I woke up and found myself here.

Here.

I am under the sun, in an open stretch of desert. All I can see is the sandy beige of the earth against the sandy beige of the sky. The horizon is nearly indistinguishable. There is a feeling in my body now, and I become conscious of it as I begin to move. Just a small movement from my shoulders and I can feel myself breathing. I breathe deeper with my eyes closed, protected from the flakes of sand pushing on the small breeze. My hair tingles on my scalp. And I am aware of my feet, so I look down. Slender yellowish toes, I begin to wiggle them a bit. I sit up and prop myself on my elbows, and the sand tingles under them. I touch my face and wipe the grains away from my mouth. I begin to cough. As I am coughing, my eyes begin to water, and a single tear drops from my face. I look down and I see it envelope a small speck.

I thought the speck was sand, but it begins to grow. Once it is the size of my pinky finger I see that it has many legs like a spider. It is still the color of sand, and it continues to grow until it is the size of my hand. And I can see its many eyes. It must have a mouth because it begins to speak,

"While you were away," it begins, "the world has seen many changes". I blink to acknowledge its speech. It continues in a deep and solemn voice, "The sands of time have taken effect, and you are no longer amongst the living."

It pauses, as if carried away on some other thought. It shifts its legs to get in a more comfortable position before it continues,

"The land you are in is between time," and it is speaking with much authority in its voice now. And then it becomes a command as it belts out with a booming sound, "R I S E".

And I do.

My joints crack a little, indicating that they have not changed position in much time. I soon feel my legs move, as I am now on my two feet. The sand is very warm, and now there is a steady breeze in the air, which is fingering through my hair. My hair is brushing against my face and in my eyes. The spider scurries under the sand beneath my feet now, and vanishes. I am walking, and although the sand is not wholly solid, my step makes a sound like drums.

So they know I am coming ...