Dream

Yup, that dream again...that same fucking dream. Have you ever had it? You must have. You wake up, but you aren't awake. No. You're still dreaming. But you THINK you're awake. You don't see anything bad happening...but you're so, so wrong. You stand up, yawning. "Huh, that's funny...the clock says it's 1:00 PM but it's pitch black out...piece of shit." You step into the hall, but the hallway isn't your own. IT IS NEVER YOUR OWN. No. You will never know who's it is, but you KNOW that no matter how much it looks like it...no matter how much it SMELLS of it, FEELS of it, it is NOT your own. You don't see it in time...no, you never see it in time. You begin to stumble to the kitchen, but see something odd...

"Huh, that painting wasn't there before..."

Your girlfriend didn't spend the night last night, did she? You are unmarried. You live alone. You sure as hell didn't put that there, so...

"Who...?"

The walls begin to slowly brown around you as the painting comes into focus. Is it a person. No...No just god would create a person like that. The creature in the image is black as coal. It has orange eyes. Firey. It stares at you. It's tall. You estimate around seven or eight feet. Its face, at first glance, seeming human-like, is long. It's like an oval. It has something similar to the mouth of a boar. It has claws that extend from its hands, like knives. Its arms are long, dragging the ground. Its legs are partly bent at the knees (if you could call them knees). Its "knees" bend inward, as do all its joints.

You continue to stare at the image. The hall is a dirty brown, now - a sickly color. After a moment, your pupils widen as you realize the image is moving. Slowly, tears of blood come down its face. It starts to come alive. You turn to run. What was once a long hallway now seems endless. You see nothing in the distance, just blackness, but you run for it anyway. Then you make a classic mistake: you look back.

The thing is now crouched in the hallway. Its head is dragging along the ceiling and its claws are dragging the floor. It begins to walk toward you. It moves quick for its size, but it isn't fast enough to keep up. You, after what seems like forever, reach the kitchen...but this is no loner your kitchen. It's filled with rotting meat and blood is overflowing the sink. You have no time to think.  You run to the door, but it's nailed shut. The same goes for every window and exit in sight. You run down the steps, hoping the back door is unlocked. Hopping from the top floor, the beast crashes down in front of you as you reach the bottom of the steps.

It grabs for you, latching onto your right arm. You feel anxious, terrified. You can't move, and your eyes are locked, with neither of you looking away for even a second. Your heartbeat quickens as it slowly pulls you to its face. It grins, revealing what seems like 100 pointed teeth. They open just enough to let its foot-long tongue slowly slide out. It runs its tongue across your left cheek. You try to pull away, but the claws dig deep into your arm. It speaks with a loud, screeching voice, destroying your ears. Its voice sounds like that of a human's, but twisted. You have never heard the language speaks, but you don't hear it long, as your ears begin to ring.

With unimaginable force, it slams you to the ground. You cough up blood and your vision goes blurry. You wake up to screams, but as soon as they stop you realize they are yours. You feel wet. Your bed is soaked to the core with sweat, but it's more than that. There's something else...something sticky. You look down. Blood. Your own blood covers the right side of your bed. You begin to panic.

"It was only a dream...only a dream...only a dream...a dream..."

You go to wipe the sweat from your face...but it's not sweat that you feel...it's almost like...saliva. You look at your arms and see the deep wounds, fresh and still bleeding. You decide that you need to get to the hospital and you stand up. You check the time. it's 1:00 PM, but it's pitch black out.

"Piece of shit clock..." you mutter through your quick, shallow breath.

You step out into the hall and toward the kitchen, but see something odd...

"...that painting wasn't there before..."