She had not done much practicing with her dream power, through no real fault of her own. When her magic was weakened she had struggled with trying to access or to summon dreams, and then once the xenorians arrived, she’d no longer been able to practice magic in her room. The library had been a great place to work on her other powers, but unless she was going to sleep there, she could not try to direct or summon any dreams.
Despite the difficulties, she had to admit that Dominic’s suggestion made sense. It might be a long shot, but trying to call forth a dream about this was better than doing nothing. And Dominic was right—there was no reason she couldn’t do it here, tonight when she went to sleep.
“You’re right,” she said. “I hadn’t thought about that. I don’t know how much use it will be, but I’ll give it a try. It’s better than doing nothing.”
“Have you had any dreams at all lately?” Dominic asked, thinking that perhaps Leesa’s magic might already have shown her a glimpse of what was coming, even if she did’nt realize it.
The first dream that sprang to Leesa’s mind was the one about Rave and the land of Azure. She glanced at him and felt her cheeks beginning to flush. She didn’t see the need to mention that one now—it certainly did not have anything to do with the matter at hand.
She closed her eyes and tried to remember if she’d had any other dreams. A vague recollection arose deep in her brain. The images were fuzzy and almost forgotten. She struggled to push them closer to the front of her mind and bring them into focus. Nothing happened.
She opened her eyes. “I think I did have at least one dream,” she said, frustrated, “but I can’t really remember anything about it.”
“Maybe I can help,” Dominic said.
He reached out and placed his hands lightly on either side of Leesa’s head. She felt a slight tingling pass from his palms into her scalp as Dominic sent some of his magic into her.
“Try now,” he said, removing his hands.
Leesa closed her eyes again and tried to access the dream. This time, the bits and pieces in her memory began to coalesce.
She saw four figures. Definitely people, but still too unclear to recognize. Something about them seemed familiar, though. She concentrated harder, and the people slowly came into focus. Disappointment washed over her when she realized she was looking at the two black waziri and their apprentices. She was about to open her eyes when something told her to wait.
She felt like she was watching a movie inside her head. The four figures were changing, morphing into different people. Three of them were changing more rapidly than the fourth. This had happened in her dream in the same way, she remembered now. As the new images grew clearer, she recognized them, even though she had never seen them. There were two men and one woman, and they matched the descriptions Cali had given of the xenorians almost exactly! Now the fourth figure became clear, and Leesa recognized her immediately. It was her mom.
The vision began to fade. Leesa fought to keep it alive, seeking any hint of what might occur, but to no avail. The images continued to fade, until finally they disappeared. Apparently, this dream had provided no more information, at least not any that she could access. She opened her eyes and exhaled deeply.
“It worked,” she said, “but I don’t know how much help it’s going to be. The xenorians were in it, and they were with my mom. One of them was holding her by the arm.” She shook her head in frustration. “It didn’t show me anything else, though. I don’t see what use it’s going to be. We already knew they had my mom.”
Dominic laid his hand on Leesa’s shoulder. “Were you able to see the xenorians clearly enough to get detailed images of them?”
Leesa nodded. “Yeah, they were pretty clear at the end.”
Dominic smiled. “That will help, then.” He sat down on the rock Leesa had vacated a few minutes before. “Most of your dreams up to this point have been the kind that arise unbidden. There is a second type, though.” He edged forward on the rock. “Tell me everything you know about actually summoning a dream.”
Leesa thought for a moment before answering. She had read the chapters on dreams in her magic book and had done a little experimenting with them before the xenorians arrived, but that was all.
“When you try to summon a dream,” she said, remembering, “you have to pick one aspect and try to visualize it in as much detail as possible.”
“Exactly. You’ve never seen the xenorians, so I was worried you would not be able to visualize one clearly enough to use for a dream summoning. But you’ve already seen them clearly in this other dream. When you go to bed tonight, focus on the image you just described—of a xenorian holding your mother. I believe that will give you your best chance of summoning a dream that might help us tomorrow.”
“You’re right,” Leesa said excitedly. “I can see that image as clearly as if they were standing right in front of me.” Her expression darkened. “But I’ve never actually summoned a dream like this before. What if I fail?”
Dominic stood up and put both his hands on Leesa’s shoulders. His grey eyes bored into hers.
“Do not think about failing,” he said. “Think only of success. That is your best chance.” He allowed himself a half-smile. “But do not pressure yourself unduly. Doing so will only work against you. Remember, if you happen not to succeed, we will be no worse off than we are now.”
Leesa knew Dominic was right. Trying too hard or harboring negative thoughts always worked against successful magic—she knew that from experience. She needed to think positively, to give it her best, but also to try to stay relaxed about the whole thing. It would not be easy.
“I’ll do my best,” she promised.
Dominic smiled. “I know you will.” He sat back down on the rock. “Now, here is what I propose. There is a car rental place in the town where Rave picked me up. Rave can carry you to town now so you can rent a car for me. Leave it parked on the street and bring the keys back here. When you return, Rave can take me back down to the car and I’ll drive to Connecticut tonight to see if I can learn anything. You can use the time after you get back to read up on dream summoning in your book. Tomorrow, Rave can bring you to Middletown. We’ll meet on the fourth floor of the library at two o’clock and decide how to proceed against the xenorians. Agreed?”
