Chapter 58: The Facts of Nightmares

Groggy, irritable, and lacking in her morning coffee, Lunalei nevertheless ventured into the secret holding place for her pod after going through her morning routine of getting dressed and eating breakfast.

Fortunately for her it was the weekend so she had plenty of time to burn, but waiting until night time was too big of a risk assuming that any problem with the pod could get worse if unattended to.

She set up her phone on a nearby desk with a direct line to S.A.N.C.T.U.M. and started giving the pod a thorough check, beginning from the outside.

"...Are you feeling better, master?" He remarked.

"No." She said bluntly, wondering why he'd even assume that.

"I'm sorry to hear that." He replied in a somber tone.

"..." She lifted her glasses in the middle of pressing her nose and then grumbled.

"S.A.N.C.T.U.M., when exactly did I disconnect from the neural link?"

"It wasn't long after I connected to that strange looking soldier."

"And the last words I said to you were…?"

"Stay on patrol in the meantime." He didn't just recall that fact, he replayed the words.

"Interesting…" Lunalei saw nothing wrong with the outer shell and thus opened it up to check inside.

"Oh, and what you said was interesting too." She said in a hands-off way.

Her thoughts were scrambled, and couldn't make out concise images of everything that happened last night.

All she felt was violated mentally, and the cold touch of…whatever that was still seemed to be in her head.

"I swear…" She grumbled furiously while bending down to investigate the wiring under her seat.

"..." Seeing how the wires were bundled up made her recollect one fact, "S.A.N.C.T.U.M. did you…see a creature floating in the parking lot before I went offline?"

"A-A creature? I feel I would recall seeing a creature. Describe it for me, master, I confess, my own processors aren't as…fine-tuned as they should be."

"Black. Tangled up. Wore bells. None of this hitting your neurons?"

"I'm afraid not."

"That's weird…" Lunalei mumbled to herself, pulling back to rub her chin, and take a brief scan of the pod's insides.

Nothing was off with the circuitry, and she had run enough checks to see that all systems were able to be booted up were she to sit down right now.

"Find anything?" Her creation murmured.

Lunalei shook her head and hopped out of the pod, letting it seal up. She then crossed her arms and went to pick up her phone.

"Let's review. We entered the abandoned parking lot, there were Dregs soldiers moving around in a zombie-like state, unresponsive to any of our actions…Then, our neurolink was broken by an outside force, who trapped me inside of a nightmare until you shook me awake."

"...Is it possible that when I connected with one of the soldiers, it invited that…black creature into your mind?" S.A.N.C.T.U.M. was quick to pin the blame on himself, but Lunalei was just as quick to deny it.

"No, I saw the creature before we tried that. It doesn't make any sense though…the only two senses of mine that are active during the neurolink are sight and hearing…"

"..." Lunalei stared straight ahead with a stunned expression, "Sight…"

She remembered having S.A.N.C.T.U.M. look directly into one of the soldiers' eyes, "The creature must transmit through ocular activity!"

"E-Even with my visionary receptors as a barrier?"

"...We're likely dealing with the supernatural, in which case, your systems haven't been designed to combat that phenomenon…" Lunalei briefly lowered her phone and wagged it around while mumbling, "I wouldn't even know where to start…"

"This doesn't sound good." His voice made her lift the phone back up and sigh.

"No. It's not. Dregs continues to escalate matters. Now we're likely dealing with two superpowered individuals."

"...But now that we're aware of how this black creature operates, surely we can avoid making eye contact?"

"I'd like to say 'Yes' in confidence, but face the facts S.A.N.C.T.U.M….The White Devil isn't just strong, he's patient…cunning. He'd figure out some way to force eye contact, and then we're boned."

"Unintended pun aside, master, then…what are you suggesting we do?"

"Hrrrmmm…" Lunalei crossed her arms and thought, "We didn't see any signs of the black creature's operator in the parking lot. So for now, let's run under the assumption that they're controlling them remotely from a safe distance."

"We NEED to have our neurolink established if we're going to have any chance of defeating the White Devil. And since he has the strength advantage over us, it's going to be difficult to force him out of the parking lot."

"You're suggesting we have to accept the possibility that you'll be hit by the nightmares again. Master, I cannot say I approve of this plan."

Lunalei shrugged, and lifted her phone up to give her creation a light smile, "Awww, relax. I never said I didn't have a plan on top of my plan."

She then hung her arms and grumbled, "But I can't say I'm all too thrilled to resort to this…"

"You're going to recruit Sir Mark back into our ranks?" S.A.N.C.T.U.M. said with an imitation gasp.

Lunalei's eyes widened in a flustered fashion, "W-What?! No! Not…yet anyways. I appreciate him saving your butt and in turn mine, but I…"

She squeezed her eyes shut and with a groan remarked hastily, "Look, there's someone in our family who is experienced in ocular infiltration techniques."

