What Dreams May Come
Chapter 1: Decisions in the Dark
Okay gang, I don't own any of it. The characters belong to Ms. Pierce the lyrics to John Denver and his descendants.
I would really recomend reading Comunication Lines before continuing on to the third story in this series.
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It was dark, so very dark and silent. I couldn't hear anything. The silence roared in my ears. I coulden't even hear my heart beating. I couldn't see anything in the inky blackness; no sky, no ground, nothing. I was alone, so very alone. I should have been afraid, or sad, or maybe angry, but oddly there was only peace and silence.
I tried to remember what happened. Lord Myles had sent word that the Scanrans had gotten a new "toy"; a strange device that exploded in a shower of fire and metal fragments. No one knew what actually set it off, but many had seen the effects. They were horrible.
Three squads had been sent to New Hope to help Kel and the refugees with spring planting and more importantly spring raids. We'd been there a week when the raiders attacked. They were everywhere, but ever since the fall of Maggot they were disorganized. They didn't fight together. But as Raoul says, a fool can kill you just as dead and are less predictable.
I remember the chaos, the screams of men, women, and horses caught in the fray. Then one of the bastards I could have sworn was dead rose up out of the mud like a wraith, my halberd driven through his gut. He staggered forward sword hanging loosly in his hand. He reached for something on his belt then stopped. He changed course aiming for Kel's blood spattered back. I strugled forward. As he swung for Kel, my sword sang. I cleaved his head from his shoulders. Then the world went mad. An explosion threw me in the air. Kel cried something in Yamani, then all went black.
I started thinking about Kel; the pain in her face, Gods, how I would have liked to wipe it from my memory. She was my friend above all else. Might we have become something more? With a shock I realized how much I would have liked a chance to find out. I had always admired her strength, her loyalty, and her persistence. She proved to them all that she was as good as any boy, maybe even better. I-I loved her for it. With a jolt, I realized that what I felt for her was much more than mere friendship. But with one sweep of my sword, I had lost all chance to tell her. I hoped she forgave me.
Gradually, I realized that I was no longer alone. A solitary figure stood a little apart, as if waiting for me to notice him. His dark cloak flapped in an unfelt breeze. His dark hair looked a bit like Neal's when he had been running his hands through it. He looked at me through bottomless black eyes. I bowed solemnly to him.
"Well, mortal. What have you to say for yourself?" His voice sounded hollow and maybe just a bit weary. I wondered if Gods got tired. His gaze bored into me and I was reminded that when a god asks a question it is considered wise to answer.
"I don't know what to say, my lord. I don't think I'm ready to die, but I don't get a choice, do I?"
He chuckled softly. "Do you care so much for that life, Domitan of Masbolle: the pain, the fear, and the killing?"
"It's not all fear and pain, my lord. There is joy, laughter, and friendship." I grinned, stopped for a moment, then looked into his eyes. "There is love," I whispered.
"Love? Yet you chose to kill for a living." He was not accusing, merely stating fact.
"No, my lord, I chose to guard and help people. I kill because I must to protect those in my charge, those I care for."
The god smiled slightly and extended his hand. I placed my hand in his. He led me through the shadows. I saw fleeting glimpses of people I knew, images from my past. I beheld Kel slouched in a chair, her eyes haunted by demons I could not slay. A thick bandage covered her forehead. I felt helpless and looked away.
"My lord? Every story I've ever heard says I should be seeing a light in the distance. We are approaching the Peaceful Realms, aren't we?"
He laughed. "Are living mortals so in tune with the dead then?"
I thought of this and grinned ruefully. I was gradually becoming aware of heaviness. Every step came slower, every breath harder to draw. A dull ache built in my skull and my leg started throbbing. Every fiber of my being protested. I had always been lead to believe that pain should be gone in the Black God's realm. I chose to say nothing to my guide though.
Finally we stopped. I looked into the god's bottomless eyes and somehow knew that I must take the final steps alone. I wanted to say something, to protest. I wanted to live! I had too much to do. He nodded me onward, all the same. My thoughts grew hazy. I took one step, then another. I looked back once then stepped out into the oblivion.
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Awareness crept over me softly. I heard footsteps and murmurs near me. Nothing made sense. I tried to open my eyes, but found the effort was costly. The ache in my brain swelled. .Whatever I lay on was soft. I figured it must be a bed. The footsteps approached.
