Chapter 8, A Visit from Destiny, Part 2
Tommy POV
For the past week, I had been grounded as a result of getting into a fight with my brother Dil, when I found him snooping around in my room upon my returning home from the hospital. He was reading a journal I had kept while I was dating Kimi, and while he claimed I wouldn't need it anymore because I couldn't see, I told him that wasn't true, but he kept arguing with me, and I got so mad, that I ripped the door off it's hinges, resulting in my getting grounded. Well it was finally Saturday, the day I'd be ungrounded, and get my freedom back, that is, if you could call it freedom. I spent most of my time, watching movies on the couch, sleeping, or working on some sort of adaptive technology to help me get use to my new way of life, a life that so far, was depressing to me, between going blind, losing Kimi, the love of my life, and not being able to go to school anymore, except to take the CCAS test at the end of the year, and sign up for next year's classes, I really didn't feel like I had anything worth living for anymore. That is, until I got a phone call that changed my life.
As a result of my accident, I also got frequent migraine headaches, that were really painful. The only thing that helped, was taking pain killers, and sleeping for several hours. I had gotten one of these horrible headaches the night before, passing out quite early on a Friday night, at roughly 7:30 PM, and awoke to my mom yelling up the stairs, stating that I had a phone call. Since I was ungrounded, I reached over to the cordless phone on my bed side table, and answered it.
"I've got it mom." I said, as she hung up the phone downstairs.
"Hi Tommy, it's Jesse." Said Jesse.
"Oh, Hi there." I said.
"So, how are you doing?" Jesse asked.
"Well, I passed out early the night before as a result of another painful migraine, but I'm feeling better today." I replied.
"Listen, you're ungrounded right? Called your house the other day and got your mom, who told me you were grounded." Said Jesse.
"Yeah, it's Saturday, and mom let me take this call, so yeah, I'm no longer grounded. What did you want anyway?" I asked.
"Would you be up for hanging out today? I've got someone visiting me who'd I'd like you to meet. He's my cousin Eric Weihenmayer, and like you, he's also blind." Said Jesse.
"Yeah right." I replied.
"No, really! He's blind, and has done a bunch of amazing stuff in the 58 or so years he's been alive!" Said Jesse.
"Wow really?" I asked curiously.
"Yeah, and he'd love to meet you. Would you be interested?" Jesse asked.
I thought about it for several minutes. Other than Zack's aunt, I had never met anybody else who was blind, and I could tell Jesse was only trying to cheer me up. He had obviously heard of my suicide attempt, and having to spend a week in the hospital, plus, I was bored, so decided to go for it.
"Sure. I'll be ready in an hour." I said.
"Ok, Eric and I will be by in an hour to pick you up, and we'll head to the Java Lava for some lunch, and a chance for you and Eric to get to chat and know one another." Said Jesse.
"Ok, see you then." I said, hanging up the phone, and heading off to shower and get dressed.
In an hour, Jesse and Eric had arrived to pick me up. I was waiting outside for them when Jesse came up to me.
"Hey Tommy, you're looking good." Said Jesse.
"Thanks." I said, taking Jesse's elbow, as we walked down to the Java Lava.
When we got there, Jesse sat me down at a table, with Eric sitting across from me.
"So, Tommy, it's finally nice to meet you! My cousin Jesse has told me so much about you!" Said Eric.
I reached across the table and shook his hand.
"So, you're blind too?" I asked.
"Yeah. I have an eye condition called Juvenile Retinoschesis. It caused my vision to deteriorate over time when I was a child, and by the time I was sixteen, my sight was completely gone." Said Eric
"Oh wow, I'm really sorry. I know how you feel. I lost my sight back in January after getting into a stupid accident." I said.
"Hey, don't be sorry. If anything, I don't think of myself as blind." Said Eric.
"Really?" I asked.
"No, I try to live life to the fullest, and have done many things and gone on many adventures." Said Eric.
"Really? Tell me more." I said.
Eric went on to tell me about the story of his life.
