Dreamcatcher

by Christian Rosnell

  I guess they are the ones, then.

  After thinking for a moment, the King of the Dreamscape opened his eyes and poured himself another drink, motioning to the First for the same, who shook his head ‘no thanks’. Nodding, Decimader filled his drink to the top and held it up, peering through the multi-layered ice and diamond at his sparkling city below. It was a pretty cool sight to see.

  “Alright, my friend, so here’s the plan…”

  End of Part IV

  Chapter Forty-One

  A week after his strange meeting with the First Legend, Lyght landed his last blow at the Legion Academy.

  Spinning out of range and swinging himself around the trunk of a tree – barely avoiding a vicious cut to the head – Lyght make a full circle and put on a spurt of Dreamcasting as he was exactly halfway around the tree, hidden from his opponent, and came around the other side much faster than his enemy would’ve expected. Lyght leveled the blunted weapon straight at his enemy’s gut, slamming it home through his guard with an explosion of speed and power (aided of course by Dreamcasting) that sent his enemy sprawling in the dirt, abdomen surely bruised from the impact of both Lyght’s sword and his own hitting him simultaneously. The bell rang just then, signaling the end of the exercise – an exercise that Lyght knew marked the last training at the Legion Academy before the Final Test. A test that, so it seemed, he and Mikael would be exempt from. As long as they carried out this “mission” of the King’s, whatever that was.

  Lyght couldn’t help thinking about that now. The note he’d received from the First Legend had said to come to the King’s office a week from then at midnight to receive his orders – which was tonight. It coincided nicely with the end of training; making Lyght wonder if that was intentional on the First Legend’s part.

  And speaking of the First Legend, Lyght had been unable to stop thinking for the past week about his short, surprise meeting with the First, and his abrupt exit without ever having said anything to Lyght. He’d just handed Lyght the note, and walked out. The note had said the First was pleased to see him, and that he’d been “looking forward to it for a long time”. Why then, wouldn’t the Legend talk to him? Was he somehow disappointed in Lyght for some reason? Why would he be? It bothered Lyght more than he wanted to admit.

  So all that was left today was Lyn’s final class, which probably wouldn’t feature too much material (if any), and then Lyght was off for the day to go change and prepare for his all-important meeting with Decimader Vuruman. He was already tense with anticipation for the meeting hours from now, at midnight, which would determine what he and Mikael had to do to be initiated immediately into the Legion. While all the other students were about to undergo the Final Test, which had a low pass rate of about twenty five percent, Lyght and Mikael were about to put their own talents on the line to try and win their way right into the Legion. He couldn’t wait.

  One more thing to take care of, though…

  As the bell sounded, many of the students, tired of the fighting and exercising and glad to be done, headed into the base for Lyn’s final class. Lyght was going to go inside in a minute, but first he wanted to talk to his opponent in the exercise they’d just finished. Walking over to where the guy still lay sprawled on the dusty ground, Lyght reached down a hand to help him up. After significant hesitation, the kid on the ground grabbed Lyght’s outstretched hand and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. He dusted himself off and checked his injury underneath his light ringmail and shirt, revealing a nasty deep maroon bruise cutting diagonally across his abdomen, a good four or five inches long and bleeding, even. Lyght raised a hand to the back of his neck awkwardly and apologized as he saw the damage.

  “Ouch… sorry Ben.”

  The kid who had so often questioned Lyght’s leadership throughout the course of the program looked at him with that characteristic look of disdain, “You knew the bell was about to go off, and you were clearly winning. Why did you have to take that shot anyway?”

  Lyght shook his head, “No, I wasn’t clearly winning. You fought a pretty good match, and tagged me a couple times. But it wasn’t just about ensuring that I would win – it was more about trying to prepare you, someone on my team, for some of what you might see on the Final Test coming up next week. Look, even though we’ve had our differences, Ben, I still want to see my team members succeed.” Lyght felt he had to qualify that statement, “And not for my ego or anything, but because I genuinely want you all to be successful. That’s the responsibility of a leader, isn’t it?”

