The Edge of The Dream

by Jazz
(Northampton)

It really wasn't Mercy`s fault, when she finally made that mistake, the one that ended her life. All she did was jump a little too early, and that was it, She flipped over and was gone.

Luckily for her she didn't feel a thing, but now she was standing in the midst of the crowd which had gathered when she fell. She was standing OVER her body, and people were looking straight through her. She was bewildered, and it took her a few seconds to realise that the people were fading, the sky was turning white and grass was growing over the sand of the jumping arena. She let out a shrill whinny as she saw her rider fade too, Mercy loved Amy and certainly did NOT want to leave just like that. But she couldn't do a thing, she watched in horror as everything faded to leave her in a massive field of grass and yellow flowers, a white sky and a few apple trees.

She snorted and put her head down, and indeed it was real grass. She had a feeling she knew, but was still a little unsure of why she was here. She flicked her tail and gave another snort as a small white horse cantered up to her. And since Mercy was quite a tall horse she had to lower her head to look at the other horse properly. She had quite a dainty structure, not like a shetland, and a thin mane, and almost old eyes.

"Welcome To the dream, Mercy." She said, with a flick of her tail.

"T-the dream?" Mercy asked, looking around her.

"Yes, that is the name given to it, and the name given to those who live here are dreamers."

"Will I wake up, then?"

"No. You will not leave the dream, you belong here now, though your arrival was unexpected." She said, turning her head to motion at the trees and grass.

"If you travel further you will see other horses and mountains, but that is all. We have no humans or beasts here, but the nightmares. If you see one, Never listen to what they say, they are liars and have been exiled from these parts and should not be here."

"Oh...What have they done?"

"That is the business of the angels, not dreamers." She said, with an almost sharp tone. And then without even saying goodbye, just disappeared.

Mercy snorted with disapproval and began to walk in the direction she was facing, and soon enough did see other horses. though she was a domesticated horse, she knew enough that horses lived in herds. A large group of horses were grazing in a herd in one of the fields, and one stocky pinto raised her head and trotted up to Mercy.

"Hello, what`s your name?" She asked in an unusually friendly manner. Mercy noticed that she had large brown eyes and her mane was a little tangled.

"Mercy, and how do I get out of this place?"

"We can't, and it`s forbidden to try...have you heard of the nightmares?" Mercy nodded.

"Well, I've been told that they tried to escape...and...well. They become that."

At a second glance she saw that the other horse had a very tired and sad look about her, but it was well hidden by the fake happy feeling she was trying to give off. Everyone was like that, they were trying to act happy, it was supposed to be a paradise, but it wasn't. Something had always been going on here, it scared them and so they pretended. They didn't want to be here. Mercy could see, straight away, It was like a prison, trying to be perfect. She didn't know how, after just half an hour, she knew this, but she wanted to leave.

Instead, she was asked to join the herd so she did. Every day it was the same, grazing, walking, looking for more horses. it could have been years and Mercy never got any older, never felt pain or hunger, and she hated it. She felt no thrill, She felt no reason to be alive anymore. one thing that was different from other horses, She dreamed. They slept there, because there was indeed night in The Dream, but they never dreamed. Except Mercy.

Dreams of what could have happened if she was still alive, but once, A sign. The nightmares were told to be bad, but in just one dream, Mercy realised. She learned the truth. The Dream was no paradise, It was an eternal punishment for crimes never committed, and no one ever escaped from it. The nightmares were those horses who had tried to escape, and were caught then punished.

Exiled from other horses, their coats were stained black, They were told the truth, and they were merely ghosts in a world of lies, haunted by the memories and thoughts. The only thing they could do was warn other horses, because some horses were never meant to die, and so by getting out of The Dream, were allowed to live again. Mercy was one such horse, and one such nightmare told her.

Only some horses could make it, The place she had to go was forbidden, condemned. And The Dream would turn on any who attempted the escape, to be chased by the angels. But there was still a chance, And as far as it would be, Mercy would fight to reach what they called...

The Edge Of The Dream.

TO BE CONTINUED...

The Edge Of The Dream - Part 2

by Jazz
(Northampton)

For the first time since she was trapped in The Dream, Mercy felt she had something to live for. Endless hours of grazing...sleeping..walking. And now she was about to change everything. She knew it would change, but she never guessed her whole world would be turned upside down, mostly for the worst.

Mercy thought she was the only one that knew of her plan, but no. How could such a strong ambition go unnoticed by the angels that knew everything, heard everything, saw everything. But like a cat playing with a mouse, they would chase her and watch her loose...However mercy would be different. Hundreds of horses had tried to escape, and failed soon after they began...but Mercy WAS different in many ways, ways that even the angels never saw.

Rain was rare in The Dream, but it was considered a huge change from the perfect sun, and although snow was unheard of, it was possible. Not a natural occurrence, but brought by the angels. They let the snowflakes float down onto the realm of The Dream, softly but surely covering the ground in the cold white blanket that was oh so rare.

This was the beginning of the game. The snow was a distraction, allowing Mercy to travel away from the herd unnoticed. Of course this was planned, for once Mercy was out of the safest part, there would be no second chance. Mercy would fight or die, and she still didn't know it. She knew it wouldn't be easy, but she would never dream it would be so hard.

She looked around coolly as she walked, her sleek coat wet from the snowflakes and a trail of hoofprints behind her, but she never looked behind to see that they were steadily disappearing behind her.

Every hoofprint she made just disappeared as if it were never there. Since there had only been snow a few times before, she wouldn't have known anyway, but in truth the hoofprints the other horses were making in their herds would stay imprinted in the snow, and wouldn't fade until the snow stopped to be replaced with a patch of grass.

But Mercy just kept ploughing on through the gentle snow, her legs slightly cold and yet she hardly noticed. For Mercy, this was the easiest part of her journey. The very beginning of The Angels Game.

(Note: The next part will be titled 'The Angel`s Game; Part one'. Each chapter will have more than one part, ideally two.)


TO BE CONTINUED IN 'The Angel's Game.'...