Chapter Five
No one was there. No, wait, that wasn’t entirely true. The air was hazy, like a mirage in the desert.
The air felt different. The atmosphere felt heavy, saturated. Like walls were closing in on me, but I was outside.
Something was coming closer. A light grew from the hefty haze. Brighter and brighter as it came toward me. The brilliance didn’t hurt, but I wanted to shield my eyes out of respect.
I didn’t lift my hands to cover my gaze. Nor did I shut my eyes. I couldn’t look away.
The blaze of light grew and grew. The rays reached outward, just far enough in front of me that I could reach out and touch. Close enough that the heat singed the raised hairs on my wrists, which I pulled against my body to protect my heart.
The light coalesced, and a being stepped out. The lig
