Legends have told that our entire universe began with a dream, small and fleeting, jumbled up like the pages of a story read backwards. Has it been so long in this dusty daydream we call life that we cannot remember? The strange happenings that occur when our eyes are closed—are they no more than fools play? Or is there something more mystical to it? What if, behind our eyelids, that first Dream painted the maze on humanity's canvas, and our imagination filled it with creatures of Wonder. For Dreams, as mysterious as they are, may last much longer than one mere night...

2: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 1: Aisling

Aisling quietly watched the stars as her flying gazebo carried her across the dim-lit sky. As the marble building fluttered aimlessly, the stars danced around with thin phantom bodies and sang in shades of blue and green. The twin moons floated with graceful airs above her, tinting the sky with shades of red and gold as they went. Of all the worlds Aisling had ever made, this was her favorite—at one point there must've been one she'd liked more, but she couldn't remember.

A small child characterized by a nightgown and a goofy smile leaned across the bench next to Aisling's. At the beginning of their voyage, the child had trotted excitedly about the marble floors, absorbing the world and its wonder through innocent eyes and fumbling fingertips. Now the wispy shape sat by her side, sometimes faintly pointing to the ever-occasional "pretty star".

"Mommy, can you take me to this place again sometime?"

Aisling smiled, for the child was not hers; she had found it alone, crying out for the mother that had unintentionally forsaken the child in this dark and unfamiliar world. Naturally, when the child had come to see Aisling, its imagination had let her assume the role of that mother and put an end to the child's suffering.

Aisling leaned her head on her grey-colored hand and looked out at the night sky thoughtfully.

"Maybe, one day," she said quietly. No promises, she thought. No promises, for in the Dreamscape a promise made was a promise broken. Aisling did not want to burden an innocent child with words she could not hold herself to—but in light of the child's ignorance, a "maybe" would suffice.

"That makes me happy…," the child said dreamily. "Goodnight mommy…"

Aisling looked at the child with fear, the Loneliness in her heart swelling to a near-unbearable point. "Wait, little one! Do not fall asleep!" But she was too late; the wisp of child was already fading, and by the time she blinked, it was gone.

For a few long moments, Aisling stared mournfully at the marble bench that the young child had sat upon. At last, she let a grief-filled murmur escape her lips. "I fear you may never return."

Aisling stood as the gazebo floated to its resting place, and she walked the smooth airborne stepping-stones down to the alcove below. When she reached the soft red grass below, she glanced up at the gazebo once more in memory of the young child.

"May this place live forever in your heart as a good dream," she spoke quietly. "For that is the one place in this universe where it can be everlasting."

With those final thoughts about the child, Aisling lowered herself gracefully to the ground beside a pond she had made in the midst of that joyful dream. She dipped her dark grey toes into the pond, and the coy fish that swam in the shallow waters circled her feet with all the grace of a thousand temple dancers. Aisling pitied the fish; during her time with the child, Aisling had made many of them—much to the delight of the child—but now if she closed her eyes one moment too long, they would fade into the Abyss, the nothingness that awaited at the end of all dreams, good or bad.

She stared at her rippled reflection, the true image of grey skin, golden eyes and white hair that only she and a few others could see. Humans rarely witnessed the drow-like figure in all her true glory; most simply masked her form with ideas of their own design, much like the young child she had once cared for. At least they could see her, and they were there with her for a time—until they left and Loneliness tore away at her heart once more. She couldn't remember the last moment she'd had company—before the young child, that is—in fact, she couldn't even remember whether it had been a human or one of her own. It must have been eternities since that last meeting.

She sat there for some time, drifting with her eyes open, as always—she had learned not to make her Worlds also victims of her Loneliness.

"Do you have some sort of skin condition?"

Aisling snapped back into focus and turned to the source of the voice, which appeared to be a young human boy; he must've shown up while she was dazed.

"What do you mean?" Aisling started softly.

"A skin condition. You know, a problem with it, something to account for the fact that your skin is, to be frank, grey," the boy explained.

"No…," Aisling replied only to be cut off by the boy almost immediately.

"Because, I must say, it looks considerably strange," the boy continued. "Your skin, that is, and I was curious as to how it could've become that color. My guesses were that you either had a condition or that you'd gone through that nasty punching thing from The Bartimaeus Trilogy, and I got to thinking that a skin condition was more likely—unless of course you have been through the nasty punching thing. In that case, I don't suppose you would recall having been sucker punched by any demons in the past, would you?"

"My skin is this color naturally," Aisling explained with a hint of confusion. It had been a very long time since someone had seen her actual form. Furthermore, she had never met a human that was quite so adamant to ask her about it.

"Really? How'd it get to be natural? Do your ma and pa have that skin color?"

"I don't have a 'ma' or 'pa'."

"Lucky you. Ma's and Pa's are vile and vicious creatures; you're much better off not having them," the boy stated smartly. "My name's Cyrus, by the way. What's yours?"

"Aisling—"

"That's a pretty name. Definitely suits you. Would you care to join me for tea Miss Aisling? I know this great spot for tea."

The young boy named Cyrus stared at Aisling intently with his blank visage, and she thought long and hard in an attempt to remember the last time she'd had such an eager visitor. It must have been several eternities, probably even more.

"If you would like to," Aisling replied after a while, despite having no idea what the boy meant by "tea".

"Of course I'd like to," the boy said in a chipper tone. "I did ask, didn't I? Well follow me then! I know this great recipe for chamomile—well, I guess it isn't a recipe really, more of a way to prepare the tea…in any case, I'm sure you'll love it!"

In that precise moment, the young boy grabbed Aisling's hand and began dragging her to the opposite side of the pond for "tea".

"That is…a very interesting place," Aisling commented as the young human's creations sprouted from the ground nearby. The grove-like spot sat in the shadow of a knotted white orange-tree with red and blue lanterns strung across the lower branches, casting just enough candlelight to give the tree a soft glow. In the belly of the tree was a small fireplace with strong orange flames licking the logs in the hearth. The human named Cyrus had summoned a number of strange materials surrounding a simple square-shaped picnic blanket by the tree's burning base.

To the tree's left, Cyrus brought forth an antique pedestal with chipping crimson paint and a strange wooden box with a magic window. Aisling had seen these devices before. As usual, the window presented nothing more than a bundle of black and white dots, and a barely present noise, similar to that of rustling leaves. Aisling could see a small pile of broken toys and a simple broken mirror leaning directly on the left of the tree for no real purpose, and she wondered what significance the pile of useless rubble had in the first place.

To the right, Cyrus had made an antique bookshelf, and a rather odd owl which balanced its enormous stilt-like legs on a Jack O' Lantern and sported top hat with a monocle.

"Seven, ten, four, twelve, fifteen, nine," the owl cooed abruptly. "Answer?"

"Ah…," Aisling was so startled by the bird's question that she barely noticed as Cyrus passed her a cup of tea and beckoned her to sit with him.

