Wide Awake

“You’re wide awake.”

I stood in front of a woman clad in clouds and white silk. Her pale feet hovered just above the grass, blowing the earth slightly away by an invisible force. Her face was kind and forgiving as she looked at me with interest. It was as if I had done something to upset her, and she was a guardian angel who came to fix my problems. 

“I know,” I said in response with a deadpan look. It wasn’t as if she impressed me. In my line of work, it was commonplace to see creatures like her. Just another weird day as usual.

Her toes tapped the ground lightly, the sea breeze blowing her long, silver hair to the right as she smiled at me. Her back faced the edge of the cliff where a small beach lay below. 

“You seem to be unsurprised by my visit,” she whispered like the wind, “Have we met before? I’ve been around and blessed many travelers.”

“Yes,” I lied, “However, I don’t think you ever told me your name.”

She grinned again and twirled. “It must have been when you were a child. Still, I’ll go over the rules again. I cannot tell you my name. It seems I have forgotten it in time. I’ve been around for a while, you see. However, you may call me Ellu.”

“Ellu,” I repeated. She regarded me with a comforting gaze, as if I were a mere toddler trying to understand basic math. In simpler terms, she was looking down on me. 

Fear not!” she suddenly shouted, spreading her arms wide, “I am here to fix all of the problems that you are facing! In this world of magic and monsters, there are spirits here to help the less fortunate! We only ask for a simple favor in the future.”

I tilted my head, keeping a firm hand on the hilt of my sword. “What problems?”

Ellu grabbed my hand lightly and pulled me over to the edge. “Look in the distance, traveler! There are enemy ships from your neighboring allies coming to start a war. They have gone back on your alliance and plan to take over and use you all as slaves!”

I decided to go with her ruse. As I gazed out, I saw a miniscule line of brown dots on the horizon. Even from here, I could hear their war drums. 

“Interesting,” I said. They looked so real.

“However, I can save your country if you promise me one favor. It will just be a small detail that is easy to do. In exchange, I’ll decimate them all and spread word that you are the hero who defeated them. How does that sound?”

“You are very generous,” I complimented.

“You flatter me.” Ellu waved a lock of her hair out of her face. Her eyes dazzled like diamonds. “So, do you accept?”

I gaze out one more time at the ships in the distance. From here, they seemed very real. However, I knew what they really were, and who she really was. 

“Okay,” I agreed, “But I have one more requirement.”

She tilted her head to me, watching with curiosity. 

“I want you to tell me your real name.”

Ellu hesitated, a scowl almost forming before it was hidden away half a second later. Then, she started to laugh. “Silly, did you forget that I do not know it anymore? I have no name to tell you of.”

“Call it gratitude,” I added, “I want to know the name of my savior. I want my people to praise your name for generations. They will know of your great deeds and forever shower you in gifts of abundance.”

A hint of greed glinted in her eyes. “Gifts? What kind?”

“Anything your heart desires, we will give it to you. We will make sure you are never forgotten. We will become your followers.”

“Followers,” She repeated the word like I had done before, our roles becoming switched.

“What do you say? I think a name is a small price to pay for infinite control and power.” I held out my hand. “I’ll even tell you my name if you so wish.”

She took a step back and turned around, mulling over my deal. There was too much to gain, but also a lot of risk in revealing her original name. However, having an entire country in her grasp was like giving her free food for life. She could use all of the citizens as much as she liked and never worry about anyone ever threatening her again.

Finally, she turned around. “Okay, I’ll accept your deal. Plus, my name is starting to come back to me anyway. I look forward to being your savior.”

I removed my leather glove and took her hand before she had a chance to look closer. We shook and smiled at each other. 

“So?” I asked, “What do I tell my people of you? Who are you really?”

“Illusion.” She grinned more maliciously than before. All innocence left her angelic face as her fingernails pierced my skin. The sunny cliff turned to decay as all the grass died and birds fell from the sky. Even the water turned to steaming blood.

I kept smiling. 

“You are a naive traveler,” she sneered, “You have given me everything I need to survive for another thousand years and more. So many people’s minds to feast on and they will all think of me as a savior. There will be so many people honoring me with sacrifices! I’ll be unstoppable!”

“Is that so?” I said, my hand still holding onto hers. I felt our deal lock me in restraints that I would otherwise never be free from for the rest of my life. I would become her puppet for as long as she lived. 

She pulled me close. “So tell me, why are you not scared? Is the shock still affecting you?”

“No,” I answered, “you are just so strong, I would have it no other way that you protect my people. Yes, there will be sacrifices, but that is a small price to pay for comfort and safety for everyone else.”

She smirked. “You really are a weird human. I don’t think I have ever met anyone like you. Come to think of it, you also promised me your own name. Tell me now.”

Her command forced the deal to make me tell her. Well, it wasn’t like I was going to keep it a secret any longer anyway.

“Baxter Lorimer,” I give away without any resistance. 

The world dimmed.

“W-what?” Illusion gasped. She tried to pull her hand free, but it was already too late. Her fair skin began to bubble in my grasp, the seal painted on my palm zapping her power from her. 

“Illusion,” I said, “That is the name of an ancient DreamJumper. Am I correct?”

