I woke up in the desert after following my dreams

I was still Somnia, but the world was worn at its seams

A thousand butterflies, a trillion sunflowers,

what else had been lost in my last sleeping hours?

On the other hand, white sand and spruce had allegedly been made

but from where in the universe was their molecular debt paid?

A charade, perhaps, could be playing tricks on my eyes,

Though normally I see something to see through such guise.

The trees: traditionally ordinary; the sand: conventional

But I just couldn’t kick the feeling this world was… intentional.

In all directions the same except for behind me,

Where a sturdy, wooden bridge stretched out over the sea

And on this bridge stood nothing, save for a crate

Which interestingly seemed protected by no lock, sign, or gate.

I slowed my sprint to squint as I got closer

A glint of white hinted at a weak, glass enclosure

Which makes sense, I guess, considering the environment

And also lets on there may yet be diamonds

The door is indeed glass and appears to be open

Though I’m unsure if by good luck or by bad omen

The glass is cool to the touch and visibly cracked

I slip inside and prop the door open to avoid getting trapped

Ventilation would not be a priority for a crate of this size

Before starving, asphyxiation would prove an unsatisfying demise

The insides were empty, save for a browned hatch in the floor

Which I promptly unbound and climbed down through the door.

The climb was a short one, the pathway down quite tight

But when I reached the bottom, stale light lit my sight

A gigantic tunnel capable of accommodating millions

Standing tall against the planet’s elements on behalf of civilians

As I walked down the pathway I couldn’t help but wonder

What kind of planetary blunder could funnel people down under?

This feat of an underpass was clearly, originally expensive

Yet damage from years of neglect had grown quite extensive

Was the tunnel a one time use to escape a worldly noose?

What happened above to reduce everything to sand and to spruce?

Did the budget just judge it not worthy to maintain,

or might its size have made repair estimates impossible to obtain?

The path stretched for miles, growing more decrepit through time,

What was once solid, polished plastic became dirt, stone, and grime.

Eventually everything artificial had forever fallen away,

Succeeded only by my intense curiosity I refuse to allay

As the light grew greener, I knew my curiosity would pay off

The walls were again polished; the incline declined and leveled off

I found myself in a clearing, a cavern of sorts

Akin to something you’d find from the nuttiest of source

“It feels like space is bending around you,” the nut might say,

realizing with dismay there were no words to convey

the strange, deranged feeling your brain tries to cope with

and so, unfortunately, the story would be ignored and doomed myth.

“The cave’s glowing maw beckoned,” he might tack on, defensive

Thought consumed in his memories, though never mistaken for pensive.

The cave’s glowing maw beckoned

It whispered softly to my monstrous curiosity

You only live once, I reckoned

And climbed in to sate my monstrosity

 

From all around me intense light filled the air

Eyes squinting, nose flared, I crawled forward into the unknown hallows

Though not even I could have been able to mentally prepare

To watch an infinite copies of me dance in infinite shadows

 

I reached the back of the cavern’s throat and found only a ladder

My dizziness had subsided and I’d learned to deal with the shades,

I assume I am fine, but starting to climb may prove me to be madder

We keep climbing up as I adjust to the plentifully insane visual charades.

 

For hours I climbed, one hand reaching up after another

The scenery had shifted for the better, now climbing through ivy and stone

And sunlight flooded in periodically, painting the most vivid colors

Yet still no animals nor insects had chosen here to call home.

 

The end of the ladder was in sight, and above it nothing but more upper

Without an apparatus for flight, I wondered how to proceed when I arrived

My answer was derived with delight when I started to hover

Uttering “oh” as I let go of the ladder and floated in place, surprised

 

I reached back out and pulled myself up the last few ladder steps

The end had been breached, the light bright as ever

Again I let go and started floating upward from the tower’s effects

I watched as stones flew by as I picked up speed falling upwards forever

 

Caught off guard this one time, otherwise always analyzing potential danger

I had hesitated too long before realizing I was falling so close to the wall

I was blinded by flashes of light as I watched a blurred stream of nature

Now ascending too quickly to slow down, forced to ride out the fall.