  Ben still glared at him as he often did. “Come on, don’t look at me like that”, Lyght said, shaking his head, “I never held any animosity towards you, believe me. Even if I was somewhat confused in your hatred of me as your leader, I never hated you back. I still don’t. So again, I’m sorry for whatever you think I’ve done to you, but that’s all I really know how to say at this point. I hope if we both make the Legion, which we very well might, we can finally learn to work as a team like we’re supposed to.”

  Ben turned and looked off into the Zone, and said something quietly that Lyght didn’t catch all of, “I don’t…”

  Lyght cocked his head curiously, “What was that? I didn’t catch it, sorry.” Ben turned toward Lyght, with an expression on his face he’d honestly never seen before. Could it be… embarrassment? Ben took a deep breath, then looked up into Lyght’s eyes as the two of them stood alone out in the yard, “I don’t hate you. I know I’ve acted like it, but well, I guess it’s just part of my competitive nature.”

  Ben looked away, “That, and – damn, I never wanted to admit it, not even now – but I am kinda jealous of you, Lyght. You’re a lot more naturally talented than me. You got to be a class leader, which I wanted myself, and I was bitter that you had it and I didn’t.” Lyght just stood there, in disbelief at what he was hearing, as Ben went on, “I always felt like I would be a better leader because I can be louder, more vocal, more aggressive. But you taught me that’s not what leadership is, Lyght. You led by example, and it took me a while to admit to myself what I realized deep down the whole time. You know what that is?” Lyght shook his head.

  “That the best leaders are the ones who never asked for it, but do the best they can anyway. That sums you up, Lyght, and I have to say, I really respect that. That’s all.”

  As Ben fell silent and looked down at the ground, Lyght stood there stunned for a minute, a little emotional over the sudden revelation. All he could think to do was what he’d been doing the whole time, to encourage Ben as he did the rest of his teammates. Ben had, after all, been one of the most-improved in the Academy skill-wise from the beginning to the end of the program, and Lyght would not be surprised at all to see him at the next level. He had to let him know that.

  Stepping forward, Lyght placed a hand on Ben’s shoulder, who looked up, glancing to the side. Lyght couldn’t think of much to say, so he decided to simply be honest, “Thanks a lot, man, that’s means the world to me. It really does. All the work I’ve put in here at the Academy hasn’t only been to make the Legion; it was, like I said, to make sure my team was successful. And who knows what this next week will bring us, but I’m pretty sure I can say with high confidence that we’re both gonna be successful. In fact, I guarantee it.”

  Ben brought his gaze back to Lyght and nodded firmly, looking somewhat more confident. Lyght stepped past him and motioned, “Come on, then, let’s go hear what Lyn has to say before we get out of here.” Ben followed in step with him, and Lyght couldn’t help but shaking his head in amazement. Who would’ve thought that the one who’d been critical of Lyght the most, the one who had even made Lyght doubt himself, would be the one who had secretly respected him the whole time? Lyght had to admit, the realization felt good. He felt like all his work at the Academy and all the adversity he was working through was beginning to finally pay off.

  He knew, he could just feel that the day he’d dreamed of since he was a little kid was coming to pass very soon.
The day when he was finally initiated as a member of the Legion – and became a Legend himself. He smiled to himself as he always did at the thought, except this time it was so much closer. So much more real. He couldn’t wait.

  Walking into the familiar classroom in the central Legion training base at Zone Zero, Lyght and Ben nodded apologetically to Lyn for their slight lateness, and found seats near the back as the Legend was just about to get the class underway.

  “Alright, guys, so you’ve just completed your last training exercise, as you obviously know. Technically, I’m scheduled for one more class session here, but I’m not going to use it to try and cram anything in on you before the Final Test – you clearly have more than enough to work on with the mental, physical, and character components that you need to pass to gain consideration for admittance into the Legion. So I’m going to take this last class instead to just talk to you guys a little bit about your futures – for this upcoming week is going to be a turning point, one way or another, in all of your lives.”