"I was born on September 23, 1968, and I'm the only blind person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, on May 25, 2001. I was honored with a Time Magazine cover story. I also completed the Seven Summits in September 2002, joining 150 mountaineers at the time who had accomplished that feat, but the only climber who was blind. In 2008, I also added Carstenz Pyramid in West Papua New Guinea, the tallest peak in Austral Asia, thus completing the more respected Seventh Summit. I have also made noteworthy climbs up the Nose of El Capitan in Yosemite in 1996, and ascended Losar, a 2700-foot vertical ice face in the Himalayas which I ascended in two days, in 2008. I am the author of Touch the Top of the World: A Blind Man's Journey to Climb Farther Than the Eye Can See, my memoir; and The Adversity Advantage, Turning Everyday Struggles into Everyday Greatness. As I was going blind from juvenile retinoschesis, I fought against using canes and learning Braille. I wanted to hang on to my life in the sighted world. I eventually turned to wrestling and became a prominent force in high school. I represented Connecticut in the National Junior Freestyle Wrestling Championship in Iowa. At age 16, I started using a guide dog. I tried rock climbing, and found I was a natural at scrambling up a face using my hands and feet to find holds. Then I attended Boston College and graduated with a double major in English and Communications. I became a middle-school teacher at Phoenix Country Day School. I also coached wrestling in Phoenix. My first big mountain was McKinley (Denali), in 1995. In 2004, with Sabriye Tenberken and six blind Tibetan teenagers, I climbed on the north side of Everest to 21,500 feet, higher than any group of blind people have ever stood. A documentary based on the project, Blindsight, was released in 2006, and you can check it out on Youtube. In 2005 I co-founded No Barriers USA ( /), which helps those with special challenges to live active and purposeful lives. The organization's motto is "What's Within You Is Stronger Than What's In Your Way!" Injured soldiers are a major focus of No Barriers USA. In 2011, my 3-person team competed on ABC's Expedition Impossible,[4] a race across the deserts and mountains of Morocco, finishing second. I has also completed the Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race, at elevations above 10,000 feet, and Primal Quest, an adventure race over 460 miles with 60,000 feet of elevation gains. In September of 2014, I solo kayaked the Grand Canyon, 277 miles from Lee's Ferry to Pierce Ferry. Then in the year 2020, I scaled the Andes mountains, and in 2023, I walked the length of the Great Wall of China. In December of 2026, I completed the Adidderod dog sled races in Alaska, coming in in third place, receiving a special award for the first blind person to complete the race over a four day period. Today, while still adventuring, I am a prominent worldwide speaker, focusing on the topic of using adversity to advantage and living a "No Barriers Life." Explained Eric.
As I listened to Eric tell me the story of his life, I grew fascinated by his story, and was amazed by how much he had accomplished.
"So, you've done all of this, after you were blind?" I asked.
"Yep." Eric replied.
"But, how?" I asked.
"You just have to believe in yourself. Sometimes, it's not what the eye can see that's most important, but the other ways in which you can explore the world. What we feel what we smell. There's lots to explore beyond the boundaries of our backyards, and as you can see, I've touched several of those wonderous sights." Said Eric.
"You can do anything you want to if you put your mind to it, and my cousin Jesse tells me you've always been quite the adventurer. He told me that when you and him were little, you two went on adventures all of the time. Who says those have to stop because you're a teen and blind. Now's the time to really explore the world, and show the world what you're made of." Continued Eric.
"But it was during my last adventure that I got into the accident that left me blind." I said.
"So, maybe it was, but you can't let one little accident stop you, now, can you?" Eric asked.
"That accident changed my life forever. I was planning to be a movie director someday, filming movies in different places, not only seeing the world, but it would be captured in my films, making me millions." I said.
"Who says you still can't do that. Have you ever thought of being a documentarist?" Eric asked.
"Are you saying, making documentaries of my explorations?" I said eagerly.
"Yeah!" Eric replied.