"Twenty-seven," the boy replied to the owl without turning away from her. "How is the tea, Miss Aisling? Good?"

"I've yet to have any," Aisling murmured as she pressed the teacup to her lips and tasted her first sip. She knew it to be impossible for the tea to taste like anything to her; humans weren't able to impose that sort of willpower upon Dreams. "It's delicious," she lied as she finished off the golden-brown liquid.

"Thank you," Cyrus smiled. "Would you like more?"

"I'm alright, thank you. Is this your usual spot for drinking tea?" Aisling asked as she put down her cup.

"No, just my favorite. What about you? Is this your favorite place?"

"I suppose…," Aisling mumbled.

"You sound sad."

"What?"

"Seventeen, three, nine, twelve, ten, twenty, six," the owl cooed again. "Answer?"

"Eighteen," Cyrus responded quickly, "You sound sad, Miss Aisling." Cyrus leaned across the picnic blanket and pulled a book out of the shelf. As he straightened up again, he opened the book and lowered his head to read its blank pages. "Is something wrong? You can tell me if you like."

"Is that owl reciting number puzzles to you for any particular reason?" Aisling asked in an attempt to change the subject.

"Three, two, eight, thirteen, ten, five, four," the owl cooed once more. "Answer?"

"Sixteen," Cyrus said as he turned a page of his book. "Changing the subject was unnecessary, you know. If you didn't want to say anything, you could've said so. And no, the owl doesn't have any real reason. Not all things have reason, you know. For someone dreaming, you ought to know that. Though, I guess I'm the dreaming one, so you'll just disappear when I'm not dreaming anymore."

"You aren't dreaming me," Aisling spoke in a flustered tone, "I am not your Dream."

"You are a part of it, are you not?"

"In no sense whatsoever am I a simple pawn of your Imagination!" Aisling hissed angrily and rose to her feet. She knew he couldn't possibly have known her as a living entity of the Dreamscape, and yet she couldn't help but be offended by the notion of being this boy's infant creation.

"Ah, that explains it then. I was wondering why I would dream up a person with your eyes."

Aisling's irritation rose. "And what, exactly, is wrong with my eyes?" she turned and asked as the venom she felt seeped slightly into her voice.

"Simple enough really," he shrugged. "You're too lonely."

"H-Ho—"

"And you try to hide it by being nice and smiling for people, but your eyes betray you. They're deep and sad, and if you look directly in them for too long your first instinct is to cry."

"How could you possibly see the loneliness in my eyes?!" Aisling cried out, losing herself almost entirely in the process. She turned from Cyrus, afraid to show him the tears that formed as wisps in the corners of her eyes.

"Such simple questions," he laughed a bit. "The ones you're asking, I mean." He sighed, "I can see your loneliness so clearly, mind you, because, you see, I'm—"

"—the same." Aisling turned back to the young boy only to find that he had faded away in the last moments of his sentence. She fell to her knees, fearing the very thought that a human could see the Loneliness so clearly just by seeing her eyes, let alone that he could see her real eyes. She wasn't sure whether she was joyful or mournful over the incident, but the encounters of the young child and Cyrus so close together had caused Aisling to nearly lose herself in the flood of her own Loneliness. In a few short moments, she fell unconscious.

3: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 2: Cyrus

The shadows weren't scaring Cyrus. They never did. It was always the voices. The voices terrified him until his shaking legs gave way beneath him and he fell helpless to cold floor.

"Cyrus, dear, where have you gone?" a voice called.

"Cyrus, this is no time for games, come out this instant!" said another.

Time. He could hear the clocks ticking, ticking ever so dreadfully backwards. Why couldn't he run? Why couldn't he see anything but the darkness? Why could he do nothing but cry?

"Cyrus, my little one, you need to get ready," the first voice echoed in his ears.

Why? Cyrus finally managed to stand, he saw the halls of his house stretching before him and the most he could think to do in all his fear was run.

"You'll go to boarding school whether you like it or not! A boy of twelve has no business being homeschooled!"

But what about Lydia? What about Vivian? Cyrus knew the answers, he always knew them, over and over again, this argument plagued him, it never ceased.

"Lydia is still four years your junior, my dear, and at your age, you shouldn't need Vivian to look after you. It's time, you need to leave the nest. It'll be fun, you'll get to make new friends."

Why do I have to leave to make new friends? I don't want to leave Lydia, or Vivian. It isn't fair!

"You need to grow up Cyrus! Life isn't fair, now be quiet and do as you're told!"

The second voice was relentless. It always was, no matter what. Cyrus could run away through the halls for all eternity and it still wouldn't stop. It had no reason to.

No. You can't boss me around when you don't even know me! You can't take me away from Lydia and Vivian! You have no right!

"Cyrus, we're your parents," the first voice reminded him, "You have to do as we tell you."

You aren't my parents. You're never there. No, Vivian's my parent, she's the one that raised me. You two can go to hell.

Cyrus stopped running as he found himself surrounded by schoolchildren wearing the uniform he would soon be forced into. "W-What do you want?" he managed to say aloud.

The children didn't speak. How could they? Their faces were blank, their mouths and noses and eyes had been replaced with smooth voids. They were nothing, the epitome of emptiness dressed in suits and skirts. He didn't want to be them. Not ever.

"Boarding school will teach you much more than Vivian ever could! I paid good money to get you in and I will not let you weasel out of it because of something as lowly as sentiment!"

Stop it.

"And as for Lydia, it'll be good for you to have more friends than just your kid sister! You need friends your age, and Lydia needs to stop being around you or else she'll soon be giving us just as much grief!"

Shut up.

"I'm tired of all your whining, stop being such a brat! Didn't Vivian teach you any manners? I knew we should've gotten you a different nanny, from the very beginning!"

"Shut up!" Cyrus shouted aloud, and suddenly the scene faded into an abandoned and decrepit playroom, with everything from the toys to the ceiling covered in mildew and rot. "I don't want to go," he whispered.

"You have no choice," the first voice replied mildly.

"I don't want to."

"You mustn't fret then, dear," the first voice said, suddenly changing its mind altogether, "You will not go."

What?

"You will not go. You won't make the train. You won't, you can't, you've missed it already."

What?

"I will miss you, my dearest Cyrus, as will Lydia, and Vivian, but your time has come, my sweet. Don't you see?"

What?!

"I truly did love you dear, but sadly, you—"

—are already dead. The ground beneath Cyrus shook; the violent tremors tore apart the weak playroom walls as if they were paper, and the windows shattered in at the blast of a mighty horn. Cyrus squinted as the scarlet light invaded the darkness, his nose wrinkled from the putrid smell wriggling up his nose. He didn't want to see what he was looking at; he didn't want to see his end. Not like this.

"Help me," he whispered to the air, knowing not a soul would hear his plea. He was over now, with nothing left, nothing except this blood red light, this blaring horn, and this ghastly stench.

"Cyrus."

