Dreamscape

• Joshua Walkington, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2022

I lay there, surrounded by warm comfort. All I could feel was endless waves of exhaustion, crashing over me like a raging ocean. Then suddenly, the dizzying tiredness vanished, and I found myself falling, crashing down like an avalanche. All I could see was streaks of burning energy splitting the sky in half, tearing through it like a knife to paper. Water fell from the dark clouds above, turning everything around me into a raging torrent of terror and shock.
Suddenly, warm yellow light filled the sky around me. Clouds dotted the seemingly endless blue expanse, like milk coloured paint splatted all over the most beautiful afternoon sky you would ever see. Suddenly, I noticed the pale yellow sand that surrounded my feet, and the tall palm trees that dotted the land behind me. Small red crabs popped out of the sand and begun to dig holes all around my feet. Before I knew what was happening, the sand gave way bellow me and I found myself falling yet again.
Unlike the last fall, I wasn’t scared. Perhaps it was because of the swirls of bright colour that twisted themselves into unusual shapes, then exploded all over me. I laughed, as lavender, red, and gold coloured liquids turned my clean white shirt into a rainbow wave of joy. Blue and green splattered in my hair, and I quickly closed my eyes to stop the colour from getting in my face. When I opened them again, I found myself somewhere else entirely.
Gold, silver, and jewels glinted of every surface of the giant cave. I had to shut my eyes to stop myself from being blinded by the light that seemed to reflect off every single jewel encrusted ring, every treasure chest overflowing with diamonds and gold. A roar suddenly echoed all around me like a hundred explosions going off at once. I looked up and saw a mass of heaving scales and orange flames. A gigantic winged menace filled the cave, its red scales rippling with heat. The dragon roared, and a jet of flames engulphed me. All I could see was burning reds and dazzling tongues of coppery orange fire.
Surprisingly, I felt no pain. The flames around me slowly shrank, until they were just a small fire surrounded by people sitting chairs. I suddenly found myself back in the strange, warm comfort I had been in at the start of my adventure.
Something warm and wet touched my face. I opened my eyes to see my puppy eagerly licking me.
“Dragon,” I mumbled, still half asleep. “Stop!”
I hopped up and opened the curtain, looking at the raging storm that was crawling over the beach towards my house.
Well, I thought. At least a storm will mean a rainbow.
I stepped outside, and found myself falling AGAIN! I cried out in shock as I hit the ground, mud splattering over my clean white shirt. I stood up, and looked at the hole dragon had dug.
“Dragon!” I yelled.