"Ah, I see…but won't that run the risk of-"

"I KNOW, S.A.N.C.T.U.M., just let me handle this, I'll be fine. YOU…need to conserve energy until I can get over to repair you. So I'm signing off."

She then turned the phone off and threw her head back, "Can't believe I'm doing this…"

She went back to the house, got her coat, some water in a bottle, and made sure nobody was around to question her leaving unexpectedly.

Then, she strolled out into the neighborhood and went a few blocks down the way, making a few quick checks on her GPS app to make sure she had the right directions.

"Let's see here, it should be right about…here." She looked up and saw an awfully rough but normal looking house staring her in the face, with the only hint of extravagance coming from the decals on the car bumper.

She tucked the phone in her jacket and rolled up to the front doors with heavy shoulders and a grumpy expression.

"I KNOW who is going to answer…" She nevertheless rattled her knuckles against the door and prepared to stare at her own real-life nightmare.

The door was answered after about a half a minute and who else could it have been but Erin Dark, given her luck.

The two prideful geniuses took one look at each other, and with a somewhat merry smirk Erin proceeded to try and slam the door on her face.

Lunalei countered with a good old-fashioned foot in the doorway kick and immediately started shoving against the door.

Erin shouted, "Oh good Hell! It's my day off, leave me alone!"

Lunalei grunted, "Oh as much as I'd loooooove to spend time with you, cousin, I'm here for your mom!"

Erin spat in disbelief, "Bwuh?! My MOM?! Well too bad, I ain't letting you in, so go be short elsewhere!"

Lunalei laughed, "Careful with that attitude, I'm just at the right height to punch your fat tits right-"

"Heeey! Lunalei!" Shouted Alura, poking herself into the conflict from behind her daughter.

Who proceeded to swing her head back and shout, "I-I was handling this just fine!"

Alura rolled her eyes and sighed, "I know you two have beef, but can you can it for one day? It's sooo rare that I get to visit my first niece!"

"I-I…" Erin growled and then let go of the door, causing Lunalei to stumble into the house from the sheer force she was applying.

"W-Whoa…!" After getting her footing she turned straight back around and adjusted her glasses, "Thank you…Aunt Alura."

She then crossed her arms and let out a light cough, "But you know…"

She gestured her thumb over her shoulder, "We do only live a few blocks down."

Alura waved her hand around and giggled, "Oh you know, this and that and what-not…Anyways! Feel free to take your coat off, I got the heater on, make yourself at home!"

Lunalei put the coat down atop a chair and then glanced at Erin, who crossed her arms under her chest and, having lost all her advantages, slunk into the kitchen with an exasperated expression.

"I'm gonna make a damn sandwich…"

"Isn't it too early?" Alura remarked.

"You're gonna tell me that?!" Erin barked back.

"Ugh, rude," Alura said, but with a humored flair to her tone. She then turned to Lunalei with a smile, "You know, teenagers…"

Lunalei turned her head, "Yeah. I don't recall ever having that kind of phase."

Erin poked her head out from around the corner and couldn't help herself, "Usually that requires you to become a teenager."

Alura crossed her arms and sighed, "Erin, cut it out."

"I'm getting in what I CAN, MOM!" Erin flung herself back into the kitchen with further exasperation, while Alex entered the room from the hall.

"Oh, sup." He said with a halfhearted wave, and then approached his mom.

"Hey, my charger broke again. I'm gonna head down to the store real quick and buy a new one. Need anything?"

Alura patted him on the head and smiled, "Only for you to come home safe."

Alex blushed and covered his smile with part of his coat, "Mom, not in front of her…"

She then scooted him out the door and shut it behind him.

Lunalei whispered, "Well, at least one of them is doing ok."

Alura then strolled towards the living room, "So, what brings you by, Lunalei?"

Lunalei looked down the hall and considered getting into a little mischief by examining Erin's room, all while keeping the conversation going, "Oh, I'm in a bit of a jam, and could use your expertise."

The moment she had one foot in front of the kitchen, Erin jabbed her finger out and squinted with fury, "Don't you even THINK about it, gremlin."

Lunalei smirked and turned the other way while whistling a jaunty tune.

"MY expertise?" Alura said, sprawling out atop the couch until her shirt and pants were looking rather loose, "What could I know that you don't?"

Lunalei decided to pull up a chair in front of the table adjacent to her couch and sat down hunched over with her fingers bridged between her legs, "Lately I've been having some really bad nightmares. And I was hoping with your control over illusions, you'd be able to tell me how to prevent them from happening."

Alura blinked twice and then sat up with her lips puckered in confusion. Then she fanned her fingers in front of her mouth and giggled.

