hill. I shuddered to think that that must have been normal. Was this a joke? Am I dreaming? I slapped myself to verify that I was indeed conscious, and that's when I saw it.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw the note again. Only this time it was stained red from my blood. 'Heh, looks like it's a scarlet letter now.' I slapped myself again. Not for a reality check, but just because I made such a shitty joke. I bent down to pick it up. It felt dry, despite it's recent soaking. Being that this may be my only link to the past, I handled it carefully. I looked around for a safe place to read it when I spotted a large tree. Perfect for climbing, and also I would hopefully avoid another incident.

'Holy shit I feel great!' I thought as my hands and legs worked with perfect precision and strength to carry me up the thick sappy branches. I truly felt spectacular. Especially considering I had broken four bones and gave myself a concussion just moments before. 'Maybe I'm some sort of mutant... because I know for a fact that this can't be normal.' I reasoned with myself before arriving at the top branches. 'Better analyze this note for further information on this situation of mine.'

I opened the folds of the letter and was shocked by another flood of information to my brain. I wrote this. This was strange to me. Whenever my brain needed to know something it was just there. Not in form of a memory, but as if my brain just checked out some books and found the information I needed instantaneously. I didn't hear a voice telling me these things. The information is just there, as if it had always been a part of me. Now that I knew that I had written this message, I was eager to spill its secrets. To my dismay, it only contained a single phrase in a language I did not understand.

"Redemptio per adversitatem invenitur.

Suddenly, my mind exploded with images and thoughts from my past. The flood of new information was overwhelming to say the least. It was actually quite painful. It told a story of death, misfortune and misery but also a tale of wisdom, love, courage and strength. Suddenly I knew who I was. I saw my family. My two parents, mom with golden hair and blue eyes, and father with dark hair and piercing green eyes. Also my brother. I believe his name was Connor. We were at what looked to be a small house in the suburbs. It was blurry to say the least, but it was something. It was all I had to go on. It was nice while it lasted.

But then it was taken away. My mother and father faded away and my brother grew into an adult and laughed at me. There was pain... and death. But then as fast as it came, the memories started fading.

"Shit! Come on, just one more memory!" I yelled as my brain ceased to recall my previous life. It was frustrating. All the information was there, it was just blurry. Locked away. Possibly awaiting another event, or phrase. It seemed like certain knowledge was available only when I needed it. Hopefully the same could be said about my memories. I took one last look at my 'scarlet letter' and put it in my pocket. Oh wait, I didn't have any pants.

The first order of business, I decided, was to get clothed and fed. I knew that I was fast and agile in the forest, so I should be able to figure out a way to catch something to eat. My feet also needed to be covered if I was going to go running about. That way I could avoid having another incident that involved me rolling down a hill and almost killing myself.

After I came up with my battle plan, I slid gracefully down the tree. It really was amazing how well my coordination was.  I reached the base of the tree and looked around at my surroundings. 'Trees, trees and more tre.... Woah wait a sec...' I thought as my eyes fell upon a grey wall, barely visible under the thick cover of trees. I made my way over to the wall and scaled it. My eyes nearly popped out of my head at what I saw. 'A castle?! Out here in the woods?'

The castle was circular, I'd say about half a mile in diameter, so it was fairly large as well. It was also completely run down and broken. I was surprised that the thing was still standing. The whole thing was surrounded by a wall, or at least what remained of a wall. I was standing on one of the fragments that had fallen during whatever siege befell this glorious place. The whole courtyard was covered in wild flowers and grasses. I thought I saw some small animals, but by the time my eyes focused on anything they disappeared. There were several round towers about, but they had long since toppled over. The main castle building was still intact, although it looked like it had been through hell. It was still around 5 stories tall, and looked to be at least stable. "Looks like a perfect place to stay!" I cheered giddily as I hopped down from my perch.

I walked up to the castle door and felt a freezing rush of air. It felt good physically, but it mentally exhausted me. It was if the castle was feeding off of my energy to sustain itself. Such things are impossible of course, but that's how it felt. I took a look inside and nearly fainted I felt so drained. Have you ever been in a place that just wanted you to go to sleep? Like a warm dark environment that seemed to suck the energy out of you? It was like that, but it was freezing. I was uncomfortable as hell, yet I could no longer remain standing. I took one last gasp of air and collapsed. Desperate to find out what the hell was going on in this place, I cast out my energy and sought the source of my discomfort.

On the third floor, in what looked to be a bedroom, there stood a woman. Or was it a woman? I was too weak to tell. But I was not too weak to start feeding. I drained as much as I could before I felt a snap and my mind returned to my body. Feeling somewhat better, I ran to find a staircase. 'Who the hell is that? And how did she resist my power? Why does she feed off of me like that? And how?' So many questions were racing through my mind as I climbed the spiral staircase. I darted from room to room searching for what could not be found. Finally I came to the room I sensed earlier, but it was empty. Physically empty, but I could still feel that dark presence. 'Nightmare.' My mind said to me as I fell to the ground, unable to remain in the world of the waking. I tried to resist as much as I could, but in the end, this 'Nightmare' took a hold of me.

I suddenly felt an unfamiliar presence in my mind with me. It was dark, but not evil. It seemed as if it was in as much pain as I was. As I took my final stand I shouted "Release me!"

I felt my vocal cords moving without my control and the presence said in my voice, "Well aren't you a brave one?"

Then darkness.