Emerge: The Captive: (Book 3)

by Melissa A. Craven

  “I’m afraid not. They are too far away. As young as you are, close proximity is needed to pull a dreamer into your own dreamscape.” Navid squeezed his shoulder in sympathy. “But there are other ways this gift can help you. We just need to find the right way.”

  “So, if someone I needed to talk to was close enough, I could bring them here?”

  “Yes. I believe you have already done that with your friend, Santi. Just remember rule number one: Do not ever leave your own dreamscape. No matter what.”

  “How do I know when I’ve left it?”

  “As long as you ignore the voices that can lure you into other dreams, you will remain safe in your own little world.”

  “I’ve followed the voices a few times but I made sure to just observe until I thought it was safe to leave the dreamer in peace. I hope I haven’t hurt anyone.” Quinn knew better than anyone how dangerous it could be to mess around with a new gift when you didn’t know what it could do.

  “There have been rumors of a new dreamwalker wreaking havoc in this world. I assumed it was you, but now I’m not so sure. If you’ve resisted the urge to meddle with the few dreamers you’ve encountered, then you are doing remarkably well.”

  “I don’t have a clue what I’m doing.”

  “But you have good instincts.” Navid smiled. “You should trust them.”

  “Is … does a dreamwalker help people?” The temptation to use his power was there, like it always was, but it was so much easier to ignore here.

  Navid sighed as he sat back. “That’s a complicated question.”

  “What does a dreamwalker do?”

  “In simple terms, we were once the guides who helped dreamers travel safely back to the waking world. Before the Great War, all Immortals came here to rest. During the war, some with more talent for this place began to use it as a weapon, terrorizing dreamers as they slept. As the mortal population grew, they too came here. Many believed the mortals should have been extinguished rather than banished. Some dreamwalkers used their ability to attempt just that.” Navid frowned at the unpleasant memory.

  “The dreamworld is a sad, broken place, Quinn. It’s nothing like it once was. Few have the gift anymore. Those that do often let the power go to their heads. Those like myself take the job more seriously. It is our responsibility to protect dreamers—Immortal and mortal alike.”

  “Protect them from what?” Quinn asked.

  “Other dreamwalkers. Losing their way among the nightmares. This place can be dangerous. Those who die in their sleep … more often than not, the death is due to a dreamwalker—or lack of a competent one. Sadly, those of us who have taken up the traditional role are far too few.”

  “You should know, I am an addict.” Quinn hung his head in shame. “Most of my gifts are dangerous, heinous things I would rid myself of in an instant if I could.”

  “We are all addicts here, Quinn. It is the plight of the dreamwalker.”

  “You too?” Quinn wondered if this man could be the precedent he’d looked for all his life.

  “I am.” Navid nodded. “I know exactly what it means to suffer from the addiction. It is why I can never stay here too long. I know my limits and I do not exceed them.”

  “You have no idea what it means to meet someone like you.” Quinn leaned his elbows on his knees for support, letting his head slump forward. “To see a kind man your age who has managed to fight the addiction and keep his humanity. It is inspiring.”

  “I haven’t always. I’ve stumbled. And when I do, I start over.” Navid shrugged. “Believe it or not, but I find mortal AA meetings to be quite helpful. I learned a very long time ago how important it is to forgive myself for my weaker moments so I am able to be strong when it truly counts.”

  “When can we meet again?” Quinn asked. “I don’t want to keep you here too long.”

  “I will come find you.”

  “Thank you.” Quinn leaned back, staring at the sky. “It is peaceful here.” He looked back down at his hands, seeing the bruises from the shackles that held him in the waking world. “If a man found himself in a bad situation in the waking world and retreated here for a break, would it save his mind from the torment? Enough for him to find his strength again?”

  “Now you’re thinking like a dreamwalker,” Navid said. “We have all the time in the world to teach you how to navigate this place. That can come later. Find your respite here. That is how the dreamworld is going to save you from Soma. Come here. Rest. Recover. And when your punishment is over, you will return to Livia, not as the defeated boy she expects, but as a man ready to face his demons.”

