Voices Of The Depth

That sunrise was dark.

 It was cold, the sky wasn’t blue, the birds didn’t sing, behind the mountains, the sun rays were fading and mixing with the huge grey clouds. As I watched the clouds moving with the wind, I said to Helen “something’s coming today”. She just looked at me and smiled.

We entered her house, it was warm inside. We both sat on the big couch, and she turned on the TV. The news are the same from two weeks; missing people. Helen started, “a new person will be missing today”. I didn’t understand, I asked why, she answered “a person is lost every three days, and from three days exactly, the young man we saw on the news was lost”. I had to admit, all this scared me, Helen asked me to be careful, and I asked her the same. She muted the sound and we started talking about something else while drinking tea. I gazed at her; lately she started to braid her long hair.

Suddenly, she opened her dark green eyes widely and turned on the volume, “Emily, isn’t this the lake near your town?” There was a documentary about it on the TV. I answered her “yes, but I have never gone there”

“Wouldn’t it be interesting to go?” I laughed and started to tell her stories about this lake. I didn’t know if they were real or not, it’s only what the people were reporting. After she heard everything she changed her mind about going.

It started to get a little bit late; I spent most of the day at her house. We said our goodbyes, and before I head home she asked me again to be careful, and again I did the same.

It was an exhausting road, but after almost two hours I arrived.

I took the keys from my bag and entered my home. I live alone in this bungalow. It’s said that near the town I live in, there’s a lake. I have never visited it, but those last two weeks, the people in my town that have been going there, all said they heard a singing voice from its bottom. It’s not that important, they’re probably hallucinating. I entered the bedroom, threw my bag brutally on the ground and bounced in my soft bed. I was tired, I closed my eyes.

After a moment I got up, I thought it would be a good idea to visit this famous mysterious lake. Maybe testing what’s happening with the visitors would be fun.

I walked on the long path that leads there. On my way, I could smell a beautiful soft odor. It reminded me of Helen. I took my phone to call her. I wanted to tell her what I’m doing, I was sure she will worry after what I told her about this lake. It was always funny to see her worrying, she would start to scream with her soft sweet voice, and I always tried to comfort her saying nothing bad can happen. As I remembered those moments with her, I thought about losing her. We have been best friends since we were five; we shared happy and sad moments together, secrets, and food! I can’t imagine how lonely I’ll be if I lost her, and I don’t know what can happen to me.

She didn’t answer my call. That’s weird. Habitually she was the first to answer them.

I realized I was walking in a fog. And in the unclear view I saw a big turquoise surface, it’s the lake. I advanced in this thick fog to see more clearly.

Surprisingly, what the visitors said, was true.

I heard voices from the lake, strangled voices. My feet moved, and without knowing, I was walking in the lake’s direction. Water started to immerse me. I walked deeper, deeper, and deeper, and the voices became louder and clearer. Figures of light formed in front of me. All of them are the missing people that were lost the past two weeks. They’re dead, they were all her victims. One of them approached me and said “be aware, she is near”. And before she could say another word, an explosive sound pulled me out of the lake, everything shook violently, the sky screamed an angry frightening cry.

And I woke up.

My breath was fast, and I heard drops of water knocking on the window, it was raining. Something’s telling me to get out. I looked to the hall, and saw someone. This long brown hair and blue dress, they belong to only one person. I starred in her direction unable neither to move nor to scream.

“You can’t stay paralyzed! Get out!” a voice echoed in my head.

This is the only thing I was hearing. “Get out, get out, get out” those words kept ringing in my ears.

The woman started walking in my direction. It was her. I got out directly and escaped from the window, I had no other way. I started to run, where? I didn’t know. I was just hearing “keep running”.

I reached the limit of my strength; I continued walking hoping I’m far enough now. It stopped raining, the sky is clear, and the moon finally lightened the path. This way is familiar; I was walking here this afternoon, in my dream. I should find the lake.

I finally saw this deep dark water from afar, but I wasn’t alone.

She was standing just there, waiting for me.

I froze in my place. She stepped forward slowly. I couldn’t do anything. It was the end.

Dark smoke emerged from behind her, and like thin ribbons of smoke, they tied up to my hands pulling me to the lake. Then the smoke gathered behind my back pushing me to this cold water. I passed the lady.

I looked back to see her a last time.

 No one was there.

The smoke is entering my body.

-------------------------------------------

What am I doing? Oh, I just have to keep walking; I have to pass this cold water.

“No, you can’t do this. You have to get out, get out, get out”

I’m completely under water, I saw Helen, but she was made of light. I looked at my hands, I am…fading.

“Emily! You can’t stay here, go before you disappear completely” Helen said to me. Her light faded, and her voice was gone with it.

I’m tired, what if I don’t make it to the surface? I tried to gather my force and started swimming.

“Keep swimming”

I can reach it, I have to reach it.

Finally, I can feel the air. I walked on the edge of the lake, the breeze hitting my face, and my whole body is freezing me. I turned around, to face her. She was floating on this thin surface, in the middle.

She smiled, and shattered; the pieces sank into the unknown.

It was all calm again. Before I leave, I saw the moon reflecting off the lake. This big white luminous circle was melting into the depth, dominating the water.