Virtual Chains

My eyes opened after what seemed a century

The visions though blurred, had an eerie memory,

The walls were the same, so were the angles

But something tugged hard at my ankles;

I felt restrained, powerless, paralyzed,

But the struggle to get free seemed familiarly analyzed;

I knew where I was, I had been there before

But something felt wrong, I had to see more;

Someone kept telling me exactly what to do,

Though I didn't know the answer to the "Who?"!

I moved like a puppet, tied, yet free;

Yearning for something, but what could it be?

I searched relentlessly, growing anxious all the more

I wanted to know at least what was I looking for.

Time was warped, I lost the sense of reason;

But somehow I knew of the changing seasons.

And then, there it was, shining right in front, at my arm's reach

The secrets, the revelations, now was the time to beseech;

The moment when all the truth would be revealed,

And the endless misery forever concealed!

"Annie! Are you dreaming again???", the voice called out,

He shook my arm and kept rambling on, about

The deadlines we had and the weird smelling air;

Once again, I was back in my office chair.

He continued his babble but I was already lost

Running frantically along paths that were jumbled and crisscrossed

Captive in a world with the demons of my mind,

Where a roaring and rumbling storm was realigned.

As always no one saw, the terrors buried deep within me,

Yet again all they saw, was the happy face I let them see.