Written by Salim Al-Mumin


    Once upon time; not too long ago in fact, during a dreadful time of our modern history, there was a terrible war; a war built upon the foundation of corruption and reinforced by way of deception. This war fueled the flames of hate and ignorance, and fostered distrust in the hearts of men. It was a war that caused terror to spread throughout the world, and it was ironically called a "War on Terror". This war was started because of the lies told by evil men who sat upon gilded thrones of power. The scum of the Earth were these wicked fiends, because they cared nothing for the people they hurt in their bloody quest for control and avarice. So many lives were lost during this war; so much pain...so much suffering...so many tears, but amidst the terror and agony caused by this war there were heroes who aided in the effort to stop the violence and shed light upon the truth. Our story is about one very special hero with a miraculous heart of gold. He helped reveal the deception of the fraudulent war, but that is merely where our story begins. Even he knew not what fantastic fate lay in store for him.
    We join our young hero, Zack Majors, in a POW camp confined to a cell where he awaits his court martial. Poor Zack sat alone in his cell regretting not his actions which led him to be in this place, but instead grimacing at the inhumanity of his captors and the bloody war of which they were all the victims of. What is Zack's crime, you might ask? Those in positions of corrupt authority would call it "aiding and abetting the enemy", but those of a more honest and moral mindset would refer to it as whistle-blowing. It was important documents that Zachary leak detailing the criminal actions perpetrated by the military and the government against the people of the world. To some he was a hero. To others he was a traitor, but regardless of how the rest of the world viewed him, our young truth-speaker was for now detained and alone.
    It was late in the night, nearly the hour of midnight, as young Zack laid down on the cot in his cell. He rested his head against the pillow and closed his eyes in the hopes of dreaming. For many months his dreams were his only means of escaping from the terrible horrors he watched unfold around him, and of the dreams he would dream there was one very particular vision which would continue to return to his mind night after night. It started when he was still very young; between the ages of ten and twelve to be exact, and over time the dream grew more consistent and ever more vivid. It grew so vivid, in fact, that after awhile it ceased to feel like a dream, and began to appear so real until Zack felt he could almost reach out and touch it. In the dream he saw the most extraordinary kingdom. It was a land filled with wonders the likes of which would never be seen on Earth. There was a grand forest which went on for miles, and made up much of the land.
    This forest was not like the ones you'd see at Yellowstone or Yosemite, for the flora was tinted varying degrees of pink and purple, and the trees and flowers in that forest bore a truly alien form and shape. In this land, there were seven great rivers. The rivers were clear as crystal quartz, but in addition to be crystalline they were also strangely dyed with brilliant hues of color. There was a river as red as the crimson skies at dawn and dusk. There was another which was as orange as the autumn leaves. Another was as golden as the golden sun, and yet another still was as green as clovers. The remaining three rivers were blue as sapphires, as indigo as the evening sky, and as purple as a bouquet of violets. All of these rivers converged and poured down a great waterfall into a vast valley forming a marvelous rainbow river which ran for miles toward the horizon to distant countries unseen, but before this river vanished into the distance it ran through a golden city with towers standing tall piercing into the clouds and dwarfing even the great ebony mountains that stood just to the west. The city was like a sight straight from the tales of Scheherazade; with a grand, enormous palace nestled right in its heart like a jewel in a crown. The palace, like the rest of the city, was made of pure gold, but in addition to its solid gold bricks it was also adorned from top to bottom with rubies, amethysts, emeralds, and opals. There was a pair of giant jade doors which made up the entrance to the palace, and it was before these giant doors that Zack would find himself every night that he would dream of this phantasmal place.
    The dream would always begin the same way. Zack would feel himself flying through the air like a bird riding the winds. He'd soar high over the great forest following the colored rivers to the point where they converged, and then he'd swoop down in a free-fall; falling so close to the falls that his face could just nearly kiss the water. Nearing the bottom, he'd quickly pull up just seconds before crashing head-first into the jagged rocks below. Soaring low over the rainbow river, he'd continue his high-speed flight until he could see the great wall surrounding the Golden City. As he approached, he'd begin to ascend over the wall entering the city gliding past the many towering minarets, and as he would approach the palace he would start to descend until he finally came to a stop at the foot of the great steps which lay just before the giant jade doors. Slowly he would start to walk up the steps, and as his foot made contact with the first step the doors of jade would begin to drift open groaning loudly as they did so. Zack would continue moving toward the top of the steps and when he reached the top there would be a figure there waiting for him.
