Dark Earth: The Prophecy - 9. Chapter 9

Author’s note: The beginning of this chapter is from Cristobel’s point of view.

Chapter 9: Cerebral Battlefield

I waited impatiently for the doctor to give us news about Julian. I wanted to look into his beautiful blue eyes once more. I felt responsible, as if I could have prevented Julian’s condition. I had no idea what to expect. Julian was the most complicated and intriguing individual I had ever met. He was a powerful warrior with a heart of gold. From the first time Adriana ordered me to seek him in the world of dreams, I wanted to know everything about him. When Natalia and Nikita brought him into the fold, I was more excited than I had ever been before. No one could compare to Julian Petzolt. He was already an accomplished warrior. From the beginning, he impressed everyone by completing his tests in record time and with his knack for dispatching EAS clones. Ironically, he had been reduced to a helpless shell of his former self.

“He’s still in a coma.” Dr. Kirschner continued, “His body is still adjusting to the changes. His mind is in distress.”

“What does that mean, doc?” Simon asked. “Is he ever going to wake up?”

“That depends on what’s wrong,” Dr. Kirschner replied. “We have limited information on power absorbers and feral powers. Apparently, Black Heart once absorbed a arachnid feral’s powers. This was a month before his mother’s premature death. According to a behaviorist, he was never the same. He lost his sense of self. Julian’s reaction will be different for two reasons. He is a powerful psychic. He also absorbed a feline feral’s power. Perhaps another psychic can enter his mind.”

“Well, I’m technically qualified,” I said earnestly. “If he is dreaming, I can enter his dream, but it is extremely dangerous.”

“Yes, it is,” Dr Kirschner agreed. “Both of you could be lost in his dreams indefinitely.”

“It’s worth the risk,” I said with little aforethought. “I WILL bring him back. He means to much to me.”

“You’ve been warned.” Dr. Kirschner wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea. Dreams are the most complex actions of the sub-conscious mind, especially for a psychic. Julian’s condition could deteriorate with my interference, but I could sense that if I didn’t do something, I would lose him forever anyway. I knew the only way to bring him back was to be his guide. This would be a new experience for me. I knew it could be done. Julian had brought me back from a dream. The power I shared with him had two distinct uses. He could project a nightmare ball and bring someone out of the nightmare. I had other powers that he did not, but he still two of the most important ones. I could not give him one without the other.

I sat in a chair beside Julian’s bed. I closed my eyes and concentrated on entering Julian’s dream. I entered a strange world. The sky was purple with a crimson moon. The ground was not unlike that of the wasteland. A saw a child with his knees lifted and his head between them. I also noticed a mountain in the distance. There were flashes of lighting and clashes of thunder in the same area. I could also hear roaring all around me.

I walked over to the sobbing child. His medium brown hair was shaggy and in need of combing. His clothing was tattered and torn. “What’s wrong?” I asked of him.

“I’m scared,” the child replied. “I want to go home.”

“What are you scared of?” I asked him gently. He looked at me. I hadn’t noticed before, but his eyes were cat-like. His face looked familiar. He was a younger version of Julian. “I won’t let anyone hurt you. What’s your name?”

“I don’t know,” he said. He was disappointed in the fact that he was able to answer the question. “Are you mad at me?”

“No, I am not mad at you. You remind me of someone.”

“That’s weird. I’m just me even if I don’t know who I am. Do you know who I am? Please tell me, mister. I don’t know your name either.”

“I’m Cristobel.” The look on his face was far from assuring. He looked at me as if I had said something terrible.

“Eduardo told me not to talk to you. His friend, Sean Hart said that he wanted me to kill you. I don’t like them. They’re mean. Sean ripped out a tiger’s heart and ate it. The poor animal didn’t stand a chance. He’s always telling us to be ‘merciless.’ I don’t even know what that means. I don’t want to kill you, Cristobel. You seem nice.” The names were vaguely familiar. Their actions and callousness were even more familiar. I pondered for a few minutes, trying to remember if the names fit.

