The Sleeper Series

All of them were, as usual, empty.

"Wow. A real carnival. I haven't been in one since I was ten!" I said, running toward one of the booths.

"Stop goofing around. We have a job to do." Charlotte said, pulling my shirt.

Wasn't that supposed to be the other way around?

I had decided to morph back to my regular outdoor gear, donning my leather armor only in combat to avoid suspicion. The Dreamster had explained that I needed someplace to store up the energy I used in making the armor, sort of like a memory card for my data. I chose my necklace, and moment I stored my energy in there, the jewel had gained a soft, white glow. Incideria, as a knife, was safely tucked away with a spare combat dagger behind my back.

"So where's our man?"

"Not a man. A woman, actually."

My eyes sparkled. "A woman you say. How old, huh?"

"About early 30's or so."

My hopes were immediately crushed, and I followed with my back hunched.

"What're we dealing with?" I asked with a sigh.

"Airborne. She's afraid of heights."

How am I supposed to fight something in the air? A jetpack, maybe? Or how about wings? Yeah that would be awesome.

How 'bout just levitation?

Way to go, Dreamster. You sure know how to ruin a good idea.

Just being practical.

Right.

I followed Charlotte into the tent, watching for any Weaverlings in the area.

The woman inside looked like an office worker. She was holding something in her hand, but I couldn't see from the distance.

I raised my hands before approaching.

"Miss? We'd like to have a word with--"

"Back off! Or I'll shoot! Step away from me NOW."

Oh my god, it's a gun! Oh wait. I forgot. I dropped my hands and stepped forward

She fired, but then again nothing could hurt me. I laughed as she finished an entire clip.

Never gets old.

"Anyway, we'd like you to come with us please."

She turned around and started running.

How come they listen to Charlotte and not me?

We chased her outside the tent, zigzagging through the numerous game booths. As we were closing in, though, something unexpected happened. The sky turned red.

The nightmare had appeared early.

"Charlotte!" I shouted. Apparently, she notice too, and didn't stop running. "I'll take care of this then!"

"You do that." She said over her shoulder, and ran faster.

I immediately looked up, checking for any signs of the nightmare. Suddenly I wondered where the Dreamster was, since he hasn't spoken to me about what to do. Never mind, I'll do this myself.

I quickly changed to my armor, picturing it again, and imagined Peter Pan. If he could fly, so can I.

Bracing myself, I jumped in the air, and fell back to the ground.

Maybe I need some pixie dust...?

Just then, a figure soared above me. I had to rub my eyes to believe what I was seeing.

It was a dragon.

Honestly, I loved dragons. Majestic and commanding, they practically own the skies. I'm really going to hate doing this. She just had to be afraid to heights.

But how am I supposed to fight it if I can't fly?

Charlotte appeared beside me, throwing a tied woman near her feet. I eyed her suspiciously.

"She was feisty. I had to." She said.

"C'mon. Let's go back into the tent first."

"Why? You have your target. Go!"

"I can't!"

The dragon dived, and I pushed the both of them out of the way.

"There's no time to explain. Just take her and go back inside." I said.

Charlotte nodded and proceeded to drag the woman toward the central tent.

"What is the problem, Nathan?" She asked when we went in.

"I just can't do it. I can't...fly."

She stepped closer and pointed a finger at me. "You're scared of heights, too, aren't you?"

"N-No! That's not it. I just feel a little uneasy. Not scared at all." I can't believe I'm being put on the spot by a little girl.

"There's no way around it. You are scared. Great. Now what?"

"Hey. I have an idea." The woman said behind me. Wow. Charlotte had completely tamed her. The previous hostility in her voice was gone. I wonder what she did? Then again, maybe I don't want to know...

"Uh, who are you again?" I asked.

"Samantha Racquer." She said.

"Okay, Sam. What's this idea?"

She told me.

"Hmm. That's not bad."

"Just so you know, nightmares can hurt you."

"Not a problem. This won't last long."

I ran out and planned what I had to do. The Ferris Wheel was not far away, I could see its shape towering right in front of me. I quickly jumped between the cars to get to the topmost one. Already I felt a bit woozy, the vertigo kicking in. I froze at the top, awaiting the beast.

=====================================================================

The Weaver had been watching Nathan in the nearby Merry-Go-Round with amusement. It's funny how humans try conquering their fear even if they know they'll fail. He snapped his fingers, making a Weaverling appear beside him.

"Yes, milord?" it said.

"Send in a few more of those nightmares for our guest here."

The shadow nodded. "Of course. Right away, sir." It said, then vanished. The Weaver himself smiled, then started walking toward the Ferris Wheel.

