The Dream: The Personification of Imperialism?

While reading the first few sections, many emerging themes became clearer as the novel progressed, yet one small question that arose in the first section never seemed to be answered. After our unnamed narrator discusses how he longs for a simple life, he has a convoluted and dark dream. In his dream he describes mass amount of snow fall lit by an "aura" of ubiquitous light. He finds himself in the same surroundings of his outpost, yet the walls, trees, and houses have "dwindled" (pg. 9). Children building snow castles topped with little red flags surround him. All the children seem to melt away as he moves past them except one hooded figure that continues building her wall. This description is so vague that I felt like it could be interpreted a number of ways, but as I read it a few times I developed my own take on our nameless narrator's bedtime thoughts.
Could these children possible be the future generation of imperialists? Is the fading of the surrounding trees and houses and foreshadowing of imperialistic doom? Truly, I am not sure, but as I read this passage, I could not help but sense an ominous tone. The haunting image of young children planting red flags into their pure white snow castles was one reason for my hunch. The figures seem to fade away as the narrator passes them, perhaps suggesting he is not like them. Throughout the novel thus far, I have noticed a great disconnect between the brutal Colonel and the compassionate narrator. Perhaps the figures' disappearance signals a disconnect between their world of imperialistic aspirations and his desire for a peaceful, quiet life. The final encounter the narrator has with the figure that does not dissappear raised a few ideas in my mind. First, this could be foreshadowing for some immovable and irreversible imperialistic force; second, as I continued to read the novel I thought this girl may represent the narrator's "barbarian" lover. This dream continues to perplex me, but that is precisely why it interests me so much.