she stepped into the road, looking

Left and right for on-

coming cars. The taxi opened

its doors like a Kraken’s

Mouth, inviting her in.

she entered and was 

slapped 

by a pungent wave of smoke. It needled at her

Eyes and nose, made her 

weep. For a moment, she contemplated leaving,

but the taxi had already

Closed around her in a tight fist. 

she found herself looking out the window at evolving

Cosmos, an expanse of thin

White lines that disintegrated, only for bolder

Black ones to materialize in

their place. The black strokes 

wrapped around the taxi, propelling it

Forward.

She strapped in.

the smoke was 

Unbearable, so she rolled down the window. She 

looked to the driver: they were unaffected by the 

Smoke. She could see that, no matter how 

murky the taxi was.

She couldn’t remember how long she’d been

in the taxi. Sometime along the way, she had 

rolled up

the window.

Sometime along the way, she had 

forgotten 

How the smoke stung her eyes and nose, how the stench

swallowed her whole, not bothering to spit out

Her bones.

Quiet.

She caressed her face and realized that

Sometime along the way, the smoke had 

eroded

Her sight and smell like water

erodes rock, as they had eroded her faceless

driver, who had turned to ash long ago. The driver

swirled in the smoke

Around her, permeating her ears, the only sense

Left.

Down the road, she heard a

call for a taxi. She took the wheel,

steered towards

The voice. She opened the door

and waited.