A light had flown before the boy, while his eyes were blurry with tears, its voice was one he eerily remembered, it was just barely, but it sounded like a voice he'd heard before.

"Cyrus, do not worry."

This woman's voice, he knew it; he knew who it belonged to. Cyrus's eyes adjusted to the light the woman had surrounded them in; he recognized her nearly immediately. Her unmistakable grey skin and deep golden eyes were enough of a clue in themselves, but the intricate white dress and the low white ponytail flowing like silk to the floor made her identity more than apparent.

"Aisling…?" Cyrus murmured with disbelief before breaking into a halfhearted chuckle, "I thought you said you weren't my dream."

"I have saved you…" the woman whispered.

"I didn't ask you to," Cyrus pointed out, not wanting to owe her a favor.

"… now you must save me," Aisling continued, almost as if she hadn't heard him at all.

"What's that supposed to mean? Save you from what? You look perfectly fine." Cyrus smiled, but he could feel the heavy weight of the atmosphere just fine.

"If you do not save me… I will die," Aisling said, and in that moment, she was gone. Cyrus's smile faded his thoughts focused on the woman's last words.

I will die. She sounded so sure of it, so certain that worry started to work up a knot in the boy's stomach. He had no more room to think about his losses; for some reason, everything else mattered little now. All he could think about was Aisling, and a sudden determination more powerful than any he had ever felt in his life. He wouldn't let her die.

4: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 3: Lilith

"A-Are they coming?"

Lilith glanced over at the ghostly white shape in the darkness beside her. The little fox child leaned back in the air ever so slightly and looked back towards the dark void that hid the ceiling.

"Lilith?"

The girl stole another long stare at her friend with her ruby eyes; her right ear twitched with irritation. "They will come," she spoke at last.

"And t-they'll help?"

"Do you take me for a liar?" Lilith grinned. "Well, I guess I could be."

"Will they h-help?"

"You worry too much," Lilith yawned, "Do I really have to repeat myself for you?"

"Will they help, Lilith?"

"Oh for the love of bubblegum and orange juice, yes, they'll help, I said so, didn't I?" Lilith placed her feet back on the ground, turning towards the door to the cottage as she did, "This friend of mine will definitely take care of the both of our troubles. Trust me at least on that."

"O-Okay Lilith. I'll try."

"Well, that's a start, at least," Lilith's grin widened, "I'll expect a little more loyalty from you by the time this is all over, Poltergeist." The little girl glanced back to her friend one last time. "I'll be back. Ciao."

"Ciao?"

"Man, you're hopeless," Lilith shook her head as she stepped out of the cottage into the dream above. The air out here felt better; it was less dense, less heavy. There barely seemed to be any atmosphere at all though, in this dream of the dead.

"You know, if you stand right there with your Whisper blaring everywhere, he might hear you," Lilith commented to the winged man beside her. "And if that happens, you'll scare what little wits he has right out of him. Then where will we be?"

"It's not as if you can blame me. Powerful Dreams have loud Whispers, that's how it is," the man shrugged.

"Yeah, well, I don't want to fail in my endeavors because my all powerful partner liked wearing a 'Nightmares, Attack Me!' sign," Lilith eyed the man carefully, "so tone it down a notch, will you?"

"I can't," he spoke solemnly as his cold grey eyes met her blood red ones, "too powerful."

"I tone it down a notch," Lilith pointed out.

"You aren't as powerful."

"Oh Lordie, that argument again. Trust me, dude, if we had a fight you'd probably lose just on your cocky disposition alone. All you Ancients think you're so almighty and powerful just because you've never had a human." Lilith rested her hands behind her head. "So you think she can help, huh?"

"Hm?"

"Aisling. You think she can help? How do you know she won't just try killing Poltergeist when she sees him?"

"I don't. But I'd wager that she won't," the man brushed back a strand of his long blonde hair, "If there's one thing that woman refuses to forget, it's the other Ancients."

"And she will come here when she finds out Deimos Ring is open?"

"I sent a particularly talkative pair of Nightmares in her direction. Once she finds out, she'll come here."

"You bastard, you don't even know if she'll survive," Lilith scowled and turned away from her companion. "That's an awfully cruel way to treat your own sister."

"We don't get along."

"Likely a cause of your stupid grudge. I've met Aisling before, you know. She has no qualms with any of her siblings."

"Complain if you like, Lilith," he sighed, taking flight behind her back, "But try to remember that this is the only way for you to get your human back."

Lilith glared at the man as he flew away. "And you try to remember that my human is the only thing winning you my cooperation!" she shouted up to him angrily. Lilith turned back to the black road of the white forest, and began to travel towards the opposite side of the dream. Aisling would be here soon, and Lilith might as well be the one to greet her.

5: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 4: Aisling

Aisling felt lonelier than ever, now that she was alone in the Abyss and fully awake. There was nothing left to do but to make a new dream to stand in. Aisling formed a blue sphere in her hand, and then Whispered to it until it had grown to the size of a small planet.

The wispy ground below formed to her will and became blue sand, swirling around in tiny whirlwinds across the great sphere. Aisling grew a forest of purple trees to her left and a lake of orange water to her right. She painted the sky in shades of red and yellow, and drew the clouds as black as pitch. Long purple grass grew a path around the world, and thin pink flames tickled the trunks of the purple trees until they danced across the desert. Aisling gracefully found her place by the lake, occasionally making a golden bird to keep herself in focus.

She didn't wish to drift, only to think about the human named Cyrus that she had met in her previous dream. Even after sleeping, Aisling couldn't sort out her feelings for the boy; his seeing her true form made her joyful, more so than anything had in a long time. His welcoming nature seemed alright at first, but it didn't take her long to feel like he saw too much. She felt uncomfortable, and frightened with the thought that someone so unaware of the Dreamscape could see her Loneliness as it ate away at her soul. It seemed akin to being stripped bare to the world without any protection.

"I am not yet lost," Aisling confirmed to herself as she shaped yet another golden bird, "I will not let this kill me. I am stronger than what ails me, I must persevere."

Talking to herself did little more than prove to Aisling just how decrepit the state of her mind was. No Dream had yet to survive the Loneliness, she didn't think she would be an exception. Aisling sighed and stood from her spot by the lake. She had come to no conclusions about Cyrus; the endeavor had become little more than a futile waste of time with the many moments past and the slightly overcrowded flock of golden birds inhabiting the sapphire dunes.

"I will never see Cyrus again," Aisling murmured, "Why should I waste my thoughts on him?" Aisling turned towards the forest and weaved a path of pale cobblestones through the center of the wood. As she glided across the smooth stones breaking apart the jungle's fire, a new Whisper came to her attention, one with a melody as bone chilling as its master was wicked. A Nightmare. Aisling rushed into the forest; the noise of the monster's presence became louder and louder until she came out the other end of the forest to find a mannequin shaped Dream child cornered by the most enormous and sinister Sphinx.

