Dreamcatcher

by Christian Rosnell

  Seth had been in charge of his little brother’s survival from then on; despite the fact Seth had been eleven at the time and his brother eight. They’d roamed the Fear domain, barely surviving the depths of several winters, hiding from roaming bands of thieves and avoiding all human contact, for there had been no major cities or towns in the Fear domain back then – just chaos and bloodshed. Seth wondered how much it had changed; he hadn’t been there, for the most part, until he’d left at the age of fourteen.

  As Seth pounded through the foothills of Mount Victorious, he painfully remembered his brother’s building frustration at their situation; how he’d run away one night while Seth had been sleeping, and Seth’s fruitless attempts to find him amidst the blizzard conditions that had lasted for a month that year. How, after admitting he’d lost him, Seth had left the Fear domain for what thought was for the last time, risking his life to sneak past the Great Gate at night.

  The massive gated wall, which blocked anyone from going in or out of the domain, was guarded by the men of the warlord who dominated the domain. Vaer. The ruthless bandit king had controlled the domain for decades, but his grip had always been shaky as other factions fought him for power. Seth never knew who was responsible for his parents’ killing, but he’d liked to believe back then it was Vaer. Not only that, but he was sure Vaer’s people had captured his brother; after all, he’d never found him. He liked to think this anyway – it had given him something to hate, and justified his actions following.

  After wandering aimlessly for over a month in the Hate domain, he’d crossed over into the Sorrow domain without much direction. It was there he’d met a solitary old man on the road, who’d noticed his condition and offered him a home and hot meals, with one condition; that he would live the lifestyle of his master, the old man. Seth had agreed, of course, but had been surprised to learn that this man lived in a monastery in the mountains by himself, where he considered himself a teacher. A mentor. A lifelong trainer… of the most dangerous and sought after people in the North. People who made a lot of money, and never had to worry about being in danger again, that was for sure. It turned out that this old man, Omar, had spent his whole life training people in the art of efficient killing, arts that Seth knew he could use to take revenge on his enemy, Vaer, and hopefully to find and bring back his brother. The art of the assassin.

  Seth had reached the base of Mount Victorious by now, and having let off his speed awhile ago – which he couldn’t maintain forever – it had taken him over an hour to reach the distant volcano. He jogged up the gently sloping path with a towering evergreen forest rising up on the slope above him. Looking out at the horizon; Seth gauged it had to be about six something in the morning. The sun would be rising soon.

  He kept running for a couple minutes, looking for a spot, before coming upon a perfect rocky outcrop facing east; with a good view of the channel, the distant city, and the brightening sky to the east. Seth walked over, breathing hard from his run, finding the ideal spot. Dropping down, Seth propped his back against an evergreen and let his legs dangle over the edge of the slope. It was an almost near-vertical drop for hundreds of feet below, but Seth didn’t mind. Nothing really scared him anymore, outside of himself. And he simply had to keep himself in line… sometimes – although it hadn’t really happened it years – he just needed to get away from people. Pulling his pack off and opening it, Seth pulled out a leather bound book and pen, with a title scrawled on the front.

  Silent Snowfall.

  Seth opened the book, sighing in relief, and marked the page at the bottom with a “1”, and finally started the story he’d always held in his head.

  It’s funny, isn’t it?

  It’s funny that someone who can’t even speak would have so much to say. Who wants to hear it, anyway? Who even wants to hear it…

  From someone who experienced the joy and comfort of family as a young child, only to have that torn remorselessly from them? Someone who clung to the only friend he could find, an old man, and emulated him; training as his apprentice, the embodiment of the man’s hopes to use the “silent arts” to finally make peace in the violent North? Someone who cultivated his own natural-given Dreamcasting powers with the physical and mental weapons of the highest degree to become one of the most lethal, yet promising young people in the war-torn North?

