Swamp of Broken Dreams

The Swamp of Broken Dreams

The Swamp of Broken Dreams was a mystical realm located somewhere neither here, nor there. It was a place which defied all logical constructs of space, time, and everything in between. The swamp was home to the forgotten and downtrodden; to the ghosts of the past which history had buried in the dark veil of nonexistence. The Residents of the Swamp of Broken Dreams were remembered by no one, yet forced to roam the barren wastes, reminiscing eternally about when they had been known.

Inside the Swamp

The Swamp was populated with ancient relics from across the many civilizations of Earth. Sunken Mesoamerican pyramids sat stagnant in the bog, half submerged in mud, slowly seeping deeper into the dark depths of the Swamp. Beige, western office complex buildings occupied the rare clearings of the swamp. They were devoid of furniture or life; save for the lights. The lights were on. And they never turned off.

Computers and televisions dotted the swamp's surface, often sitting in clusters of seven or eight, with keyboards and mice floating gently nearby. The occasional swivel chair could be spotted among these; however, usually the Residents were quick to sweep them up, whisking them away to whatever dark hole they'd made their home.

Swamp

Entering the Swamp

The Swamp was not easy to find; indeed, those who found it had seldom sought it out. Often, those who entered the realm never realized they'd become lost, until it was far too late.

Those who traveled alone; those who had no close friends, no close family, were most susceptible to entering the Swamp. Those who entered would slowly begin to transform into Residents.

Residence in the Swamp

Residents often began to physically decay within hours of entering the swamp. The mosses and algae of the still water would quickly begin to make their way up the legs of the Residents, eventually reaching the chest. At this point, the thick plants would wrap around the ribcage, slowly taking hold of the Resident's body. The mosses would drain the hearts, and the algae drained souls. The Resident would slowly forget all that they had loved; their passions, their fascinations, and most of all, their memories. By this point, the Resident was one with the Swamp, forever and eternally. They had been tethered spiritually to the realm of the forgotten. The Swamp remembered, but the Resident... well, all the Residents could do was forget.

Those stranded in the Swamp of Broken Dreams only remembered one thing, and that was that they had been forgotten.