Almost everyone on the planet was dead. Civilization as we know it was reduced to a cross between the Wild West and Mad Max: nearly deserted towns littered the dusty earth with the remnants of buildings and machines.

I walked into town and peered at the buildings around me. Most were nothing more than wooden shacks clinging onto their last nails. A few people wandered to and fro. None gave me much regard. They seemed occupied with either sorrow or apathy. It was a sad, sad sight.

My feet kicked up clouds of dirt. The others avoided walking on the earth directly. I was suddenly aware that I was vulnerable and hurried to a wooden porch.

Below this layer of earth was another world. If you were able to take a cross-section of the earth, you would see a layer of what appeared to be shark cages right below the surface. At the top of the cages was the ground on which I stood. For some reason, the dirt didn't sink into the cages. That was simply how the physics of this world worked.

Below the shark cages was an ocean of green slime. Within the cages existed gremlins with incredible strength and an insatiable appetite for human flesh.

When they were hungry, these gremlins would open the top of a cage, reach up through the earth, and drag a human down. Then they would open the bottom of the cage and drown the human in the slime. Once drowned, the gremlins would feast.

No one ever survived a gremlin attack. Their strength far surpassed any person. Once they had you, you were dead.

To avoid this fate, you simply had to avoid direct contact with the earth. Paved roads didn't exist in this world, but buildings with cement foundations were safe. And with that realization, I entered into the nearest building.

Something within me knew there were more survivors out there that needed help. They didn't have the luxury of being in a town like this and were susceptible to gremlin attacks. So I began to rally every person I saw.

"We can help these people!" I cried. "If you're willing to help me make a difference, meet me in the old school building in two hours."

I ran from building to building with this cry for help. Most shook their heads and turned away. A few apprehensively agreed.

Two hours later, I had four others with me: Genghis, Sandy, Todd, and Matt. We agreed on a plan to find a car and drive out beyond town. If we found any survivors, we'd take them back with us.

We found a car in a nearby garage. It was an old convertible. I jumped into the driver's seat and Genghis sat shotgun. The rest piled into the back.

I drove out of town and followed an old dirt trail. A short, steep hill ran alongside to our left. Fields of grass ran to our right. We drove for several hours but weren't able to find any other towns or survivors. The entire landscape seemed devoid of human life.

Sometime later, we found a large iron gate within the wall-like hill. The road forked and a branch turned into the gate. Beyond this gate, we saw the remains of a vehicle junkyard. Some of the cars had fallen into the shark cage world and parts of the vehicles stuck brazenly out from the earth.

"Do you want to try looking in here?" I asked. The others shrugged and nodded. Cautiously, we pushed open the iron gate with the car and entered.

We all kept our eyes on alert, looking for any signs of life. But we saw nothing except the rotting carcasses of old, rusted vehicles.

As I was driving, Sandy, Todd, and Matt began laughing and playing around in the backseat. What started off as innocent joking became rambunctious and dangerous when they all stood up and sat on the body of the car.

"Stay in your seats!" I shouted. "You'll fall off if you sit up there."

As if it was on cue, Matt suddenly fell off. I didn't immediately notice and kept driving as he dropped onto the earth. Some feet away, I finally noticed and stopped the car.

"Matt, get back in here!" I screamed. "Don't stay on the earth for too long!"

Again, as if on a second cue, we all saw a gremlin slowly crawl out of the ground and onto our world. The gremlin was several feet away from Matt and hadn't noticed him yet. However, it was only a matter of seconds before he'd see Matt and alert the other gremlins below.

Matt got up slowly and shook his head. He was disoriented from the fall. I quickly turned the car around and raced back for him.

Unfortunately, I was too late.

As my car pulled up next to Matt, he disappeared below the earth. Tiny green arms dragged him down. The earth remained open and we could see the cages and slime below. Matt's face was twisted in terror at what was about to happen to him.

I leapt out of the car and stared down the hole. I knew I was no match for the gremlins, so there wasn't much I could do. They pushed Matt into the slime and began to drown him. His screams became bubbles in the slime.

"I should get back in the car," I told myself. The gremlins hadn't yet put their hands on me, so I still had a chance.

But something within me wouldn't give up. I was suddenly filled with resolve. "I can't let Matt die," I declared. "I've got to be stronger than these gremlins."

And just like that, I had the strength.

I jumped into the cage world. The gremlins immediately grabbed me. I tore them off like toys and flung them away. Then I grabbed Matt and pulled him out. He coughed out slime and was still alive.

Off in a distance, more gremlins scrambled towards us. I threw Matt back onto the surface. Then I climbed up after him. At that moment, dozens of gremlin arms grabbed me and pulled me back.

I summoned more strength and smacked them aside. Again I climbed, kicking gremlins along the way. Wave after wave of gremlins rushed me. I kicked them all back. I had one hand on the surface when a sudden ear-piercing, electronic ring deafened me.

And just like that, I woke up.

I blinked a few times and looked at the clock. It was time to get up and go to work. I shook my head, hit the Snooze, and tried to return to my dream. But alas, that Wild West/Mad Max/gremlins & slime in cages world was gone now. I couldn't bring it back and find out if I got away from the gremlins.

Maybe someday, I'll find myself back in that world. And maybe someday, I'll be able to find more survivors. And maybe Genghis, Sandy, Todd, and Matt, who are all coworkers of mine in real life, will stay in the damn car next time.

. . .

What was your last dream about?