The Course
Dream Blog Number Two
A few days ago, I had a dream that I was trapped in this strange jungle-like forest. It was damp and hot and unforgiving. There was a whole course set up for prisoners, and I was one of the prisoners that was trying to finish the course.
The course was not simple, but it had a simple rule: get to the end, win your freedom. There was a building we started at, what I assume was the prison we were living in. We had to traverse through the jungle without dying to the guards and the wild animals hiding within. Once we passed through, we had to get across a violent river without any supplies, no bridge to get across, nothing but our strength and determination.
The last trial was a man made set of hills, each with varying height and steepness. We had to make it past the hills and to a vine wall with a small opening at the top. That is where freedom would greet us.
Along the way, we were to avoid guards at all cost. They would catch whomever was not fast enough, or those trying to cut corners. It was brutal. I saw a man with wild red hair get tackled by a group of them. The fear of being caught myself stopped me from helping him.
Soon, many of the prisoners were either killed or had just given up. I was one of a handful that tried every day to get to the end of the course. The hills stopped me every time. My stamina gave out, or they were too slippery, or I was snatched at the last moment by a guard hiding nearby. Still, I knew I could do it. Freedom was within reach.
The wild redheaded man kept showing up every morning as well, following my quick, careful steps in the jungle, swimming close behind as I navigated the unforgiving river. He would only fall behind on the hills, getting caught every time as he tried and failed to keep up. I would end up back in my cell just like him at the end of the day. Why he followed so closely behind, I didn’t know.
One morning, in the jungle, I heard his steps behind me. I spun to face him, looking upon his dirty, surprised face. “Why are you following me so closely?” I asked, looking up into his wide eyes.
His voice was kinder than I expected for a criminal. “You get very far everyday. You’re close. I want to be close, too.”
“I shouldn’t be able to hear you behind me if you want to get through this jungle in one piece.” I looked around us before adding, “They’ll hear you clear as day.”
We followed my footsteps in silence after that, the only sound coming from the rushing river in the distance. He was lanky but graceful with his movements despite his ragged appearance. It was the first time I saw him in movement ever since he had started following me.
We got to the river, just as the clouds began to turn dark. “It’s going to rain,” I thought aloud. “We better hurry through this river before the lightning comes.”
The river was wild, as usual. There was no trick to it; we just had to get through. Trying to walk on the bottom had always been the wrong choice. Slippery stones and mud between toes did not make for good friction for passage. Instead, I swam as hard as I could against the current, hoping that I would get to the other edge of the river before falling to my death in the waterfall waiting for me. A tree on the other side made for a great anchor, and its branches never failed me. The redheaded man followed close behind, grabbing a branch and pulling himself up as I did.
“These branches never break,” he said with admiration, trying to catch his breath. I didn’t respond, leaning against the tree as I regained my strength. He continued to speak. “There’s got to be a better way of getting across the river.”
“There’s not,” I told him. I stood up straight and moved my damp hair out of my eyes. “I’ve watched others die trying to find a better way.”
Thick droplets of rain began to fall. The man sighed, looking to the hills before us. “Those are going to be impossible to climb.”
I gave him a quick smile. “Not if we work together.”
We walked to the edge of the first hill as the rain began to fall. Mud immediately made the hill that much more of a challenge. I went first on all fours, climbing the steep hill as carefully as possible. There was no one else around, not even the guards. The rain must’ve scared them off from hunting us.
The redheaded man was next to me every step of the way, our bodies absolutely filthy with mud. The top of the first hill came and we slid down the other side, down into the valley between the first two hills. “What’s your name?” the man asked suddenly, out of breath as we laid in the rain for a moment.
“Mary. What’s yours?”
“Steve.”
I frowned. “You don’t look like Steve.”
Steve frowned back, saying “What does that even mean?” I didn’t know the answer.
We began to climb the second hill, slipping and sliding on the steep, wet ground. I grabbed for him as he slid, helping him back up, and vice versa. At this point, we were both getting to the end together.
The third hill was the tallest and steepest of the three. This is where I failed daily. “Have you ever made it this far?” I asked Steve.