"Gods, Dom, come on! Wake up! I know you're in there. You can't just die on me. You're supposed to be my best man." Blast! I recognized the Meathead's voice. Was he dead too or was this just another weird joke played by the Black God? I struggled to open my eyes, but I had no control over my body. I was forced to listen, a captive audience inside my own mind.
''Come Nealan, you're only upsetting yourself. There is nothing more that we can do. Yelling at him will not make him wake faster and it will only serve to distress the other patients further." That must have been Lady Yukimi.. Her Common was excelent, but still somewhat stilted.
I heard my cousin leave the room, but someone remained behind. It wasn't that I heard them. The person made almost no noise, silent as a cat. I could just sense that I wasn't alone and it was a comfort. The person drew near the bed.
"It wasn't supposed to happen this way, you idiot," they sighed. "You were not supposed to try to get yourself killed." The voice was so low; I couldn't tell whom it belonged to. "How many times do I need to tell you I can take care of myself? We need you here, in one piece. I need-" The words stopped with a sigh. Something told me that it was a woman sitting at my bedside. I tried again to open my eyes, to move at all, but no, I was still unable.
A door creaked softly and I heard light steps enter the room.
"Sir Neal says you gotta rest. He says that you can't heal if you won't lie down. I'm not gonna ask if you got any sleep; I know better. Did you eat today?"
"I'm staying here, Tobe. Dom saved my life; I won't leave him alone in the darkness. I want to be here in case he," she faltered. "Just in case, Tobe."
Tobe sighed, "I'll go get you something to eat." He sounded more like an old man than a young boy, an old man who had seen too much in too few years. A lot of the youngsters in New Hope spoke that way. It was sad, really. I wanted to shake my head, but couldn't even manage that. I was beginning to get annoyed.
"Dom, I don't know if you can hear me, but I hope you can. There are so many things I want to say, but I don't know how to say them. I-we need you." She gave a little humorless laugh. "Who am I kidding? You probably can't hear me. The truth is I-I need you. You don't let me take myself too seriously." Her voice was so familiar, but too raspy and quiet to place.
"Any change?" I was so focused on puzzeling out who the woman was that I hadn't heard Neal come back.
"No."
"You know we played together when we were children, before I left for University and everything. We were always running around beating each other with wooden swords. He took great pleasure in leaving me with bruises in very uncomfortable places before lessons or nice dinners with my mother. She wouldn't find out about it until later, usually. Mother was afraid we would kill each other. He wa all brawn though, I was the smart one."
"How many times did he trick you into doing something stupid?"
"Nev- all right, a couple of times." Liar, I wanted to laugh. I caught you more times than you can count. "The Stump never told us about all of this: the clean up, the wounded, the dead, the stormwings." The woman sobbed and I heard sudden movement and knew that Neal was comforting her. I had always known that the Meathead wasn't all cynicism. I licked my lips, wished I could open my eyes, then realized what I had done. I had licked my lips. I tried to move my hand and felt it twitch, but opening my eyes was still beyond my reach. I would have groaned in frustration, but my throat was so dry that nothing came out.
"Come on. Would you please go lie down? You are going to make yourself worse. It isn't like you have far to go. You can see him in the morning."
"No, Neal. I'm not going yet. He needs me. You are the one in charge. You said it yourself. I'm on the wounded list. Don't worry," she sighed. "I won't do anything stupid. Go on, Yuki needs your help with the other wounded."
I heard the door click shut. I struggled to turn my head. It felt like I had slept for a thousand years, but I managed it. I had to look; I had to know who this woman was. She took my hand and I felt hot tears splash against my skin. As slowly as mountains wash out to sea, I dragged my eyelids opened and focused on-
"Tears?" I croaked. "For me, Kel?"
"Dom?"
It took everything I had to reach up and take hold of her shoulders. I drew her toward me. She buried her face in my shirt and sobbed to make up for all the times she hadn't. I smoothed her short silky hair with one trembling hand.
"I'm all right, Kel. Everything is going to be all right."
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Lady, are you
crying, do the tears belong to me?
Did you think our time together
was all gone?
Lady, you've been dreaming, I'm as close as I can
be
And I swear to you our time has just begun.
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A/N: Thanks to all of the wonderful reviewers of this story in its original form, My Sweet Lady. Gretta99, pianoscene, and Madame-S-Butterfly, you guys are wonderful.
This is an updated version. I'm fixing a few parts so that when the time comes for the sequal to start it will make sense.
For anyone who recognizes the song, it is My Sweet Lady, by John Denver.
