Dani

Dani often dreamt she was jumping around an inflatable bounce house, but she'd never before woken up in one. Quite sure she wasn't dreaming, rather than jumping around, she explored her surroundings, which turned out to be disturbingly dream-like. Rather than a single "room" with netted views of the exterior, she explored a series of ribbed tunnels, none with any views outside whatsoever, some narrow enough to require her to crawl through. There was a low thrumming vibration throughout, which she thought at first might be the fan, but its intensity did not seem to change as she moved, which eliminated its potential to help her navigate. She eventually found herself in a large orange chamber with an undulating blue floor. She thought, quite automatically, that this would be a perfect place to bounce, until she noticed the objects rolling around the floor. Bones. Human bones. The room began to fill with a thick, clear liquid, seemingly seeping upward through the floor. It flowed under one of her boots (when had she gotten dressed?) and the sole began to hiss and smoke, rapidly dissolving into a gummy mess. She hopped away backwards, just far enough from the edge of what was now a growing pool, leaning against the soft wall for a brief moment, intending to pull off the boot, but it had stopped decaying before the sole had been eaten all the way through. She turned to the passage she'd used to enter, but it had shrunk to the size of her fist. Then, her nails digging into her palms, she remembered the black ring. She wasn't sure she would be wearing it, but there it was, on her left index finger. She loosened her grip and smiled.