    It was a young boy; nearly Zack's own age. The dreams began when Zack was about ten years old, but no matter how old he grew to be the young boy at the top of the steps would still look to be around his age. He seemed to grow up along with Zack. The young boy wore rich and regal clothing. He looked like royalty, and so Zack assumed him to be a prince. He wore quite a bit of jewelry as well. The boy bore three golden rings; one on his right hand and two on his left. He had emerald-studded earrings and wore silver armbands with opal amethysts decorating the surface of each band. Around his neck, was a necklace with a small golden effigy of the sun that had a fiery ruby nestled in its center. His eyes were hazel and seemed to reflect the gleam of the Golden City which appeared to make his eyes shine a slight shade of orange; a rather interesting contrast to Zack's own shimmering blue eyes. His skin was a light caramel color. His hair was black as a raven's wing and hung down just slightly below his shoulders.
    When Zack first dreamed of the prince in his early youth, his attire was very modest and respectable; as if his mother had dressed him, but as they both aged with the passing years the prince's appearance changed gradually becoming more and more loose and provocative. He still wore all the jewelry which he had when Zack first dreamed of him, but now that Zack was twenty-one the prince seemed to have lost nearly all sense of propriety. He did not wear a shirt or vest, but a bright red sash which hung from his left shoulder and draped down across his chest and abdomen to the right side of his hip. He wore orange silk pants that fit him loosely, and though they wore loose upon his calves and thighs they were held up on his body by a wide leather belt which wrapped tightly around his waist. A scimitar, sheathed in its scabbard, hung from his side, and on his feet he wore a pair of grayish-brown tall boots that reached halfway up his calves. Despite his small stature which appeared to be just slightly more than five feet high; fairly short when compared to Zack's five foot-seven, the prince was lean with a meek yet very athletic body. A cinematic film buff might even say that he bore a very vague resemblance to Sabu Dastagir. This is how the prince appeared in the most recent of dreams that Zack dreamed when his sleeping mind would return to this mysterious place.
    Each time he would dream of this place and the prince throughout the years the dream would always begin the same, but the events which would follow after his arrival would always vary. Sometimes he and the prince would play within the walls of the palace. Other times they would frolic in the palace garden; a massive greenery which was more like a small forest than a garden. As they grew older, their adventures took them beyond the palace, and even beyond the city. They would race through the golden streets, they would swim and fish in the rainbow river, they would fly on the backs of giant eagles, and sail on a small yacht out to sea; a strange sea so beautiful and mystifying that it seem to glow and gleam with an otherworldly blue luminescence when struck by the light of the two moons which rode across the night sky. These were the fantastic escapades Zack would savor every night that his restless mind would travel back to this mystical land. This dream of this fantasy realm and his phantasmal prince helped him through some of the toughest times of his life. Through the divorce of his parents and the alienation he faced for his sexual orientation; throughout the many hardships he faced in his young life this dream of this marvelous place helped him to be strong. In fact, it was at the hardest times that his dreams would spirit him away back to this wondrous world and his dashing young prince, and now as Zack laid still and quiet in his cell he wondered if at this darkest hour of his life he would see his prince again; for more than anything he needed to see a familiar and friendly face. Little did he know or suspect what this night was to bring and how it would change his life forever.
    Zack felt himself slip into a deep sleep, the deepest sleep that he had slept since his enlistment in the military nearly two years ago, and it had also been about two years time since he last saw his prince and dreamed of the magical Golden City. Deeper and deeper into restful slumber he felt himself fall until he began to feel himself flying. Zack opened his eyes to find himself soaring through a great void toward a far light which looked like a star shining in the distance. Before long the light grew into a blinding radiance which burned Zack's eyes, but he could not help but continue racing toward it. The black void transformed into an all-encompassing brightness, and as quickly as it had consumed him it vanished giving way to an indigo sky dotted with twinkling stars and two crescent moons which seem to bow to one another as they graced the night with their light. Zack recognized this sky. He looked down and saw a great magenta forest below him. Zack smiled for the first time in many months; for he knew where he was. He was in his dreamland; his magical fantasy world, and he was going to see his prince again after all this time.
    He soared high over the Magenta Forest following the seven great rivers to the falls where he then swooped down cheering wildly as he free-fell toward the rainbow river below. He glided low over the river, and playfully splashed the water as he continued his incredible flight; laughing merrily like a schoolboy on the first day of Summer. Approaching the wall of the Golden City, he started to ascend and flew on past the sky-scraping minarets on a straight course for the palace. He came to a gentle stop at the foot of the steps leading up to the mighty jade doors. As always, when his foot touched the first step the doors began to slowly swing open. Zack's heart began beating faster with excitement as he raced up the steps anxious to see his handsome prince once more, but his excitement turned to disappointment to find no one waiting for him when he reached the top. Zack began to wonder if his dreams were starting to emulate the present bleakness of his life. He let out a sigh and sulked in despair, but then he felt a sharp slap against his left shoulder and a voice zestfully cry out,

