Every time
I don’t know why
It is there
They are there
Still behind me
By the dawn’s early light
And sometimes, they go away when I open my eyes
Shouting
Shooting
And I don’t know who they are
I don’t want to be crazy
Who are they?
Those who shout
They are battle-hardened witches
Tormenting me
They are soldiers of fortune
Targeting me
They are naked teenage girls
Taunting me
They are bright balls of burning light
Streaks and rivulets of luminescence
I am heaving, shivering, wet and unclothed
And I’m not dreaming.