PART I; WELCOME TO THE DREAMSCAPE

I want to tell a story. A story of love and dreams, a story of monsters and death, of the forgotten and the remembered. This story will be hard to believe, but even harder to tell. Though be assured, there is truth in every word. First, I need you to accept that, second, I need you to feel it, and thirdly, I need you to understand. This story is, in all its flaws and glory, truly, the Diary of a Dream. A Lovely dream.

 It started when I was a child, maybe more accurately a pre-teen, but we’ll stick with child for now. I was young, my brother two years younger and our connections equivalent. Anyway, when we were young, we would visit a place, a place I will call the dreamscape from here on out. This world, like ours in almost every way, except the monsters. The monsters would appear when those who did not belong would visit, appear to kill those visitors and erase the memory of them from the minds of the residents. The residents, mirrors of ourselves, or connections, as we would come to call them. Me, Cor, masculine, right-handed, my connection, Cora, feminine, left-handed. My brother, Zor, masculine, left-handed, his connection Zora, feminine, right-handed. As children we could visit relatively easily, as easily as a dream you might say. Though we did not belong, and that is why the monsters first appeared. They appeared each time we would visit and kill us, we would awake in our home world and visit again that night. Each visit, though our connections, and all the others we met would have forgotten us, and we would have to re-introduce ourselves every time, before the monsters would kill us and we would awake once again. This process continued a few times. Till we had to stop, as the monsters would put the dreamscape in danger.

The first visit was a bit of a surprise for me and my brother, though quite fun. Our connections lived in a large brick house, on a wide-open field, there were swing sets, monkey bars, teeter totters and trampolines, as well as a small swimming pool and water slide. Everything a kid could want. We would run and play with our connections, dig in the mud of the wetlands behind the yard, and have the time of our lives. But none of that could compare to when I first saw her, Lurka, to this day the most stunningly gorgeous girl I had ever seen. It was, and I don’t say this lightly, love at first sight. She was the neighbor and best friend of Zora. She was a light skinned brunette, with eyes that twinkled like stars I wanted to wish upon, and an awkward contagious smile that could nevertheless make everything feel bright and perfect on even the worst and darkest of days. Like I said, for me it was love at first sight, yet more amazingly it was for her as well. I know that because she told me, when we would lie under my connections bed, to be alone and plan our future, pretending and believing that we had the adequate information necessary to accurately do so. Our delusion would last until the first monster showed up. A dragon with three heads individually necked, that we nicknamed Trihead.

The first attack was swift. Outside Trihead flew down and effortlessly killed me and my brother so quickly it might as well have been simultaneous. When we awoke, we discussed, figured it had to be more than a normal dream, because of its shared nature. I told my brother “I had the craziest dream, it felt so real, and even now feels more like a memory than a dream” my brother said, “same here, me and you were playing with some girls named Cora and Zora until a three headed dragon killed us”. “Yes exactly” I responded, we looked at each other with surprised expressions. We talked more and soon realized that they were not just similar but identical. Becoming more and more surprised and curious as our conversation went on, we agreed and planned to go back that night. Shortly after we fell asleep, we found ourselves in the dreamscape once again. When we arrived, we saw our connections, I said “hi Zora” as my brother said, “hi Cora” they both looked shocked, looked at each other, then back at us and asked, “who are you?” My brother and I were still more surprised as we mimicked their actions, looking at each other then back at them as we spoke “I’m Cor” I said and “I’m Zor” my brother said, “we met yesterday, looking more confused Cora and Zora responded, “I don’t think so”. Still more surprised, my brother and I continued talking with our connections, Until I saw her once again. “Lurka” I yelled out as I ran toward her. She looked surprised and a little frightened. I noticed this and slowed down as I approached her and said, “I’m sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I just got excited, I’m Cor, do you remember me?” She shook her head, and I was saddened, though I told her the story my brother and I had just told our connections. Slowly but surely her surprised frightened look transformed into a smile as my sadness transformed into happiness.

Although their memories did not return, the meeting was just as pleasant and the play just as fun. My love for Lurka only grew as her love for me did as well. That time I spent even more time with her. My brother played with our connections as Lurka and I talked alone about our future. I told her “I want to join the CIA and live in my grandmother's mansion when I grow up” she told me “I plan on studying education at the local university”. Neither of us realized how difficult it would be to make these dreams of being together forever a reality, however that was the strongest of our dreams and we planned and compromised on all the others to make it a reality. I said, “I would be glad to go to university with you” she smiled as she said, “I would be happy to move into your grandmother’s mansion with you”. We smiled at each other and kissed for the first time. We then laughed until we heard the screams of Cora and Zora from outside.

Running outside, it seemed Trihead had returned. My brother was bleeding out in the yard, Cora and Zora were standing still in shock. Lurka followed me outside the back door of the house. Trihead flew toward her and breathed fire as I screamed “NOOOOO Lurka” and dove in front of her, being burned before waking up in cold sweats screaming in my bed. Back in my home world once again. My scream was loud enough for the whole house to hear. My parents rushed into my room and asked with a frightened tone “are you ok” breathing heavily covered in cold sweat, I looked around before responding “ya”. My dad said, “just a nightmare?” I nodded. A nightmare indeed I thought, the dreamscape, my greatest dream was beginning to seem more and more like a nightmare. Even still I couldn't stay away, my love for Lurka was too strong though I was starting to feel selfish. After all she almost got burned alive, and as that was her home world There was no reason to think that she would awaken as I did. That fire might just kill her. Even still I thought maybe it wasn't me, maybe Trihead was just another creature of the dreamscape. And so, I decided to go back. I was forgotten once again, but the reintroduction was a little smoother, and my love for Lurka only grew stronger and her love for me returned very easily. Almost like we were meant to be.

Again, we hung out and talked, one might even say flirted. Like the way young kids experiencing the potent effects of the drug that is romantic love did. We were too young for a courtship that serious, though it continued to grow, becoming even more serious, and like fiending addicts, we couldn’t get enough of each other. Though once again it was short lived as a second monster showed up. This one was a large, towering humanoid figure with a square chest and three square faces, one in the front, and one on each side of the head. We named him Triface, as we were young and not very creative.

Triface smashed and threw things around like the hulk with roid rage. He finally got me and my brother as he smashed through an outside awning that we were under. After awakening we spoke and came to the stupid and selfish consensus to return once again. This visit, however, would be our last…