It stood menacingly, giant and powerful with legs the size of mountains and breath stronger than a thousand twisters. The beast's gargantuan head sat with a lopsided tilt on its shoulders, and the vaguely feminine lips seemed to spread a mile wide. The Dream beside her was terrified; it seemed as if he couldn't hide enough of himself in his baggy blue jeans and green t-shirt. Chances were that this was the young boy's first time in the presence of a Nightmare. Most Dreams weren't familiar with the living entities of darkness.

"Ah, Aisling the Changer," the Sphinx leered as it pushed a gigantic paw towards the frightened Dream, "How nice to see you!"

"Leave this boy alone," she hissed in a low voice.

"What does it matter to you? This young Dream is a stranger to you, is he not?" The Sphinx tilted its head curiously. "What qualms does a half dead Dream have with letting another suffer?"

"Aisling…?"

Aisling turned in surprise towards the young Dream, who was now looking up at her with his bright green eyes, and terrified as he was he managed a crooked smile, one that made her question whether he was even a stranger at all. "Who are you…?" she whispered.

"Don't get distracted on me, you bitch!"

Aisling directed her attention back to the Sphinx just in time to dodge the paw swiping down her direction and restrain it in a thick layer of chains. The Sphinx howled as Aisling yanked hard on the chain's tail and threw the beast away from the young boy.

"You little whore!" it bellowed.

"I'm not the one who decided to play dirty, you monster," she replied solemnly. Aisling took a chance and stepped in between the Sphinx and the Dream, summoning a line of intricate white blades as she went. "I'll give you one last chance to surrender, while you can. I might show you mercy if you do."

"Who said we needed your mercy?"

Aisling gasped as another Nightmare came from behind her and threw its small foot towards her neck.

"Arianna, you prick," the Sphinx hissed as Aisling was thrown to the ground by his accomplice, "I told you to let me have Aisling."

"Oh, Sphinxie, dear, if I had done that, you'd be at a disadvantage," the second Nightmare giggled, "Besides, I don't wanna take on the twerp, he's no fun! I want Aisling, I wanna play with her, she's fun."

Aisling picked herself up off the ground, glaring viciously at the Nightmare named Arianna. This one was mannequin shaped, much smaller than her friend, and faster, as one would expect; everything from her face to her clothing had a grimy layer of dirt and blood. The arms of her filthy white jacket were strapped and wrapped around to her back securely, yet despite Arianna's disgusting exterior, she had yet to loosen the hinges of the wild maniacal grin sitting below her icy blue eyes and disheveled mop of orange hair.

"Did I scare you, Aisling?" she giggled again. "Not likely, no, of course not!" she scolded herself. Arianna flicked her right foot up carelessly and the large knife she had been holding with her toes whirled through the air until she caught the handle with her grin. Within seconds she had Aisling running back across the desert as she dodged each wild and unpredictable attack; the mad woman persisted as she rotated her knife between her mouth and her feet in a flurry of limber limbs.

"Aisling, be a dear, would you, and stay still!" Arianna shouted maniacally as she swiped at the Ancient once more with her right foot. "No, idiot, we don't want her to stay still, we want to have fun!"

"Arianna, stop it, I told you, she's mine!" the Sphinx growled.

The mad Nightmare's hysterical giggling only heightened as she ignored the Sphinx and continued pursuing Aisling.

"Don't hurt her!"

The battle came to an abrupt halt as the Dream child's voice rose above the fracas. Aisling looked over at the young boy, who had barely moved an inch from his space by the tree.

"Don't hurt Aisling!" he yelled again.

"What's it to do with you? You've never met her, right?" Arianna chuckled and turned back to the Dream child. "Oh but he must! Look at his little worried face! He must, he must!"

"Let him alone!" warned Aisling.

"Your turn, Sphinxie!"

Aisling gasped for air as suddenly the Sphinx's paw was crushing her to the ground. "You… monster…" she winced.

"You let your guard down," the Sphinx chortled, "Not to mention your little friend over there is emanating Fear by the bucket load. He's putting us at an advantage and he doesn't even know it."

"He's still boring," Arianna said flatly as she crept over towards the boy. "Boring, interesting, boring… which are you really?"

The boy cringed as Arianna sat directly next to him and began examining him up close. "St-Stay away," he managed to stammer.

"Tell me how you know Aisling," Arianna spoke firmly without moving an inch away from him.

"We've met before."

"And yet she clearly doesn't remember you, even though you're so young… give me your name," the mad woman leaned in close to him, her grin all but faded as she made her demands.

"I'd rather not," the boy mumbled.

"Oh, be a dear, will you?" she grinned once more, "A weak Dream like you would do best to do as I say."

"I thought you had no interest in me."

"I don't. But that doesn't mean I won't hurt you. Tell me what I want to know, or else."

"Or else what?"

"How idiotic of you to grow a backbone over something so meaningless." Arianna grabbed the boy's long sleeve undershirt with her right foot and within a split moment the fabric covering his right arm had disintegrated. "Tell me what I'd like to know," the mad woman repeated with a smirk, "Or else I'll destroy the rest of your arm."

"Leave him alone you monster!" Aisling squirmed as best she could against the Sphinx's paw but to no avail.

"I'm not a monster, Aisling, I'm a humanoid Nightmare originating from some Victorian era or other," the woman replied absentmindedly while she continued to lean on the young boy, waiting ever so patiently for his meek response. "Which shall it be then boy, your arm or your name? Should I give you some incentive?" Arianna held her knife up his arm with her foot; Aisling could see him trembling from where the Sphinx had restrained her.

"Leave my arm alone," he stuttered.

"Ah, I take it then that you won't give me a name then. Hm. Which side should I start hacking off first?"

"Get off of me!" the Dream child struggled as Arianna held down his arm with her foot, giggling maniacally all the way.

"Oh do calm down dearie, it won't hurt! Yes it will! No it won't! Yes! No! Of course not! Only if you want it to!" Arianna's knife pierced the boy's arm; the boy yelped in pain, however the mad woman had all but stopped as soon as the blade grazed his skin. Aisling saw a red liquid begin pouring out of the boy's arm, a liquid she eerily recognized.

Suddenly Arianna's disturbed giggle had returned, heightening ever steadily into hysterical shrieks of laughter. "Interesting," she murmured as her laughing fit ended, "Tell me, little boy, do you know what this is?"

"Of course, it's blood. People tend to bleed when you cut off their arms!" the boy had grown defiant from his pain, not realizing what Aisling was starting to see and what the Nightmare Arianna already knew.

"Dreams don't bleed, dearest," Arianna grinned, "Well, if you must know, Dreams only bleed if their humans want them to."

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"Blood is the trait of an animal," Arianna continued as she leaned to lick the liquid off the boy's wound, causing him to flinch. "It is the trait of one with a body, a tangible physical form. A physical form is something that all Dreams and Nightmares lack. We will only bleed if we think we have blood, and for most all of us, we never think such a thing; those born on the Dreamscape will never imagine themselves to have blood. Tell me, Aisling the Changer, do you understand what this means?"