“What does Eduardo look like?” I asked the child. “Does he look like me, but older?”

“Yes, he does. Sean has black hair and red eyes. He scares me even more. I don’t like them at all. Will you protect me from them?”

“I’ll do my best,” I replied. This was indeed bad news. Somehow, the Dark Knights had entered Julian’s dreams. The child didn’t like them. That was a good sign, but I had recognized that the child was a sign that Julian was in the midst of an identity crisis. Julian often had dreams about the Dark Knights. Hopefully, they were in this dream simply because of his own fears and insecurities. Fear and insecurity were not primary characteristics of Julian’s overall personality. “Are there people on the mountain?”

“I… I think so,” the child said meekly. “I think there are tigers up there. I’ve seen them kill before. Those tigers are mean. Someone should kill them.” I knew killing the tigers would be disastrous. Julian had not embraced the new power. The separate entities of himself had to become one. I knew I needed to escape this dream and ask Adriana for advice.

“Kid, I need to go,” I said apologetically. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. I need to bring back a friend.” I didn’t give the child a chance to respond. I had to leave before I was past the point of no return.

I made my way back to the real world. I was truly disturbed by what I had seen. Adriana was already in the room waiting for me to come back. “He doesn’t know who he is. I don’t know how or why, but the Dark Knights are in his dreams. He knows their real names. How did he know?”

Adriana knew the answers were important. She accessed the mainframe to see if Julian had ever accessed information about the Dark Knights. “I think I have the answer. He researched them thoroughly. I don’t think the Dark Knights know about either of you, but I think we need to go back into his mind together.”

“That would be best,” I replied. “I wonder if the white knight is in there. If he is, we’ll need him to get out of there.”

“Cristobel, that may be the case, but there are other problems to solve. He doesn’t know who he is. Tell me. Are there tigers there devouring people?” I simply nodded, affirming her suspicion. “He must gain control of them. Is there a child?” I nodded again. Adriana let out a sigh. “The child may be dangerous. The child represents innocence lost. The pre-pubescent entity may be the most dangerous of all. It’s likely the child puts up a front, hiding the evil intentions within. We need to find the knight if he’s there. Otherwise, we have to find a valiant warrior who seeks knighthood.”

“The child said that the Dark Knights had told him to kill me.” Adriana’s eyes widened.

“The child told you that to gain your trust,” she said prosaically. “In Julian’s dream world, that child is probably more dangerous than the Dark Knights. Before we start this journey into Julian’s mind, we need sleep. We will have to take this on after breakfast. It could take all day. I want you to be sharp. I can only assist you, Cristobel. This is your area of expertise. My knowledge comes from years of study. You have the answers. You must seek them. Julian needs your help, but you must take care of yourself first.”

Morning came at last after of night a peaceful slumber. Somehow, I had managed to sleep through the night. When I woke up, I saw the familiar faces of Adriana and Simon. Simon gave me a reassuring smile and said, “Breakfast will be ready soon. Then Adriana and you will be journeying into Julian’s mind. You should get dressed. Come on, babe.” The couple left the room hand-in-hand. I was eager to get out of bed. I wanted Julian to be back with me. We should have been snuggling. Instead, he was in a hospital bed trapped in the dream world. I suddenly felt unsure about what I had to do. Julian had one of the most complex minds I had ever witnessed. He was even better than me at hiding his thoughts from other psychics. His psychic abilities gave him an advantage over his father, even if it was a small one. I had only just begun the task of helping him through his “identity crisis.” Adriana seemed to know more about the subject than I did. Maybe it was because of her ESP.

Once we finished breakfast, Adriana and I teleported to the infirmary. The infirmary was rarely used. Julian was a special case, because healers cannot heal the broken mind. The doctor gave us another explanation. According to Dr. Kirschner, psionics, especially those with ESP, are especially sensitive to mutations. Their minds analyze everything at a much higher rate than normal humans do. The changes in DNA caused by the infusion of tiger genes sent Julian’s mind into a state of panic. Psionics with ESP use twice as much of their brains. This could explain why Julian had reacted so negatively. He once again reminded us how perilous our journey could be. He warned us not to stay for more than two hours.

