Before I rant about the events that brought me to this place, let me repeat my warning. Do not, under any circumstances, search for answers in your dreams. Trust me, ignorance and doubt will always be the better option. It does not matter how pressing your questions might be. Sometimes, we’re simply not meant to learn them. We’re only human, after all. I’m only here to document my story to ensure I won’t go mad, although I probably already have. Anyway, I’m rambling. Please note that I will change the names and paraphrase some things I fail to remember correctly.

It all started a few days ago. I kept waking up every night due to these nightmares. I don’t know how to describe them other than just pure malevolence clawing at me from every angle and tearing at me in an attempt to grasp me. I managed to avoid them for several nights, sometimes barely avoiding the long shadowy nails, leaving shallow scratches on my ankles. When I woke up, however, these marks were nowhere to be seen. That led me to believe that the nightmares were harmless. However, those beliefs shattered quickly when one of the creatures finally managed to get a hold of me. I jolted up as I felt the scorching flesh of that thing’s palm clutching my ankle. I believed it to be just another nightmare at first. That was until I realized that my body was unmoving. I tried my hardest to control my limbs, but none of them responded.

“You know, Eric, you’re not a bad runner. But everyone gets caught eventually. Some just take a bit longer to catch.” A deep, malicious voice boomed through my head. It was as if it came from inside my mind. I tried to respond, but my mouth didn’t move. “Oh, that just won’t do. You shouldn’t try to talk back to me, human!” it continued, mocking me with roaring laughter. A dark shape entered my field of view, appearing beside my nightstand before sitting on my bed. “You see, Eric, I’ve been watching you for a while now. Your dreams were so interesting. I truly loved observing them.” The giant shape spoke slowly as its empty sockets peered into my soul. “It’s a shame they stopped when your wife passed away, don’t you agree?” The creature took on the voice and shape of Emily, my wife. At least, she was before that drunk driver collided with her. Now she’s nothing more than an urn of ash beside my bed. I was enraged by his mockery of the woman I loved, but I couldn’t do anything to stop him. No matter how hard I ordered it to punch the thing in the face, my body didn’t react.

“I can always come back, dear,” the shape of Emily spoke in a soft tone. It sounded exactly like her. “Not in the flesh, of course. Your dreams are a different story, though.” My wife smiled, revealing sharp teeth, the only sign it was still the creature. “I ask of you that you find a way to restore your dreams to the beautiful stories I’ve grown to adore. If you don’t, I’ll have to find my amusement in different ways.” The creature lifted itself and walked toward my bedroom door. “You wouldn’t want that now, would you?” it added morbidly, causing a shiver to break my paralysis. “Wait, what are you?” I called out, but the creature merely walked through the closed door without looking back at me.