Albedo, nigredo, rubedo. Your final referral to the Alchemist sequence clarified the matrix for this dreamy and allegoric/symbolic Ethan's trip. At times, it reminded me of the Apocalypse of St. John or a painting of Hyeronimus Bosch. I'm impressed by your creative process. As Erika said, mind the present continuous/past perfect swings 😉
Yes, @bananafish. You have told me about the present/past thing before. I need to research that topic to make it more clear for myself. I'm getting myself confused somewhere.
Thanks for reading.