An Inside Look into Nightmare in Reverse
One moment, teen Jeremy Brancker is on his way to school, just thinking about classes, friends, and the usual everyday stuff, then the next, his world explodes, and he’s plunged into a reality so bizarre, so disorienting, he can only describe it as pure madness.
This is the harrowing premise of Nightmare in Reverse, a short story that will grab you from the very first sentence and refuse to let go.
Our journey begins with Jeremy Brancker, whose seemingly ordinary morning takes a terrifying turn.
"Something with unprecedented speed and force shot through Jeremy Brancker’s heart suddenly, propelling his lanky, teenage body backwards onto the sun-warmed sidewalk in utter shock.
He landed hard on his back, his hands instinctively clutching at his throbbing chest in anxious terror and confusion.
He heard the thud of his backpack as it too hit the ground next to him with a tiny bounce.
Gasping and feeling his school’s shirt becoming rapidly wet with some warm substance, Jeremy raised his suddenly heavy hand in front of his face, alarmed.
Seeing the impossible red substance staining his hand, sent him into a wild panic." -excerpt taken from Nightmare in Reverse.
What could possibly cause such a violent and sudden shift?
As Jeremy struggles to comprehend the impossible, his reality continues to unravel.
His body feels weird, sluggish and heavy; he becomes increasingly tired and cold, but it doesn’t end there, as the terrifying disorientation escalates, pulling Jeremy further from the familiar.
The confusion, the ringing in his ears, the hot, jagged and breathtaking pain he is experiencing all over his body- it all feels so real and while Jeremy cannot make heads or tails of what he is experiencing, he knows that something is fundamentally wrong.
"Pain- hot, jagged and breathtaking- exploded within his body, erupting from his chest and spreading with agonising precision through his body, robbing his muscles of their strength and mobility, making them feel leaden.
His limbs felt heavy. Too heavy.
‘I gotta get up! I need to move!’ But no matter how much Jeremy panicked and tried to move, his limbs were not responding, leaving him suddenly exhausted, terrified and worst of all, crumpled uselessly on the ground."- excerpt taken from
Nightmare in Reverse.
Just when you think things can't get any worse for Jeremy, he finds himself in a cold, sterile room, completely "off-kilter," convinced he's caught in a hyper-realistic dream.
But here's where the story takes an intriguing twist: in this bizarre dreamscape, Jeremy unlocks new abilities.
Suddenly, what seemed like a horror show transforms into a playground.
Armed with these newfound powers, Jeremy decides to have some fun, to explore the limits of this strange new reality.
However, the fun quickly sours.
A grim announcement from his Principal and Homeroom teacher to his classmates shatters the illusion of a carefree dream.
This isn't entertainment anymore; it's a living nightmare, and Jeremy desperately wants out. He yearns for the simple normalcy of his old life, to wake up and just go home.
"Jeremy was slowly being pulled into a different world, but he did not want to go.
He wanted to get up off of this dirty ground and make his way to school.
He wanted to move…but the warm, comforting rays of the morning sun were shining down onto him, ironically luring him to close his eyes, and give in, even as there was something yelling to him at the back of his mind not to.
Something was tugging at him and yelling that closing his eyes and giving into what he was recognising as the only way to escape this pain was dangerous, but that too was becoming a frail, vague and distant sort of feeling.
Desperately trying to force air into his lungs, Jeremy Brancker heard a terrible rattle in his chest, around that breath, before he lost consciousness and was plunged into a deep, dark, freezing river of nothingness.
‘What is happening to me?’"-excerpt taken from Nightmare in Reverse.
But something is holding him back, refusing to let him return to who he was.
Will Jeremy be able to break free from this terrifying loop and escape what feels like an irreversible nightmare?
Or is this chilling new reality his permanent fate?
Nightmare in Reverse is a suspenseful, mind-bending journey that plays with the very fabric of reality.
It's a story that will make you question what's real and what's merely a figment of a dream.
If you're a fan of psychological thrillers with a supernatural edge, you won't want to miss this one.
Dive into Jeremy's twisted world and find out if he can ever truly wake up.
What do you think is holding him captive in this chilling dream?
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