  Lyght understood the implied meaning – that whether people passed or failed the upcoming test (or in Lyght and Mikael’s case, missions), would largely determine the future course of the rest of their life. For one could not enroll in the Legion Academy twice; either you made it on your first shot, or you didn’t. Pretty harsh, Lyght had to admit, but that’s why they were such an elite and special group. Even the best of the best could not be sure of getting in. This realization still made Lyght a bit nervous, no matter how confident he seemed to be when talking to Ben, Mikael, or anyone else.

  Lyn paced up and down in front of the students, “So, in lieu of any substantive discussion today, I’m just going to give you general advice for the way forward. And that starts with the upcoming Final Test. Of course, each one of you knows how to prepare for the test. Really, it’s what you’ve been doing your whole time here. A lot of you probably already have a feel for whether you’re going to pass or not. I’ll just tell you have confidence in yourself and operate at your highest level, because you never know what’s going to happen. But outside of that, my advice here won’t be on how to make the Legion – that’s what I’ve been training you for this whole time – but what to do whether you make it or not.”

  “For those of you who do make it, know that your life isn’t about to become some easy walk of glory where you just get to coast on your newfound power and status. People will respect you, and even worship you, yes. But you can’t let it get to your head. At the initiation ceremony, the mission of the Legion as an organization and confidential details about life as a member will be disclosed to you, so you may find it useful to focus your attention on both that mission and your newfound brothers in the Legion. Being a Legend, I can tell you from personal experience, is the greatest gift you could ask for. Know that if you become one, you’re destined for great things in your life. That doesn’t mean you can give up and stop working, however. Every Legend needs to be at the top of his or her game to serve our order and our King to the highest extent.”

  Nodding heads went around the group, transfixed at Lyn’s speech. He smiled, apparently noting that they all seemed to be listening to him at once. Not exactly the most common occurrence, as his class sometimes dragged on when the students were exhausted from training. Lyght himself absorbed all of Lyn’s words, and could sense them immediately to be true. He was glad that Lyn had confirmed that being a Legend was everything Lyght had hoped it would be, while also encouraging them to keep working as hard as they had been. Lyght still burned to know what the Legion’s central mission was, however. He felt like until he knew that, he couldn’t get a complete grasp on what was coming next. It was like he was following the arrow of a compass. He knew it lead north, but he didn’t know what was in the north. He guessed he’d find out soon.

  Lyn kept speaking, “To those of you who don’t make the Legion, and that will be most of you, don’t sweat it too much. It’s not the end of your life, by any means, even if you may feel that way at first. There are plenty of great things you can do in this city, outside of being in the Legion. With the skills you’ve learned here, many of you will be well placed to enroll in the Military Academy and become officers. Many of the realm’s greatest generals are former Legion Academy students. There are other military paths as well; as you know, all of the sergeants who work here at the Legion Academy are Dreamcasters, most of whom were in this program. We also have people go into the Senate, depending on your family background, and work in Triumph, as advisors and other personnel of the King himself, or even the Legion. So don’t give up if you don’t get selected. You still learned things here that will benefit you greatly in life.”

  “So, that’s really it. I’m gonna let you guys get out of here early, to prepare for your test and… other things you might have to do.” Lyn met Lyght and Mikael’s gaze for a second. “I’ll see you guys on Monday for the test. I’ve truly enjoyed teaching all of you, and I mean that. I know you’ll all be great, whatever you go on to do in life. We Dreamcasters tend to turn out that way. Thanks again, guys.” The students stood up, many going up to shake Lyn’s hand and thank him for everything. Through all the movement, Lyght caught Mikael’s gaze and his friend came to meet him at the back, holding his fist out.

  “Ready?”, Mikael asked, characteristic grin out his face.

  Lyght reached out and joined fists with his longtime friend, “So ready.”