“Cristobel, you need to create a clock when we enter Julian’s dream,” Adriana stated decidedly. “I’m using my powers to join you this time. I will help in any way I can, but remember that you are the key to a successful mission. We have two hours. We can only be there for two hours per day until Julian’s mind is clear and he is able to come back to the world of the living.” I watched as Adriana’s purple hair lost all of its pigmentation, revealing a change in mood and appearance. Her hair and eyes were white as snow. A whirlwind of white haze surrounded my being. The haze entered my nose, forcing me to inhale. Adriana’s body lie on the floor. “I’m in your mind, Cristobel. Don’t worry about my body. We’ll be back within two hours. I will be fine.”

I sat in the chair next to Julian and caressed his hand with my own. I closed my mind. A white haze revealed the familiar world of Julian’s dream. The sky was somewhat darker however. Adriana escaped my body. This time she had white hair and blue eyes. We both saw the child this time. “Remember, he is probably the enemy, Cristobel. You have to make that determination yourself. You can see things about the dream world that I cannot. Is your clock ready? I think we have been here for 2 minutes. Start the clock at countdown at 1 hour 57 minutes just to be save. I pointed my finger and created the “dream clock.” The clock would be within our views at all times.

“We need a mode of transportation,” I said anxiously. “We have to find the warrior. I can sense him, but he is far away.”

“I can turn my body into a cloud in which to ride on,” Adriana reminded me. I had seen Simon ride the “cloud” many times. “I can let you control the direction. Our minds are already linked in this world.” Adriana transformed into a purple cloud. I jumped upon the cloud. I decided to fly to the east. I sensed that the warrior was far away from the mountain. I knew that our journey would eventually take us to the mountain, but we had to find the warrior.

After a few minutes, we were flying over a small forest. I could sense something strange about the trees. They were fighting, and they had eyes. One of the trees shot a vine in our direction. I was horrified as more trees sent these vines our way. I had to concentrate on dodging as many as I could. I took the cloud higher into the air, hoping to escape the treacherous vines below. The tactic was unsuccessful. The trees were more determined than ever to stop us. Something caught my eye. There was a fire within the forest. The fire spread quickly, destroying the entire forest and leaving a barren wasteland.

Once we had passed the scorched and now barren forest, we saw a young man sitting upon a mound. It had to be him. He had a headband upon his head and a staff sheathed behind his back. The warrior was a splitting image of my love, Julian! He watched as we swooped down to his location. He seemed unhinged by our presence. He unsheathed his staff. He ascended quickly into the air, knocking me off the cloud. My own flying powers took over, ensuring a softer landing. The warrior persisted. He was aiming at my head trying to stop me. I had no choice but to shoot a bolt of lightning at my aggressor. “Please, stop!” I yelled. “We mean you no harm young warrior.” I looked at the clock, noticing that it now read 1:30. “We’re here to help you!”

“Yeah, you’re a lot of help,” the warrior spat sarcastically. “You’re just like those evil trees. You’re trying to kill me!”

Adriana gazed at the young warrior. She carried a look of concern on her beautiful face. “Young warrior, we want to assist you on your journey. You wish to be a knight. Am I correct?”

“Of course, I want to be a knight, wench,” the young man snapped. “Your skullduggery shall not go unpunished!”

“Julian, we are here to help you,” I assured him. “You must listen. We’re here to guide and help you on your quest.”

“How did you know my name?” he asked. “This is some kind of trick! I should destroy you both!”

“Young warrior, destroying us will not help,” Adriana stated prosily. “Is there a wizard around here?”

“A wizard?” he asked frightfully. “They told me to stay away from the wizard. He is a murderer.”

“Who told you that?” Adriana asked with her arms crossed and raised eyebrows upon her face. “Was it Eduardo, or was it Sean?”

