The Five Dimensions Part 1: Shadow World

Chapter 54

Hailey felt happy. She was relieved that the news was finally out. A satisfying sense of triumph filled her. After the whole struggle of figuring out the signs and then getting everyone to see them as well. It was like she was taking a large step towards the truth. She wasn't completely freed of the lies yet. But knowing something that the Team didn't, felt better than only having unanswered questions all the time.

Her feeling of relief distracted her. But then, little by little, she started noticing that her mood didn't match the general atmosphere in the room. Looking around at the horrified expressions of shock made her realize she hadn't gotten any closer to the truth at all. Instead, she was only beginning to comprehend the complicated web of lies that she was caught in.

She thought it was important to find all the Connected Souls quickly, so wouldn't finding out Alex was one of them be a good thing? For once she thought she understood something about this mission but then everyone reacted like Alex told them he was dying. Apparently, Hailey still didn't understand anything.

Her head was turning. She was so confused. It was a moment until she realized that it wasn't just in her head. The world around her was actually becoming blurring and turning in circles. She felt her knees become jelly and then she began falling towards the ground as if in slow motion. Hailey looked up one more time before everything became dark. She met Ash's eyes, the only steady thing in the blur.

Her eyes closed and she felt like she was being burned.

§

My eyes are still closed but I smell something familiar, and I know where I am. It's the smell of the woods around my house. I am home, I can feel it. I open my eyes.

But it's not my house, or any of the woods around it that I'm seeing. I'm standing on top of a hill, looking down at Naporia. I can see the Holy Lake and the Rosenberger Mansion. There's something odd about it. As if there's nobody living in the city, as if it's deserted. I turn around to see the Team Building. It's also different. There are no people going inside or coming outside like the last time. There aren't even people behind the desk, which I can see through the glass doors from where I'm standing.

I turn around again wondering where everyone has gone but Naporia is completely gone. There's only a large valley without any signs of there ever being buildings. The lake is dry, a hollow space left in its wake.

Then the cloudless sky catches my attention. It isn't blue. It's grey and slowly turning black. I look to see whether the Team Building is still there, but it isn't, it's also gone.

The grass under my feet is turning a yellowy color. The trees I can see lining the valley are losing their leaves and then all fall down, one by one.

I look up at the sky again, it's now almost black. Then I look down at the ground and see there are cracks forming. I know what is going to happen. I feel like I've known all my life that this was going to happen and there has never been any way to stop it and there is no way to stop it now.

Again, I turn my eyes up and see the sky turn the blackest color possible. It's as if the sky itself has died and withered away. Then the ground cracks open at my feet, and I start to fall.

I don't scream because I was waiting for this to happen all along. I feel relieved. The world is gone, it's completely destroyed, and I feel as if a weight has lifted from my shoulders.

My eyes close peacefully and I vanish, together with the last remainders of the world.

§

Hailey woke up screaming but then she stopped abruptly because she couldn't understand why she was screaming at all. She could remember the dream ― or nightmare ― but in it she had felt peaceful and free. Why would that cause her to scream? She distantly remembered the burning feeling from before the vision, but it was gone now.