They went to Fredrick’s house, where they found some town guards standing around it. They tried saying, “No one is to enter until Margrave is finished,” but that didn’t hold up too well to two actual Dream Warriors here to save the day.

  Inside the house, Fredrick was lying asleep still, but he was still now, deathly so, while Margrave was twitching beside him, stuck in a trance. Even though she’d reached the epicenter, Elizabeth wasn’t worried or distraught, Dawn’s presence drowned out any sense of danger from the Nightmare.

  “Dammit, a Nightmare gets far stronger if it can feast upon a Dream Walker. I’ll need all my strength to purge it from him,” Cain said, gripping his staff tightly.

  “I guess I’ll deal with the rest of this issue then,” Dawn said lightly, still projecting that calm confidence.

  “I- your assistance would be appreciated, thank you, Master Florian.” To Elizabeth he explained, “Fighting a Nightmare of this level alone would take far more time, time where the people afflicted had greater chances of taking permanent or irreversible damage. Trying to go fast and solve the problem immediately can lead to situations like young Tukesh’s here. We Dream Warriors are the greatest line of defense against Nightmares, but if one of us were to succumb while fighting them, then the Nightmare becomes far stronger.”

  “Does that mean any potential Dream Walkers could just make any Nightmare stronger!?” Elizabeth squeaked, fearing that her own presence was a threat to the town before he dispelled those doubts.

  “Even a fledgling should be able to sense and avoid an oncoming Nightmare, even if they lack the Training like we have to fight it directly. This is a large part of what we dedicate our lives to,” Cain reassured her. “This might be a tough case, but we can deal with it, together.”

  The two of them stood there, seeming to do nothing physically, but Elizabeth knew there powers were quite active. Finding a seat, she tried to copy them, entering a trance to get a better ‘look’ at what they were doing. It took a few minutes compared to them being able to do it near instantly and remain standing while they did so, but eventually she slipped into that state and could feel how they were fighting back against the Nightmare.

  Master Gargouth was pushing back at the hold it had on Margrave, wrenching the thing free from his sleeping mind even as it tried to slip around and gain a hold on the young noble again and again. His grip was like iron, though, defending Margrave. As he was saved, the Nightmare shriveled, weakening immensely all over town.

  It helped, but the young girl honestly didn’t think it would have mattered in the end. Dawn was a wave of force, striking in from everywhere in the town and crashing into it. The Nightmare was no match for her force; even when it had extra strength it was siphoning from Margrave.

  Calling it a struggle would have been an exaggeration. How they applied their powers seemed like rote extermination; efficient and methodical, leaving no chance for escape or mistakes. Even then it felt like Dawn was perhaps... holding back? Just a bit, as if she was giving Elizabeth a chance to witness it. Then she felt a sense of amusement come, possibly eminanting from the powerful Dream Warrior.

  Had Dawn sensed what she was feeling and responded, or did she just imagine it? In any case, the Nightmare was over. With Margrave freed, it didn’t have anywhere near the strength to resist Dawn and was crushed into nothingness in an instant. Elizabeth opened her eyes and looked at Margrave opening his eyes while Dawn and Cain smiled.

  “What happened?” Margrave groggily asked.

  “We’ve saved you from this monster and your own foolishness.” Cain scowled down at the boy (which might just be his resting face), and upon seeing him, Margrave understood the situation and started to shake with fear and shame as he realized just how much trouble he was in/had been saved from.

  “It’s alright; they saved the day, and it’ll all be better now. I’m sure they can teach you more about how to do it properly when you become a Dream Warrior,” Elizabeth tried to encourage him, not even wanting to see Margrave look that upset.

  Cain cast her an odd look. “Yes, you will learn much in the Order.”

  “Wait, I can still join the Dream Warriors? Even after that...” he trailed off and shivered as he remembered the Nightmare.

  “Of course you’ll need to pass initiation like every prospective Dream Warrior, but I believe both of you will do well and grow up to become fine members of our order.”

  “Um, me?” She said at the same time as he said, “Wait, her?!”

  Dawn silenced them all simply by raising a hand. “This isn’t good, this kid isn’t waking up.”

  The other master shuffled over closer, the room feeling a bit cramped now that Margrave was up too. “Damn, it looks like it got to him too much. He’s gone.”

