Gate: The Lovers

I stepped through the vision gate and found myself standing on some unfinished timber floating down a fast moving stream.  I was in the midst of many other cut tree trunks and they bumped and pushed against each other as we slipped down the waterway.  Then, quite suddenly, the stream reached a tall waterfall and the armada of trees and I careened over the side and fell into an enormous pond at the waterfall’s base.

As we fell from above, the wood smashed into each other and mixed with the water so, by the time we finally reached the pond, the once-mighty tree trunks were reduced to large splinters of wood and little else.

I floated above this pond for a moment, avoiding the rapids and observing the steadily falling cut trees, their destruction, and remnants floating in the pond.  After some time, I realized something was in the pond itself, pulling the splinters down from the water’s surface into its murky depths.

I dove into the water and discovered a swarm of undines plucking splinters from the wreckage at the surface and then taking the wood back to their watery abode. I decided to follow the water spirits to their destination to further understand their true nature.

As I journeyed downwards toward the underwater kingdom, a bubble filled with light appeared at my elbow.  “Hello, Heidi,” the guardian spirit said. “What are you up to today?”

“Hello, Bubble, nice to see you again,” I answered. “Today I’m following the undines! Where am I?”

“You are at the base of the Fall of Knowledge,” the spirit said. “Did you see the mysteries descending from on high to feed the dreams of Poseidon?”

“I saw something going on up above but to me it looked like a bunch of cut trees coming down a river,” I replied. “What are the dreams of Poseidon?”

“Come and see. It is far simpler to show you my meaning than to explain it,” said the Bubble and led the way down into the waters. The guardian took me deep underwater to the place where the undines were rising and falling continually with the splinters of wood. The focus of their attention appeared to be an enormous golden starfish.

The undines raced back and forth from below the water and back again, feeding the wood from the cut trees to the starfish.  As I watched an undine delicately place a single piece of the wreckage into the starfish’s mouth, he bit down, chewed once, then opened his mouth again for another morsel.  Another undine with yet another splinter was always waiting, sometimes queueing up in a short line to feed the starfish again.

“There you have it, Heidi, a great mystery that lies at the base of the Fall of Knowledge. What do you think of this dream of Poseidon?” the Bubble said.

“I think the starfish is huge but his mouth is rather small for his size,” I said. “Don’t you think?”

“A starfish? What a funny way of viewing reality you have,” the Bubble said. “You should be kinder to others about their appearance. Why shouldn’t his mouth be small? One can only take in so much unknown at a time.” My guardian began to glow, shining an inner light ahead of us and I saw, instead of only one enormous starfish, we were gazing at fields and fields of starfish.  Each had undine attendants who swam back and forth from the surface of the pond, bringing the splinters of the trees to feed the undersea creatures.

All of the starfish were connected together by their arms creating a sort of wall out of their forms. Because it was so dark underwater, it was hard to perceive where the starfish ended and where a wall made of grey stone began beneath them.  I pulled my sight away from the starfish fields and realized I had been viewing reality at a microscopic level of being.

“We must grow larger to explore Poseidon’s realm further. Don’t you think, Bubble?” I said.

“It’s simple thing for a spirit like me to walk among the molecules or dance with the stars in space,” the Bubble said. “How about you?”

“No problem at all,” I said, envisioning myself growing larger until I was my customary size. As I adjusted to my usual way of moving through reality again, I found myself at the doorway to a castle made of an infinite number of tiny starfish.  The undine attendants for the living bricks of this palace were so small my eyes dismissed the crowds of them as tiny bubbles in the shadowy water.

“Wow, think of how many spirits of water are supporting this structure,” I said. “It is really an impressive enterprise.”

“If you like it already, I can’t wait until you see what it holds,” the Bubble said. “Come on!”

The Bubble and I approached the living structure, the home of the gods beneath the sea. A large front gate made of pearls and intricate swirls of shaped metal stood open with no guards of any kind. 

“I’ve rarely entered a fortress of this size unchallenged. Is this another dream of Poseidon?” I said. “An open door in a realm of complete safety?”

“No, silly,” my guardian spirit replied. “This is the sea lord’s castle which lies deep within his sphere of influence. One would have to be entirely mad to enter these halls with malice in their heart. You’re not mad, are you? Let’s go in.”