"He couldn't be…" Aisling mumbled before crying out in pain as the Sphinx crushed her into the ground further with his paw.

"What's the big idea, Arianna?" the beast growled in agitation, "Stop wasting time, Aisling's the one we're here for."

"Ugh, you're so dull, Sphinxie, How do you survive being so gigantic when your mind is the size of a pea?" the mad woman looked back towards her fellow Nightmare. "I'm sure this boy has met Aisling before, no no, truly positive, it's the only explanation. After all, he is a human."

"That's impossible!" the Sphinx scoffed. "No human in the Dreamscape looks like that!"

"You're too stupid, Sphinxie!" Arianna chuckled, "You need to get your head checked, I think it's broken, must I explain everything? He is human, or, rather specifically, he was. Am I wrong, boy?"

"That's not…" Aisling rasped as she stared wide eyed at the Dream child.

"Maybe I should ask more clearly for our dearest Aisling. Are you human?"

The young boy glared at Arianna; his answer came in such a low growl that Aisling could barely hear it. "Yeah, I'm human," he replied, "Something wrong with that?"

"Oh, this string of moments is truly one of the impossible. Oh most certainly. I like humans, you know, brave ones especially. Most Nightmares like it when they scream, but I like the ones that stare you down, it's always fun to imagine what their eyes look like… do you know why it's impossible, boy?"

"Why what's impossible?"

"Your being human," Arianna clarified as her grin widened.

"I am—"

"But you aren't. You are a living Dream," Arianna giggled, "You've noticed it, haven't you? Everything's so crystal clear in this world, none of your senses are fading in and out; you feel as if you were wide awake. Newborn, once human, with an absolutely dazzling green pair of frightened eyes. Thank you for letting me see them." With that, the Nightmare Arianna wrapped her legs tightly around the boy's torso, her laughter shrill and loud as ever as she held her knife up to his throat.

"I wonder," she giggled, "If I pushed this knife through your neck, would you think yourself dead and stop existing? I find it funny that the strongest Dream of all is also the weakest."

"Leave him alone!" Aisling shrieked.

"Tell me his name, and I'll spare his life!" Arianna grinned, "for now, that is. Maybe I'll keep him as a pet once you're dead. He is rather cute when he's scared. Still boring compared to you, but still, a Newborn from Reality is a rare find! I wonder, if we keep him forever, will he become a Nightmare? No, not likely, of course not! Oh, but maybe, it could be, yes!"

"I don't know his name," Aisling growled before crying out once more as the Sphinx crushed her further into the ground.

"But you do, remember? You've met him!" Arianna giggled, "Only last time, he was still human!"

"Aisling, what does she mean…?" the boy stuttered, "Why does she keep saying I'm not human?"

Aisling stared at the boy once more, not knowing for sure if it could really be him, but hoping to Dreamer it wasn't. "Who are you?"

"What do you mean, Aisling?!" the boy stammered. "I have a knife up to my neck, this really isn't the time to be forgetful, especially considering that it hasn't been that long!"

"Aisling, dearie, how often do you get a visitor who sees your true form?" Arianna grinned as her cold eyes studied the Ancient's face. "I doubt it happens often, so who's left then? After all, he says it hasn't been that long."

"Cyrus…?" Aisling hoped that she had it wrong, but instead the boy's face brightened up and he managed a little crooked grin.

"See? Not that hard to remember my name, is it?" he chuckled faintly.

"Cyrus? Cyrus…" Arianna hugged the boy tighter with her legs and leaned her filthy face towards his ear, "That's a nice name, pretty name for a pet, I like it!"

"I'm not property!" Cyrus shrieked as he abruptly remembered the Nightmare's presence and began squirming.

"Careful, little Cyrus!" the mad woman giggled again, "I'd hate cut open my new pet! Besides, Aisling's a dead woman walking, so it's not like she'll save you!"

"Cyrus…" Aisling felt far away from herself, her emotions once more a muddled mess of fear, sadness, and above all else, anger. Aisling barely noticed as she managed to lift the Sphinx's paw off of herself, she was too focused on Cyrus—too focused on how furious she was with him. "How could you?!" she shrieked as she strode towards him. "How could you ever choose this life of loneliness?! Have you any idea what you've become?! Do you have any idea how much you'll suffer for it?!"

"Sphinxie, restrain the dead one please!"

Aisling yelped as the Sphinx's paws suppressed her once more.

"Aisling!"

"Let it go, Cy," Arianna giggled, "she'll die anyway, so it's no use caring whether or not we kill her!"

"Why do you keep saying that?!" Cyrus glared at the mad woman. "What do you mean?!"

"I mean she's dying. Can you not tell? This poor little Dream, she is plagued with Loneliness, it eats away at her soul as we speak," Arianna grinned and leaned closer to Cyrus's ear, ""The moment we leave will be the moment her heart will finally collapse in on itself and put an end to Aisling the Changer. Bit of a pity to have to kill you." Arianna tilted her head as she drilled holes into Aisling with her ice cold eyes. "I would have preferred to leave the last female Ancient alone, but, you see, Sphinxie didn't think the Loneliness was a painful enough death for you. I disagree. I think we're doing you a favor."

"Shut up, Arianna," the Sphinx hissed, "I've waited enough eternities to do this without your spoiling it."

"Aisling, is it true? You're going to die… because of me?" Cyrus's head fell in shame and Aisling knew that his guilt could be the end of both of them.

"Cyrus it isn't your fault!" she cried out frantically as she struggled against the Sphinx, "I was already dying! Even if you hadn't come, I probably would've died after my next encounter, it's what I've willed for myself!" Aisling didn't care about herself, but Cyrus shouldn't share her fate. She had already lived out many eternities, she had been there, there when Dreamer built the White and Black worlds and there when Reality itself began. She was among the last of those Dreams, the last of Dreamer's children, and as the Sphinx said, her time had come.

"I'm horrible… I couldn't save you… I've only given you more problems… I shouldn't even—"

"Don't you dare think that way!" Aisling shouted scornfully. "I have been sick so long with Loneliness that it should not even concern you! I was already dying when we met! Stop tormenting yourself with something you cannot control, and worry about the things you can do! You are a Dream now, you are capable of so much more than you are willing to realize! You do not have to die here, and I don't want you to die here! So help me…" cold tears streamed down Aisling's cheeks as she made what she thought to be her final request, "Help me save you before I die…" she choked out. Aisling let her tears flow, and her emotions burn. If she was to die in the next few moments, she wanted to know how she felt right now without denying her own sorrow.

"Sorry Arianna, I didn't come here to be your pet."

Aisling had barely the time to blink as Cyrus freed himself from Arianna's grasp and toppled over the Sphinx with a series of chains the sprouted up from various areas in the ground.

Cyrus smirked as the Sphinx's grip loosened on Aisling. "That good enough?"