  And yet…

  From someone who wasted his potential – following his mind, rather than his heart – and immediately used his newfound powers to find and take revenge on his sworn enemies. Someone who mentally broke after the first kill he made upon infiltrating his enemies lair… once he recognized his victim’s face. From someone who went from being the means to stop the violence and death that tore families apart…

  To someone who had, in the depths of their own rage, killed the very person they were trying to save.

  Their own brother.

  And, in the process, killed something in himself.

  Well, maybe no one does what to hear this. Maybe… I just have to hear it from myself.

  “Seth?”

  Seth snapped the book shut hurriedly and stuffed it and the pen back in the pack, tying it up and throwing it over his shoulder. Standing, he confirmed that the voice was who he thought it was; although why should he be here?

  “Fancy meeting you here”, Lyn said, laughing. Seth nodded to him as Lyn strode up, stretching. The sun must have come up while Seth had been writing; it had taken him longer to get that bit down than he’d anticipated. He’d felt the need to word it right, to explain his story properly. It would still take much more work, of course, he felt like he could use the writing whenever he felt himself getting dangerous. Thankfully, however, Lyn didn’t ask what he’d been doing. Not that Seth would have been able to answer anyway. However, Lyn did expand upon the reason for his own presence out here.

  “You’re probably wondering why I’m out here. Well, I’ll admit it’s a coincidence we met here – especially since I meant to talk to you later today. For me, I like to take Saturday morning walks out here; really helps clear my mind. And it’s also a good spot for training. Sometimes I need to get away from the city and the Zone and all that, so just being out here by myself feels very refreshing. I guess you feel the same way.”

  Seth just nodded, agreeing, although Lyn obviously couldn’t know that he’d come out here to prevent himself from snapping. It was something he hadn’t done in a long time; and was one of the defining characteristics of his previous life as Zero, the legendary assassin in the North. In the year after accidentally killing his brother at fifteen and meeting Troy, Kiara, and Iri at sixteen, Seth would frequently just snap and kill people. He’d been mentally broken in this way ever since that fateful night, and though he was on the mend, that bizarre vivid memory or dream had brought it all back. He’d needed to distance himself from the city, for others’ – and his own – safety.

  Lyn turned and began to stroll back to the path. “Well, I’ll let you get back to whatever you were doing. See you Monday.” Seth nodded, but was surprised he was leaving this early.

  Don’t be stupid, he literally can’t hold a conversation with you.

  But to Seth’s surprise, the Legend stopped suddenly, wheeled around, and walked back over to stand close to Seth. The Legend came to a stop looking over Seth’s shoulder to the eastern horizon. His eyes swept back and forth, seemingly looking out for eavesdroppers, but that seemed unlikely to Seth all the way out here, so early on a Saturday. Nevertheless, Lyn dropped his voice to a whisper as he spoke to Seth. Not as his teacher, but as his comrade… in the mission they were working on together.

  “I told them about the Dream Syndicate. I’ll let you do with that what you will, but I decided to make a gamble… now it’s up to you two to help it pay off. Lead them – subtly, slowly – but surely in the right direction.” The Legend stepped back, putting a hand on Seth’s shoulder, and looked at his comrade. He barely had to look down, as Seth was one of the very few who were almost
on Lyn’s eye level. He spoke now to Seth as the person he really was, not the person he was supposed to be.

  “There’s good in those two, Lyght and Mikael – I know it. I’m trusting you to help bring it out. Don’t let them go down the wrong path.”

  Seth locked eyes with his longtime friend and mentor and nodded firmly, showing in his eyes what his mouth couldn’t say.

  I’ll do my best.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Lyght spun on his heel, burning the rocky ground beneath his feet as he spun away, eyes wide. Without time to rise out of the crouching position he’d been in, he whipped his sword around into the standard blocking position he’d been taught, and braced himself. The enemy – whoever it was – slammed into Lyght’s guard with such force that it blew him backward like leaves before a hurricane. Lyght went spinning at least twenty feet before his back slammed into a tree, driving his breath out and blinding him momentarily with pain.