Eric and I continued to talk all afternoon, as we split an order of onion rings at Burger Queen, and Jesse and I had a belching contest, drinking soda after soda, while Eric had a coffee. I went home that night, and thought about everything Eric had told me. I had always had a love for adventure and exploring the world, why should I let my recent disability stop me?
I let these thoughts and questions play over and over in my mind that night, as I drifted off to sleep.
End of Tommy POV
That night, Tommy had a dream. In the dream, he was in a desserted land scape on a bright sunny day, complete with fields of grass, a river, and a tall mountain. Tommy noticed that he had his super stretching abilities, but unlike in the reawl world, where he was blind, he had his full 20/20 vision back in his dreams. Just then, the keeper of dreams appeared before him. He was tall, wearing a dark blue robe, carrying a brown wand with a green glowing orb on one end.
"Why Tommy, I see you've entered the dream world, in search of your destiny." Said the keeper of dreams.
Tommy nodded.
"Well then, you must face the ultimate test, to see if adventuring and mountain climbing, as well as exploring the world, are indeed, your destinies for your future life. So, to prove your bravery and abilities, you must climb the tall mountain that stands behind me, and at the top, you must defeat Reptar's evil twin, Beptar." Said the keeper of dreams.
"You mean the giant purple dinosaur who looks just like Reptar only she has a blue tongue, is female, and is out to destroy the world, like in the most recent Reptar movie that came out at Christmas of 2026, Reptar versus his evil twin, and the last movie I took Kimi on a date to see before, well before Zack stole her away from me?" Tommy replied.
"Yes, you'll find Beptar at the top of the tall mountain, and if you don't destroy her, she'll destroy Reptar, and then destroy the entire world." Said the keeper of dreams.
"No problem, with my sight completely restored, and my stretching abilities, I can climb that mountain and beat Beptar, no problem." Tommy said.
"Ah, but you can't use your powers, and, while ordinarily, you have super powers in your dreams, along with your sight, I must restore you to your life in reality, and only if you climb this mountain and beat Beptar with nothing but your normal limitations, which include your blindness, will I, the keeper of dreams, restore your powers. Your friends will all be watching over you, but they are only here to spectate the event. While their powers won't be temporarily suspended, they are forbidden to use them to help you on your quest." Said the keeper of dreams.
Tommy thought it over for several minutes, and then, decided to accept the keeper of dreams' challenge.
"Ok, I accept your challenge." Said Tommy.
"You understand that your powers will remain suspended until you complete this task, and, if you cannot complete it in one dream time period, or, one night of sleep in the real world, this dream will continue to reoccur every time you're asleep, until you have proven yourself worthy?" Said the keeper of dreams.
Tommy nodded, agreeing to this.
"Then get ready, to meet reality in the dream world." Said the keeper of dreams, as the green orb on his wand turned a bright red, sending out red sparks at Tommy, circling him in red worlpools, taking his powers away, leaving Tommy in complete darkness.
"I will lead you to the mountain, but once I get you there, you're on your own." Said the keeper of dreams, taking Tommy by the hand, and walking him towards the mountain.
Just then, Zack and Jesse showed up, and purched themselves on a log near the mountain, to watch Tommy's climb, and Susie, Angelica, Kimi, Phil, Lil, Dil, and Chuckie, were all flying overhead, hovering in the air over the landscape, as they watched Tommy from a distance, being careful to not use any of their powers to help him.
"Are you ready Tommy?" Asked the keeper of dreams as he and Tommy approached the mountain.
"Yes, I sure am." Said Tommy confidently.
"Good luck young Thomas. May you find your destiny." Said the keeper of dreams, as he handed Tommy some rope, a sword, shield, knife, and a hose full of water, which Tommy put into a backpack he was carrying on his back, assuming these were weapons he could use to help him defeat Beptar. After handing Tommy the weapons, the keeper of dreams disappeared into a puff of smoke, as Tommy stood before the tall mountain.
"What you feel, what you smell. What you feel, what you smell." Tommy heard Eric's voice saying over and over to him in his head, as he reached out towards the cold, stone mountain, climbing carefully, gripping tight to the mountain with his hands, feeling every nick and cranny, as he made his way up the mountain.