“I think my madness is up for debate, Bubble,” I said. “But I don’t wish ill on any I meet in the Inner Worlds.” We passed the threshold of the gate together as I marveled at the beautiful construction of the underwater kingdom.

Within the castle’s walls, long hallways made of shell dripped with seaweed from the ceiling and walls.  Living clams covered the floor and as I walked upon them the clams opened up startled by my steps, then closed again to become the floor once more.

Snippets of music drifted our way from further within the castle but I could not see the source of the sound no matter how far we traveled through the halls. Shadows began to dance on the edges of my vision but when I looked directly at them, they faded into the waving seaweed or walls of pearlescent shell.

“This really is a beautiful place,” I said. “But why do so many shadows dwell within the Castle of Poseidon? Their presence is not something I was expecting to discover today.”

“The Sea Lord dwells within the waters of your subconscious mind in a castle created of mystery that literally fell out of the forest of your psyche,” said the Bubble. “Is it any wonder there are things here even you did not expect to see?”

“I suppose not,” I said. “I never expect to see anything though so really the entire journey is one big surprise to me.”

“I didn’t know that about you,” the Bubble said. “You always seem so nonplussed by whatever goes on in the myriad worlds, I just assumed you were expecting it.”

“Hardly,” I said, brushing an errant strand of seaweed out of my way. “What you’re observing is silent surprise, Bubble. I allow the worlds to freely enter my consciousness and have no idea what’s coming our way next. Life is such an adventure. Why spoil it with expectations?”

“I like walking the worlds with you,” the Bubble said.

“Likewise,” I replied as my guardian and I went deeper into the castle. We eventually came to a hallway shaped like a spiral shell that led into a deep darkness and many more shadows. A wind came in and out of this hall, blowing the water past my face like the current of a strong river.

“What’s down there?” I asked, feeling a moment of trepidation. “The moving water reminds me of the breaths of a giant. They always eat me when they catch me, which isn’t such a trial, but I want to explore this palace more before I have to return to my waking world.”

The Bubble came close to my ear. “It’s the Kraken,” he whispered. “He sleeps in a fitful slumber, hopefully one without dreams. Don’t wake the monster or we’ll have to face the consequences!”

“What is the Kraken?” I said. “And why should we be afraid of him? Michael says I should fear no shadow and I take his advice very seriously.”

“The legendary creature is a weapon of Poseidon and one of great power,” the Bubble murmured. “He unleashes the beast when the subconscious is threatened. The Kraken vanquishes all interlopers.”

“That’s ridiculous,” I said, entering the dark hallway. “First of all, how could the subconscious be injured by something that comes from within? All within us is ourselves. Secondly, what need would Poseidon have of a weapon with that sort of capability when he leaves his fortress gate wide open so that any passing spirit can enter? If you’re not going to take the most basic precautions to defend your people, I have trouble imagining that you’d have a need for a weapon that could banish any spirit that could truly threaten the Inner Worlds.”

“Hold on, Heidi. Speaking of basic precautions, allow me to armor you before you go racing into a monster’s lair. The depths of this subconscious sea hold creatures you could not even imagine,” the Bubble said, floating to my left shoulder where he joined my spirit, changing into a suit of bright blue armor. “Trust me, Poseidon has his reasons for keeping a powerful weapon on hand.”

“I would know his reasons and see this Kraken,” I said as we reached the end of the hall. “I fear neither shadows nor self knowledge.”

“Either do I,” whispered my armor. “But there’s no need to be reckless.”

“He left his gate wide open!” I said. “I think the dangers are entirely in your mind. Come on, Bubble.” I marched down the hallway into the increasing current until I arrived at an echoing room within which I could see nothing definitive through the murk and shadows. Though my vision wasn’t discerning anything at all, I knew in my heart that the space contained a living, breathing void.

“Hello!” I called into the darkness. The skin prickled on the back of my neck as I felt something immense move through the water and place itself between me and the exit to the hallway. “Is anyone there?  My name is Heidi and I have come to know your true nature. Show me who you are and I will take the knowledge back with me to the worlds above.”