"TAG! You're It!"
    
    Zack turned to see the prince standing behind him smiling with the same dashing smile he had seen so many times before in his dreams. It was a smile of warmth, friendliness, and youthful innocence that he had all but forgotten. Zack's heart was alight. All the dread and pain of the past two years seemed to melt away, and Zack felt like a happy child once more. The prince seemed even more charming and lively than ever. There was a certain zest and love of life that seem to radiate from his every pore.

"Come on! Try and catch me, slowpoke!" Cried the prince, and with that he darted past Zack and down the palace hall.

Without a moment's hesitation Zack raced after him. Up and down the halls they ran. Though they were no longer children, the spirit of childhood was alive in both Zack and his prince. Returning to this wonderland, this mysterious kingdom of his heart seemed to heal Zack's soul. He had found his smile once again.
    There was one odd thing that Zack noticed as he chased the prince up and down the halls. The prince seemed to have developed a strange ability to completely disappear from sight only to suddenly reappear just as mysteriously. There were many times Zack was sure he had the prince cornered, but always the prince managed to somehow elude him. When Zack was certain he was hiding in a room, he would suddenly hear the prince call to him from out in the hallway.

"Why are you so slow?" "I'm not over there! I'm over here!" "You can do better than that, can't you?" These were his playful taunts.

This strangeness only grew more pronounce when their chase took them into the palace garden. The prince would run past a tree or bush only to disappear and then reappear out from behind another tree or bush. The prince laughed; playfully teasing Zack as he ran this way and that way. After awhile Zack stopped to catch his breath, but as he looked around he noticed he couldn't see or hear the prince anymore. Zack scratched his head as his eyes searched around, and then he called out,

"Hey, Prince?! Where did you go?"

    All of a sudden Zack felt a great weight fall upon him and heard the sound of a jovial howl. The prince had climbed up into the trees and dove down from a branch just above Zack tackling him to the ground. The two young friends tussled with one another; rolling around in the grass until the prince managed to pin Zack to the ground with his arms over his head. They were both giddy with laughter. Then the prince leaned forward and whispered,

"Please don't call me prince. My name is Namir."

Zack repeated the name back in his head, and remarked to himself how good a name it was.

"Prince Namir." He thought. "What a perfect name."

Then Zack wondered why he'd never known his name before this night. Namir suddenly jumped up and said,

"I want to show you something amazing."

Namir then stood up straight on the tips of his toes with his arms down by his sides. He placed his right index finger beside his nose and with a wink he started to twirl around in place like a top. He spun about faster and faster until he became a man-sized whipping whirlwind. Zack stood up in amazement for he could not believe his own eyes. The whirlwind circled around him before racing off back inside the palace. As it spun away Zack heard Namir's voice calling back,

"Catch me if you think you can!"
    
    Zack chased after the royal dust devil. The chase led him back through the halls of the palace and to the main entrance where the giant jade doors still hung wide open. He pursued the spectral cyclone down the steps and into the golden city streets. Even with the absence of the sun, the brilliant moonlight was bright enough to cause the golden streets and buildings to glisten and gleam gracing the night with a powerfully bewitching ambiance. The whirlwind whisked and whipped to and fro, this way and that way as Zack stayed hot on its trail. Then it suddenly stopped and started twirling around hovering over one spot in the middle of the golden street. Zack watched as the whirlwind slowly dissipated; shrinking in size until it vanished completely, and once it was gone in its place rested a small pale-white egg. A look of total confusion consumed Zack's face as he was starting to question if he was really seeing this or if he was going insane.

"Namir?" He called out wondering where the prince had gone.

    Zach started to reach down to pick up the egg when suddenly it exploded with a great spark. A bluish-green smoke filled the air around him. The fumes seeped into his lungs and started him to cough. Zack swung his arms around to try and fan away the smoke and cried out,

"Namir?!"