Aisling sank to the ground; she was completely dumbfounded as the Sphinx struggled behind her in vain.

"Arianna, help me!" it roared.

"Mmmmm… no, I don't think I will," the mad woman answered as she stood up.

"What?! You little bitch! Where's your loyalty?!"

"I don't have any loyalty to you, Sphinxie," Arianna giggled, "I was just looking for easy entertainment from a vengeful idiot. You did a very good job of entertaining me, dearest!"

"So you don't want to kill Aisling?" Cyrus stammered.

"Of course I wanna kill her," Arianna shrugged and leaned over the boy's shoulder, "I wanna kill everyone. I just don't wanna kill her enough to do it. Same goes for you, I'd rather have you as a pet."

"What is it that you want, then?" Aisling hissed, still very wary of the smaller Nightmare.

"I already got what I wanted, didn't I just say so? Well, I got nearly everything I wanted; I guess I can leave without my pet for now. I'll miss you, little Cyrus!"

"I don't think I'll miss you…" Cyrus mumbled as he inched away from the mad woman leaning on his shoulder.

"Arianna…" the Sphinx growled, "I'll kill you when I get ahold of you!"

Aisling wiped away her tears and calmly approached the monster. It had been sufficiently spooked by Cyrus's sudden will to fight, and as a result its will was diminishing at a speed so swift that in the matter of a moment it would be less than a single grain of sand in the swirling sapphire dunes. "How did you escape from Deimos Ring?" she said in a soft threatening voice.

"Why should I tell you?" The Sphinx sneered.

"I'll tell you! I haven't any problem revealing it after all, you'll just figure it out later if I don't say anything, so why bother concealing it?" Arianna giggled maniacally once more as she fell into a sitting position behind Cyrus. "I wouldn't bother asking Sphinxie if I were you, not worth your time really."

"You bitch!" the beast bellowed.

Aisling sighed and willed a large metal vault to grow from the sand and engulf the Sphinx entirely.

"You should see it as lucky that I will forgive you for past moments, but you know full well what will happen if the humans see or hear you. You will stay here for now, at least until the end of this dream." She cast her eyes back towards the second Nightmare, still uncertain about its intentions, "How did you escape?"

Arianna looked into Aisling's eyes and grinned a little wider, "Deimos Ring disappeared. All of it just went poof! No one knows how, even the Dreams standing guard were a little spooked. Well, with the gates and walls gone and such, we all scattered. Some were killed on the way back to the Dreamscape, but a lot of us still made it out. Those of us that did began speculating; we agreed that if Deimos Ring is gone then something must've happened to Dreamer."

"Something happened? What?"

"If I knew the answer for sure I would've said so already. Or maybe not. I've said enough for you to go on. Now back to the bouncy fun house for me, is it? I'm sure that you no I'm just as bad for humans as Sphinxie!"

"Oh, yes, of course," Aisling mumbled and willed another vault into existence to engulf Arianna.

"I must look into this crisis much further…" Aisling fell limp to the sand, having exhausted the last of her energy in the battle

"Aisling!"

"Don't be afraid, Cyrus," Aisling murmured, "I'll be fine. Just give me a few moments to recover."

"You still act tough even when you're dying," he chuckled shakily and grabbed Aisling's hand, "Let me help you."

"Nothing can prevent it, Cyrus. It is as the Nightmare said," Aisling turned to see Cyrus's blurry frame, "I am destined to die at the end of this dream… will you please look for Dreamer in my absence?"

Cyrus put his arms around Aisling slowly, and as his cheek brushed up against her neck she could feel the warm tears flooding out of his emerald eyes. "I'll go and do as you wish, but you're coming with me," he choked out, "I'm not letting you die here."

"Loneliness has already eaten away at my soul for so long… I… I fear there is nothing left you can do to save me," she whispered.

"There is," Cyrus said confidently, "I know how to save you. You've helped me to find the cure."

"What?" Aisling's vision began to come back into focus, and she pushed away from his arms, staring at his grinning visage with confusion.

"Aisling, all illnesses, well, most illnesses, have a cure," Cyrus said happily, "And I figured, if what ails you is loneliness, then you just need some company right?"

"But you'll have to leave soon," she murmured, but Cyrus abruptly lifted her chin with his hand and smiled gently.

"Wrong," he chuckled, "you see, I meant some permanent company. So from now on, I'm going to stay by your side forever!" With that, Cyrus pounced onto Aisling with such enthusiasm that she thought he might squeeze all the air out of her.

"Cyrus, you're hurting me…" she mumbled, still shocked by his ludicrous proposal. Cyrus withdrew and sat cross legged in front of Aisling.

"Sorry," he blushed, "I guess I got a bit excited."

"How exactly…" she said, "do you plan on being 'permanent company'? Surely you know that the moment either of us falls asleep, we will fall apart into the Abyss, never to be seen again? Do you really understand what you're promising?"

Cyrus blinked and nodded. "Yup. I'll stay with you. I figured…" he smiled sheepishly as he reached for Aisling's hand, "If we're holding hands when we fall asleep then we would stay together…" Cyrus's fingers wrapped around Aisling's hand, and their eyes met for a split moment before Cyrus looked away.

Aisling thought about this idea for a moment, and then she couldn't help but laugh.

Cyrus blushed a brighter shade of red. "What?" he said defensively. "I thought it could work! So maybe it's a bit childish…" he paused and his eyes flitted around a bit, "but I thought it might work!"

Aisling wiped a little tear from her eye with her free hand. "Yes, it's childish…" she said, "but it's cute… thank you for thinking of me."

"So you'll hold my hand?"

"Yes. I'll hold your hand."

6: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 5: Cyrus

Strange trees grew high into the ghostly sky, their branches sprouting out and forming into flattened toadstools at the peaks. From the dreary grey platforms Cyrus could see a ground made up solely of black and white tiles where various doll like animals made of black and white striped cloth wandered endlessly. The world appeared to Cyrus as a massive optical illusion that made his head spin. He turned away from the headache inducing scenery below him and peered across the opposite side of the toadstool to the branch below.

"Are you almost done?" he whined quite pathetically.

"For the last time Cyrus, no. And if you continue to pester me, I might not finish at all."

Cyrus groaned and rolled over onto his back. The rainclouds hung overhead in dingy grey shades; their milky colored teardrops stained the glass canopy above his toadstool white as they ran off it. Hundreds of black and white striped umbrellas glided through the breeze with little white galoshes dangling down from their handles. The sky almost gave Cyrus more of a headache than that of the ground.

"Is it wrong for me to wonder why you chose now of all times to take a bath?" Cyrus complained as he turned back to the toadstool below him.

"I told you already, it helps me clear my mind, now please stop interrupting."

Cyrus pouted, but there was little he could do except stay in the dream until Aisling decided to leave. She certainly didn't feel like discussing the events that happened the day before, even though Cyrus had ever so curious. She hadn't even noticed when he asked her how to fix his shirt sleeve, or when he asked why Arianna seemed so interested in him after she found out he was a newborn.

