That I cast a faint glow upon the walls assured me I was dreaming; that a stretching corridor lay ahead of me made me go on. The walls constituted of loose-fitting rocks, put together, it seemed, by enslaved arms. Yet, they were strong enough to keep me inside. I couldn't perceive to what extent they rose; the only illumination came from me, enabling me to see only as far as an arm's length.
This light fascinated me. I wanted to look at a mirror. I carried on, fueled by curiosity.
A few steps ahead, the walls turned slightly. The bend aggravated as I followed, leading me to a wider, more spacious corridor. This time, however, there was light: emerging from doors carved through the wall on the left. There were doors as far as I could look.
As I neared them, a babble of voices arose; multitudes of them. Each spoke in a different, idiosyncratic tongue. I couldn't decipher any of them. Nevertheless, I felt a certain joy; the glow around me brightened.
The first door led me to a cavernous room. The sole occupant stood at the center, a brilliant glow flashing from him. Every detail of the vast chamber was at its mercy. I felt a certain warmth looking at him. The boom in his voice echoed everywhere. I tried to speak; no sound escaped me. I tried gesticulating, but he didn't seem to notice me. He carried on, while I came back to the corridor, noticing that the door I came from had the brightest light of them all.
The next door, however, was as dark as the corridor. Peeking inside, I was surprised to find it contained a soul. He spoke in whispers loud enough to pierce the air around him, however, his glow was feeble. I felt awkward around him, but I tried attracting his attention nevertheless. Yet again, I failed to do so. As I was leaving, I felt the glow around him diminish further. I hurried out, haunted by the whispers.
The next door was brighter. I entered it to find not one, but many people, all tangled up with each other through a single rope. They kept pulling at their bounds, restraining everyone else further as a result. Their glows fluctuated as they did so. They kept making squeamish noise, none louder than the other. None made an effort to free himself even if he could. Nobody noticed me here either.
I proceeded to the next room, which was brighter than its predecessor. Here again were a lot of people bound among each other through a single rope. This time, however, none of them struggled, keeping to their places. They spoke in faint whispers, reminiscent of the man in the second room. Their glows had a dull quality about them, none of them brighter than any other. I didn't feel like talking to any of them, but I tried nonetheless, failing again.
The next room had a mediocre glow. I entered to find it, yet again, occupied by many people. All but one of them had extremely faint glows around them. They were wrapped in rope, all leading to one single person - the one with the bright glow. There was a palpable anguish in this room, amidst the malicious laughter of the one with the ropes. He kept pulling them, swerving his minions as he desired. The others moaned as they kept tugging at their ropes. I felt afraid, and left the room soon.
There were many more doors ahead of me, but I didn't want to go any further. I wanted to wake up - this dream was turning into a haunting nightmare - but it was then that I noticed, hung on the wall in front of me, a mirror. My curiosity arose. I made towards it with impatient steps as the image in it grew clearer.
But a strong tug stopped me; with horror I looked down to discover a thick rope around me. It kept pulling me back. The glow around me was beginning to dim. I screamed out loud. The mirror kept moving away from me.
I wanted to wake up, but I couldn't. I realised it in my struggle: this wasn't a dream at all.