“My dad told me!” the warrior growled. Adriana used her haze into a ball. The ball went into the young warrior’s direction. He watched in horror at the scene before him. The ball revealed a young woman being tortured by the Dark Knights. “This cannot be true! My dad could never… Please, it cannot be him. You do not understand wench. My father is incapable.” The young warrior’s words expressed Julian’s repressed wish for Black Heart to be a decent and loving man. There was another element. Julian’s greatest fear was being exactly like Black Heart. I sensed great pain in the young warrior. He was more confused than ever.

“Julian, people are not always who they seem to be,” Adriana explained thoughtfully. “Your father is Black Heart. As his alter ego suggests, he is evil. He thrives upon the pain and suffering of others including you. You cannot allow him to influence you. You’re a better person than he is. Aunt Cassidy raised you to be better than that. She’s done her best to lessen Black Heart’s influence. That’s why we are here. We cannot let him destroy you. I’m your cousin Julian. I love you. I’m only looking out for you. Please, believe me.” Tears were rolling down Adriana’s face. The young warrior sensed her sincerity.

“Adriana?” the young warrior asked. “It’s you! It’s really you. Black Heart confused me so. I don’t even know who I am anymore. Take me to the wizard. I want to leave this place.” By then, the clock read 1:20. “I didn’t recognize either of you until now. I’m so sorry.” Julian’s alter ego was sobbing uncontrollably as he wrapped his arms around me.

“We’ll be fine Julian,” I assured him. “We’re going to get you out of here.” I looked in Adriana’s direction. “I don’t care how long it takes. We’re not leaving. If we’re stuck here forever, I will accept it. We have to help him now. We have an hour and twenty minutes before the point of no return. That means we’ll have to stay until he’s ready. I don’t care if we’re here for days. I won’t leave him.”

“Very well then,” Adriana said hopelessly. “I’d probably want the same for Simon. He’s going to be worried about us. We will do what we have to do.”

“Thank you, Adriana,” the young warrior said warmly. “I won’t disappoint you. We’ll leave this place.”

The young warrior and I sat on the purple cloud. The young warrior guided us to the wizard’s hut to the north. The landscape changed. I could see land of snow-covered hills and trees. The cloud made its descent through the canopy below. Through the trees, I saw a small hut with smoke rising from the chimney. The hut seemed humble yet homey. We landed safely and dismounted from Adriana’s cloud. Adriana wasted no time returning to her natural self. This time she took on a normal appearance. She had blond hair and baby blue eyes. Apparently, she had much more control of her appearance in the dream world.

The young warrior knocked on the door. “I’m coming,” said an unfamiliar voice. An elderly man in purple garb answered the door. He looked like an older version of Max. “You must be Julian,” said the wizard. “I am Maxidilius. We have much to talk about young warrior. Come in. All of you are welcome.”

We entered the wizards hut. The floors creaked as we made our way to the chairs in the wizard’s living room. After we sat down, Maxidilius looked at the young warrior intently before speaking. “Julian, you face numerous perils ahead. The road to the World of Humanity has many twists and turns. You have learned a great deal from your difficult training. I hope you’re prepared for the impending battle. The child grows stronger with every passing moment. He has already slain the Dark Knights. The child is a merciless killer. Let not his innocent façade fool you. He wants to destroy everything in his path. His destruction is most assuredly the only path to the World of Humanity.”

Maxidilius became silent so that the young warrior could absorb his words. “Adriana and Cristobel… you must guide Julian, because you understand this young warrior’s mind. Cristobel, you are the key to finding the magical steed. All of you will face a great deal of hardship in your quest. You may not realize it yet, but your trials will give you strength. The Dark Knights of this world may no longer be alive, but I can assure you that their counterparts in the World of Man are alive and well. The fate of Centropolis, and indeed the entire planet of Earth, is in your hands. I want you keep your eyes on your ultimate goal, but keep your immediate trials in your thoughts above all else.”

“Where do we start?” the young warrior asked.