  “She doesn’t let me sleep much. I’m never really here long enough to rest.”

  “You are a dreamwalker, Quinn. A strong one. You do not need to sleep to come here.”

  “I don’t?” Quinn asked in surprise.

  “Let that be our first lesson before I leave you. You will have to work at it, but you simply need to reach a meditative state of mind to come here and stay in your dreamscape as long as you like.”

  “I can do that.” Quinn nodded. “They’ll put me in the white room soon. That will be my best chance.”

  “I will come find you when I can and we will have our lessons. I must leave now.”

  “Thank you, Navid.” Quinn watched as Navid walked down the path. In an instant the dreamwalker was gone.

  Quinn stayed in the forest for as long as he could, but with the familiar splash of water mixed with alcohol and acid, he was back in the waking world, his body on fire.

  ~~~

  “You will stay here for as long as it takes to get it through your head, we own you,” Michael sneered as he closed the door to Quinn’s white prison.

  With the echo of the slamming door, Quinn smiled. Last time he was sent to the white room, the sameness of it drove him mad. Day in, day out, nothing ever changed. White walls. White tile. White food. Everything bathed in fluorescent white light. But this time it would be his oasis.

  It took him several attempts, but Quinn finally managed to enter the dreamworld while his body was awake and in a meditative state. He knew the routine of the white room quite well. Between his pitiful breakfast and dinner, he never saw a soul. That left him with the hours in between to escape to the dreamworld. He spent the majority of his days there now.

  Quinn traveled the world, all within the safety of his own dreamscape. He only had to think of a place he’d like to visit and he was there. He explored the most beautiful forests and meadows with the most glorious colors he didn’t even have a name for.

  On the nights when his body rested, Quinn spent hours building a fortress of a library just for himself. It quickly became his home in the dreamworld. He reclined on a red leather sofa in the evenings and read his favorite books.

  Each day he grew a little stronger than the day before as his mind healed from the stress of his time at Soma. He met with Navid often, but only for brief lessons.

  Quinn was confident that when Livia brought him out of the white room, he would be ready to act. Ready to get himself, Santi and the others out of Soma for good.

  ~~~

  CHAPTER

  TWENTY-SIX

  Sasha: Verumkai

  The Chola Valley Temple

  “Verumkai is hand-to-hand combat, using the forms and weapons we learned in the earlier phases of kalaripayattu. In addition to the student’s individual gifts.” Jayesh paced in front of Sasha’s unseeing eyes. She listened, but didn’t really hear. She didn’t really care.

  I want to go home.

  “But there is a level of verumkai that is only taught to those students the mother deems worthy.”

  “Let me guess. It totally sucks. And I’m one of the lucky few.” Sasha sighed.

  “Pretty much.” Jayesh sat down in front of her at their favorite meditation spot beside one of the natural fountains. He took her hands in his. His warm reassurance was comforting.

  “I don’t like seeing you like this, Sasha.”


  “I’m just tired. Please, tell me about our final phase of training.”

  “It will not be easy for either of us. You are so young….”

  “Just tell me, Jay. I can take it. Ankathari was difficult, but I’m strong. I will find a way to get through verumkai as well.”

  “In addition to honing your grappling skills, you will be learning the art of marmas manipulation. There are one-hundred-eight marmas, or pressure points, in the human body. Sixty-four of them are lethal. Marmas are used in the arts of healing, meditation and in yoga, as I’m sure you have experienced training with your mother. But they are also used in kalaripayattu. A master of kalari can use marmas to temporarily disable their opponents, or to kill when it becomes necessary.”

  “So we’re going to focus on those lethal ones, right?” Sasha asked.

  “You will learn and experience each of the one-hundred-eight marmas. Including the lethal ones.”