“What are you doing?!” She screamed as the color drained from her body. Her hair turned black and her flowing silver dress turned a dull gray. She looked more like a corpse than a spirit, as if her very lifespan was being taken from her.

“What’s wrong, savior?” I asked, “You were the one who wanted this deal, am I correct? I am your servant, so it is only natural that I do what is right for you.”

“You monster!” She screeched, “You tricked me! You are of the Lorimer Clan! A DreamJumper Hunter! I will destroy you for this!”

The world began to crumble. Rocks split open and the ocean turned to steam. Cavernous cracks formed in the Earth only a couple inches from my feet.

“Fall! Plummet!” She commanded with force.

“As you say.”

I grabbed her and jumped into the void, her black hair billowing out behind her as she screamed in frustration. Her hand was still wrapped in mine as the last of her power was sucked into the seal. Her form began to turn, revealing what she really was. 

A husk of a woman was now in my arms, her body much more frail and useless. Her complexion was beautiful, her lips dipped in crimson and her eyes masked in mascara and eyeshadow. She wore a long black dress full of moving faces of her victims. 

“Illusion,” I said, “you are truly a beautiful DreamJumper, but you have ignored the rules set in place. You have fed off of people by using dreams to trick them into deals that would only suit your own means. Many have died by insanity because of what you did to their minds. Well, no more. No longer will you trap others in your dreams.”

“No!” she bellowed, tears falling onto my face. “No! You are wrong! You are the monster! I will come back and kill you once I am free! I will ruin your mind so horribly that you will never recover! Every moment, awake or asleep, you will always be in constant turmoil! You cannot keep me trapped forever!”

“We’ll see,” I said, noticing the floor coming up soon. 

Just as we were about to hit the bottom, Illusion’s body was sucked completely into the seal. I awoke just as the cloth of my shirt touched the rocky ground. 

Light returned to my vision as a crowd of companions shined lanterns into my eyes. I was laying on a bed in a tavern bedroom we rented. 

“Well?” one asked, her name Pippa, “Did you capture her?”

I hand up my hand. The seal which was originally black now glowed a crimson red. It flickered as Illusion banged on the seal from inside. 

“I’d say it was a success.”

My friends cheered in excitement and sat around a nearby table to celebrate with ale and fresh food. 

“Good work, Baxter,” Darby said. My boss held out a hand. I used my free one to clasp his own palm, and I was pulled out of the bed. “What deal did you make with her?”

“Infinite servitude of the whole country,” I responded, “DreamJumpers can only survive off of feeding on others. However, knowing their name is the only thing that triggers the seal. So, I just gave her an offer she couldn’t refuse.”

He clapped me on the back. “Very good, Baxter. You should put away the seal before you accidently open it.” He handed me the compass we used to store such powerful DreamJumpers.

“I’ll hold onto it for now,” I decided. “There are many thieves in this town.”

Darby frowned. “You should not be so cautious. The compass will be safe with me.”

“Yeah, Baxter,” another companion, Wendy, agreed.

“Just seal her away so you can eat with us!” Porter added. 

Darby held the compass to me. “I order you to put her away, Baxter. I know you are strong, but you should focus on relaxing for now.”

My eyelids lowered. 

“Darby would never tell me to relax. Being a DreamJumper Hunter means always being on guard.” I stepped back. “Because you never know when you are trapped in your mind.”

Darby grinned maliciously, his body turning completely black. The light dimmed the room as my companions each matched the boss. They all stepped toward me.

“Give us your seal, Baxter.” They all talked in unison, as if someone was pulling strings in a horrifying puppet show. 

I turned on my heel and ran out the door into the hall. As I exited through the tavern downstairs, all of the customers, waiters, and cashiers all looked at me, their skin as black as my companions. I raced past them as they reached out for me, their fingers gripping my clothing. 

I managed to get outside, but paused. The sky was a maelstrom of purple smoke and lightning. The clouds swirled in the middle of the storm like a massive hurricane. Wind shook the dying hills of wheat and corn. The town in the distance was on fire as lightning lit it in a show of sparks and destruction. 

Suddenly, hands grabbed me from behind and forced me to my knees. The compass fit into my open palm and I could feel the seal being transferred.

“Baxter Lorimer,” the crowd spoke in unison as they held me down. A face formed in the sky from the storm. Its mouth moved in the same pattern as the others. “The most powerful DreamJumper Hunter in the world. Your reputation precedes you. Not many people can realize when I am inside their mind.”

“Vision,” I said, “You are the most powerful DreamJumper in the world. It seems we’ve finally met.”

He laughed, the sound rolling off of the hills and shaking the earth. “It seems so. I’ll take this one with me for now. But, just you wait. Once I finish my plan, this is what your world will look like. Prepare for the inevitable.”

“We’ll see,” I growled.

“Farewell, Baxter Lorimer,” Vision concluded, “I’ll see you soon.”

The dream ended and I found myself waking up in the same bed as before. My friends were crowded over me again. However, the seal was gone.

“You were tossing the last couple minutes,” Pippa mumbled, worry sewed into her face. “Did you catch her?”

I made eye contact with Darby, who sat back in a nearby chair with his arms crossed. I got up and faced my companions. “Prepare for war.”