“The tigers, dear boy… You must tame and absorb them,” the wizard said with utmost confidence. “You must not fear their presence. They are a part of you, young lad. You must unleash the power within. Let the essence of the tiger sharpen your senses and expand your skills exponentially. There is a band of tigers to the south in the mystic jungle. The band of tigers is the key to understanding the aura of rage. You cannot defeat the child without the aura of rage or the band of tigers.”

The young warrior thought about what the wizard had told him. The look on his face was confusion, pure and simple. The young warrior needed guidance. This was something Julian rarely needed. His alter egos were not like him. The warrior did exhibit courage, but the warrior lacked Julian’s decisiveness and intelligence, whereas the child appeared to be cowardly. The child, however, was a master manipulator. Julian could be manipulative at times, but rarely. He was only manipulative when the elders, Adriana, or Simon asked him to be.

I finally broke the silence. “Julian, Maxidilius is telling you to accept these new powers. The feral powers will make you stronger. The rage absorption will make you less vulnerable to attack. We need to find the tigers in the jungle.” I looked at Maxidilius. Something struck me about the idea of tigers being in a group. “Maxidilius, why would tigers be in a group? Tigers prefer to be alone.”

“Cristobel, this world is not like your own,” Maxidilius said firmly. “You have to play by different rules. This is not the World of Humanity. You know what this world is. You’re simply here as a guide and to assist in defeating the child. You must help Julian find the tigers. The tigers will lead him to the aura of rage. I suggest the three of you seek the mystic jungle now.”

The jungle was unlike any I had ever read about. We landed at the jungle’s edge. A thin orange haze could be seen throughout the jungle. The sounds of animal and insect calls could be heard in dissonance. We walked cautiously through the decaying jungle floor. My senses told me something. I could sense something close to us. I looked to my right. It was getting closer, but I could not see it. It leapt out of the bushes! The tiger was running towards me at full sprint. I heard a roar, but not from the tiger. The roar had stopped the tiger in his tracks. I looked over at the young warrior. He was speaking to the tiger in its own language.

We pressed forward, let by the big cat. The tiger led us to what appeared to be a temple. There was a statue of a tiger on top of the ancient ruin. As we entered the temple, I noticed another statue, but not of a tiger. The life-sized serpent statue had a distinct hood in its neck. The eyes were made of blue jewels which shined brightly even in the muted light. The shiny jewels mesmerized Julian. He climbed the small pillar and reached for the jewel.

“No Julian, you must not touch those!” Adriana warned frantically. “It’s a…” He disregarded Adriana’s warning. He snatched the jewels from the statue. The ground started shaking. A ray of energy struck Julian and tossed him to the floor below. The statue shattered, revealing a real cobra in its place. Before I could react, Julian shot the cobra with a fireball and watched it burn. “You should have listened to me, Julian!” Adriana looked as if her head were about to explode. “Don’t touch anything! Do you understand? The next trap will be much worse. Have you not seen the movies?”

“I’m sorry, Adriana,” Julian blushed. “I won’t do it again. I promise.” Adriana said nothing more, letting out a sigh instead. The tiger led us down a huge golden staircase with steep steps. Julian noticed a platinum clad level. Adriana looked at him with anger in her eyes, and Julian resisted the temptation.

The stairs led to a huge golden door. The tiger roared at Julian. The two started a conversation neither Adriana nor I could comprehend. The door had two impressions. One impression was a human hand. The other was a tiger paw. Julian placed his hand onto the hand impression at the same time the tiger placed his paw on his own impression. The door swung open revealing a massive room. “Only we can go in,” Julian warned. “You two stay out here.” Julian and the tiger entered the room, and the door shut behind them. Adriana and I waited impatiently for them to return. From the room before us, we could hear roaring along with soothing harp music.

A few minutes later, the door opened once more. “You can come in now,” shouted a familiar voice. When we entered, we saw Julian standing beside a giant tiger. “It’s okay. The tigers came together and became one. His name is Tarak. Let’s mount up!” Tarak the tiger lowered himself to the golden floor. Julian climbed up on the tiger’s paw. The tiger raised his paw up to his head. Julian moved onto the tiger’s head and then his back. Adriana and I followed his example and soon were seated behind Julian, holding on for dear life. Julian grabbed a hand full of the tiger’s fur. Adriana wrapped her arms around Julian. I wrapped my arms around Adriana.

