It's hard to know how long I've been drifting—bobbing, ebbing, flowing with the mostly gentle current. The fact that I know anything at all boggles the mind that I should no longer have access to.
It feels like an eternity ago, the point at which I wasn't soaking wet. In fact, I'm not totally sure I remember what it was ever like to be dry. Despite the horrible feelings in my gut, the bloating and pressure, I don't feel any real discomfort. Not like before, at least.
The worst thing I'm capable of remembering is also my strongest recollection. Everything before it feels like a conjured dream, with details that don't quite add up. Like a puzzle with improperly shaped pieces. I think, at some point, I was in love… but maybe that's just the gas.
That terrible aforementioned memory is what, I suppose, led to me becoming so wet. I remember thrashing, turning to splashing, screaming turning to gargling, and a strange salty taste in my mouth. My feet felt as though they were entombed in concrete, a nemesis to my own body. All that movement, struggling, and action, all for nothing. God, how I wish I could move even just the tiniest bit. I'd absolutely love to turn my head, to be able to take in my surroundings, but honestly, I'd settle for a twitch of my pinky…
To paraphrase the Lizard King himself, "I was down so goddamn long, that everything looked like up to me." I knew, once I woke in this state, which way was up in a literal sense, as it was the opposite of where my body lay. That is until the gas pains, if you can truly call it "pain," began.
Shifts and changes, twists and turns of the current liberated my shackled feet. I'm not sure how; I couldn't so much as squeak my eyeballs half an inch downwards to see anyway. I felt myself rising, ascending from the darkness to the strange light that tickled my peripherals for what felt like an eternity. Driven upward by my gut, I was certain that I was shedding my mortal coil.
And yet…
That certainty betrayed me. As I gracelessly bobbed above the surface, I swear I felt a wrenching in my lungs. It seemed as though they hadn't received the memo from the rest of my body yet. Nothing filled my chest but briny fluids. Somehow, I found it hard to care.
Now, I see the sky. It's all I've seen for an immeasurable span of time. While not terribly exciting, it's so much better than the alternative…
A short while after my body emerged from its watery metamorphosis, a particularly cruel tide caused me to flop onto my belly. Limp, like a ragdoll, I was powerless to resist. Robbed of the serene blue above me, all I received in return was the haunting depths from which my body escaped. A dark, unforgiving abyss. Sight is all I have, and thus I hungered for stimulation.
I've considered how I'll finally end, and what will give me release from this passive prison, but for now, I satisfy my mind with the views. Although, I wish I could see something new, for a change…
But lo, my prayers are answered! Something snags my leg briefly, turning me to face the mass I float towards. Land ho! I can almost smell the sweet scents of a forested land on the breeze! Feelings I didn't know I had have begun to wash over me.
Tall, lush and beautiful green foliage looms overhead. It's a testament to nature's artistic virtues, contrasted against the sky. The land under me, presumably sand, crunches and shifts as the tide gently places my body on the shores before receding once more.
Perhaps this will be my new home for a while. Plenty of sights to take in. But I can't help but wonder how much longer I'll be stuck in this body.
Suddenly, something catches my eye, if only my eye could follow. A shifting... something moving in the nearby shrubbery? All thoughts of release wash away as I hear a squeaky whine. A small dog-like creature, maybe a coyote, appears in front of my sideways-bent head. A paw lands squarely on my sternum, as more of the beasts come into view. The first one's snout is right in front of my face, blocking my view.
All I see is saliva dripping down pointed fangs, as I feel a small twitch in my pinky finger…
