The gentle breeze of the ocean breath is soothing to the ears. Up in the blue sky there were only a few clouds, beneath my hands was the warm sand. The only thing that ruined this moment is my body. At this moment I couldn't breathe, choking on what seemed to be the salty sea. Turning over to the side most of it spilled out as I continued to cough. The saltiness still lingers within my throat but that was more or less important. Right now, I was lying down in an unknown place. The whole world didn't feel right as the sand under me was up and the skies were down. All of it was so confusing. Hands blurred out, unable to tell if I had more than five fingers. The world was moving too fast. I had to stay calm, calm enough to focus on what had happened.
"You can do this Frank. Stay calm just like you did in the trench holes."
With deep breaths, eyes closed, I kneeled down with both legs inhaling and exhaling deeply despite my stressed throat. Every moment I breathed in was painful, the salt grinding away against my throat. In a few seconds most of my senses came back to normal and now all I could feel was a sudden headache. Everything is now normal is what I thought. My eyes widened at all the sight before me.
"Blue tinted sand, golden water, and the skies…are completely normal," I said in a raspy voice.
Out of all the abnormal things that I see before me the sky is the only normal scenery. Quickly, as I twist and turn my head any direction I could, all of it was strange. To my side is the golden ocean and on the other is a forest a few meters out of reach of the ocean. The forest had an attractive feeling of wanting to pull me in. The blue sand spreads along the coast caught in between the sea and this forest. This forest was like no other that I could have imagined. It was not normal, The branches had twists and turns wrapping itself around other branches high in the air and holes appeared within the trunks. Within one popped out a gray furred animal, fluffy oval ears hanging to the side dropping to its legs. It jumps around sticking on to each side of the tree. What struck me the most was the horn on the forehead that had a small purple glow at its top. The animals that seem similar are completely different from expectations.
"Just…where am I?"
It was of no use for me to talk. There was nobody here to answer my question. Knees still in the sand I stay confused on where I was and why I was here. Not a single memory comes to my mind. In the forest there was a slight light shining towards my face. It was not one, not two, but tens of thousands. Lights of every variety of color lit up floating up like the seeds of a dandelion. I wanted to approach and so I did, it was enticing to the eyes. With each step outside of the sand and onto the firm ground I felt the gazes of many within the trees. They were all hiding waiting for me to make a move within the forest. A single shiver down my spine told me not to go. Taking a few steps back the headache becomes worse than before. It was agonizing but for a moment as I looked up to the horizon it lessened,
Now that I could stay focused, on the distant horizon multiple dark towers stood tall and just above those seemed like land, floating in the air. It all spreads across the horizon to one end to another.
"..."
Choosing to stay silent this time the headache hits me harder along with the salt grinding along inside my throat. What I wanted the most right now is water, and not just some sea water. The stabs of hundred of needles into my head sends me into what I'd considered a shock as after that it went silent. My state of mind broke as all that I could see was no longer, all was pitch black.
#
There are sounds of people whispering all around me. One is asking where they found me and the other answers.
"Picking up a creature off the beach is not safe."
"But pa, it was moving on two legs and we did warn it to go back into the sea but it fainted, it even spoke asking for water so I brought it here."
"Stupid, that means it wanted sea water. We just carried a dead fish creature up into our home."
"Oh, Aw man. I was hoping we could keep it as a pet."
Opening my eyes slowly this time everything was much more different then before. What I am now staring at is the ceiling, meshed up together to what looks like big leaf plants created as a roof.
"Um, Pa, it's awake."
Above my head a childish girl speaks with her finger pointed at me. Her face has face paint, the color of dark blue.
"Does it talk?"
The one that speaks next has the voice of a young male. He seemed curious at my sudden awakeness. His body was not that of a human. His skin was scaled and that's the only difference. He looked like a lizard to me.
"Let this one be."
The last person to speak is an old man. With a glance towards him there was a single important detail to him. He was the size of my palm. He stood there next to my face. All of these people or creatures that I see, just what are they? Am I hallucinating due to dehydration? And most importantly I desperately need water.
"Please, I need water."
"What is it saying?" The face paint girl asks.
"It looks dehydrated." The lizard man says.
They all just stared at me, as if I'm some sort of fish that's about to suffocate.
"Well what are we waiting for? Let's bring him to the water," she yells.