  “Is he- dead?” Elizabeth asked.

  He shook his head. “Not exactly, but his mind has been extinguished. If a Nightmare gets to someone for long enough, then even with all traces of it removed, the worst of those afflicted will never wake up, their minds shredded by the Nightmare. They die soon without assistance.”

  “Can nothing be done to wake him up? Like with Dream Walking or something?” Elizabeth hadn’t been particularly close to Fred, but he was nice enough. She knew him, and it just seemed so unfair that he wasn’t going to truly live through this just when she thought they were all saved.

  He shook his head sadly. “Unfort-”

  “I’ll save him,” Dawn said, having finished her own inspection of him, causing Cain to sputter.

  “Dawn, be reasonable. No one has ever healed someone that far gone. Even the Grandmaster has failed in cases like this.”

  “Sometimes,” she admitted. “He’s also succeeded occasionally, if he’s gotten to them early enough. I may not be the Grandmaster, but I’ve gotten plenty strong too.” Dawn turned over to smile at Elizabeth. “Don’t worry, everything’s going to be ok.”

  Pulling out a wooden rod tucked into her belt, she focused on Fredrick, holding his head with one hand and pointing the rod at it with the other. Cain has turned away from her, muttering something about ‘getting hopes up,’ and Margrave was still taking in the fact that he’s awake and well, while glancing sidelong at Elizabeth every so often, no longer sure what to make of her.

  After a minute of deep concentration, she sees a brief flash of green from Dawn’s rod, and then Fredrick opens his eyes and starts thrashing about. “Hold him steady; I need to focus, and this part is tricky.” The three of them hold down the flailing boy, and after another minute, he settles, blinking a few times before opening his mouth.

  “Where am I? What happened?”

  “You’re in your room, you were attacked by a Nightmare, but then-” Elizabeth was cut off by Cain’s barely audible whisper of disbelief.

  “You saved him. Incredible.” The guards broke the moment, them and Margrave’s father entering noisily downstairs.

  “What is going on here?”

  ***

  We all went to Lord Tukesh’s manor, eagerly invited by Helven Tukesh when he realized who they were. It was a large building on the edge of town with a larger estate, gates, and walls blocking off entrance to the large road that could fit several carriages, in theory at least (not many visitors or need to actually close the place off from the outside, so the gate was usually left open). The manor had many spires and open bridgeways throughout the building; it was very fascinating to Elizabeth, though she was somewhat distracted by the current circumstances.

  Lord Tukesh invited the Dream Masters in to breakfast while they discussed things, which seemed to include Elizabeth as Dawn ushered her in as well. The Lord raised an eyebrow but let it pass without comment.

  “Well, I suppose we have your intervention to thank for dealing with the Nightmare problem. Thank you so much. I know my son tried his best to hold off the beast in your stead.”

  “It was... a valiant attempt,” Master Gargouth said stiffly. “They will make fine Dream Warriors some day.”

  “They?” The Lord looked over at Elizabeth. “Surely you can’t mean this peasant girl will also be-”

  “Peasant or noble, talented Dream Walkers come from all sorts. The Grandmaster reminds us he was once but a humble man before he changed the world,” Dawn interjected. “But enough of that; let’s eat and be merry for the moment. The day is saved, after all.”

  The chefs brought them food. It was incredible, and yet Elizabeth felt it was not quite as well cooked as what her mother managed. The ingredients were of high quality and often exotic, with fruits that the rest of the town couldn’t get this far east and well-spiced meats, but the cooking was only of average quality. Certainly not bad, but... it felt like the cooks were being too experimental and that the Lord cared more about showing off his wealth than enjoying the food.

  After the meal, Margrave turned to Cain and asked, “I was hoping to join your Order someday; would you be willing to accept me?” He looked so hopeful and eager, made it seem like he might have a pleasant side to him... for he deigned to act less proud, mean, and arrogant around.

  “I am a Master, but I will have to pass that request on to the Eastern Temple Master, Corrigan Creed, and then you will have to pass the Five Trials to become an Initiate, as any hopeful would. Still, if I may be so bold, I believe you will have no problems managing this. Your courage and talent will surely show you through, and I would be honored to sponsor and tutor you.” The male master seemed to be sucking up to the older lord as much as praising his son, a fact Tukesh appreciated.