Cyrus nearly felt invisible once the thought of that Deimos Ring place and Dreamer crossed her mind. He still had no idea what was going on, but from how Aisling was reacting, it must've been pretty serious.

"Aisling, hurry up! I'm starting to fall asleep!" Cyrus whined.

"Very well, we've been here long enough." Cyrus turned around and found that Aisling was now standing beside him, fully clothed and examining the glass canopy that he'd conjured to keep himself dry. "Your ability to wield your imagination is impressive, Cyrus…"

"Thanks," the boy mumbled, still dumbfounded by how swiftly she'd moved.

Aisling cast her golden eyes back towards Cyrus, her face solemn as ever as she held out her hand. "Well? We are leaving now, are we not?" Cyrus brightened up when he heard this, and he pounced happily at Aisling.

"Cuddle time!" he announced like an innocent little child who had just been given a new toy. Aisling was now squirming in Cyrus's arms—unlike him, she wasn't terribly fond of hugs.

"Cyrus… you're doing it again," she murmured.

He let go of Aisling and flopped down in irritation. "Why are you a walking contradiction?" he moaned.

"I do not understand your meaning," Aisling said.

"If you're not trying to change who I am, then why do you always scold me when I hug you?" Cyrus pouted, "I don't have to be all stoic like you to get on your good side, do I?"

Aisling paused for a moment, then laughed a little at his proposal. Cyrus couldn't help but to be slightly offended, for there was a very thin, nearly nonexistent line between funny and foolish when it came to Aisling.

"What did I say this time?" he whined.

Aisling glanced towards Cyrus with a genuine smile, and then sat gracefully beside him on the grey platform. "Why would I ever wish that of you Cyrus?" she asked faintly.

"Well you don't let me hug you…" he mumbled and slouched like little kid who had just been sentenced to time out.

"Because I don't like being hugged," Aisling continued, "that doesn't mean I suddenly want you to act like me. I'd honestly prefer you the way you are; it's much more refreshing." Aisling yawned and slowly laid down as her hand reached out for Cyrus's.

"So no cuddle time?" he asked sweetly, hoping for the "no" that meant "yes".

Aisling sighed. "Which are you, a young man or puppy?" she murmured.

"Definitely a puppy," he said quickly.

"Alright, you can cuddle a little, but only a little, okay?"

"Okay!" With that last answer, Cyrus snuggled his head innocently by Aisling's neck and fell asleep. Cyrus had like being cuddled and hugged all his life; in Reality he would have never behaved this way though—his parents would've been livid.

Cyrus awoke a short while later to find what looked like a fox-eared girl with jet black hair staring intently at him and Aisling. When he got a closer look, he noticed that the child was directly above them, promptly hovering in midair.

"Do you two need a room?" the curious thing spoke.

Cyrus jumped nearly two meters across the ground, dragging along Aisling and jolting her awake in the process.

"Cyrus that hurt!" she said harshly, raising her voice above its normal whispering volume.

"F-f-floating t-t-toddler!" he managed to stutter out, "W-w-with f-fox ears?!"

"You have seen a Sphinx the size of ten mountains put together and a living world of black and white, and you get thrown off by a floating girl with fox ears?" Aisling looked at Cyrus inquisitively. "Are you making some foul attempt at a joke?"

"S-she asked us if we needed a room," he added weakly.

Aisling looked back towards the child again, who was now in an uncomfortably close proximity to her and examining her thoroughly through unblinking eyes. "Did you change your hairstyle?" it finally asked.

"Pardon?" Aisling replied to the girl, who had since bounced over to study Cyrus at a close proximity as well.

"And who's the deadweight twerp? Friend of yours?" she continued, before glaring at him with her scarlet eyes. "I'm clearly above the toddling age, sonny. How stupid do you have to be to get that wrong?"

Cyrus examined the girl again and realized that she appeared closer to the age of eight, but to him that was no excuse for calling him stupid. "I don't suppose you've ever heard of personal space, have you?" Cyrus spoke as calmly as he could with his rising irritation.

"Some folks have mentioned it to me, once or twice."

"Not surprising, as you're so awfully good at invading it! Piss off!" he shouted, causing Aisling to pat a hand down on his shoulder.

"Cyrus, don't be so rude," Aisling said in a harsh tone.

"Hear that, Cyrus?" the young girl smirked, "Your girlfriend wants you to be nice to me. Well, enough chit chat, you two. Follow!" With that, the little girl bounced up and strutted childishly away, her long ebony hair and bright orange tail waving from side to side with each step.

Cyrus and Aisling both paused for a moment and considered the young girl's demands. Finally Cyrus broke the silence. "What?" he inquired.

"She's offering to guide us, I believe," Aisling explained as she rose to her feet, "What a curious child…" His companion gracefully turned on her heel and glided away in the direction of the fox eared child.

Cyrus followed, now remembering all the questions he had wanted to ask in the last dream. "So… the nightmares are still out there, right?"

Aisling nodded.

"So… why have you been so lax lately?" Cyrus inquired.

She turned to look at Cyrus. "Whatever do you mean? I am not familiar with your terms…" she answered.

"Well…" Cyrus looked towards the moss covered ground, "it doesn't really seem like you've been trying to do anything about it…"

"How could you ever think that?" she asked incredulously, "I've been looking the entire time… and… finally with rewards," she added with a smile.

"Huh?" Cyrus cast a questioning look at Aisling. She smiled and she turned back to the path; her footsteps danced slowly across the greenery beneath her, and Cyrus followed with curiosity burning to the surface of his eyes.

"You wouldn't know it Cyrus," she explained, "But this world is connected to Dreamer, as was the dream we just came from. I know so, for it is the same as it has always been. Moss laden paths and metallic trees, clock gears growing and falling off the branches in an infrequent manner…" A hill rose in the path and the pair rode it to its peak. Aisling smiled and leaned gently on a silver tree beside her. "Nine moons placed delicately in a circle on a violet sky, and an ivory castle sitting in ebony hands, far across a valley of silk woven willows. Yes, I remember this dream well…" she finished quietly.

Cyrus gazed at the world around him, more or less incapable of grasping what she was trying to say. That happened a lot, since Aisling had a habit of speaking in riddles, though not in rhymes. "So…" he contemplated the words of his friend carefully, and came to the conclusion that any guess he made would definitely be wrong. The least he could do is take a shot at it. He held his chin in his fingers, attempting quite poorly to make it look like he'd put some thought into this, "Is Dreamer in this world?"

"No," she replied, "the dreams that never sleep live here."

"The what now?"

"The dreams that never sleep."

Cyrus lost his temper and he took Aisling by the shoulders and shook her rapidly. "I am incredibly lost in this mountain of info you've cursed me with! Please explain all these random Dream World factoids! I'm tired of not knowing what you're talking about!" he yelled frantically. Abruptly Cyrus realized the result of his tantrum was giving Aisling a really bad headache, and he blushed in embarrassment as he stopped shaking her back and forth. "Sorry," he mumbled, "I hadn't meant to do that."

