Catacomb Tales

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  Garden of lost souls.

  All around me is darkness, why or how a come to be here I have no idea; all I can see is a small light in the distance, so I begin walking towards it. The last I can remember is having way too much to drink at my mate's Halloween party. I guess I must have passed out before it ended. I quicken my pace, almost running now; the glimmering light is getting closer; my legs are tiring, they feel heavy as though I'm losing control over them. The light is getting brighter; I'm breaking into a sweat now, I can feel it running down my forehead and neck.

  Almost there, wherever there is, not much further to go

  The light is an open doorway; I can see it now, only a little way further. My legs feel like lead, I'm having a job to cross the final few feet into whatever lies beyond the doorway. My breathing is laboured, God am I having a heart attack? With one final effort my right foot crosses the threshold, everything is lifted from me, my breathing returns to normal, my legs are working perfectly again, I feel great. What the hell just happened?

  I'm now in a beautiful garden that is bathed in warm sunlight with a wonderful clear blue sky above. Multicoloured flowers line the garden's borders, and beyond them a mist that obscures the view of what lies further out. A stone pathway snaked its way through the garden leading up to a lawn of pure green, upon this green is a small curved wooden bench, and in its centre is a sculptured fountain with cool water cascading from its peak. I walk towards the bench keeping to the path, for some reason not wanting to tread foot on the immaculate lawn. I sit on the bench looking at the water as it falls without sound into the trough surrounding the fountain. I concentrate on the water; there are images with it, rippling images of what look like faces.

  "Hello," a childlike voice says.

  I glance away from the water to see a young child, a girl standing at my side.

  "My name's Gabby, what's yours?"

  For a few seconds I don’t reply then pull myself together.

  "Tom...Tom Banister. Do you know where we are?”

  Gabby giggled. "Of course I do, do you?"

  "No, I'm afraid I don't.”

  "Tom Banister you say?"

  "Yes."

  "Hmm...That is strange; I'm not supposed to collect a Tom Banister. You are not supposed to be here!"

  "Where is here?"

  "Look deep into the water." Gabby said softly. "What do you see?"

  "I...I think I see faces!”

  "Yes, the faces of lost souls...you are in the wrong place. You must be returned!"

  Before my eyes Gabby grows into an adult woman, a woman with golden hair. My eyes widen in shock as two white wings span up and outwards from her back.

  This can't be happening!

  "This way sir," a male voice emanates to my right.

  "What...who? What’s going on here?"

  "There has been a most dreadful mistake. Even Archangel Gabriel can make the odd mistake. You are in the Garden of Lost Souls; as you are not a lost soul you must be returned to the living."

  There is a blinding white flash; I wake with a start to find myself lying on my mate's couch. A dream or maybe a nightmare! Whatever, it couldn't have been real, could it?