"You can do it." Said Zack encouragingly from up above, as Tommy continued to make his climb, continuing slowly up the mountain.
At one point, Tommy slipped on an icy patch. Phil wanted to use his fire powers to melt the ice, and Chuckie wanted to use his super strength to help Tommy up the rest of the way, but they relented when they remembered what the keeper of dreams had told them before Tommy appeared, they couldn't use their powers to help him.
Tommy continued his climb, passing many slippery patches, slimy swomps, and getting nearly drenched in water when he fell into a small whole filled with water on a ledge that was further up the mountain. But he didn't let this stop him. He felt around till he found a way out of the whole, continuing to climb up the mountain, until he reached the top. Once he reached the top, he heard a loud roar.
"That must be Beptar." Tommy thought, as he stepped on the peak of the mountain, face to face with the tall purple dinosaur, who was breathing a hot, firy breath. Tommy felt the warmth of the breath, and smelled the smoke.
Just then, the dinosaur stopped, Tommy reached out towards the dinosaur as it clawed his hands.
"Outch." Tommy cried, upon receiving the wound.
But he wasn't going to let that stop him. He reached out and got a hold of Beptar's waste, grabbing hold. Her waste was big around, so Tommy came in close, hugging Beptar tight, as he thrust his body against her's.
Beptar pushed him back, almost pushing Tommy off the mountain, but Tommy crouched down when he noticed one of his feet was dangling off of the mountain, putting both hands down, as he regained his footing. At this point, he pulled his backpack off, and took out the weapons that were handed to him prior to beginning his climb up the mountain. He took out the sword, and lunged towards the sound of Beptar's roar, this time, poking the sword into Beptar's stomach. The dinosaur roared in pain, as Tommy continued to poke harder into her stomach. Just then, Beptar grabbed at Tommy's throat, but Tommy let go of the sword and grabbed the shield he had clipped on to his pants pocket, batting at Beptar's arm, getting her to loosen her grip. Then, she sent a ball of fire in his direction. Tommy ducked, grabbing at the hose, and squirting water up above his head, in hopes he would put out Beptar's firy breath, thus, destroying her. Beptar coughed as the water put out her firy breath, and Beptar collapsed on top of the mountain.
Using all of his weight, Tommy lunged in towards the fallen dinosaur, and gave it a good kick, sending it flying off the mountain, and down towards a raging river, where it landed, and dround.
Suddenly, it was silent around Tommy, after a splash was heard when Beptar fell into the river down below. Then, it hit Tommy. His mission wasn't complete. He had to climb back down the mountain to finish the mission. So he slowly felt around, as he started his climb back down the mountain, thinking about how things felt on his way up, being careful to only land on dry patches of mountain on his climb back down. He continued to inch his way down the mountain, till eventually, he felt his feet touch the grassy ground down below.
Upon reaching the ground. He heard several claps and cheers from his friends. Kimi, Chuckie, Phil, Lil, Angelica, Susie and Dil all flew in and gave Tommy a group hug, and Zack and Jesse came over to join in the group hug, as they celebrated Tommy's victory.
Just then, the keeper of dreams along with Peter of the confederacy appeared before them.
"I'm very proud of you Tommy." Said Peter of the confederacy.
"Who are you?" Jesse asked.
"Ah yes, you probably don't remember me, as our paths haven't crossed since you were the age of four and left Yucaipa for Scotland, but I'm Peter, king of the confederacy." Said Peter, standing tall and proud in his gray confederate uniform.
"Congratulations Tommy. You have proven yourself worthy of facing any challenge that should come your way in the real world, and gained the ability to venture out and explore the world, despite your recent blindness." Said the keeper of dreams.
"Yes, I sure have." Said Tommy.
"But before you return to the real world, I shall not only restore you to your supernatural self in the dream world, but may I please see Zack and Jesse?" Said the keeper of dreams.