=====================================================================

Something was wrong here. Why wasn't the dragon showing up? I just saw it about two minutes ago, so it couldn't have gone that far. Then I heard clapping below me.

It was a man in black armor, with long white hair, silver in the light. The look on his face was one that would haunt me forever. This man had killed a thousand people...and loved it.

"Welcome, Dreamster."

I lost control of my body again, but this time, my appearance changed, too. I felt bigger, and a lot more stronger than I usually was. My armor changed to that of the Dreamster as I remembered it from before.

"It seems you have power over the boy, Leonard." The man said.

"I had to find a way out of that horrid prison you put me in."

"Someone had to control you. If not for me, your army would have won, and peace maintained."

I shouted, and lunged at the man. As I watched, I could see the Dreamster was blinded by pure rage. This fight was obviously something personal. The man pulled out his own sword, its black blade gleamed in the red light. In turn, I pulled out Incideria, the sword seemed to emit a faint blue glow. Where have I seen that glow before? Then it hit me. It was the first time the Dreamster and I had talked to each other. His left gauntlet had the same glow.

I lifted that hand now, and saw it...aflame?! It was engulfed in blue fire, the more powerful version of the regular orange ember. He shot streams of fire at the man with it, but he stepped aside each time, avoiding the attacks.

"Are you sure you've been training in that prison I made for you?"

The struggle went on. I wanted to watch a bit more, but something pulled on me, separating myself from my Dreamster-inhabited body. I must've passed out then, because the next thing I knew I was looking up at Charlotte in the central tent. My head was throbbing, and my body ached all over.

"What happened?" I said, sitting up.

Charlotte pushed me back down. "Don't. The Dreamster exerted almost all your soul energy fighting the Weaver. You should rest for now."

Weaver? Oh. She must mean that guy in the black armor.

"But what about the nightmare?"

"Disappeared."

"What? You mean it's gone?"

She shook her head. "The sky's still red."

Oh. That sucked.

"Where's that woman? Sam was it?" I asked.

"I don't know. I went to get you, and when we returned, she was gone."

Something flicked in the corner of my eye. I changed and drew Incideria.

"Weaverlings."

"Very good. You managed to spot them before I did."

"Um...Thanks. I think."

The fight ended really quickly, even faster than in the boat. I was getting good at this. Before we delivered the final blow, however, the last one actually spoke.

"We have the woman."

I stopped Incideria halfway. Charlotte grabbed the shadow and pinned it to the ground. Wow, never thought you could actually do that.

"Where is she?" I asked.

"Too late, Vessel. She is already being prepared...to die."

I sliced the thing's head off.

"Why did you do that?! We could've found her."

"No need. I already did."

"What?"

"I can feel her mind...it's weird, but I know where she is."

Charlotte laughed. "It looks like the Dreamster left a few things for you."

"Yeah."

"Then that means you can teleport yourself now."

"Huh?"

"The portal. Concentrate you mind on the presence and make your way to it. Got that?"

"I think."

I closed my eyes and pinpointed Ms. Racquer"s location. She was in a different dream now, the nightmare version.

Take me to her.

I held out both hands like Charlotte did, and felt electricity crackle between them. There was a whooshing sound, then I opened my eyes.

The portal had appeared.

"Nice job." She said, then gestured for me to go first.

"Oh no, no, no. My portal. You first."

She gave me one of her looks. It only lasted five seconds before I dove in first.

The pain was just the same as the first two times. I felt myself being ripped atom by atom. I wouldn't be surprised if I was missing an eye after this. Beyond the portal was totally nothing but air. The sky whizzed past, the wind blowing against my face.

"Hey Charlotte! You loving this? 'Coz I'm not!" I shouted. No one was there to answer.

She had disappeared.

Oh, just great. Left me for dead again.

Red sky greeted me once more. I dug my brain for any useful ideas, but none came.

Figures came into view. There were about four of them.

Four dragons?! Did they multiply or something?!

They were getting closer now. I needed to find Ms. Racquer before they got to her. I desperately looked around for any sign of her. There was a small dot some distance away. I turned back to the dragons. They were closer, and at this rate they're way too fast.

There has to be a way out of this mess.

A sudden scream awakened me. It was Ms. Racquer again. Gears moved in my head. I knew what to do. I pulled out Incideria.

"I need you to be a dragon for me. Can you do that?"

The blade blinked once in blue light, as if to say yes, the glowed brilliant white. The knife became bigger, grew legs, wings, and a head.

It worked.