Leesa nodded. Dominic’s plan made more sense than anything she could come up with.
“Yes. We’ll get you set up with a car, and then I’ll spend the evening studying about dreams.”
35. DREAMING
Sitting cross-legged on her sleeping mat, Leesa thought she was as ready as she would ever be to try to summon a dream about the xenorians and her mom. With the aid of her illumination spell, she had spent almost an hour pouring over the dream chapters in her book of magic. Even after an hour, her magical light had shown no sign of weakening, but she had pretty much memorized every word about dreams in the book, so she let the light fade out. She hadn’t needed it to practice the visualization techniques described in the chapters.
For the past two hours, she had been working on those techniques and now felt comfortable and confident with them. There was just one problem: despite the late hour, her body and brain were so keyed up she didn’t think she was going to be able to fall asleep. Talk about a Catch-22, she thought—without sleep there would be no dreams, but her urgency to dream was preventing her from sleeping.
She turned toward Rave, who had spent had spent the entire time sitting by the cavern entrance and quietly watching her, ready to help if needed, but realizing there was nothing he could do for the moment. Enough pale moonlight spilled into front section of the cave for her to see his outline, if not his features.
“What’s troubling you?” he asked.
Leesa wondered briefly how he knew she was troubled at this exact moment, but then realized his keen eyes could probably pierce the dimness well enough to see the expression on her face. If her face reflected her mood, it would certainly appear troubled.
> “I need to go to sleep if I’m going to have any chance at summoning a dream, but I’m too wound up by everything that’s going on. You wouldn’t happen to have any chamomile tea or something around, would you.”
Rave stood up and crossed to where Leesa was sitting. He sat down beside her.
“No, but I’ve got something even better. Turn around.”
Leesa shifted her position on the mat so that her back was to Rave. Letting his magical heat flow into his fingers, Rave began gently massaging her neck and shoulders. She sighed as the delicious warmth flowed into her. She closed her eyes and breathed slow deep breaths, relishing the feeling. As Rave worked her muscles, she could almost feel the tension draining out of her body. Soon, she found herself totally relaxed—and even better, she was starting to feel sleepy.
“That’s enough,” she said when she was beginning to have trouble keeping her eyes open. “It feels totally wonderful, but any more and I’m liable to fall asleep before I get a chance to try summoning a dream.”
She reached up to her shoulder and took one of his hands in hers, gently pulling it toward her lips and giving it a soft kiss. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
“My pleasure, as always.”
Leesa stretched out on the sleeping mat. “Lie beside me, please,” she said, “but don’t touch me. I don’t know how that might affect what I need to do.”
“As you wish,” Rave said.
Leesa could almost hear the smile in his voice. She smiled, too, then closed her eyes and began the process of trying to summon the dream she wanted.
The images were sharp and clear. Leesa watched them unfold as if observing from a low hill slightly off to the side. Her raised vantage point allowed her see everything. For the first time in any of her dreams, she was included in the tableau unfolding in front of her. It felt strange to watch herself like this.
On one side, five people stood on a grassy field, gathered fairly close together. In addition to her mom and her brother, she recognized the three xenorians, who looked exactly as she remembered them from her first dream. One of the men held Bradley, the other held her mom. The xenorian woman stood a step or two in front of them. Her name was Rome, Leesa remembered. The men were Smith and Jones.
Leesa watched herself step out from the trees and move slowly toward the xenorians. She named her alter ego Dream Leesa. A moment later, Rave and Dominic emerged from woods and positioned themselves a few steps behind Dream Leesa. The xenorian holding her mom pressed some kind of small black device against her neck. Sunlight glinted off two chrome prongs. The prongs reminded Leesa of vampire fangs, and she had no doubt they could be just as dangerous. Dream Leesa moved forward cautiously, stopping about ten feet away.
“I see you brought some friends with you,” Rome said. “They will not help you, even if they possess magic, I promise you that.”
“They’re not here to help me. They came to make sure I arrived here quickly and safely. And to help take my mom and brother away.”
Rome’s expression did not change.“Whatever you say. Just make sure they stay back, if they value their own safety.” She moved forward a few steps. “I need to touch you, Leesa. It will do you no harm, I promise.”
Dream Leesa held out her hand, signaling Rome to stop. “Not so fast. I need to make sure my mom is okay first.”
Rome edged aside. “Go ahead. Get as close as you want. We have not harmed her in any way. Behave yourself and she will remain unharmed.”
Dream Leesa stepped slowly forward. Jones grinned as she approached.
“Are you okay, Mom?” Dream Leesa asked.
Her mom nodded. “Yes. I’m so sorry I got you into this, sweetheart. I don’t know what they want.”
“That’s okay, Mom. I do.”
Leesa watched with increasing amazement as events continued to unfold on Brennan Field.