A figure appeared within the smoke and once the smoke had cleared Zack could see clearly that there was a raven standing where the egg once sat. He looked down at the bird as it stared back up at him. Peering into the raven's eyes, Zack could see they were the same hazel color as Namir's.

"Namir?" Zack asked once more.

However without so much as even a nodding response the raven flew up and pecked Zack on the nose. Zach grabbed his nose in surprise and cried aloud,

"Ow! What the fu--?"

Before he could finish his sentence however he felt his body shrinking. In the blink of an eye, Zack's arms turned into feathered wings, his legs and feet became avian, and his mouth transformed into a beak. White plumage now covered his entire transmogrified body. Zack then awoke to the realization that he had been transformed into a dove. Zack's level of shock and amazement continued to steadily rise. Even for a dream this was proving to be more than he could have ever expected. Still fluttering overhead, Namir the Raven called down to him and said,

"Follow me. Let's see if you're faster on the wing than you are on your feet." And with that Namir flew off laughing with sprite-like zeal.

    It took him a couple of tries, but Zack soon managed to get off the ground into the air and took to flight after the impish prince. Their rambunctious chase continued through the air; swooping, ducking, and darting over, past, and around the towers and buildings of the Golden City. It was an aerial game of tag and a most unusual sight to see; a dove and a raven playfully chasing each other through the star-lit skies. Higher and higher the chase took them until the Golden City looked to be no more than a shimmering gem gleaming amongst the surrounding wilderness far below. Then just as Zack finally caught up to Namir a loud noise like the chime of a bell rang out through the night. With a flash of white light the feathers began to fly off both men as they resumed their human forms once more. Zack began to panic the instant they started to fall from the heavens toward the ground.

"Oh, my god! We're going to die!" He screamed.

    Prince Namir however didn't seem a bit phased, and merely smiled as he took out two feathers which he had tucked away between his belt and waist. He blew on the feathers and released them from his hand. As both feathers flew upward they ignited into flames. The flames flared into great infernos, and then out of the smoke and fire a pair of ornate magic carpets materialized. The carpets swooped down; catching both Zack and Namir safely in their silky grasp. Riding upon their new silken steeds, the two young men slowly drifted downward back toward the Golden City.

“Did you really think I’d let us die?” asked Namir smugly “I’ve always got a trick or two up my sleeve. You never need to worry when you’re with me, Zack. I’ll always keep you safe.”
    The magic carpets carried Zack and Namir back down toward the palace. They drifted to a high balcony upon one of the palace’s many towers. Once they both had stepped off the carpets onto the balcony the carpets burst into flames and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

“This has been the craziest dream I’ve ever had!” Zack exclaimed both overwhelmed and astonished.

“You seem so certain that this is a dream.” Prince Namir said smiling.

Zack placed his hand on his forehead and brushed back his curly red hair.

“I wish this wasn’t a dream.” Zack said with a sigh.

He walked over to the railing of the balcony and stared up at the twin moons.

“I wish I could stay here forever. Every time I dream of this place I always feel so alive. It’s almost like part of me belongs here.”

Namir walked over beside Zack and placed his hand upon his shoulder.

“Do you really mean that, Zack? Do you really wish you could stay?”

“Of course I do!” Said Zack turning to look into Namir's eyes before shyly looking back toward the night sky. “I wish I could stay. I wish you and this place were real, but I know it’s just a dream, and when I wake up you’ll be gone.”

    Prince Namir patted Zack on the back and chuckled for a bit. Then he took a few steps back and snapped his fingers. To Zack’s surprise a small glowing sphere of light appeared in the palm of his hand. Namir took his finger and began twirling it around the light orb as it hovered there above his palm. Faster and faster he moved his finger around the sphere of light, and as his finger revolved around it the shape of the sphere morphed, stretched, and flattened. After a few seconds it hallowed out in the middle forming the shape of a ring. Namir then clasped his two hands together around the ring-shaped globule and blew into his hands. Zack could see the light glowing from between Namir’s fingers. The prince looked Zack in the eyes and whispered gently,

“Perception is the key. What you perceive forms your reality, Zack. If you want to alter your reality you must first alter your perception.”

    Namir then opened his hands and there in the palm of his hand rested a ring; an actual golden ring. Namir took Zack’s hand and placed the ring in his palm.

