The sound of the birds echoed across the misty lake in a series of consecutive calls, then there was silence. Carole had never heard a few of these cries until she arrived at the lake house one late evening, and the sounds nearly gave her a heart attack because she imagined all sorts of wild creatures and spooks in the dark. Now, their calls was like a symphony of nature to her ears.
She took a sip from her coffee cup and looked out at across the water from the edge of the dock. The mist roiled on the lake in coiling steamy tendrils that thinned out as they spread out on the surface.
It was an idyllic place to be alone and work on her craft, disconnected from the world, and all the drama that went along with it. On the other hand, she missed her family and friends. So much so that she had begun to have bizarre dreams. The same one the past four nights, something that had never happened before. In her dream, a strange being visited her, and told her to wake up. She woke up, but not in reality, she woke up inside the dream, producing all manner of confusion and disorientation.
The being did not say anything, but she got the odd sensation that he wanted to communicate. At first, he was hazy in her mind’s eye, but over the course of nights, he had become more solid, more real. She was not really into interpreting the meaning of dreams, but given their unusually repetitive nature, she was beginning to wonder what hers were all about.
It’s just isolation, she told herself. This soggy forest and dark mountains. And way too much coffee.
Ah well, it was too late to start second guessing her decision to spend some me-time alone on the mountains, so it was time to roll up her sleeves and get to work.
She dumped the last few drops of coffee on the ground and returned to the studio.
“Some real good coffee came in yesterday,” said Mindy, who worked the sales terminal at the general store in town. “You should scoop some up before it’s all gone. People are going crazy.”
“It’s that popular?” Carole said, making her way to the coffee section.
“Oh yea, especially with all the rumours about the comet, and the end of the world,” said Mindy laughing.
Carole grabbed a couple of bags of her favourite espresso beans.
“I’ve been offline,” she told the cashier, “so I haven’t kept up with the news, but I thought scientists already said that it would pass by harmlessly.”
She placed her groceries on the counter.
“Yup. But you know how folks are around here. They see conspiracies behind every shrub. Now they’re talking about dream invaders. Can you believe it? They say some people are having weird dreams about alien creatures.”
“Oh?” said Carole in surprise. “What kind of weird dreams?”
“All sorts, even R-rated ones,” whispered Mindy with a wiggling eyebrow. “And it’s usually alien love, if you know what I mean.”
“The things folk say online,” said Carole with a laugh and shake of head.
“The comet’s closest approach is tonight, so everyone’s stocking up just in case. As if we’d survive a strike from a rock half the size of the moon. Hah! Good lord, people are just ridiculous.”
“I’m just glad we’re safe,” said Carole. “They had me scared there for a moment.”
“I will sure sleep tight tonight,” said Mindy handing her the groceries. “Who knows, maybe I’ll get lucky with some alien loving. Haha!”
Outside in the parking lot, Carole put the groceries on the back of her truck and began the drive up the mountain.
The comet with its long streaming tail was clearly visible in the sky.
The fabric of space-time rippled on her skin. Reality was no longer solid but an abstraction that could be frozen at any moment by simply observing it. Every sensory system in her body was turned on. Around her, she heard the pop-and-crackle of stars coming into existence and winking out in a flash, emitting vast cosmic throes across the universe.
“Why do you bring me here?” Carole said to the strange being of light that had been haunting her dreams the past few days.
“Do you not like it?” He said genuinely curious. There was a child-like innocence about him, and yet Carole could sense his immense quiet power. It almost felt as if he was holding back, not wanting to show his true nature lest she be overwhelmed.
Then why show her all this? This great void with dimensions that her own mind could not begin to comprehend.
“Who are you?” she asked him. “Tell me.”
“I am just a messanger, for now.”
She felt her ego dissolve in a mist, swirling across primordial oceans, then dissipating in the flow.
She pulled back and returned to the more familiar times and places.
“Then what is your message?” she asked him.
“Tonight,” he said, ignoring her question, “is my last night on earth. I will then continue my mission into the unknown.”
“You’re on the comet. This is why people are reporting strange dreams. You’re the reason it’s happening.”
“One day soon, you will understand what and who we are,” the being said shimmering with a solar aura of plasma.
He held out his hand, leaned closer, and whispered in her ear.
The universe seemed to vibrate like Jello. All sensations activated simultaneously in a Niagara of feelings, emotions, and perceptions. Her mind could not grasp the overwhelming flow of events, and so, like a rhythmic symphony, it began to direct and freeze the elements of experience into cohesive blocks of meaning and static reality.
She reached out for him in the vast empty space, straining for contact.
But bit by bit, she woke up to the morning light.
The birds cried across the rippling lake. Carole heard them flap their wings and emit great calls to the sky.
She heard the rhythmic splash of water and saw Mr. Merrick pass by on his canoe.
He waved at her with his paddle.
She raised her coffee cup, wished him a good catch, and watched him disappear in the remnants of the silver mist.
She sighed.
Now that the dreams were gone, her uneasiness had disappeared, and yet she felt as if something was missing.
It had been a few nights since he had last visited her, but the memory of his passing lingered like a comet tail of unrequited love. She missed the excitement and intimacy of their secret meetings. The feeling that came with the knowledge of undiscovered dimensions that hinted at alternate states of experience and awareness. Incredible new worlds beyond ours.
It was all just dreams. Right?
Not this time. Millions of people around the world had reported similar dreams, including presidents and other world leaders. Information obtained in those dreams was verifiable, valid, and actionable. Scientists agreed that this had been the first instance of alien contact, though how exactly the dream messages had been transmitted was unknown. Authorities were alarmed by the cognitive intrusion and investigations were underway. It had become a global security issue as conspiracies and riots spread like wild fires.
Carole felt lucky to be away from all the madness that had ensued, though she suspected it would eventually catch up to her. By law, she was required to give testimony of her experience and any messages she may have received from the entities.
“And we will dance again,” she murmured.
She drank the last sip of coffee, savouring the flavour, and then she returned to her studio where she continued working on her beloved craft.
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