Steve shook his head. “I’m usually too tired to go on…I get caught on the edge every time.” He pointed to the edge of the valley, where the guards usually hid.
“The rain seems to be keeping them away.”
“Looks like it.” He looked up towards the vine wall, then back at me. “You ready?”
I nodded, and together we began to climb the last hill. Every day, I would falter right at the end. When the sun would set, all of the guards would come and take the still climbing prisoners back to their cells. I would run out of steam every sunset. This time, I would not fail. Freedom was within reach.
The sun was hidden behind the rain clouds. There was no telling when the guards would come for us. We gripped onto what little green we could in the hopes that it would anchor us for our next step along the climb. Our bodies were in synch, climbing at the same steady speed despite the thunderstorm and the slippery ground beneath our feet.
I could hear Steve’s harsh breathing through the sound of the rain. I wondered if he could hear mine as well. Despite the burning in my muscles and lungs, I kept pace with him, the vine wall inching closer and closer with every step.
My right hand found the rain soaked vines, and I shouted at Steve in excitement, “We’re close!”
“Keep going,” was all he said, and we pulled ourselves up onto the vine wall. The plant was prickly, and I felt my hands burning as we ascended. It was painful, but I worked through it, seeing the thin gap between the wall and the rocks above. Light poured down onto us, calling us forward.
I reached the top and looked to my right, expecting to see Steve right next to me. Instead, he was stopped in the middle of the wall, face hidden in the vines. “Steve!” I called for him. “What are you doing?”
“I…I can’t!” He sounded so tired. “Go, go on, I’ll meet you up there tomorrow…”
That was not happening. I slowly climbed back down to him and reached for him. “Grab my hand, we’re going together! Hurry, before it gets too dark!”
“Go!”
“Not without you!”
Steve looked up at me, looking at my hand with wide, scared eyes. After what felt like forever, he reached for it and I took it, pulling him up to me. We climbed up and up, reaching the end of the course. I lifted my leg up and pulled myself into the gap, reaching again for his hands to pull him through.
Suddenly, hands grabbed Steve from underneath the wall. He let out a scream as he started to fall backwards.
“No!” I grabbed his arms, the rain making my grip slippery. Somehow I held on tight, trying to pull him away from the phantom hands that pulled at his skin. “Steve, climb up!!”
He cried out, the pain of the prickles in my hands digging into his arms as well as the phantom hands pulling him away from me. I held on with all my strength, trying to get him to climb up. He slowly regained his footing, and his hands found the wall once more. I didn’t let go of him until he was scrambling into the small gap, and together we passed through.
The light beyond the gap was overwhelming. I squinted into it, trying to adjust to the new settings we found ourselves in. The area we were in was an air strip. An airplane sat behind the tall lights, only visible because of its own headlights. There were official looking people waiting for us underneath a tent, safe from the downpour.
“What’s going on?” I muttered.
A man with an umbrella appeared before us. “Congratulations, Mary. You’ve beaten the course. Once you sign these papers behind me, you will be free to go anywhere in the world.”
“Wait,” I said, looking up at Steve then back to the man. “What about him?”
“He was not fast enough,” the man said simply. “The guards were able to grab him, therefore he did not beat the course. He will have to go back to his cell.”
“What?!” Steve shouted. “I made it up here because of her help! Shouldn’t I be able to be free?”
“I’m not going anywhere without him,” I said firmly. “You can throw me back in my cell too, but I’ll be back tomorrow…with him right behind me.” Steve and I stood in front of this man for a long time as he stared between the two of us.
Finally the man said, “One moment please.” He turned and went back to the table to discuss with the other official looking people.
We waited silently, rain cleansing us of the mud we were covered in. I wondered if they would really separate us after working together all day, and if they’d try to pull the same stunt if we ended up here tomorrow.
I never found out, however. The sun entered my room and woke me up before I could ever find out our fate.
Hello everyone! Pregnancy has been giving me weird dreams. I had this dream several days ago, and a part of me wonders if my old friend Steve was really visiting my dreams despite not looking like himself. Dreams are weird!
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