Indestructibility

 

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Suddenly, I found myself in a void. I saw streams of flowing light. The rays rippled through the void, purple in color. They were aimed directly at me. I only knew that they were definitely not human-made. I felt a beam of light piercing my body. This luminous matter passed through every particle of me. Then I realized that it had changed something within me. I had become someone entirely different. It seemed to me that it had perfected me. Thanks to it, I became bigger, stronger, I felt… indestructible! Yes, I was Indestructible.

And suddenly the rays disappeared. They dissolved. They were scattered by a terrifying sound I couldn't describe. I was in shock. I didn't know what was happening. I clutched my ears. I couldn't bear it any longer. Darkness filled my vision. I couldn't see anything. I felt myself falling. I hit something hard. I felt cold. There was a roaring in my head.

After a moment, peace returned. I was still. During that silence, I realized what had truly happened. I had been dreaming this incredible dream, and then wild laughter woke me. As usual, it was Sheloah.

I opened my eyes. Above me was the tower ceiling, lying on the cold floor. From fear, I must have fallen from the bed and hit my head on the stone floor. I tried to get up. It was difficult. For a moment, I couldn't keep my balance. My head ached. I could still hear his laughter in my ears, or rather, the echo of his voice reverberating throughout the tower. I sat down on my bunk. I couldn't believe it. This couldn't be just a dream.

Sheloah laughed often. No one knew why. The situation we were in now was certainly no laughing matter. Even worse times followed. A harsh winter, constant snowstorms, a lack of provisions, and, of course, the Darkness approaching from every side. This Darkness surrounded us; we were trapped. The Evil Matter had destroyed everything. It left only emptiness in its wake. Anyone who stood in her path was defeated. She was invincible, indestructible…

The Tower turned out to be the only place where any life existed. We were there – the last of humanity. Few believed there were any survivors left. The entire world had been destroyed. Certainly, no one was laughing. But Sheloah continued to laugh. Then he started saying strange things. He claimed we didn't understand anything. He kept repeating the words "infinity," "repeat," "circle," "indestructibility." It was pure gibberish. Finally, we understood everything – he had gone mad. In

those last days, I saw cold sweat running down the necks of the only survivors. Their hands shook with fear. They couldn't even hold their weapons anymore. No one spoke to each other anymore. Silence reigned, broken only by Sheloah's screams. One day, we couldn't stand it anymore. We threw him from the tower. He died instantly. Silence fell.

However, this long-awaited peace didn't last long. We began to hear every whistle of wind whistling through the tower. We listened for the approaching footsteps of Bad Matter, which grew louder with each passing second. We knew our end was near.

I stopped writing my journal long ago. I didn't want to describe what I felt and saw in those days. Fear, despair, tragedy, helplessness, paralysis—these were my daily feelings. We all shared similar ones. None of us pretended to be heroes. No one said we would make it, that we would win, let alone survive. We didn't utter such words not because we no longer wanted to lift our spirits, but because we no longer had the strength to lie to ourselves. All that

remained was to wait. We waited.

Bad Matter was close. I heard its footsteps, its breathing. I heard it calling to each of us individually. It told us we had no choice, that we would lose to it. It told us to believe it. We believed her.

Sometimes I thought about that dream. It was beautiful. Was it somehow my hope? No, we'd lost hope long ago. That vision was more of a temporary escape for me. It was like a deep breath during hard work. But as it later turned out, that dream was my prophecy. It was a strange prophecy.

I don't know why I received it. Or maybe someone else received it? Maybe Sheloah? No... he was crazy. I decided not to talk to anyone else about my vision. I didn't want another argument. I didn't want to see the terror in others' eyes. I preferred to sit quietly and wait. I waited.

Soon, we saw dark shapes on the horizon on all sides. Moments later, they grew larger and more menacing. Those dark vaults were so high that we could no longer see the sun. Before the very end, total darkness fell. Only the torches inside the tower illuminated the immediate area. Slowly, we began to run out of air. The air reeked of stench and burning. The torches stopped burning. After that, we saw nothing. Someone quietly said it was a slow and painless death. Perhaps they were right. But I felt as if someone were burying me alive. No one spoke again. Silence fell.

And then, in the darkness, I saw those same red rays again. They were falling on me again. When they touched my body, I felt a familiar relief. I felt indestructible. I savored that feeling for a long time. I had already forgotten what had happened. I had no idea why I was here or why this beam was aimed at me. Suddenly, I felt a buzzing sound, a strange noise. I had heard it somewhere before. But where? No, it couldn't be true! I heard Sheloah laughing…