  Struggling to one knee and trying to clear his flashing vision, Lyght could just make out a massive blurry shape standing upright in front of him. He was confused, and not just because of the pain. What human, Dreamcaster or not, could’ve been able to knock him that far just by locking swords with him? It seemed almost superhuman.

  Lyght lurched to his feet as the figure in front of him rushed forward again, seeing that Lyght hadn’t been knocked out. Holding his ground until the last second, Lyght spun this time – backflipping with great effort and a touch of Dreamcasting boost – and kicked off against the tree trunk behind him. Lyght vaulted into the air over his enemy and landed behind them, using an explosion of spirit right to his arm as he struck like lightning, aiming for the kill point of the shock armor he knew his enemy would be wearing.

  The students wore this armor in these special every-man-for-himself training exercises, which essentially amounted to an open battle royale in Zone Zero. Lyght didn’t really get the point of the tests, but he knew that they all had to wear armor with multiple “shock points” – located under the arms, at the sides, in the gut, over the sternum and the heart, in the back, in the neck, in the back of the head, and in the face – that electrified the victim with a shock that knocked them out. The sergeants didn’t want the students killing each other in training, obviously, so they had them use this armor to ensure they could still go all out without fear of killing their classmates.

  And Lyght really was going all out here, using nearly the last of his spirit in this hours-long session to defeat whatever dangerous enemy this was. Whoever it was, they were very physically strong, so Lyght knew he had to sneak in under their guard and knock him out – and fast. By this very-late point in the session, there should only be a few competitors left. It was even possible that this was the last enemy. Lyght was finally so close to winning one of these things, which he annoyingly hadn’t yet. Mikael had won one, and almost another, so he brought it up quite a lot. Typical Mikael. But it was Lyght’s turn now… or so he hoped.

  Lyght’s eyes narrowed in concentration and satisfaction as he saw his enemy wasn’t reacting quickly enough to his strike. Good. He would hit him in the shock point right between the shoulder blades, dropping him with superior speed. But by then, he’d only have a couple minutes of spirit left, and he’d have to hide for the duration of the event, ambushing anyone who went by. Not exactly what the sergeants wanted, but oh well. He’d take out his opponent here, and then…

  There was a sudden blur, and his opponent moved.

  Moved so amazingly fast, in fact, that Lyght couldn’t believe what he’d just seen. Lyght went careening wildly, thrown off balance by the sudden shift, and stumbled to the ground, blade slamming into a tree. Cursing in frustration, Lyght jumped up as fast as he could, hand reaching to his belt to draw out his knife… only to see a blade rocketing towards him impossibly fast.

  What?! He shouldn’t have had time to get around that fast. That’s not even possible with Dreamcasting. He –”

  Lyght had no time to think as the blade flashed right toward the shock point right between his eyes; no time to dodge or draw his weapon. As the blade fell, Lyght must have closed his eyes instinctually, body tensing in anticipation of a knockout shock.

  Bang.

  Lyght felt a monster vibration under his helmet as the sword slammed home; a loud clang rang in his ears, like thunder inside his visor. He felt it all, but realized, stars flying in front of his eyes, that the shock hadn’t come. The sword had definitely hit on point, but it hadn’t knocked him out. Lyght knew what that meant. Lyght pulled his helmet off to dull the ringing, and closed his eyes in frustration, slumping back against the tree.

  Damn…

  Lyght knew now that his enemy had been the last surviving one in the Zone. If Lyght hadn’t been shocked, it was because the round was over, and the armor would immediately shut down for both of them. He’d been so close to finally winning this one, and now this. With an effort, Lyght opened his eyes and looked at his opponent standing over him, a slightly amused on his face, and had to admit he wasn’t that surprised.

  Seth.

  He’d dimly registered that the shape attacking him had been huge, but hadn’t had time to make deductions amidst the battle. Had he had the presence of mind to do so, however, he surely would’ve recognized that Seth was his opponent; even under that helmet, his size was a dead giveaway. And if Lyght had known he was fighting that physical specimen, he probably would’ve kept his distance more. Not that it would’ve mattered.

