Disclaimer: I do not own Valdemar, Companions, Heralds, etc.

Dream

I dream of battles long fought and won, I dream of glory days yet to come. I dream of valor and might, I dream of creeping wear and decay. I dream of crops rising from the soil, I dream of ashes falling from the sky. I dream of age, I dream of youth. I dream of sights these eyes will never see.

I dream of ages past, I dream of things that may never come to pass. My eyes are closed, and I see—

I see Death stalk the land, hunting amongst my people in his many guises. Illness, accident, hostility….

…infirmity.

I should be there, blocking him. Protecting them.

I dream of warriors, strong and tall, standing firm against the darkness that eats all things. I dream of those who would be warriors, but for cruel misfortune. Those who cannot help even themselves.

I dream of those who live for others, die for others.

I would be one of them, but—

These hands will never hold a sword.

I am King, and I am dying.

It should be me.

I see the others die, my Companion, my lifebonded, my daughter.

My friends, my enemies, all who I have known.

I see my kingdom grow, I see it shrink.

I see it founded, I watch it fall and crumble.

I gasp. I have to warn them! I will tell them what will happen, they can stop it—I hear the Death Bell toll.

It's not for me, not yet.

I see another's death.

I could have gone before him, left this wonderful, this foul dream. I could have sought the Havens in his stead, defending a forsaken child from a cruel master on a distant lonely highway.

But it's not me.

I didn't save the child.

I didn't warn the kingdom.

I didn't fight, and win, for Valdemar.

It wasn't me.

I see a life, a new kitten plump and furry. A sunflower turns toward the dawn.

This could be my death.

Or I could lie here, unable to move, to speak, to think.

Able only to watch.

Able only to dream.

A/N: In Magic's Price, Vanyel comments on how as King Randale's illness progresses, he is forced to become a better king. As he grows physically limited, he spends his time in thought, and seems to see more than ever before.

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