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Sky stared through the gently drifting snow as they headed south. The icy peaks of northern Hate and Fear had given way to rolling plans in the south-central region of the Hate domain. She stared off at the horizon, a light steely gray, as she rode a chestnut brown horse alongside Jon and a few other members of the crew. The whole crew rode along with them and behind them, all on horses. Most of them weren’t used to riding horses – they preferred the seafaring route – but everyone was getting along well enough at this stage of the ride. They’d had days of riding, by now, to acclimate themselves.

  Before they’d left Fear, the two Dream Syndicate leaders in Glory – Seth and Iri – had contacted Troy and Kiara a few days after Sky’s arrival, saying that they were “sure” that these two certain people were the Heirs (whatever that was), and requested Troy and Kiara to come down south with the Dreamcatcher to meet them on the Central Bridge outside the capital city. Since Sky and the crew had brought them the Dreamcatcher in the first place, Troy hadn’t had a problem with the crew coming along with the two of them and their retinue of guards. They were on their way to the great city of Glory now.

  Sky couldn’t help but smile at the coincidence – after stressing so much that she and her brother were about to be separated, she was heading to the capital city herself for the first time in her life. She couldn’t wait to see it for herself. And not only that, she also planned to surprise-visit her brother at the Academy. She could only imagine his reaction, not to mention what he thought of what she’d been up to for the past few months.

  For now, the entire crew rode along with the two leaders of the Dream Syndicate they had been so lucky to find. Things had kind of come full circle, as they were finally heading back to the South where they came from. No one in the crew had ever been to Glory, however, and the talk and anticipation in the group was high about what the city was going to be like. Sky herself had heard the common rumors that the city was huge beyond imagination, made entirely of dark steel. She did know for a fact that there was a soaring pure-diamond tower that was the crown jewel of the great capital – Triumph, the palace built for the King and Hero Decimader Vuruman following his triumph in defeating the enemies of mankind and creating and unifying what they knew today as the Dreamscape. Sky didn’t know who these enemies were – the stories and rumors were likely exaggerated, anyway – but she did know that the few from Hope who’d been to the great capital said it was unlike anything they had seen in their lives.

  But apart from sightseeing and the experience of going to the capita
l city, Sky knew that their crew was still pursuing the mission they’d set out on in the first place – to destroy the Dark once and for all. They’d been lucky beyond belief to both find the Dreamcatcher and then find the Dream Syndicate by accident. Just as lucky to be on their way now to deliver to Dreamcatcher to those who could use it; according to Troy and Kiara, anyway. Everything was finally coming together in a way that Sky had never really thought it would.

  But their mission was not yet complete. During their few days staying in the Dream Syndicate headquarters at the far southern border of Fear, the crew had come to the consensus that having found the Dreamcatcher in the first place, they had a responsibility to hang onto it and follow through on the mission until they could actually see the mysterious object actually used to destroy The Dark as it was supposedly able to. The crew leaders had asked the young Dream Syndicate leaders, Troy and Kiara, if the crew could hold onto the Dreamcatcher themselves and safeguard it on their way south to deliver it. After some negotiations, they had finally agreed. Max held the Dreamcatcher box in his pack now, a quartet of guards riding around him. Everything was still going according to plan; Sky hoped their luck kept up through this next stage.

  She still did wonder about something, however.

  Spurring her horse forward, she rode past the few dozen riders of Sky’s crew and warriors of the Dream Syndicate, pulling on the reins and bringing the horse to a trot alongside Troy and Kiara at the front of the formation. Troy turned to her, eyebrows raised, “What’s up?”

  Sky had to admit, she had been kind of shocked at the beginning to see how young the leaders of this legendary criminal group were. She did appreciate it however; Sky found she dealt better with younger, more informal people. She had always had somewhat of an authority problem, and she knew it. Well, maybe it wasn’t that she disliked authority, but that she disliked authority figures who she didn’t feel like deserved it. Undoubtedly, she felt that the twins Troy and Kiara deserved to be leaders. They kept such a level of command, emitted such an air of charisma, that Sky couldn’t help but admire them, as little as she admittedly knew them. That, and the fact that they looked pretty damn cool didn’t hurt.