Tommy, Zack, and Jesse all stepped forward, as the green orb on the dream keeper's wand started to glow a bright green, sending worlpools of green rings swirling around Tommy, Zack, and Jesse.
"For those of you who don't know, let me remind you all of what powers each one of you possesses. Chuckie has super strength, Kimi has the ability to turn invisible, Angelica has claws, that are able to penetrate through any surface, as well as regeneration abilities, and super imposed senses, Phil has fire powers, Lil has ice powers, Susie can make herself larger or smaller, and Dil has telescopic powers, being able to levitate objects. Peter has a combination of the fire and telescopic powers, and Tommy, I shall restore your stretching powers, along with the ability to see in your dreams, and Zack and Jesse, I give you the following powers. Zack, you have the ability to turn into any animal, person, or object, as well as the ability to age younger or older at any given time, and Jesse, you have the ability to penetrate through any solid surface, as well as the ability to breethe under water. And, just like your friends, all of you have the ability to fly, but whatever your powers are, they will only work in the dream world. You cannot use them under no circumstances in the real world, because they will simply, not work. But in the real world, you don't need your super powers, and do you know why? Because in the real world, you have brains, courage, and a heart, the three elements that when used, you can make any dream, become a reality. And so, Tommy, it's time for me to send you and your friends back to the real world, to make your dreams, a reality. Go discover your destiny in the real world, and good luck, as I know you can do this. Just believe in yourself, and listen, to your heart." Said the keeper of dreams, as he disappeared into a cloud of smoke, and Tommy awoke in bed.
Tommy lay awake for a while, thinking about the recent dream he had. He felt the happiest he had felt in weeks, knowing that if he could conquer any obstical in his dreams, and explore the world and defeat the enemies, then who says he couldn't live up to Eric's way of life in the real world. From that day forward, Tommy decided to not think of himself as blind, but simply, a guy who would see in different ways, and upon graduating from high school, he would explore the territory of the world explored by Jesse's cousin Eric, and much, much more.
Tommy told Dil and his parents about this at breakfast the next day, and his family was very proud of him for having these ambitions. He felt so good about his revelation, that he had to call up his friends and tell them. But he decided to get out his iPhone 14S, and send a massive text using Voice Over to his friends, asking them all to come over. Because it was a Sunday, nobody showed up until that afternoon, but he told them, apologized for the way he had been acting lately, and everybody forgave him, giving Tommy a group hug.
That night at dinner, Stu and Didi brought up to Tommy that they were thinking of sending Tommy off to Perkins next year to finish his high school career, but Tommy stood up at the table, and said the following.
"I will not go to Perkins." Protested Tommy.
"And why not?" Didi asked.
"Because Perkins is a school for blind loser cowards who can't bother to handle real life. But I am no loser, rather, I'm a winner, and I will not stand to be separated from my friends just because I'm different. I will continue to live my life as I always have, making sure I don't do something else stupid, but even if I should, I'll learn to live with the consiquences of my actions, and face life, head on, just as I always have, and I always will." Said Tommy with confidence, as he sat back down at the dinner table, to finish the bowl of soup that was in front of him.
His parents and brother applauded his willingness to stand up for himself, and sure enough, Tommy did go back to school in June of 2027, to sign up for classes for his junior year, and to take the CCAS test with the help of someone to read the test to him, along with another person, who acted as a scribe, writing down Tommy's answers. They also had a meeting with his future teachers and Principal Johnson, and got some special services set up for Tommy, like mobility, a teacher for the visually impaired, and someone to adapt his work for him, which he would eventually, meet all of these special people during his summer vacation between his sofamore and junior year.
End of Actual Story
Author's Notes: I should point out that Peter, as well as the dream world of supernatural powers, were all characters and ideas thought up by TCKing12, as displayed in his Dream Chronical series. And, if you think we're finished, not quite. Be looking for an epilogue to this story, coming soon. And, as you can see, I left Eric at the age he is in real life, and had this been a real Rugrats, AGU episode, Eric Weihenmayer, would have gotten to play himself, in other words, his voice would have played his character in the episode.