Tarak ran out of the room and up the stairs. Surprising, Tarak took flight as soon as he reached the top of the stairs. The roof of the temple opened, and we escaped. Tarak had decided to fly to the west. The thick jungle continued for miles. “Are we ever going to get there,” I blurted out.

“Cristobel, you need to learn patience,” Adriana groaned. “Why do you have to be such a pain?”

“You know you love me,” I countered. “It seems like we been on this tiger’s back for way too long.”

“Would you rather walk?” The voice wasn’t familiar.

“Who said that?” I asked.

“I’m Tarak,” the voice said.

“Ummmm…” I could not say anything more. The idea of animals talking wasn’t exactly normal. Of course, this was still the dream world of Julian’s complicated mind.

“Tarak, he means no disrespect.” Adriana was trying to mediate as always. “We’re all just a little restless. That’s all.”

“The aura of rage is just beyond the jungle,” Tarak reminded as if we knew the answer already. “It won’t be long. I have to warn you. You may not like what you see.”

On the horizon, I could see the end of the jungle. The aura was massive. I sensed impending danger. Tarak landed in front of the aura, an seemingly endless wall of energy. “Only Julian and I can enter the aura. You two need to wait here. Tarak lowered his body to the ground and lifted his paw. Adriana and I stood up and walked over to the tiger’s paw. The tiger lowered us to the ground below. We watched as Julian and Tarak ventured into the aura.

********************

Author’s note: The story continues in Julian’s point of view.

I could barely see in front of my face. The entire landscape was covered in a thick red glow. I was still confused about what had led to my dream, but I knew I had to see the dream to its resolution. I still felt incomplete. I could not even remember the world beyond except for Adriana and Cristobel. I knew they were important people in my life.

Tarak knew exactly where to go. I could faintly see a small clearing within the massive red aura. I also saw yet another statue. It looked vaguely familiar, though I did not know why. “You must go to the statue on your own, Julian,” Tarak indicated. “This is where I become part of you. You can land on the ground safely. Do it.” I stood up on Tarak’s back. I concentrated my efforts into safely landing on the ground. I remembered my power of flight and safely landed on the ground to the right of Tarak. I noticed that Tarak was no longer beside me. Instead, I was surrounded by many normal tigers, just like I had been in the temple. Their bodies glowed. Soon after, I saw only a tornado of orange and black stripes. The tornado closed in around me and entered my body.

The band of tiger’s power infused with me. I embraced the beastly power within. My body slowly transformed into my “mixed” form. I still stood upright as I had always done, but I had massive claws and tiger fur. My mind flashed back to the moment I had defeated Raging Tiger and consumed his power. The act had sent me into a coma. My mind had fought the transformation and rejected the power, leaving me without an identity. The massive aura entered my body just as the tigers had. My mind had finally accepted my new powers!

I remembered exactly what the statue was. It was the white knight’s horse. I walked toward the statue with purpose. I levitated into the air and mounted myself on the statue’s back. The stone disintegrated, revealing my steed in all his glory. Moments later, Adriana and Cristobel joined me. “Wow, this is the horse?” Adriana asked. “He’s beautiful. Where do we go?”

“We must go to the mountain you saw when you first ventured to the land,” I replied. “This day shall mark the birth of the White Knight! The two of you must become this horse.” Adriana surrounded Cristobel and herself with the purple haze. The haze entered the stallion’s nose. I heard thunder directly above me. I looked up and saw a sword descending. I grabbed my sword in triumph. The sword shot a stream of light into the air. The light descended upon me. Armor plating took shape all around my body. “The White Knight lives! Yaw!”

The flying horse galloped for a mile before taking flight. All I could see was the mountain ahead. The dark clouds swirled above the mountain, sending lightning strikes into the peak. I decided to look down. The once barren ground below took on a lush green with a plethora of floral colors. The skies above became crystal clear as we made our way to the mountain.

