There it is. The same thing I see every night; those blood, red trees. What do they mean? They say your dreams say things about your life. But I don’t understand what this could possibly be saying. I guess the first time I had this blasted nightmare, it looked like a strange variation of the Salem Witch Trial; stakes covered in blood.

I can’t even explore the dream. I’m stuck, unable to move or speak. But the sounds. God, the sounds drive me to insanity. It sounds like the sun is screaming in my ears and the ravens caw and circle me as if I’m dead. When I wake, I’m exhausted and the awful hallucination is all I think about. At work, at school, everywhere, my mind is shrouded with whatever this could mean. Tonight, I plan to venture, even though I haven’t been able to before. I looked up how to lucid dream and prepared for the night. When I awake in the dream, I stand still, as always.

“Why does this happen? Wait!”

I could speak. Which meant I could likely move around. I crane my neck to get a better look around. The sky is breathtaking, almost suspiciously so. My body feels stiff, but I shuffle my legs and walk to the closest tree. As my hand slides over the bark, it feels smooth and slippery, but then I get a splinter.

“Ow.”

I pick out the splinter and see that my blood appears more orange than red.

“What…?” If this tree is made of blood, it can’t be mine.

Just then, the corvids come soaring down towards me. I run. I run fast and as far as I can until I climb a tree to hide in. Then I realize; the birds weren’t after me. Or maybe they were, but they’re nowhere in sight.

“Drip… drip…”

I feel something hit my cheek and I wipe it. It’s red blood, the exact shade of the trees. I look up in terror, staring into the cold, dead eyes of one singular crow. As I look around, the other avians are suspended in other trees by the sharp limbs. I exhale, having held my breath.

“But… I still don’t know what this means…” I ponder to myself.

I wake up the next morning to a raven croaking outside my bedroom window.

The worst part, it had blood on its chest.