Surrounded by darkness—that was how I spent God knows how long. But then, a single sound echoed through the void. One I was very familiar with, but did certainly not expect to hear.
meow — it echoed.
"Moon? Moon!" I screamed. To my surprise, I could actually hear my voice clearly again, and at that very moment my eyes shot open. Immediately, I was hit with a wave of sensations.
I was cold. Very cold. My body was shivering as an intense wind drew all the heat away from me. My surroundings had changed too.
"Where am I? Hello?" As soon as my eyes got used to the darkness and the snowflakes being blown into my face, I instinctively pressed my body into the stone behind me.
"Oh fuck, that's deep." Just a few small steps away from me, the stairs that had been hammered into the side of the mountain were going down into the abyss. I had no idea how far down, but far.
"Please, just get me out of here!" I pleaded to myself.
Meow — it came again.
"I really need to do this, do I?" It seemed like I had no choice but to fight my way up these stairs through the snowstorm. "Carefully!"
With my back still pressed against the cold, wet stone, I slowly made my way up. Step by step. The stone was slippery, and every time my foot touched a piece of ice that had formed on the stone, I had to stop to regain my footing.
"Please…"
Then the stairs did a hard turn, leading into a small tunnel-like hole that had been carved into the mountain.
Both hands against the walls, I took cover from the storm.
"At least I'm safe here," I sighed. "Still, where am I?" I was completely lost.
Meow
"Moon!" I yelled.
"Moon, where are you?"
Meow
"Come here!"
No answer.
"Are you up there?" I asked, more to myself.
'What is up there?' Slowly, I moved further. 'Maybe… is this the stairway to heaven?'
What I saw next made that option sound very plausible. As I exited the small tunnel that had protected me from the wind, I found myself above the clouds, the blizzard roaring beneath me.
In front of me was a wide, beautiful staircase, lined to the left and right with beautiful lanterns handcrafted from stone, each one containing a mesmerizing violet flame flickering inside.
"Wow, this is…"
Meow — everything went black once more, except for the image of a white cat sitting on the stairs, slowly fading away.