The horse landed upon the mountain at last. I dismounted my steed as I saw a child standing in front of me. This was no ordinary child. He looked exactly like a younger version of me. The child looked up at me. His eyes took on a red glow. “This is my mountain!” he snarled. “I control it and everything in this world. Bow before me, knight. I am the king of this mountain. You will not live to see tomorrow unless you bow to me.”

“I bow to no one,” I scoffed. “You’re just a little boy. You can’t harm me.”

“You are one foolish knight!” he laughed. “I’m not a child.” The child transformed into a dragon. The dragon towered over me. His body was covered in red scales. The dragon flew off the mountain and began circling around above. My horse flapped his wings and ascended into the air. The dragon sent a furious plume of fire. We dodged the attack easily. I swiped my sword at him, sending a massive bolt of electricity toward his head. The dragon blocked my attack with his powerful tail, sending the electricity back at me. I began a descend to the ground thousands of feet below. The horse regained control and caught me on his back in mid air. We ascended back into the air with expert speed.

The magical horse breathed a massive nightmare ball into the air and sent the nightmare ball barreling into the dragon’s body. The dragon reacted by breathing fire at the nightmare ball, melting it out of existence. “We need a new plan,” the horse said. “Dismount me and take flight. I’ll distract him.” I flew into the air above the horse. The horse sent another nightmare ball towards the dragon as I swooped in behind the dragon. Once again the dragon destroyed the nightmare ball with his fire. I empowered my sword with laser beam energy. I swing my sword at the dragon’s head, sending the laser beam into his neck. The laser beam decapitated the dragon. His head burned, leaving nothing but bone. The rest of his body exploded. I had to dodge flying debris as the remains blasted away from the center point.

I mounted my horse and we descended to the top of the mountain. I dismounted the horse thoughtfully and sheathed my sword. Purple haze surrounded the horse as Adriana and Cristobel emerged. The horse took flight and flew away into the heavens. My armor and my sword disappeared. “That was awesome!” Cristobel said enthusiastically. “I just became a horse, and I loved every minute of it. Adriana, what do you think?”

“I think we need to get out here,” she grumbled. We both looked at her and laughed. “What? I have no idea how long we’ve been here. I want to go home. Julian, no offense, but your mind is creepy. I never want to venture here again. Please, refrain from having identity crises in the future. Do you know how to get us out of here?”

I thought about it for a minute. I had no answer to the question. “Maybe we should ask Maxidilius. He might know.” A tornado of sparkles appeared by side me. As the sparkles dissipated, Maxidilius emerged.

“This better be important,” Maxidilius snarled. “I was ummmm…. Never mind what I was doing. What do you want now?”

“We want to go back to the World of Humanity,” I replied thoughtfully. “We defeated the dragon, and I’m whole again. Shouldn’t the dream end now?”

“Cristobel knows the answer,” Maxidilius said plainly. “He has the power. You have completed your tasks. Now you are ready to return to the real world.”

“Well, what do we do, Cristobel?” I asked. “We cannot stay forever.”

“Take my hand, Julian,” he ordered. I did as he asked. He took Adriana’s hand in his free hand. “Now, close your eyes.” We closed our eyes.

I heard the sound of a blood pressure monitor. I opened my eyes and found myself in an unfamiliar place; one that I knew existed outside my dreams. “You’re awake!” Aunt Cassidy placed her soft palm against my face.

“How long have I been out of it?” I asked. “I had a strange dream. I must have passed out after I defeated Raging Tiger. Where are Adriana and Cristobel?” Aunt Cassidy pointed at another bed to my right. Adriana had just opened her eyes. She looked a little disoriented. Beyond her bed was another. Cristobel lay within it. I realized that they had actually been with me in the dream.

“We’ve been worried about all three of you,” Aunt Cassidy said. I could sense her relief. “You’ve been asleep for two days. Adriana and Cristobel risked their lives for you. They joined you early yesterday morning. That was about 36 hours ago. You had been asleep for two days. My sister and her husband are livid about Adriana and Cristobel joining you in the dream world. How was your dream anyway?”