  “Splendid. I’ll have to make sure to leave a generous donation to the Eastern temple soon; you’ve done so much to help us.”

  This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

  Margrave seemed a bit more nervous. “Are those trials difficult?”

  “Yes, but I believe you’ll pass, with my guidance. When you are ready, you can leave soon to begin your training. The Eastern Temple isn’t far from this town.”

  The boy finally turned to Elizabeth and said, “Is she coming too?” Dawn spoke up suddenly, changing the topic.

  “This has been a delightful meal, but I find myself quite full. Do you mind if I take a stroll in the garden?” It wasn’t really a question, however, as the woman was already getting up and beginning to leave.

  Helven dismissively said, “Of course, Dream Warrior. Enjoy yourself on the grounds. Now, as you were saying, Master Gargouth...” So dismissive of Dawn, not even realizing the two were of the same rank. Was it just because she was a woman? The father might not have been able to sense her power, but even with her presence set to be less overwhelming, Elizabeth could feel the gulf of power between her and Cain, while Margrave could not (that, or he just followed his father’s lead to an insane degree).

  Putting down her cutlery, her meal mostly finished, Elizabeth said, “I think I’ll join Master Florian in the gardens, it’s a lovely day.” Then she gave a slight curtsey and left, Lord Tukesh waving happily, as if that would conceal the smirk on his face as the ‘peasant’ left. It was all so dumb. His family was slightly above them because of a happenstance of birth, yet he felt the need to shove his superiority in everyone’s face, although his distance from the Capital meant he couldn’t have had that much real power or connections (not that it mattered much for a common girl like her; a minor lord’s power was still pretty stifling over the whole town).

  Wandering through the garden, she found Dawn, walking amid the rosebushes, her hand running through them, yet never seeming to be cut on them, or the sleeves of her robes catching on anything. “Wow.”

  “It’s quite beautiful, is it not?” Dawn asked, seeming to take her appreciation of the garden (which was beautiful and well kept). “I have so little free time; I like to take it where I can and enjoy the bounties of nature.”

  “Master Gargouth thought you were a slacker,” Elizabeth blurted out before covering her mouth.

  The Dream Warrior just laughed, her voice bright. “He would think that, wouldn’t he?” She flicked her wrist, and a shrub shifted over to make an opening for them to walk through to a bench on the other side, uprooting itself to let them through, then shuffling back into place after they passed. Dawn concentrated, and the world around them seemed to turn in on itself, then turn black, leaving a sphere of darkness around them, with a bright beam of light above. At Elizabeth’s questioning look, she said, “I like some privacy sometimes. I can use my powers to hear Cain over in the castle, and I’m sure he could do the same to me, so I thought I’d make this bubble. Please, feel free to speak your mind here.”

  “Wow,” Elizabeth said, afraid to place her hands against the darkness but also tempted by curiosity. “I mean, you can do such incredible stuff, and you’re stronger than him. I can feel it, so I don’t get why he thinks you aren’t doing enough.”

  “Cain has many opinions about how exactly one should work and aim for, but I never let myself see in such a limited way. I have a different perspective than him, but I work no less hard for what I want. I daresay I may even work harder than a man striving to be one of the next 4 Temple Masters.” She didn’t elaborate on what her dreams were, and Elizabeth didn’t feel like pushing. Instead, she asked something else that had been weighing heavily on her mind.

  “Do I have to be a Dream Warrior? Cain seemed to assume I will, and I have these powers, but-”

  Dawn paused, not expecting that question. “No, we’d never force you to do something you didn’t want to. Is there a particular reason you don’t want to?” Sensing her hesitancy, she laughed and added, “Don’t worry, I won’t be offended.” The question was quite reasonable, even if not coming from a Dream Warrior herself; they were revered as holy men and women, gifted heroes who saved and protected the world. Many times as a young child, Elizabeth had played at ‘Dream Warriors and Monsters’ with her friends.

  “I- no, I can’t really say so. There are things I might like to do, but those goals seem far off, not enough money or opportunities for them.” Elizabeth’s eyes drifted back to the manor, looking at where she knew Margrave and his father would still be eating, chatting it up with Cain.

