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Baz laughed. “Creating a forgotten dream is not something I think any of us could possibly do on our own. It will take you, Ash, and all six of us, to do it.”
“Right. There’s the complication. And, of course, Dream still has to exist.”
“There’s that as well,” he agreed solemnly, running a hand over his short hair.
“And the repair?” Dad prompted.
“Not nearly as complicated. Much of Dream will reform on its own, though the landscape will change as it often does. Ember and Ash can help influence a great deal of this. This is not truly of consequence as long as we can stop the nothingness storms. Especially if we can find a way to recover those lost to the storms.”
“Oh, I’d forgotten about that. Add it to the list.” I sighed.
“We probably need to get Effie or someone associated with her to tell us how to stop them,” Baz said. “It’s certainly not hopeless. If we can rescue Nic and Dio. If we can’t, then we’re screwed.” There wasn’t a lot of emotion behind Baz’s words, but I heard a hint of anger, or maybe desperation.
“So, focus on rescuing Nic, Dio, and Geraint,” Dad said. “If nothing else matters but finding them, then that’s where you start.”
“Any ideas?” I twisted my hands together.
“Stand in front of a nothingness storm and hope you find them once you’re inside?”
“The last time I was in one, I barely kept hold of my sense of self. The only thing that did it was having a piece of your essence.”
Baz pursed his lips. “So we need to find a way to anchor you, and hope if you find the others they aren’t so far gone that you can’t recover them.”
“Yeah. I guess.”
“I’ll think on it.” He rose, put his hand on the trunk for a moment while he caught his balance, then left.
“He doesn’t look too good,” Dad observed.
“No. When we put Dio back together it, uh, us completing our bond, for him to fully recover. Something about the energy we shared and all that.” My cheeks burned, but Dad just chuckled.
“I take it he’s not interested?”
“It’s not exactly that. He was torn apart for ten years. He was probably also tortured and who knows what else. On top of that, almost everyone he was close to is gone. The king and queen were probably taken in the last storm. Nic and Dio are gone.”
“I think maybe I’ll talk to him. See if I can help. If that’s okay with you?”
“Yeah, sure. Thanks, Dad.”
“So, how are you feeling about Baz?” He nudged me with his elbow.
“Conflicted.”
He patted my knee before climbing to his feet. “Understandable. Your feelings are valid, Ember. If I can help, let me know.”
“I think you already have.”
Dad smiled at me before following after Baz.
I stared out at the pond, idly wishing I could be a duck, just paddling along, not a care in the world instead of having to figure out how to save it.
***
Lost and feeling aimless, I wandered the gardens until the mosquitos got unbearable, then I went inside and hid in my room. More tears fell, and lost in my grief, I barely heard the soft tap on the door. I heard it open and pulled the covers up over my face to hide.
The mattress dipped as someone sat and the firm weight of someone’s hand landed on my shoulder. “I’ll go with you.” Baz’s warm hand soothed some of my tension.
“Go with me?”
