Excerpt from 'The Plato Papers'

There was a cave, and the ground sloped downwards. I sensed the smell of that which was neither living nor dead. I believed that I could hear voices and I began walking towards the mouth of the cave. I admit to a slight sense of fear, but I submit that all of us share some horror of darkness. You tell me I was dreaming? This was no dream. I was as wakeful and as watchful as I have ever been.

When I entered the cave, the air seemed so heavy that, for a moment, I believed I could go no further. But the ground still sloped downwards and instinctively I bowed my head as I walked into the darkness. I do not know how far I travelled. It is possible that I did not move at all. Perhaps I stood still. Surely you understand? It had grown to such a pitch of blackness that I could not see my own body or feel aware of my movement. I realized later, of course, what had happened. I was changing dimensions in order to enter the world of Mouldwarp.

--From ''The Plato Papers'' by Peter Ackroyd, published by Nan A. Talese-Doubleday.