  “It does seem unfair, doesn’t it? Right now, he’s chatting it up with Margrave, giving the boy hints on how to pass the Trials, hoping to earn favor with the nobles and get more funding and connections and a powerful pupil to ‘his’ temple. That’s part of why I want you to join me in Central. Any temple is a fine place to learn at, but I think you could do more with me there than just that.” Elizabeth opened her mouth to respond, but Dawn continued. “Heh, it’s funny. Margrave might feel the same way about me, but I feel that his attitude leaves much to be desired as well. His abilities will be... adequate for the order as it is, but I see more in you.” Elizabeth looked up at her, surprised Dawn read her feelings so easily that she could answer her questions before the girl asked them.

  “Haha, I’m just pretty good at reading people; I can’t read your thoughts or anything, and yes, I do realize how ironic that sounds now that I’ve said it out loud.”

  Elizabeth indulged in a brief giggle too after she took everything Dawn said in. “So, why do you think I’m so special?”

  Dawn looked down on her (given their respective heights, Elizabeth suspected some power was involved) and put a hand gently on her shoulder. “Well, just having these abilities shows you’re special, and you in particular have a lot of potential. More than that, you showed a lot of what I’m interested in. You wanted to help everyone, so you reached out to me, not rushing in recklessly but still showing incredible drive to help save people. That’s what I want to do.”

  After a long moment, Dawn started unfolding the surrounding space. “It’s alright, we can go back to the others and-”

  “I’ll do it. I’ll become a Dream Warrior.” It was a big step, but seeing this disaster and how quickly the Dream Warriors saved them? It made Elizabeth realize she needed to do this, to help so many others. That was worth a lot more than some vague childish dreams of hers she couldn’t even achieve. Plus, she was sure she’d have a lot of fun learning how to use her powers and other things from the Dream Warriors, especially from Dawn; she was incredible.

  “That’s a big decision. Are you sure about this? If you have other dreams, you could still pursue them. I may be rather carefree in many things, but I’ll expect the best from you if you take this path.” The folded and unfolded space blended, making the garden around them feel like a watercolor painting. A frozen moment in space.

  “Yeah, this is where I need to go. It feels... right. There are many things I want, but more than anything, I want to help people. I hate seeing them hurt, and you saved everyone, even people others thought there was no way to help. I want to do that more than anything.” Dawn smiled, and the world reverted to normal.

  “Well then, we best get a move on,” Dawn said with a large smile on her face. Then she started mumbling to herself. “Hmm, the next one would be two months from now, oh, but if we leave quickly, we can just squeeze in, and it fits in with my check-in there. Perfect.”

  “Uh, when is it that we’ll be leaving here?” The Central Temple, from what Elizabeth could recall, was near the Capital, so very far away.

  “A day from now.”

  “Only a day!? I- I don’t have anything packed or-”

  “Calm down, calm down. You won’t need to bring a lot anyway, but... I think I can give you two days to settle anything here before we go.”

  “That won’t be a final goodbye or anything, right? I’ll still get to see my family some time after my training is done?"

  She let out a short laugh that didn’t contain much humor. “It’s supposed to be, in theory. Dream Warriors are to commit themselves to the Order, so once someone is accepted into the Order and passes the Trials, they need to let go of their past life and focus on helping the people, but there are exceptions to this.” The disapproval in her tone was palpable.

  “Exceptions?”

  Taking a deep breath in, she explained. “If an Initiate achieves the level of a full-fledged Adept, they are given an opportunity to take a sabbatical - actually this is forced on everyone. Time is given for them to take a break and reflect, though if they choose to just spend a day meditating quietly in their room, that’s fine too. It’s meant to give them time to relax, rest, and reflect on their additional duties and station in the Order. Adepts are the ones responsible for keeping the peace, gathering new Initiates and protecting people. Them reconnecting slightly with their old friends and families was expected, though it was meant to be brief periods of time to accept that they and those they knew had moved on in different paths in life, hold that love and compassion for them, but still move on as an Adept after a few weeks. Now they last months or years; many Dream Warriors have been found even trying to slip away from the Order and taking what they learned to build a new family or life for themselves.”

