While we wait.

It had been a full three weeks, one of those intense runs, a pressure cooker that steadily built up steam until the lid popped open. Team members had flown in from various parts of the region, brainstorming, bickering, collaborating, raising the bar in pursuit of excellence. I, for one had been heavily involved in the fray, tying loose ends together, making last minute edits, providing the required oversight. Finally triumphant, the prize having been delivered and an important client satisfied, we were now homeward bound, our goodbyes said, more or less none the worse for the wear.

Perhaps that was glossing things over on my part. Having since grown accustomed to eyes the colour of a blood moon, the protracted stares from passersby jolted me into a painful awareness. Things surely must have reached epic proportions this time around. My drooping eyelids took in my surroundings a bit more carefully. There were the usual sightings, the madness that came with international terminals. Pulling on my Aviators, I sighed. Back home there wasn't much to look forward to. An endless grind interspersed with occasional lulls but it was familiar territory. Friends and family often shook their heads in dismay. Their questions hung unspoken in the air. What profit was there to be gained? Any reasonable soul would have surmised that the breakneck tempo was untenable. I shrugged away the concerned voices and soldiered on. One grew inured to the realities of a high-powered job. Proper accessing of so-called collateral damage would have to come later. As things were currently, there was scant time to waste.

It so happened that my flight was delayed. In the comparative safety of the executive lounge, with only a couple at the other end, the hot lemon tea provided some comfort. The recent jumble of events began to unravel in no particular order. Sinking deeper into the plush chair, I mulled things over. Suddenly, there was a lighting glitch and then momentary disorientation. Things cleared to reveal two immense overhanging cliffs enclosing a small plaza. Made entirely of glistening glass, their sheer verticality was both breathtaking and daunting. They presented a novel sight and with ample time to spare, exploring seemed a logical choice. 

The plaza was made of shimmery glass boulders, ragged as though hewn in a quarry. It was strangely deserted, in the manner of an emptied-out town. I had always thought of light as welcoming but these were icy baubles, translucent cold stones that brokered no warmth. There was a stillness too, save for an infrequent sibilant hush. It was my own private crystal palace, my hidden treasure tucked away in some remote location. Gleefully I skipped from boulder to boulder, testing their strength, revelling in the dazzling colours of reflected light.

Lining the periphery of the plaza were life-size statues detailed to perfection. Definitely intriguing! They were reminiscent of the limited edition prints displayed at a gallery a few months prior. Examining them more closely, my jaw dropped and a grim realization set in. These were no ordinary statues. On the contrary, they were individuals in limbo, appendages extended at varying degrees, trapped forever in ice. Horrified, and wondering what exactly I had stumbled upon, I drew back. Two bat-like creatures diving at record speed emerged. 'Beware the undertow, beware the undertow, Lara', they screeched. A cold chill crept up my spine. How on earth did they know my name? I wasn't about to find out and frantically cast about for an escape. There! A glimmer of purple light emanated from some narrow crevice. A quick dash to the right and there was the pulsating oval-shaped opening.

It was covered with dense intertwining green climbers. This had an effect similar to a Grecian moulding or frieze. Altogether though, there was an eerie feel. I was overcome with wariness. Not that there was much choice, though. This portal opened up into some sort of cave. Humid and covered with verdant moss, a few old stumps protruded through the floor. Gingerly perching on one, feet dangling above the damp beneath, I waited until the pounding in my chest abated. Again, there was that sensation of being watched. Muscles taut and body on edge, my ears strained to catch the slightest movement. Any unseen hosts apparently tired soon enough. The stump beneath me convulsed and disintegrated into nothingness. Simultaneously, the encircling cave walls closed in, nudging me towards a gigantic yawning mouth. There was no other way but forward. Teeth firmly clenched, one reluctant step after another, inching towards uncertainty but still, forward. In time, I sensed a progression down a steep incline and then heat. Great suffocating heat! 

Brilliant light from exploding cinders exposed my feet teetering at the edge of a red- hot crater, a bubbling cauldron. Scalding ash rained down freely. The soil beneath me crumbled. In some spots, the intense heat created hot slippery mud pools. Dodging the showers while holding my footing was no small feat. An acrid odour filled the atmosphere. Glowing embers lay strewn about the trail, somber remains. I wondered about the unfortunates who had unsuccessfully traversed this path. Irrational anger arose. What had I done to deserve this? Nothing, Absolutely nothing! It was all a cosmic joke! Not that it mattered to the powers that be anyway. As if in response to my internal ranting, the treacherous trail leveled somewhat and the air became more breathable. Just when I thought the worst was over, a grotesque hand reached out and pushed. Some detached part of myself observed the free-fall, the echoing scream that surely belonged to another creature. Yet it was I hurtling to a certain doom, helpless. In resignation, I observed as snapshots of my life reeled past. Issues unresolved, perpetually left on the back burner, always too cumbersome to deal with. No chance for redemption, I thought and braced for the final crushing impact.

Jarring wake abruptly, I found myself on the lounge floor, the shrill alarm of the last boarding call permeating through my ear drums.

It was time to go.