"What's so funny?" Lunalei said, feeling somewhat sleighted.

Alura then patted her leg and nodded, looking Lunalei in the eyes with a somewhat more serious expression, "Alright, I'll teach you everything I know. You need to be anywhere today?"

Lunalei shook her head, "Nope. My schedule's clear."

Erin popped in to remark, "Duh, she has no friends."

"I-I…!" Lunalei would put up a defense, but anything she could've tried would be a bold faced lie.

Instead she glared at Erin, coming into the living room with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and sitting herself down on the other chair.

Erin flashed a smug look, and Lunalei was half-tempted to kick the side of her leg.

Alura coughed and then flicked up her pointer finger, "This shouldn't take too long, anyways."

Erin nodded, "Yeah, get into as many details as you can, mom."

Lunalei raised a brow her way, "Why do YOU care?"

Erin spat up a few crumbs, "Uhhh, duh, I'm her daughter so like…o-obviously I could inherit her powers…someday."

Alura closed her eyes, "True, this conversation has been long overdue for you as well."

When she opened her eyes the irises were brighter, like faint, bleeding stars in the night sky, "I'm gonna start you off with a quick demonstration, Lunalei. Stand up for me."

Lunalei felt a tingle in her body and followed her command with mild curiosity, "Oook, so you're using magic to transmit-"

Lunalei froze in place as she noticed Alura was panning her gaze upward slowly, and Lunalei had to look down to keep eye contact.

"W-Wait…" She looked down even more and saw that the floor was getting further away from her, as her legs elongated and became a little more shapely.

And her chest started to fill out her shirt.

With an elated grin, Lunalei lost her sense of reason (and balance) and shouted, "W-Whoa! Cool! This is what I've always wanted!"

But before she could take the opportunity to enjoy herself, Alura blinked once and Lunalei was left cupping empty air in front of her chest.

Puffing her cheeks in disappointment, but taking in the enlightenment over anything else, she looked at her smiling aunt who told her, "Did you enjoy the view?"

"...Any chance you could do that again?" Lunalei said with a giddy expression.

Alura pressed one finger upon her lips and whispered, "It feels good, doesn't it? Letting go of your mind and taking in the pleasure of your greatest desires?"

Lunalei slowly nodded, feeling a chill in her neck.

"Lunalei, I'm gonna ask you a question now…"

"Sure?" Lunalei crossed her arms, and then noticed that Alura herself was getting taller.

"...When did I say I broke the illusion?"

Actually, she wasn't getting taller, Lunalei was getting shorter! Dwindling down, clothes and all, until she was barely the size of a finger.

"W-Wait! Stop!" Her tiny voice screamed in vain, the truest sense of powerlessness hitting her all at once.

Alura then reached down and picked her up, situating her between her chest to give her a little warmth, just to prolong her realization of helplessness.

Lunalei then blinked once and returned to reality, confirming as such from seeing Alura dispel the glow in her eyes.

Lunalei held her arms tightly against her body and shivered, "Eaugh…!"

Alura closed her eyes and nodded, "Functionally, illusions rob the mind of control and make it see and hear or experience taste and touch however I want it to."

"MY version of illusionary magic only requires that I make eye contact for a nanosecond. Then, you're trapped in an illusion until I think otherwise."

Lunalei then remarked, still a little shaken up, "Or if you have a strong force of will, r-right?"

Alura tilted her head back and hummed, "Hmmm, I dunno. The only person who ever broke out was Joe Dark…"

She closed her eyes and playfully giggled, "If I wanted to, I could even make that stubborn ol' Mew believe he's a horse for a day!"

Lunalei let out a slightly canned laugh, "And now I am grateful she's on OUR side."

Alura then glided her finger over to her cheek and whispered, "And…this is just between us, but I've been able to strengthen my illusions enough to affect people through cameras too."

Lunalei latched onto that fact not with fear, but intrigue, "So it IS possible for illusions to break through technology…"

Alura paused with a curious hum, and then bluntly held her hand out, "You're getting ahead of yourself, Lunalei."

Erin mockingly echoed that sentiment, "Yeah Lunalei, stop getting ahead of yourself."

"Mrrrph!" Lunalei scowled her way.

Alura curled all but her pointer finger in and raised it up, "On the surface, illusions and nightmares may seem similar, but there's a very important difference."

"And that is?" Lunalei patiently crossed her arms as she sat back down.

"Illusions make you see what the caster wants you to see. While nightmares can only be created based on pre-existing fears in the person's mind."

"H-Huh…?" Lunalei's pupils shrink, "Pre-existing. Are you sure about that?"

Alura nodded, "Mmm hmm! I'd even be willing to bet my car on it!"

"..." Lunalei held her chin and tried to explain this to herself in a way that cleared her of the silly idea that she had fear as a weakness.

