Waking Dreams

Dark horns are what I see

So dark I can only imagine its features

But I know that gaping mouth

That heavy stride

This demon of the night

Owns everything in this space

Confident I won't run

It leans on top of me

Possessing me, suffocating me

I'm chained up in these sheets

Eyes open, mouth unbound

But still I cannot speak

Paralyzed from the bottom up

A waking nightmare

I am a prisoner waiting for an executioner

With claws and teeth bearing my name

I'll tell you all my secrets

Before we play the dying game

Hot breath invading, it comes closer

I can smell the wrongness within

And I just know this is the end

No heroes come crashing in

I'm left helpless where I should be safe

But the sun begins to rise and something changes

The demon leans back on its haunches

Fear prickling its eyes

Light chases it back like it's prey

My fingers twitch and I'm released

I sigh as I finally take a full breath

The shadow creature has reached the wall

Plastered against it like glue

I watch as it silently creeps back out

Shutting the door quietly

And politely dismisses itself from my dreams