A Dream

The hole was still there, and this time there was no line of fire keeping me from the log. The ground was still treacherous, but that's what the fallen trees were for. I swung across gaps on low-hanging branches, and alighted gracefully on the gently rotting wood. I turned towards the hole, and he was standing there. He smiled mischievously, and leapt forward into the void. I hurried after him.
The tunnel was long, but we never picked up much speed. I lost sight of him ahead of me, and only the dirt of the walls was visible. Soon, a bluish light began to infuse the air. The tunnel sloped gently beneath me, and I soon was riding down a slide. Then I hit the first wall of water. It was cold. It was wet. It was shocking. I didn't mind it. The second curtain was more disconcerting, for past it the slide vanished and I fell again. This time, though, there were no walls to mark my descent. I had an impression of vastness; the expanse was incomprehensible. I saw a glimmer beneath my feet, and then I hit the surface of a great ocean at an impossible speed.
I hadn't taken a breath, and my lungs started to scream for air. I told them to wait, but they didn't listen. I began to struggle, even as I was pulled down by a great force. Suddenly, I felt a wingtip brush my cheek, and I turned my head. He floated downwards with me, and I no longer felt scared. He reached out with one hand and placed it on my cheek.
"Breathe." I took a breath slowly, and found the water did nothing to impede me. I smiled back at hime, and together we spiraled down through the water to the palace where the obese demons impale their own eyes with forks.