  “So you’re going to kill me at least sixty-four times? Which means I will have to recover sixty-four times. And at the rate I heal, it means we are no closer to leaving this place than when we first arrived.”

  “Some lethal marmas kill instantly. Some offer a slower path to death. In those instances, I will try not to kill you.” He gave her a tentative smile. “If you promise not to be a brat.”

  “Tell me how they work and we’ll see.” She returned his smile with a playful glare.

  “Marmas are the vital pressure points found at specific junctures in the body. These areas are where the life force is believed to be located,” Jayesh began. “The points are concentrated where the flesh, tendons, veins, arteries, bones and joints meet.

  “In kalaripayattu, we are trained to attack using these points to our advantage. An advanced kalari master can disable or kill his opponent merely by touching the correct marma with just the right amount of pressure. However, this is taught only to the most trustworthy students.”

  “And those whose gifts are inclined for the assassin’s trade.”

  “Don’t let this make you cynical, Sasha. We will approach this carefully. I will teach you the healing marmas right along with the painful ones so it is never more than you can bear.”

  “And how many times will I have to experience each of these marmas?”

  “Only once. Just so you may know how it feels and what it does to your body. If you will be using the lethal marmas against an opponent, you will understand through firsthand experience how it feels.”

  “Then let’s get started, shall we? The sooner we begin, the sooner we are done.” She remembered saying the same thing her first day here. It felt like a lifetime ago.

  “Marma points are grouped in three categories. Sanakha are those points found on the legs and feet. Madhayamanga are located along the torso, and jatrurdhara are found on the neck and head.

  “The heart, forehead and throat are the most vulnerable areas of the body.” Jayesh pointed to each area. “These marmas will cause the most damage. The arms and legs are less vulnerable to severe injury, but can still cause a great deal of pain to your opponent with the right manipulation.”

  “Show me.”

  “We don’t have to start today.”

  “I can handle pain, Jayesh. The agony of being here is way worse than anything you’re going to do to me.”

  “Give me your foot.”

  Sasha leaned back on her elbows in the grass and placed her foot in his lap. Jayesh looked as though he would like to be anywhere else in the world than sitting in the beautiful garden preparing to teach her such destructive things.

  “I will not make you suffer any longer than you have to.” He massaged the pad of her foot, splaying her toes in preparation for her first lesson of verumkai. “You will pay attention to every movement as I explain it and once you have experienced the pressure point for yourself today, you will do the same to me tomorrow. When you can perform them perfectly, we will move on.”

  “I have to hurt you too? This is barbaric, Jayesh.” He was older and would recover much faster than she would, but it still didn’t sit well with her that she would have to bring him pain. Kill him, even. Jayesh never talked about himself very much, but she got the sense that he had experienced enough pain in his three hundred years to last him an eternity.

  “It is how it is done, Sasha. It will be nothing I haven’t experienced before.” He continued to massage her foot, coaxing her to relax.

  “There are four marmas located in the foot. Here, just between your big toe and the second metatarsal.” He pressed lightly on the spot at the base of her toe. “This is called the kshipra and it affects the heart and lungs. She relaxed involuntarily as he gently massaged the area. “See how I’ve stimulated the marma with gentle pressure?”

  Sasha nodded. It felt nice for a brief moment until he increased the pressure, focusing on the point that was as small as the tip of a needle.

  Her breath came in short gasps as her lungs refused to cooperate with their lifelong rhythm of expansion and contraction. She saw stars dancing in her peripheral vision, her lungs like huge boulders in her chest.

  Jayesh released the pressure, returning to the gentle massage.

  “If I were to strike this marma directly with maximum pressure, it would stop your heart. And here.” His fingertips slid down to the pad of her foot. “At the juncture of the tendons where the plantar arteries are exposed is the kulcha. Watch what happens as I apply pressure.”

  Sasha placed her palms flat against the grass beneath her, shaking as Jayesh pushed hard against the tender part of her foot. She gasped as her vision grew dark around the edges.