  Having to leave her family sounds terrible, but at the same time, Elizabeth can see why Dawn’s disappointed in that behavior (she also notes that’s another side to the Master Dream Warrior, having taken her at first to be far more easygoing about such stuff than Master Gargouth).

  “I understand. Well... I guess I best get going then, to say goodbye to them if I’m going to be leaving so soon. And, thank you again for all of this,” she said before hurrying off, rushing back home to break the news.

  ***

  Her mom and dad are shocked at first and more than a bit upset at their daughter hiding this from them, but as that fades, they grow to accept it.

  “I’m sorry that this is happening, and so quickly, but I’m proud of you. You’re taking a tremendous step to help everyone in Engalia with this, and that’s incredible. I want you to know that we’ll always love you,” Adam said.

  Shelia nodded, hugging her daughter. “We know you’ll do incredible there. Make sure to write often, ok?” Elizabeth agrees, wondering if that’s ‘holding on to her past life’ too much, but justifies it as just being letters to her family, not planning on leaving the Order or anything.

  Going all around town, she passes on the news of her leaving. Two people leaving to join the Order (news of Margrave going to the Eastern temple has already spread) is quite the shock to the townsfolk, though they’re all very happy for her. One of her classmates, upon finding out that they’ll be going to different temples, ribs her, “I knew you guys didn’t like each other, but I didn’t think you’d need half of Engalia in between you two.”

  “Heh. We just have different, uh, mentorships going on, she said, which was true, but she wasn’t really sure what Margrave thought of her now that she had powers. Hopefully, by the next time they met, he’d have grown up a bit.

  She spends the night over at Lindsey’s place, just talking to her best friend. They’re sad to see each other go, Lindsey trying to convince her to stay. “You never wanted to go or show off your powers before, why do you have to leave now?”

  “You know why. The Nightmare, it could have hurt a lot of people, and I have the power to stop it. I can’t squander that, not when they need me.”

  “But-”

  “Look, I know you could convince me to stop, this is a big step for me too, but, I want to do it. I’m nervous and scared, but I think it’s the right thing to do. Please don’t change my mind.”

  “Ok, fine. I’m sure you’ll do great things out there. Just... be careful. And don’t worry, I’ll make sure Maya and everyone are ok here, you just focus on saving the world with your incredible powers.” It’s bittersweet, but they spend the time reminiscing on the past, joking around, and just cherishing the time they have.

  Maya had been elated about her big sister becoming a Dream Warrior until she got to the part about Elizabeth not coming back home for likely a long time. “Ellie, no! You can’t just leave me, not- not-” much sobbing ensued, and while Elizabeth tried to comfort her, there wasn’t much that could make the young girl happy.

  The next day, they went out together. The sisters tried a bunch of different stuff, tasting a new dessert of ‘iced cream’ that a trader had brought into town (a bit expensive and cold, but quite tasty!) and playing any inane game Maya wanted to (for once with no asking her to demonstrate her powers). It cheered both of them up a bit, and in the evening there was a big sendoff party for her from all the townsfolk, something that really warmed Elizabeth’s heart.

  Shelia made some of her favorite foods (seared fish, fresh bread, and beans), and after dinner, Adam gave his daughter a gift: an incredibly well-made silver locket necklace with her name engraved on the front in looping letters. She knew her dad was a talented craftsman, but this was incredible, a masterpiece.

  “This is... amazing. Thank you so much, Dad. I’ll treasure it forever.” They hugged tightly, and she thanked everyone else for coming there, promising to remember them forever.

  The rest of the evening passed by quickly with great merriment as the town celebrated her departure. Night came faster than she expected, and even with the party carrying on well into it, eventually the townsfolk started trickling out until it was just her and her family left. They went back home, one last time, to rest up before her journey began.

  In the early morning a voice reached out to her mind. ‘It’s time,’ and she woke up immediately, knowing where to go. The others were still asleep, but that didn’t stop her from softly saying “Goodbye” to them before heading off into the forest, to the rock where she trained. Dawn stood there, the hood of her robes pulled up as she waited for Elizabeth.

  “Are you ready?”

  She nodded, filled with determination. “Yes, let’s do this.” Dawn took her hand and led Elizabeth Wry out of the forest, on a path to her new life.