A Dream of Something Better
-A Dream of Tomorrow-
I collapsed to my knees on the concrete of the parking garage as I clutched my skull with one hand and attempted to steady myself with the free one. A steady dripping noise accompanied my labored breathing as my knees and hand wobbled beneath me in a vain attempt to keep me from falling over. Looking over my shoulder at the ragged tear in reality that was slowly stitching itself up after I had so rudely torn it apart.
Drip.
Looking into the what was left of the hole before it finished its sealing I could see the barren landscape of golden sand and darkness. Some of the sand had fallen through after me, but before my very eyes the sand began to sublimate into a fine golden cloud before dispersing. Just like it had the times before.
Drip.
I do not know what the place that I can go to is, or even whether it follows the same laws of physics. What i do know is that some time ago when i was about twelve perhaps I was able to open "doorways" to there and travel to other places by imagining where i wanted to go and opening a door again. As of late I've been using it to rob banks. It was easy, after all nobody expect someone to just appear in the middle of the vault with a crowbar and a duffle bag. The cops are getting faster though, unless they had just been close at the time. I could hear their sirens as I left the vault.
Drip.
When I was about fifteen I tried to show my mother what I could do, but she claimed she could not see anything and when i tried to take her through it would not take her through. I forget what she looks like. I can't even remember her name. I was almost eighteen I think when I noticed I had started to lose memories. The place seemed to erode away at them like sandpaper slowly tearing away little insignificant memories, and then bigger ones. I don't know how long it had been going on for, but I only noticed when I could not recall my sister's name. I don't know how many memories are unaffected. My name and the faces and names of my loved ones are the ones that stick out the most to me for blank spots. At least the memories of how my family made me feel have yet to elude me. It was about the same time when the visions started too.
Drip.
The memories of the visions seemed to be one of the types that were unaffected, thankfully the visions only come when I attempt to travel through that place and that only occasionally. However, these last too hand been much closer together, once on the trip to the bank and again on the way back.The first one had been of a moon with the image of a unicorn's head outlined on it's surface. The second of a creature that looked like someone had let their toddler make an animal out the unused parts bin. The third was of a smiling face that exuded calmness and love, the face seems to change whenever my mind thinks about it. The fourth and most recent one had been more vivid than all the others so far, a city carved onto the side of a mountain with weird architecture. It was the reason I was hunched over myself in the middle of an abandoned parking garage at two in the morning.The visions usually came with some pain but the previous three had not hurt anywhere near as much.
Drip.
Lowering the hand clutching my head to the cool concrete allowed me to look down and see the source of the dripping. A small red puddle had formed beneath me as i had struggled with the pain. Lift a had to my to reveal a large blot of read on my fingers. Sighing, I pushed myself backwards onto my behind and ran my forearm across my nose left a streak of red on my skin.
"Great." I mumbled to myself, "Another thing to add to my growing list of worries and annoyances, nosebleeds. It's bad enough I'm having trouble going as far when in between." I had originally meant to wind up in my apartment but instead I had only made it about ten blocks to one of the hospital's parking garages. Mumbling about the unfairness of it all I pushed myself to my feet looked behind me. The doorway had sealed itself up already. Leaning down grabbed hold of the duffle bag and slung the strap over my shoulder as I checked my haul.
Only about two hundred grand in cash and assorted goodies from the lockboxes. Damn, I needed at least another five hundred thousand if I wanted to get out of the country and have enough to get by on till I was old and decrepit. Not that I minded working or anything, but it's kinda hard to find a job when you cant remember your own name let alone a social security number. Thinking back on the most recent fiasco with the visions I should stop before I lose anymore memories or the visions start making my brain leak out of my ears or something.
Sighing again pulled out about fifty bucks for a cab and thrust it into a pocket as I made my way down the stairs and out to a street corner. Sticking one hand into my mouth and the the other into the air I blew and whistle any city slicker would be proud of.
It took all of ten seconds for a cab to pull up next to me. Grabbing hold of the door handle I slipped into the dingy cab and sat down.
"Where to miss?" He grunted through the window at me. He stank of cigarette smoke and like he had no idea of what concept a shower held but I didn't care.
