Underground

A while ago I had a dream about accidentally stumbling upon an underground facility. It was the secret hideout of a passionate aquarist who had recently passed away. Married life had forced her to keep only a couple of aquariums indoors, but she’d always wanted more. Hence this place; it held dozens of tanks, ranging from small ones with shoals of little fish, to enormous ones where 4-metre long arapaimas lurked. All was dark and gloomy, but one tank shone blue in the darkness. And in there hung a common dolphin, quietly staring up at the surface as bright light caustics danced on her skin.

I have tried to portray what I saw in my dream, in which I only partially succeeded. I know the dolphin doesn’t look very ‘real’, but that’s how she was - she looked more like a textbook illustration come to life than a real physical animal. Stranger still, I recognised her as one of useless-machine's characters, Aura. I find it intriguing what elaborate stories and worlds we can construct in our dreams.