“It was weird.” I continued giving her every detail I could remember. At the beginning of my dream, I was at the foot of the mountain. I had no idea who I was. The Dark Knights walked up to me and told me I was to be their pupil. In my dream, they were actually kind and not at all evil at first. They told me their real names, Eduardo Menendez and Sean Hart. They told me to go to the living forest to the east. Something didn’t seem right about the idea, but I ignored my negative feelings and began an aimless track through the wilderness.

After walking for miles, I saw a young child. He was crying uncontrollably. “Are you okay?” I asked him politely.

“No, I’m not okay,” he yelled. “We’re stuck here forever. This place will be the last one we see. I don’t know what Eduardo and Sean told you, but the living forest is a terrible place. You should walk around it.”

Aunt Cassidy seemed confused as I told her all about my journey. I told her that the dream was about rediscovering my identity and understanding the troubled times ahead. As I walked around the living forest, I found myself dodging whipping vines. I knew they would drag me into the forest. I was determined not to allow the forest to destroy me.

After I finished my track around the living forest, I felt tired and unable to continue. I collapsed onto the ground. I thought I was going to die. I felt alone and confused. I was stuck in the middle of nowhere without anyone to help me.

I “woke up” in a small wooden shack. “You’re awake.” Sean said with a smile. “This may come as a surprise to you…” Sean gave me a reassuring smile. “It seems you have lost your memory. Your name is Julian, and I’m your father. You have to trust me. There are invaders. You must not listen to them. They’re going to tell you to visit a wizard. You must not listen to them. If you do, the wizard will destroy you. Take the staff and go eastward. I’m expecting a visitor. He must not see you.”

I took my staff and thanked him for the staff. I opened the door and began my journey to the east. I realized that I was east of the living forest. I turned around and looked back towards the forest. Someone had set the forest ablaze. I knew I needed to keep moving. I came upon a shallow creek. As crossing the shallow creek would ensure my safety, I entered. The creek was only about knee deep and twenty feet across. The water was cool, but not the point of discomfort.

As I emerged from the stream, I walked up a small hill and sat down, facing the burning forest. In the distance, I saw a man on a purple cloud flying effortlessly through the smoke-filled sky. As the stranger came closer, I remembered Sean’s warning. Before the strange man landed on the ground, I attacked. Eventually, I remembered Adriana and Cristobel. I realized that Sean was not who seemed to be, and that I needed to listen to Adriana and Cristobel. I was unsure about the wizard, but I went along with the idea anyway.

Luckily, I had made the right choice. The wizard gave us good advice. I didn’t realize that he looked like Uncle Max until after I woke up. His advice led us to the Temple of the Band of Tigers. Adriana and Cristobel seemed disappointed since they were disallowed for entering the room.

My tiger guide roared. The room responded by illuminating. The harp began playing of its own according. The melodic tones awakened the band of tigers. Soon they roared with excitement and joined us in the center of the room. My guide jumped at one of the other tigers. Instead of knocking the other tiger over, the two became one large tiger. The other tigers followed their example and soon Tarak, the giant tiger, emerged.

The whole experience was surreal. I had never had a dream that lasted over two days. I also have not had such a dream since. My mind became a cerebral battleground where I had to work out personal issues. To this day, I am not sure if the new powers were the cause or the “last straw.” Without this dream, I would have remained unbalanced. The dream was also about accepting the death of Sean Hart. Sean Hart died when Black Heart was born.

Black Heart seemed to be the focus of a lot of my dreams even in early childhood. Most nights I would dream about his cruelty towards humanity. I didn’t know that he was my father at first, but I dreamed of him nonetheless. The dreams made me numb after a while. If not for Aunt Cassidy and the others, I would have lost my humanity and embraced a destiny of evil. The dream signified my acceptance of what I could not change, the fact that Sean Hart no longer existed. Reading about his transition from a man of integrity to a monster who had enslaved two entire planets upset me more than words can ever express.