Magnus dreamed in a lost place.
He dreamed in a grand ballroom of gilded walls, shadows did not stay still here, they danced in the warm light and revelries sounded from every corner, so beautiful it was.
In the centre of the ballroom a strange dancer swept, draped in long flowing silk she seemed to glide everywhere at once, flutters of delight and joy radiated from every move of the graceful swishing, joy she spread could not reach herself, Magnus could feel that somehow it never would.
He dreamed of a kings court, it was a regal masterpiece yet it held no soul, a deep weariness sank over the marbled floors and across the gorgeous court was a hundred scattered books and a thousand unfurled scrolls.
In his mind he was faintly aware of the grand throne which held a king, the kings body illuminated by the faintest moonlight he felt like a ancient scholar that had lost his will to continue his pursuit of knowledge yet still lived devoid of purpose.
He dreamt of the grizzled battlefield where unspeakable violence swam, here the sent of coppery blood blotted out any molecule of breathable air that might remain, the dirt was stained a deep red, a colour so overpowering that it would not fade even against the eternal test of time.
Beside him was a broken general kneeling upon this bleeding earth, his ruined body seemed to hold countless wounds but even then a strange smile remained on his face, the glory of countless victories held his back straight and defiant even as he faced his loss.
He dreamed of a brilliant church that seemed to connect to the great heavens themselves, it was a cathedral that looked to be built by the most pious of believers and the most devout of worshipers, a monument to the heavens eternal glory it must have seemed if not for the inverted cross that stood proud at the pinnacle of this great church.
Magnus stared into the empty halls, there stood a priest whose head was tilted towards the sky, eyes closed, seemingly enjoying the fresh breeze however his stance seemed to show a immeasurable arrogance and triumph, despite this the priests robe was ripped and tattered as if he had walked through a storm of knives
He dreamt of a dazzling garden that had bountiful fruits and flowers, a enthralled sun shone on the countless flora in a smile of light, it radiated an aura of perfection, it held all after all, what more could it need.
The gardener stood in her endless perfection, wrapped into the very garden she had bleed for, she stared at the endless sky in strange yearning, Magnus seemed to wonder, why did she desire the sky if the garden provided flowers more graceful than anything above could offer? Even a sky could be grown here should she wish but still she stared at the blue void above.
He then was in a brilliant sea of gold that washed across all, its hands reaching and surrounding itself in a endless cycle, its depths were fathomless yet the end felt so close, just a moment away, no life could be seen but the crushing waves upon themselves seemed to be more alive that any true life could be.
In the waters the scientist sank, deeper and deeper, the warm golden ocean pulled her further into the light fulled abyss, the quiet of eternity, a gentle lullaby, they both sung in her ears as she grew a weak smile, sinking and sinking, Magnus could not see her here.
Magnus sat in a ruined temple stood upon a mountain that crawled higher than the clouds, was it the temples existence at such a peak wondrous or the peak itself stretching to this hight? Vines crawled across the ancient stone but nothing moved.
He faced a silent man dressed in the attire of a monk, the monks eyes were closed, he did not expect them to open if they ever had, this place had taken hold of him, the vines swallowed his body, the dust coated him in their unforgiving embrace as he sat, unmoving.
He dreamed these dreams, they spun and circled him endlessly
A dream that would never en-
* * *
"Oi, hello... Hello!?"
Magnus groaned as he was ripped from the drowning warmth of thoughtless.
"AH! He made a sound! ANSEL! We got another live one!"