“Consider this your gift. It can help you change how you see the world around you. Anytime you want to come back all you have to do is put it on and let its energy surge through you.”

Zack gazed at the golden ring which now rested in his hand. He could feel a strange warmth and energy seem to radiate from the ring and resonate through his arm all the way to his heart. It made him feel at peace with himself, every painful thought and doubt which resided in his mind seemed to disintegrate as this feeling of bliss and comfort brought ease to every fiber of his being. Namir took a few steps back and looking Zack in the eyes once more, he said,

“Until next we meet, my friend.”
 
Then suddenly the sound of gunfire and explosions filled the air. Zack looked up and around in a panicked fright. When he turned back to ask Namir what was going on he found that he was no longer there. Zack turned around again to the sound of bombs going off and guns being shot. The instant he turned about he found he was no longer in the magical kingdom he had dreamed of, but found himself once again on the battlefield in the heat of combat. A flood of memories rushed back to him and his heart winced in terror. Zack rushed for cover. There was gunfire to the left of him, gunfire to the right of him; bullets filled the air and the sound of explosions were everywhere. Zack looked all around him; careful to keep his head down, trying to spot who was fighting who and figure out where he was, but everywhere he looked all he could make out were shadows. Zack huddled in a fetal position pinching himself trying to wake up from what he was convinced was a nightmare.

“I’m still just dreaming! It’s just a dream! Wake up, Zack! It’s time to wake up!” He told himself over and over, but still the nightmarish scene played out before him and seemed to grow worse by the second.

    The land and sky grew as red as blood and the shadowy figures grew more horrid and monstrous in shape. Blazing white eyes were their only noticeable features. Suddenly the sound of screams split the heavens. It was like a thousand people screaming at once out of pain and anguish. Zack covered his ears as his heart leapt up into his throat. For all the screams Zack heard, a million faces and scenes flashed before his eyes. He saw people dying by the hundreds, he saw families torn apart, he saw mourning mothers and fathers, and children crying out in terror, and just when he thought he could take no more he heard another sound.
    Zack looked up into the sky to see a demon riding atop a military drone. The drone and the demon were clothed in hellish fire. The demon stood upon the wings of the drone as it streaked through the sky leaving a trail of flames behind it which seemed to linger and scorch the air as it continued on in its flight. The appearance of the demon was surreal. It wore a fancy suit and tie; like the kind a businessman or politician would wear. In one hand it held a pen which was constantly bleeding blood from the tip, and in the other hand it held the ravaged corpse of a pure white dove. It had a scorpion’s tail and great gnarly horns protruding from the top of his enormous head. The face of the devilish bastard was the strangest of all, for its face was always in the midst of transformation.    One moment it would bear the face of an old man, then the next it would shift to that of a middle-aged woman, then to an older woman, and then a middle-aged man. Even the coloration of the beast’s skin would change along with the face. Sometimes its complexion was pale white, and other times it was dark as coal, but regardless of its face and its skin color its mouth remained a gaping hole from which nothing but acidic venomous bile endlessly flowed. Zack gasped in horror as he saw the monster turn in its flight. It was heading straight for him. Sweat streamed down Zack’s brow. In a panic, he jumped up and tried to make a run for it, but no matter how hard he ran his feet felt like they were encased in cement blocks. It was as if he wasn’t moving at all; as if time had slowed down to a crawl. The demon drew closer and closer to Zack as he raced against the force which tried to hold him back. Then from the fiery drone a missile was launched. Zack tried to run faster with all his might, but it was to no avail. The missile crashed down and exploded at Zack’s heels. The flames engulfed him, and he felt his body being propelled through the air. Once again a million screaming fright-filled faces flashed before Zack’s eyes and then he felt his body hit the ground with a thud.
    Zack opened his eyes with a gasp. As he looked around he found himself once again alone in his cell. His face and clothes were dripping with sweat. He picked himself up off the floor and sat back down on the cot. He planted his face into the palms of his hands, and said

“It was all just a dream.” He said in an attempt to calm himself.

Zack lifted his face up from his hands and sighed, taking in a deep breath. It was then that he happened to look down on the floor where he had fallen, and there on the floor he saw something glistening. He knelt down to pick it up. It was the ring from his dream, the very same ring that his friend, Prince Namir, had given him.

“Oh, sweet God! It can’t be!”

Holding the ring in his hand, Zack began to wonder just how much of a dream it had all really been.