The writing prompt for this piece was Write about a character coming out of a long hibernation (either literal or metaphorical).
An Awakening
YAWNNN!
My eyes slowly opened. It took a while for the fog to clear from my brain and the fuzzy scene ahead of me to clear up.
As I looked around me, I noticed that things had changed since I had fallen asleep. I remember being lost in the woods. I remember the fear of what was in the woods. There were wild animals, who I was sure were looking for a tasty treat.
There were hunters, some out for sport, some out for necessity, some out just to protect themselves.
How did I fit into all of this?
Of course, with no mirror to reflect my visage to me, how had I changed, and for how long was I asleep?
The cobwebs in my brain began to loosen themselves. More memories came back to me. It wasn’t the woods I had been in but a room of some sort. Three walls were white, and the fourth wall had a definite locked gate. Was it a cage or a prison cell? Why was I there? Someone must have put me here. I remember hearing a voice and felt a sharp sting on my arm. The next thing I knew was waking up here.
But I’m not in a cell anymore. It appears I’m in an unknown forest.
What is happening?
I steady myself and discover that I am not being restrained. I am mobile. As I move forward, I hear the speech.
“Get rid of them all,” is shouted out. “Find them before they get to you.”
What could that mean? Who is talking? Where am I?
“They’re not like us,” the voice continued. “It would be better if they’re gone permanently.”
This was followed by a large cheer from just beyond the woods I found myself in.
I was going to go forward to see what all this was about when I heard a voice behind me call out, whispering loudly, “Not that way, Follow me.”
I turned to see someone in a green suit. I would have said it was Peter Pan, but I knew better.
I’m not sure why I trusted him, but I did as he said.
He led me further into the woods and then out into a clearing where several other people were sitting on the ground, looking just as confused as I was. This green-clad person pointed to a spot next to one of the ones on the ground.
I sat.
Before I could say anything, a voice said, “There is no hope for them. They don’t follow reason. For them, this world is a plaything, not a place to inhabit. Let them be, and they will destroy themselves.”
More things became clear in my mind. Despotic rulers, climate change, hatred, bigotry, and lies.
“Follow me,” said the green-clad man, “and we will go to a better place, a better world, one of hope, one of trust, one of caring and empathy, one worth fighting for.”
I was about to get up and join the others and follow this idealist when I stopped. I called out, “If this world is worth fighting for, then let’s fight, not abandon those unaware of what’s happening. Let’s educate them and build our world here, not somewhere else.
I don’t know what made me say it. It might even be why I was put in that cell before being rescued. But it made much more sense than giving up and running away.
As luck would have it, I wasn’t the only person that felt that way. We all did. We chose not to leave with that green-clad man. We would be the hope for change.
Last I heard, the green-clad man returned to that group on the other side of the woods and called out to their leader that he had failed.
