Into The Cave was lost his sound.
What was in the cave? Would it kill?
Would it help? Would it save?
Raven knew not what was inside
Nor what he should expect to find.
He flew in the cave half by chance,
Half fell in like Wonderland caught Alice.
Pitch black, blacker than his own feathers,
Raven tried to adjust his eyes or grab something to tether.
He wasn't falling like a normal person falls,
But was being being hurtled down this dark hall.
It was a cave but it quickly narrowed in and out, to and fro, here and there, around and about.
He Opened up his wings to try and slow down
But to no avail- there was no ground.
Suddenly, after what seemed like half of a lifetime, Raven smashed the ground- he then felt all the pain of a lifetime.
"Will I die here?" He thought.
No raven just remember what you have been taught.
Raven remembered the words he had been told
He could hardly remember anything now but he tried to be bold.
Closing his eyes, entering the past,
He pictured the words he had heard last.
"Carry on Raven, carry on-"
he remembered as he collected his own.
Climbing to his feet, he was still in great pain.
"Will it leave me or my whole life stain?" He thought
Raven stumbled on, doing as he had been told- keep moving on.
He tried to look back behind him and see if he could fly back out the way he came, but no entrance or exit was in sight- just a long dark tunnel.
After a few minutes of walking in pain, raven stumbled upon and old, crooked sign made of wood many years ago. It said, "prepare yourself wanderer, this cave will test every part of your being."
Raven carried on because no other option was in sight. The tunnle thinned to where he could barely squeeze between the walls. So much physical pain in his whole left side from his fall. Every step it hurt more like he was being set ablaze. Suddenly, Raven found himself in an open room. He looked to his left and there was a small glass mirror on the wall, adjusting to see himself because it was so small, Raven couldn't see anything g wrong with himself or why he was on so much excruciating pain. Just his own two eyes, staring back at him with the same fear he looked at them with. Walking forward, he found a larger mirror, about the size of his head which he could now see most of his reflexion in. Nothing wrong, just the same empty, fearful eyes he had looked into before. Carrying on further, a larger mirror approached him. It showed the same reflexion he had previously seen. Ravens image scared him, not because he was in pain and couldn't see anything wrong, but becuase he could see the fear and uncertainty in his own eyes. A few steps forward, two giant mirrors reminding him of his every flaw. Then three, then six, then, before he knew it, Raven was surrounded by mirros reminding him of his physical pain and fear.he could hardly stand to look at himself. He was truly and deeply afraid if himself, what he had become, and what he was missing. Furthermore, he saw a lack of pride. When he looked at himself in all if those mirrors, there was nothing he was excited from or showed a result from hard work. Raven turned his head and moved on down the path. A sign on the path said, " a sad day it is when you're not proud of your own image in the mirror. "Eyes bloodshot, heart pounding, Raven clawed and stumbled his way past the reflections into the next small tunnel.
As he marched on, this tunnel was similair to the last. It had many mirrors
, or at least, what he thought was mirrors. They were little pools of water on the sides of the wall but instead of showing his reflexion, these pools showed past flaws of Ravens. As Raven trudged past them, they reminded him of different failures he had encountered, mocking him. Raven heard a voice- he looked to his right and saw his beloved Crow there, whispering, "I love you" To him. Raven suddenly forgot the images the pools were showing and kept his eyes locked on his love. A few more steps, however; Raven was mocked again by a replay of one of his previous short coming- one of the times he had failed. Raven felt awful about himself but he looked back at crow and found respite in her words again. A few more steps and this time Raven was reminded of an injury he had while flying that had affected him greatly. He looked at crow for words of affirmation, but only her lips moved- he couldn't hear what she as saying. Raven looked back at the image of his accident playing over and over again. Then back at crow. Crow, his love, her words provided no solace for him. This wasn't because she didn't truly like him, but because the pain was often to great. Crow was soon gone, perhaps it had just been a mirage of her, and Raven was left alone to sit in his failure. He trudged forward, coming up to a small sign. It read, "sometimes your greatest happinesses provide no peace." Raven shook his head and carried on into the next part of the cave.
This part of the cave wasn't like the previous small tunnels. This part opened up to where crow was standing on the edge of a great cliff. He, mostly scared to do so and barely staying mentally sain at this point, looked off the edge of the cliff. He didn't see his twisted reflexion or his past screw ups like earlier, but, rather, a different world. This world had him, crow,'his friends and family, and everyone else in his life now. What was different about it? Raven looked closer at himself down below. His heart dropped -This world off the edge of the cliff showed what Ravens life could have been. It showed him everything he wanted. Instead of seeing other people be and do what he wanted most, Raven was that being. Raven saw everything he ever desired in himself down there. He watched himself perform the way he always wanted, people cheer for him, and all of his past failures meant nothing to him. This was the ideal Raven. This Raven had experienced no pain and therefore feared nothing. Ravens pain had not made him stronger, he realized, but had simply caused him to fear it. Ravens greatest fear was to have to experience more pain. He longed for this life he saw because it showed a painless life without loss and failure. Raven began to cry. He wanted to turn his head but couldn't becuase he was already sucked into this life he could have had. "Why didn't I get this life?" He thought over and over.
A voice behind him brought him out of his questioning.
"Wanderer, what say you?"
"Why have I been out through all of this pain?" Responded Raven. "Can you take me out of the cave?"
The voice was that of a great bear perched high on a different peak.
"If I carried you out, you would forget the journey and the desire to leave you are feeling right now."
"Why did I have to go through this? Why was I constantly in pain and being reminded of my pain? Why was I then shown a life without pain?"
"Where you are now is where you need to be. Think of the great things you have, like Crow. Carry on through the rest of the cave Raven. I can't promise it will be easier."
Raven nodded, thanked the bear, put his head down, and marched on through the rest of the cave.
"Did he make it out?" You are thinking.
The real question is, "Will he make it out?"
