Author: The Sandman

Close your eyes… Go to sleep. Imagine an imposing building, made of concrete and steel. Bars cover its narrow windows, and tall fences topped with razor wire surround it. Beyond the chainlink perimeter lies dense wilderness, perilous terrain, and hazardous wildlife. The fortifications—be they

Close your eyes. Go to sleep… Imagine a thin, wizened man wearing hand-crafted jewellery and religious headdress. Carrying a cloth-covered basket hanging from a pole over his shoulder, he wanders from town to town… Stumbling upon a festival, the nomad sits cross-legged and places

Close your eyes… Go to sleep. Imagine a majestic lion. Piercing eyes; fiery, flowing mane; glossy, golden coat. Moving with grace and agility which belies its size and power, it leaps onto a platform - to the applause of an enraptured audience. Their adoration of the animal, though, is curtailed by the sudden appearance

Close your eyes… Go to sleep. Imagine a yellowed, faded, dog-eared document. Hand-written on vellum—prepared animal skin—mysterious illustrations, glyphs, and an unknown language adorn its many pages. Scholars and professionals of various disciplines have attempted to translate the centuries-old manuscript on many occasions. Diagrams of people, flora, and strange symbols appear to

Close your eyes… Go to sleep. Imagine a small, insignificant creature. Skin, scales, feathers - it matters not. Having been mortally wounded and then picked at by scavengers, the pitiful animal has managed to evade danger, crawling in a vain attempt to escape death. Succumbing to its injuries, the lowly critter perishes, leaving a

Close your eyes… Go to sleep. Imagine a mound of red clay, taller and wider than any man, in a candlelit attic. Standing on uneven legs, with misshapen arms, and a large head with crude features, the earthen sculpture is a vague approximation of a human being. Admiring his

Close your eyes… Go to sleep. Imagine a wooden figurine dancing on stage in front of a crimson curtain, in a darkened theatre. The grace with which it moves belies its hinged joints and metallic hardware. The spotlight illuminating the figurine catches on several translucent strands dangling above its