When Leesa opened her eyes, she saw Rave lying close beside her, watching her expectantly. The first pale wash of early morning light was leaking into the cave, bathing his face in a soft, yellowish glow. He smiled.
“Any luck?” he asked.
Leesa thought back to her dream, fixing as much of it as she could into her memory. The beginning was fresh and clear in her mind, but the further she delved into the dream, the more broken and disjointed the images became, until the end was barely recognizable at all.
Her book had warned about this possibility. What was seen in dreams might or might not occur, depending on a multitude of factors, and those dreams that did come to pass might not unfold in exactly the same manner seen by the dreamer. Those things that were more certain to happen would be more clearly seen and remembered. Things that had a lower probability of occurring would be more difficult to recognize and recall.
Leesa could see the first part of her dream—encountering the xenorians at Brennan Field—as if it was happening right in front of her now, which told her that that part, at least, was almost certain to occur. There was no surprise there; she had no choice but to meet them on their terms if she was to have any chance at saving her family. The following sections of her dream became increasingly less clear—and thus increasingly less certain—which troubled her greatly. Any change from what she had seen in her dream could prove disastrous. Still, she saw no option but to follow through and hope that even the less certain aspects would come to pass. And if they did, she still needed to plan about what to do afterward—her dream had left several important questions unanswered. She wasn’t too worried about that part yet, though—she would have plenty of time to think about those things on the journey back to Connecticut.
“Some luck,” she said, responding to Rave’s question. “I did dream about this afternoon. The beginning was clear and sharp—which means we’ll almost certainly confront the xenorians at Brennan Field. And my dream did show me a way out of this mess, but whether things actually unfold the way I saw them is less certain. We’ll just have to hope they do, because I don’t see any other way.”
She kissed Rave on the forehead and pushed herself up to her feet.
“Let’s get going,” she said as Rave stood up beside her. “I’ll tell you more about it on the way home.”
Dominic was waiting for them up in the stacks when Leesa and Rave arrived at the library. The wizard was seated at the same table where Leesa had practiced so much magic recently. With midterms ended, the fourth floor was once again silent and empty.
“Did you have any luck?” Leesa asked before she even sat down. “Did you learn anything that can help us?”
Dominic shook his head slowly. “No, nothing, I’m afraid.”
Leesa slid onto one of the seats. Rave remained standing beside her, his hand resting lightly on her shoulder in a gesture of silent support. She hadn’t really expected Dominic to learn anything, but she had hoped he might, had hoped he would provide some alternative to following her dream, which was so risky.
“I went to your family’s apartment,” Dominic continued. “They were not there, of course. Nor did I see anyone watching the place. The same thing at your dorm. Apparently, the xenorians are content to wait for you to show up at Brennan Field.”
Leesa leaned back in her chair, disappointed but not surprised.
“What about you?” Dominic asked. “Did you dream?”
Leesa nodded. “Yeah, I did.”
She described her dream in as much detail as she could recall. The beginning was easy, but the further she got into her vision, the more difficult it became to describe things clearly. She did the best she could.
“I don’t like it,” Dominic said when she was finished. “The second half of your dream is too vague and unclear. You know what that means, I believe.”
Leesa nodded. “Yeah—your book made that very clear. It means that what I saw there is much less certain to come to pass.”
“Exactly. It’s too risky.”
“I don’t care. We don’t have any other choice. I’m going. I hope you’ll come with me. I know Rave will.�
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Rave squeezed her shoulder lightly, letting her know he was with her whatever she decided.
Dominic looked at her hard. “I could stop you, you know. Prevent you from leaving here…even if Rave tried to help you.”
Leesa met his gaze evenly. “I know. But you won’t. You know that if anything happened to my mom and brother I’d never forgive you. You said it yourself—I’m the only apprentice you’re ever going to get.”
Dominic sighed. “Yes, you are. And I could not have asked for a better one. So I guess the three of us are going to Brennan Field.”
Leesa got up and kissed Dominic on the cheek. “Thank you.”
36. RISKING IT ALL
Leesa stepped slowly out of the shadows of the trees onto the grass at the east end of Brennan Field. She had shared her dream and her concerns with Dominic back in the library. The wizard had been unable to come up with any alternative plan, and knowing he would not be able to dissuade Leesa from trying to rescue her family, he had reluctantly agreed to go along with her vision, trusting that it would either unfold as she had seen it or that they would be able to improvise somehow should the need arise. He had not been happy about it, though. Leesa was too valuable to risk—if he lost her to the xenorians, he would never have another apprentice.
As Leesa walked out onto the field, she recalled the two previous times she had been here. Most recently, she had watched Rave and his volkaane friends disappear into the woods along with Stefan and two other vampires as the unlikely allies set out to hunt the super vampires created by the black waziri Josef. Before that, she had almost seen Cali killed by Edwina just a few feet from where Leesa now stood. She wondered why the xenorians had chosen this place. Perhaps the woman had sensed the magic used here and wanted to compare it to Leesa’s.
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