Incideria roared into the sky and caught me at the base of his neck. The knife had completely transformed into a light blue colored dragon. He roared again, and flew straight into the nightmares.

They were surprised at seeing a dragon a little bigger than them, but still they rushed to gang up on Incideria.

I quickly made a couple of throwing knives to use against the four dragons. If I used them on the wings, it could give Incideria time to rip them apart before they figure out what happened.

The bad news, they must have figured that out, too. At the sight of the knives, they quickly separated, flying around us in loose circles. Damn. That wasn't going to work then.

When brains fail, brawn kicks in. I changed the knives to a huge ninja star, much like the one in Final Fantasy, and told Incideria to fly straight towards the first dragon. They collided, throwing claws and projectiles at each other. I tried slashing the neck, but failed. It was too risky, the way the two were brawling like that. I caught a glimpse of the endless red below, and felt sudden vertigo. No! Not now!

The other dragon sensed it, and had a huge power charge. Fearful, I ordered Incideria to immediately withdraw. With this, I couldn't do anything. I was powerless. My brain snapped back to Ms. Racquer, still falling in the sky. I needed to save her first. The screaming had stopped, so I didn?t remember quickly. I feared the worst.

I looked back to the spot where I saw her. She was still there, her form free-styling it against the wind. We flew to her, and I could see her eyes were closed tightly, lips forming a firm, white line.

"I got you!" I shouted as Incideria caught her on his back.

"T-Took you l-l-long enough." She said, her voice quivering in the cold.

"You're welcome. Really, don't mention it."

Would it hurt for a little gratitude?

The four were closing in fast now, and looked really, REALLY angry. I had to control my fear before they take advantage of the surge and be the ones to rip US to shreds. Taking a deep breath, I stood up, still on Incideria.

The dragons hesitated, waiting for my next move. I used that chance to jump straight at one, the enchantments in my armor giving me near weightlessness, and landed on its back.

Weaverlings appeared, trying to protect the nightmare. I swung first at the nearest shadow, slicing it in half, then rolled a bit to the side to avoid one attacking me from behind. There were too many of them, swarming the entirety of the dragon. If I killed the whole thing, that would take down the Weaverlings, too. The hard part about that was because almost the entire dragon had protective covering on it. Except for the underside...and the neck.

I smiled and faced the confused shadows, doing a quick two-finger salute.

"See ya." I said, and jumped off the side.

In mid-air, I turned toward the dragon's belly and threw the star. It sliced across the underbelly, and went around, cutting the neck.

The dragon disappeared at once, leaving the spirit orb behind. I was going to pull out Incideria, but forgot it had turned into a dragon, which was in close combat with another of the nightmares.

I shouted to him, hoping he would hear. Thankfully, he did, and flew to the orb, swallowing it in one pass

That was new.

The three remaining creatures chased after him, desperate to take him down. The second one got too close, and Incideria ripped its head off, swallowing the soul after. The last attack must have scared them off, since they were now flying as far away from us as possible. I resorted to my previous plan, and started throwing knives after them. Almost all of them found their mark and the two fell across the red sky, wings incapable of flight. Incideria finished them off, decapitating them one by one.

I called on him and sat back on his neck, nerves finally kicking in as the adrenaline wore off. I realized I wasn't really as good with heights as I thought I was. At least it's over. We hovered in the air until Charlotte would come and pick us up.

She didn't show up at all.

Where is she? Behind me, Ms. Racquer was starting to stir. I didn't give her any notice, scanning with my mind the whole place for Charlotte. No response, not even a presence. That left me with the burden of returning Sam, or Ms. Racquer, to her original dream. I imagined the carnival again, exactly as I remembered it. I launched a portal, and flew in.

Surprisingly, there wasn't any pain this time. Is it because my body's used to it already?

Incideria landed on the carnival grounds, knocking away most booths in his descent. I left Ms. Racquer on the floor and untied her. Before she woke up, I had already transformed my dragon back to a knife and changed to my normal clothes.

Charlotte has to be in here somewhere. I scanned again, and this time there was a tingling near the back of my head. She was distant, in another dream, and I wasn't sure if I could make a portal out of one dream and into another yet. Still, I have to try. I had already grown kind of attached to her. She was the only company I had, besides the now silent Dreamster. He hadn't contacted me ever since that big fight with what Charlotte called the "Weaver".

I concentrated on her presence, even if it was already fading. I only get one chance at this, let it work?

At first there was silence, then the crackling came. Energy released from the tips of my fingers.

The portal appeared.

So far I'd been really lucky, but it was only a matter of time before it ran out. When I stepped into the vortex, I hoped my luck would last.

It didn't.