Moonlight Escape, Part 7~ WeWriWa Snippet August 4
By: Susan Schiller Photo Credit Previously: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6
Welcome and thanks so much for visiting today – your comments have inspired me to keep writing and are helping me to improve – THANKS!
Synopsis: This is a true story that I'm slowly rewriting into fiction. Laura, whose name means "Victorious One," is dreaming in this segment, and discovering that her dream life closely parallels and links to her conscious life, supplying her with uncanny wisdom that fuels her journey to freedom.
Laura is a political prisoner held captive as part of a government study tucked away in the mountains of Montana under the cover of a boarding school for troubled teens. The first two floors host completely normal educational operations and dormitories, but the locked third floor is home to a select group of youth who are involuntarily the subjects of sadistic experiments. Laura is determined to be free, no matter what the consequences.
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The next 8 sentences:
Laura tentatively stepped through the misty wall, amazed to feel soft, sandy soil beneath her bare feet in place of the chilly lineoleum of the dorm room. Gingerly, she placed her hands on two flowering vines that draped gracefully from an overhanging tree. It was real!
Swinging her head back around, Laura glanced nervously at Josh, who winked and said, "Don't worry – they can't see or hear us in the Secret Place!"
"What is this Secret Place, Josh?" whispered Laura as she gazed in wonder at the lavendar light of twilight twinkling across the stone path in front of her feet. "Is it safe here – is this how we get out?"
"It's the place of unknowing, Laura. There are an infinite number of ways to escape, but first you must face and defeat the dragon and he will give you the key."
To be continued…
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The 8-Sentence Weekend Writing Warriors Blog-Hop Challenge: Each week, participants sign up HERE at WeWriWa, then post 8 sentences of their work, published or unpublished, to go live between 12:00 noon Saturday, and 9:00 AM Sunday EST. Then we visit each other, read, comment, critique, encourage–all those great things that do a solitary writer's heart good.
{ 26 comments… read them below or add one }
I like the introduction of fantasy tropes. Nice 8!
Thanks so much, Beth 🙂
I love "the place of unknowing," and that she must defeat the dragon. Excellent snippet!
Thanks so much, Ann 🙂
So this scene is playing out in her mind? Or are the experiments giving her access to different realities?
Either way, I'm intrigued!
Hi Sarah,
These lines come from a dream sequence… her dream like closely parallels her waking life, and uncannily points the way to her freedom in both worlds (subconscious and conscious). Thank you so much for taking time to read and share feedback! 🙂
What a beautiful place! I hope it's real, and I hope they escape. I'll be back to find out.
Thank you for your kind words of support, Elaine 🙂
Very cool! Love that it's a Secret Place of unknowing! Great snippet! Annnd, dragon…yesss! 😀
You’re an amazing encourager, Karen – thanks!
Love the juxtaposition between the beautiful fantasy or alternate reality world and the harsh institution. Great snippet!
Thanks, Veronica, that means a lot to me… I’m wondering if its a doable concept, so right now it’s just experimental. Thanks so much 🙂
A strange and symbolic dream, but what is it a symbol of?
Hi Sue, it will hopefully make more sense when I alternate chapters with the “real” story. The “Secret Place” is a real place, although spiritual, as in Psalm 91. It’s created with words of praise and thanksgiving, which quantum physicists have studied… and our words come out of our mouths in colors and with “positive” or “negative” charges. The dragon will appear soon, and symbolizes the main foe that Laura must face.
Thanks so much for visiting, Sue, and for commenting even during a very challenging time in your life!
I'm so glad she has someplace safe to go…defeat the dragon for the key. Sounds like a worthy endeavor, anything that will put her on the path to escape. Nice eight Susan.
Thanks so much, Millie 🙂
Looking foward to the next piece of the puzzle ! Great story so far.
Thanks, Merle 🙂
So many questions. Does he have psychic abilities, or is he crazy. OR is she crazy, or have they been given mind-altering drugs… Hmmm…
Guess I'll have to keep coming back to get answers. 🙂
Good 8, Susan 🙂
LOL, Teresa… you make me smile – thanks!
It's kind of challenging to get the whole picture across in just 8 sentences, isn't it? But no, they haven't been given mind-altering drugs… this is a dream sequence so it's quite symbolic.
The real Laura – not her real name – is dreaming. I haven't yet shared "the real story" but it's as she is dreaming that the "real Laura" discovers the keys to her freedom.
In reality, this story plays out over several decades of time. The dream sequences are real dreams… I'm just adding geographical and concerete sensory details to clarify the story, as I remember it.
I know it must sound mysterious, but I promise it will make more sense soon 🙂
This could be interesting…. How long is the challenge on for?
I am tied up for the next 30 days.
William
Hi William,
Your comment showed up in my spam folder… I just now caught it. It looks like you’ve been very busy! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
I love it already. Anything with dragons interest me. They're such beautiful, mysterious, misunderstood creatures. Yes, I know they're not real, but I still love them. 🙂 Will you be publishing the finished piece?
Hi Keri… thanks for stopping by. I agree, dragons are mysterious and often misunderstood. Like humans, I believe there are good ones and bad ones, whether mythological, symbolic, or other. In this case, yes I am publishing this piece as part of a dream sequence. Thanks so much for reading and commenting!
Awesome – and totally unexpected twist. Can't wait for next week's entry. Great #8.
Hi Susan,
You’re so kind to revisit again this week – I so much appreciate your feedback! Thanks 🙂