  Lyght did have some questions for his fellow class leader on that point…

  For the time being, the two stripped their armor off with some difficulty, leaving it lying there on the forest floor in Zone Zero – the sergeants could track the locations of the armor through some Dreamcasting technique that Lyght didn’t understand, and collect them when the exercise was over. As it was, they were done for the day, and so Lyght and Seth would go home.

  Lyght felt bad about it, but found himself wishing – not for the first time – that Seth could speak. That would make the walk home much more interesting, and he did want to ask Seth about the battle they’d just had. If the guy had some sort of trick up his sleeve that made him way faster than he had any right to be – and it seemed that he did – Lyght wanted to be in on it as well. Anything he could do to expand his own arsenal, he was willing to consider.

  Voicing his thoughts aloud, though not really expecting an answer, Lyght ditched the last of his own armor and turned to walk back to his quarters, Seth following, “I’m still not sure how what you just did was possible. I mean, I know you’re probably the most naturally strong and fast student at the Academy – even more than Mikael – but you moved so fast I couldn’t even see you. Was it some Dreamcasting trick I don’t understand? But I can’t see how that doesn’t violate the Third Law, about only facilitating pre-existing natural processes. I just…” Lyght shook his head, “Man, I wish I knew how to do that.”

  Seth turned to look at him with those icy blue eyes of his. After a moment, the hulking young man apparently decided something, as he reached a hand under his shirt and pulled out a sort of pendant. Lyght examined it closely; it was an almost blinding brilliant white, and simply-designed. From what Lyght could tell, it was basically a white circle with a slanting white star in the middle, with burning red trim around the edges. Seth took it off carefully and handed it to Lyght, a look on his face that plainly said, Go on. Take it.

  Lyght took the pendant from Seth’s hands carefully, looking at it closely. He wasn’t sure what this had to do with the question he’d asked Seth, but he was glad to be communicating with the guy for once. He felt like he even knew Iri reasonably well at this point, but Seth was still largely a mystery to him. Lyght saw Seth motion to him out of the corner of his eye, and he looked up. Seth was motioning for Lyght to put on the pendant, it seemed. Lyght did so, frowning, still not sure what the guy was getting at. Nothing happened.

  Seth walked behind Lyght and caught his shoulder, hal
ting him, and adjusted the pendant’s length, shortening it so that the white star of the pendant rested against his sternum. Stepping back, Seth pulled at the gauntlet on his left arm – unrolling paper that must’ve been folded inside – and pressed a button at his wrist, ejecting a pen that must’ve been stored inside the armor as well. Lyght smiled at the trick – it seemed like a very good way for Seth to communicate quickly and effectively with someone. But why had he never used it to talk to Lyght before?

  Scrawling quickly on the piece of paper, Seth handed it to Lyght, who read, Run forward a few dozen feet, using Dreamcasting the whole time. Use a good amount of spirit, if you can. You’ll notice the difference. Lyght frowned at the odd request, looking up at his towering companion, who nodded encouragingly back. Not sure what to expect, Lyght tapped his Dreamcasting power and sprinted forward – immediately shocked at the results. He exploded forward with a violent force, going so fast that everything around his became a blur, and finally fell down, unprepared to keep his balance at such an insane speed. Lyght sat up, panting, and looked up at Seth in confusion. What had just happened? How had he just blurred forward like that? That shouldn’t have been possible by any rule of Dreamcasting...

  Seth reached a hand down to help Lyght up, and he gratefully grabbed it, coming to his feet. Lyght took the pendant off and handed it to Seth, who lengthened it and slung it over his own head, looking calmer somehow now that he had the strange pendant back. Seth tore off another sheet of paper, much longer this time, and wrote on it for a few minutes as Lyght stood there somewhat awkwardly, eager to head home. Seth finally wrapped it up, handing it to Lyght when he was finished. They set off walking again as Lyght unfolded the paper, reading.