  “I can’t blind you with this marma, but I can directly affect your vision.”

  Sasha nodded, but didn’t relax until her vision returned. “You can control all of that just with my foot?”

  “There are two more.” Jay’s fingertips wandered down to the arch of her foot. “This is the talhrdayam point. It can affect the lungs similarly to the kshipra point, although this one will cause your lungs to contract, where kshipra will simply make it difficult to breathe.”

  With a flick of his thumb, Sasha’s lungs began to spasm and she couldn’t breathe at all. Her fingers sank into the grass beneath her palms. Her left lung collapsed and blood oozed between her lips when he released his hold on her foot.

  Sasha curled on her side, choking as she fought to get her breath.

  “Jay … I can’t … breathe,” she gasped, unable to fill her lungs.

  “Relax, Sasha. You have a collapsed lung. It will heal on its own in a few hours.”

  Sasha closed her eyes and focused on her right lung, imagining it expanding and contracting, giving her the oxygen she needed while her left lung recovered. The sensation of not getting enough air soon passed.

  “The final marma located in the foot is the kurchashira.” His thumb found the center point just above her heel at the base of her arch. The pressure of his thumb made her uncomfortable.

  “Are you ready, Sasha? This will cause muscle spasms along the sciatic nerve.”

  “Do it.”

  He held her foot steady and brought his thumb down on the sensitive spot. Sasha felt something pop as heat spread up her leg, causing her muscles to spasm from her calf to her hip.

  The pain chased all sense from her mind as she twisted her body, bringing her left foot up in a swift kick to his temple. But Jayesh caught her foot before she could strike him.

  Sasha curled in on herself as her right leg spasmed out of control.

  “Breathe.” Jayesh applied small amounts of pressure to the kurchashira point until the nerve began to relax and the warmth receded. “Better?”

  “Yes.” She nodded, wiping the sweat from her brow as she lay on the ground, panting.

  “You tried to kick me.” He looked down at her with an amused smile.

  “I meant to. It’s really annoying the way you always seem to be one step ahead of me.”

  “Five steps, actually
.”

  “Your gift?” she asked. She’d often wondered if he had some talent for seeing ahead.

  “Only in battle. I’m always five steps ahead of everyone else. It makes me the best at what I do.”

  “And what is that, exactly?”

  “International man of mystery.” He winked.

  “You’ve watched one too many spy movies.”

  “We’ll do one more pressure point today, and then tomorrow you will perform each of these marmas on me to exact your revenge.”

  “This wasn’t so bad,” Sasha said as Jayesh stood, offering her his hand. “It wasn’t a picnic at the mangrove forest, but it wasn’t awful.”

  “We will always begin slowly, never taking it beyond what you can bear. For today, I simply want you to get a feel for how these vital pressure points can affect the body. It is not meant to give you pain for the sake of suffering, but so that you may understand better how the body functions and can use it to your advantage when it becomes necessary to protect yourself. Marmas should only be used in self-defense and only when our opponent gives us no other choice. A Chola assassin will always seek to kill quickly and mercifully with the blade first, but when all else fails, we use the lethal marmas with precision.”

  Sasha brushed the grass from her tunic and her hair. Her breath still uneasy. She was a bit of a mess from just these first four marmas.

  And only a hundred and four left to go.

  “Stand opposite me,” Jayesh said, moving to face her. “I will strike you here.” He pointed to the soft place just behind her ear. “The vidhuram.”

  She barely felt it when he brought the fleshy side of his palm down against the spot behind her ear. The instant he struck her, her chin lolled against her chest and she could no longer move her head.

  “I’ve paralyzed the muscles used to support your head.” He reached behind her to massage the area, bringing it back to life until she could finally lift her head again. “Good job today. That wasn’t so bad.”

  “At this rate, we’ll be here for months. Isn’t there a crash course where we could blow through all these in a week? Just to get it done?”