"Corner of Cherry and Watkins please." I muttered just glad to be sitting down. Looking out the window as the street lamps and neons signs passed. Thankfully the cabby got the message that I didn't want to talk after I ignored his first attempt at small talk. After arriving at my destination I slipped the money to the driver. I think I overpaid him but it didn't matter at the moment, I was just glad to be almost home.
I was another block of walking until i found myself on the doorstep of the apartment complex. I opened the door and walked to the stairs, wondering how the heck I was going to get enough money with only one more trip. After all from what I felt today these visions are getting worse and it's getting harder to open doorways from inside that realm. Grunting as I pushed open the door to my home and locking it behind me I threw myself onto the bed. I'll let future me figure it out, for the moment I just wanted to sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fallow Cloud stood on a street corner in Canterlot dressed in a very skimpy saddle and bridle, the usual attire for a mare of the night. Looking at her cutie mark she let loose a sigh at the source of her frustration, a single green sprout shooting up from a cloud on the background yellow that was her coat. That single sprout and cloud symbolized her dream and aspiration to find a way for somepony to grow food on a cloud. Until the group of professors laughed her off the stage when she presented her thesis that is.
"There is no spell that would allow such a thing." Dean Stern Scroll had scoffed at her. "You aren't even a unicorn, so you couldn't attempt to create your own. You spent two years working on your thesis, and you talk of growing plants on the clouds. What a bunch of nonsense." There where murmurs of agreement among the professors as Fallow Cloud could only look down in shame as her hooves slowly carried her down the steps and out the door.
It was the next day she left the prestigious Canterlot College behind hoping to maybe get a job as a florist, or something she could use her botanical studies for, till she could afford to proceed with her research, but nopony had hired her. Fallow had desperately need her thesis on cloud farming to be approved so she could apply for grant money, but such as life nopony can alway get what they want.
So here she was on some back alley street corner in Canterlot working desperately until she could find another job,or get a train ticket to somewhere far from here. Dodge Junction maybe? Fallow was a city filly though and the though of moving to a rural town worried her.
Collecting her thoughts she looked back out to the street and slowly put a sensual look on her face as she called out to a large stallion making his way down the street. "Hey Big Boy, looking for a good time?" She slowly drooped her eyelashes and smiled as sweetly as she could. The stallion looked her way and smiled himself.
"Well I reckon I just might be." Fallow Cloud almost let loose a sigh of relief. At least tonight she wouldn't be going home with an empty purse. Letting her green mane fall over one eye she sidled up agains him and smiled as their flanks met.
"Well, have anywhere in mind?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It had been a little over a month since the bank job and I sat in a small pub in the downtown metropolitan area of Chicago. For this job I had had to spend a lot of time scouting out the area and unfortunately a woman without a name is not exactly normal. thus the monicker Sally had been born from a mix of desperation and vague remembrance. the name had meant something to me once, but now... I suppose it doesn't matter. Sitting on the corner furthest from the window gave me an easy view through the large stained glass window that sported a logo that O'Mally's Classic Irish Pub. It also gave me an excuse to anyone asking me what i was looking at, the answer of the bartender was an easy and logical one.
Across the street lay the object of my interest. An old Italian restaurant that barely got any customers. I had eaten there once only to find the food unappealing and the service less so. It was a couple months after that meal that the restaurant was actually a front for one of the local mobs biggest money laundering services as well as one of their major fencing locations. So I began to frequent O'mally's to make it seem as if I was any other customer. I made small talk with the other regulars and the two barkeeps. I made a tab and paid it, and I always left a tip for the barman doing my best to seem as much like a regular as possible. It may have worked too well as they would often try to lock up with me still there as I sat there nursing a beer and staring out the window.
I had finally figured out the schedule for money drop offs and loot pick ups. Tonight a pair of big surly goons would show up in a truck with "ingredients" for the restaurant, then in the morning the same duo would show up to take away the "trash". I had maybe a three hour window when the whole place would be locked up with nobody there.
Smiling as I saw the two men roll up in a food truck I grabbed my backpack, filled with everything I may need from a crowbar to lock picks to even a small tin can of thermite. Placing it in front of my feet I let out a small giggle that would make professional nut house employee shudder. I could feel it, this night was going to go just perfectly.
