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The weight of our shared destiny, the hope and fear, seemed to meld into a single driving force.
“Before I tell you,” I said, “I must warn you. The dreamworld is unpredictable. The challenges we face might be manifestations of our deepest fears, and our darkest memories. It’s not without its dangers.”
She smiled a hint of mischief in her eyes. “I trust you, Tix. Do you trust me?”
I chuckled, the sound echoing in the tight confines of the cell. “With my life.”
Her laughter joined mine, a melodious counterpoint that filled the room with joy. “Then what are we waiting for?”
I hesitated for a moment, feeling the weight of our impending journey.
As I looked into Grace’s eyes, all doubts melted away.
“To explain, we need to step back into the dreamworld together.”
Taking a deep breath, Grace grasped my hand, and I felt the familiar rush of energy as our consciousnesses began to meld.
She squeezed my hand, her touch electric. “Then let’s do this.”
With that, the world around us faded, and we plunged headfirst into the dreamworld, united in purpose and destiny.
6
GRACE
The corridors of Ikmal in the dreamworld hummed with an eerie silence as Tix led me by the hand.
Each step echoed, melding with the distant whispers of the confined.
It was an otherworldly sound, a blend of hope and despair, but in that moment, my focus was solely on the alien beside me.
Tix’s grip was reassuringly firm, and as he paused outside a particular cell.
“This is it,” he murmured, coming to a stop outside a cell that looked exactly like the others.
“This is what?”
Tix pushed the door open, and we stepped into the cell.
An old prisoner was a tangle of limbs, tossing and turning under his threadbare blanket.
The room seemed darker somehow, suffused with a palpable dread.
Before I could inquire, the air vibrated with the distant sounds of fire.
The crackling of flames and, unsettlingly, the echoes of children’s laughter slowly turning to screams.
The symphony of chaos made my skin prickle with unease.
“That,” Tix whispered, gesturing towards the troubled dreamer, “is our way out.”
I frowned, trying to process his words. “His nightmare? How does that work?”
Tix took a moment before answering, his gaze never leaving the cell. “Uhah’s been here longer than most. No one really knows what he did to end up here. He never talks about it. I’ve seen his nightmare, the one that visits him every day, and it’s not pleasant viewing.”
“Why don’t we just enter his dream? Learn whatever we need to know?”
Tix’s grip tightened, his eyes dark with memories I could only guess at. “Entering someone’s nightmares, especially one as dangerous as Uhah’s, is not just a casual stroll. Nightmares have a way of ensnaring the dreamwalker. And there are defenses.”