Along the way, she looked at Alura with another question, "S-Since you know so much about nightmares, can you tell me how you're supposed to stop them?"

"There's a couple methods I can think of. One is lucid dreaming, where you train your mind to be able to control your dreams even when you're deep in sleep."

Alura then raised another finger, "The other is to tackle the source of your fears in real life, and turn them into positive feelings."

"Yeah, but if I don't even remember what the nightmares are, how am I supposed to…" Lunalei shook her head and grumbled, "Why am I entertaining this?"

She then looked Alura in the eyes and remarked, "I-I guess I can try learning how to lucid dream."

Alura smiled, "I bet your mom has plenty of books on the subject!"

Lunalei widened her eyes and cracked an awkward smile, "A-Any chance you would have one on hand instead?"

Alura flinched but replied pleasantly, "Sure, I could grab one before you go."

Lunalei then rubbed the back of her head and grumbled, "A-Also, uhhh, this nightmare...s…It almost felt like I wasn't going to wake up from them."

"Huh, that's unusual," Alura noted, "The brain is designed with an 'eject button' to prevent that."

She then playfully smiled and remarked, "Be honest with me, Lunalei, are you drinking too much coffee before bed?"

"N-Noooooo…" Lunalei said with a blush in her cheeks.

Alura then suggested, "Work on your sleep habits too. I'm sure your dad could give you some tips!"

Lunalei hung her head slightly.

Alura then clapped her hands and remarked, "Well, that about wraps up the lesson! I'll grab that book, and you can head out on your merry way!"

She left down the hall, only being momentarily distracted by their dog.

Erin then got up and stretched her arms, purposefully jutting her chest out as she did. She then faked a yawn and remarked, "Well, that was illuminating. See you at school, shrimp. Hope your sleep continues to be terrible!"

She then headed down the hall with a confident strut, while Lunalei uttered, "Hmph. Bitch…"

Since this seemed to be the end of her time here, she went to grab her coat and have it back on by the time Alura returned with the book.

"Here you go! Oh, and I'm giving you an extra book I thought you might be interested in!"

Lunalei took the Lucid Dreaming book, and beneath it was a book labeled 'Pretty Little Liars".

After Lunalei took a second to process that, she looked up to see Alura smirking and narrowing her eyes in a knowing fashion.

Lunalei tucked the dreaming book under her arm and nudged her glasses, "T-Thanks…?"

Alura then glanced over her shoulder and upon turning back, leaned in with a whisper, "This all has to do with what happened to Julius, doesn't it?"

Lunalei's heart skipped a beat, "N-No, th-that-"

Alura gently put a finger over her stuttering lips and closed her eyes, listing off her reasoning in a jolly tone, "Let's see here, you came to me first instead of your parents, which must mean you're trying to hide something."

"Second, you assumed that your problems could be solved by my knowledge of illusions, which would imply you're contending with supernatural forces."

"Third, I always had the distinct feeling Julius didn't die from a random bombing. He's not that careless."

"And finally…" Alura lifted her smirk a little playfully and opened her eyes, "You're a Whiter. And you just loooove to try and do things on your own."

"So. How many did I get right?"

Lunalei shivered and then raised her hand vertically before her chest with a pleading hiss, "You CANNOT tell anyone else about this, PLEASE!"

Alura nodded, "...Just make sure Julius gets avenged. And you won't hear a peep out of me."

"...I don't have the right to avenge him for you. But I'll make sure nothing like this happens again." Lunalei then settled down from the initial shock and let out a "Hmmm…"

"I thought you were a lot flightier, Aunt Alura."

Alura chuckled, "I'm wiser than I let on."

"Y-Yeah, well…thanks again for taking the time out of your day to help. I can handle things from here."

Alura remarked, "Ok, but I'm sure your parents are going to wise up to what's going on eventually. So I hope you're prepared for that."

"..." Lunalei nodded and then headed out the door to begin the short stroll back home.

Along the way, she pulled out her phone and dialed up S.A.N.C.T.U.M., "Hey, I got everything I needed."

"It all went well?"

Lunalei sighed, "Yeah, but I underestimated my aunt. She figured out what I'm doing right away. But don't worry, she said she wouldn't tell, and I'm inclined to believe her."

"T-That's good. Then what's our next move?"

"...We can't immediately jump back into the fight. I need to review your fight with the White Devil and try to come up with a countermeasure. Plus, you got a lot of repairs to go through."

"And plus, I need time to review this book and learn how to lucid dream."

"The other is to tackle the source of your fears in real life, and turn them into positive feelings." Echoed Alura's advice.

But Lunalei shook her head and continued to tell herself, "I can be brave. I don't have any fears to worry about."

The battle against the nightmare and the devil had just begun…

Next Time: Listen to Me!