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SUMMARY: This is a partially edited version of the second of three short stories, which I may turn into a single book with three sub-books. Some sections toward the end may be a little bumpy yet.

Chapter 4

The sky slowly turned from deep black to steely gray as dawn spread over the eastern mountains of southwestern Pennsylvania. Soon the clouds that drifted lazily in the soft spring breezes turned soft pink with edges of crimson red. Birds began to shake off the weight of slumber and sing cheery notes of welcome to another day.
Insects went about their single-minded tasks filling the air with buzzes and hums. Blissfully they worked without thoughts of schedules or responsibilities, only instincts mattered. Below Nigel Grayson's window a Siamese cat stood poised to attack an unsuspecting crow. Bunching up his hind legs, the cat sprang from the cover of the shrubs that surrounded the house. Racing through the yard, the cat leaped high to come on the bird from above. The crow, which had not been fooled, flew away at the last instant cawing with avian laughter.
A gentle wind lifted the sheer curtains of Nigel's room. The cool air caused him to snuggle deeper into his covers hoping for another hour of rest. The warmth of the blankets lulled him back to sleep and soon, the thirty year old found the dark oblivion he sought.
Slipping into a dream, Nigel became aware of motion. A rolling sensation, reminiscent of driving down the winding roads of southwestern Pennsylvania, drew him deeper into the dream. Turning, he tried to fight against the flow of the motion, but could not break free. Facing the direction he was being pushed, Nigel began to notice what he thought were stars filling the dark void he was floating in. The stars rose and fell as if he were riding the surface of giant waves and at the top of the waves he was almost able to touch the nearest one. Struggling hard against the current, he managed to come within inches of the glowing orb.
Nigel could hear the crashing of massive waves as he neared the point of light and felt heat like being near a blast furnace, but the heat came from behind him. Whipping around, he turned full into a fiery blast of flames that pushed him into the mote of light. Instantly, darkness returned. The rolling sensation; however, remained. A loud boom and shake startled Nigel. Sitting up quickly, he opened his eyes and was totally confused. He was in a small room that was tilted up to his left. Slowly the right side of the room began to rise and without warning, the floor dropped out from underneath him.
Looking behind himself, Nigel found a circular window in the wall above his bed. He could see only a shimmering, pale, yellow landscape beyond the porthole. As Nigel watched, the view began to change; to his right, the floor began to rise again. Soon, he could see out to the horizon. The sky was a hazy shade of blue. Another boom shook the room as the floor leveled off and before the world dropped out from under Nigel, he saw massive sprays of sand flying past the window.
The confusion began to fade like a bad dream. The small room was in truth a moderate sized cabin on a deep sand sailing vessel. He had spent the last month sleeping and studying from the bed and small desk that were the cabin's only furniture.