"Don't worry about it," she replied as she rested her head in her hand, "I should've expected it for never explaining anything."

"Will you two quit with your lover's quarrel already and get a move on?"

Cyrus turned back in the direction of the valley and found, quite to his irritation, that the fox-eared child was watching them intently while nonchalantly munching on a bag of popcorn.

"First off," Cyrus said in a strained voice, "this is not a lover's quarrel. I'm only twelve years old, so I'm way too young for Aisling, not that either of us are even remotely interested in each other. Am I right?" Cyrus turned back to Aisling and received a nod of agreement. He looked back to the kid. "So it's not a lover's quarrel. And second off…" Cyrus inhaled heavily and bellowed, "Is it really alright for you to stand there eating popcorn?! Because I don't think it is!" The fox-eared child fixed its ruby eyes on Cyrus and stared at him blankly. At last she spoke.

"You two are an unofficial item, huh? Ah. I see now. Well then. I wish you luck with your soon to be romantic relationship," the child walked up to Cyrus and patted him on the shoulder, "And Cyrus, dear, you can't claim not to like Aisling when you insist on putting your head in the crook of her neck."

"I'm not going to change your mind about this, am I?" Cyrus sighed in frustration.

The child didn't look like she was paying attention; the bag from the popcorn was covering the vast majority of her face and she seemed much more intent on finding the last few popped kernels than answering his question. The bag fell down from her face, the child pouted, and she abandoned the bag quite harshly in between two copper colored trees.

"Uh uh," she announced bluntly in regards to his first question, "By the way, nice to see you again Aisling. I believe it's been exactly two thousand sixty six eternities and forty seven moments since we last met. Do you still know my name or has the Loneliness eaten it out of your memory?"

"… Lilith?" Aisling responded quietly.

"Whaddya think of that world?!" Lilith shouted out, "I am memorable!" the child looked back towards Cyrus blankly, "So who's your friend? Is he a noob?"

"Noob?" Aisling inquired.

"Newborn," Lilith answered in an irritated tone.

"Oh," Aisling replied, "yes…"

"Still as quiet and innocent as you were before, I can see…" Lilith scratched at a spot in the back of her head and her ears twitched with indifference. "So I guess you came to see them too, huh?"

"I could use some explaining right now!" Cyrus asserted his vocal rights loudly.

"Your questions?" Lilith asked apathetically as she studied her hand.

"Who is Dreamer, what is Deimos Ring, and what are 'nightmares'?! Oh and who the hell are the dreams that never sleep?!" Cyrus was nearing the end of his rope. He was stuck in the middle of two girls who were vastly different but terribly good at raising his level of irritation.

"Cyrus."

"What!" Cyrus turned back to Aisling and he saw the woman wince, for he was yelling and her headache had not yet faded. He blushed a slight shade of pink. "Sorry," he mumbled again, but this time his sympathy was interrupted by Lilith, who had just then jumped up to his shoulders and was grabbing at a large clock gear above him. As it finally fell into her hands it transformed into a large swirly lollipop.

"Well? Continue Aisling," Lilith said nonchalantly.

"Cyrus," Aisling said, "Dreamer is the most powerful dream in all of the Dream World."

"Dreamgiver dream?" Cyrus clarified. Cyrus often confused when Aisling was using the proper noun "Dream" with a run of the mill dream. So he called living dreams "dreamgivers", though Aisling still revered them as "Dreams", and he continued to confuse the two, making the switch more or less meaningless.

"Yes, Dreamer is a living dream," she continued, "Dreamer is the ruler of all dreams, the only dream that can make other dreams."

"Other dreamgiver dreams? Lilith get off," Cyrus said as he pushed the child off his shoulders. She stopped falling a few inches before hitting the ground and looked at Cyrus incredulously.

"Oy! No need for that!" Lilith protested.

Aisling seemed to ignore the two's behavior. "Yes. Dreamer also controls Deimos Ring."

"What is Deimos Ring?"

"It is where the nightmares dwell."

"All of them?

"No. Only the living ones."

"So there are nightmare givers too?" Cyrus contemplated this idea; it seemed unusual too him to make humanity's fears alive.

"Yup!"

Cyrus turned around again to face Lilith.

The young girl swung her arms back and forth and grinned impishly. "Nightmares have existed even longer than Dreamer! They survived from a time when humanity was in despair, ravaged and plagued forever and ever by fear and insanity. People could only imagine their own fears, so the Nightmares kept being born." Lilith grinned a little wider and walked two steps forward before disappearing before Cyrus's eyes. He blinked and then heard her voice ring out above him.

"But then something amazing happened. A young child tired of living in a time of fear fell asleep in reality and pledged to themself that they would never wake again. They materialized fully into the Dream World and became the first good dream. But that child wasn't just any old dream."

"The child was Dreamer," Cyrus whispered and looked up at Lilith, who floating upside down directly above him.

The cross-legged child grinned and continued, "Yes. The child was Dreamer, and their untainted imagination was so powerful that they could weave together dreams that lived off of their own imagination. Those dreams made by Dreamer are known as the Ancients, ones who were around that war between dreams and nightmares. Few are left though. Some ran out of Imagination, but most died from Loneliness. The only dreams left, or so that I know of, are The Dreams That Never Sleep and Aisling, though Aisling, sadly, appears to be on her last legs…" Lilith frowned, and it was suddenly clear to Cyrus that the child was capable of feeling sadness (Cyrus had originally been under the impression that she was incapable of it.)

"And the The Dreams That Never Sleep are living dreams that refuse to ever shut their eyes," she continued quickly, almost as if to evade Cyrus's curiosity, "There are nine of them now. There used to be ten."

"One fell asleep?"

"No. They died."

Cyrus could tell that Lilith was not willing to talk to him about her concern for Aisling, so he let the moment pass.

Lilith began to grin as she changed the subject entirely. "So you're a newborn, huh, Cy? May I call you Cy? What's your human like? Will they be here soon?"

Cyrus considered the questions as best he could, but then gave up on answering. "What do you mean? What human?" he asked in defeat.

"Whaddya mean 'what human?'? Isn't it obvious? The human that made you, dumbo!"

"I don't have one," Cyrus stated bluntly.

Lilith blinked. "Come again?"

"I don't have one," he explained, "I made myself."

Lilith stared at him for a second longer and then disappeared yet again. "So let me get this straight," she spoke as she walked around him from behind, "you're saying that instead of being made by a human, you just sort of popped up one moment and said 'Okay I think now's a good time to start existing!'? Pardon me, but… impossible much?"

Cyrus leaned in towards the little girl. "I am my human," he clarified.

"You've lost me," she said apathetically.

"Cyrus was originally human, Lilith." Aisling explained from behind them. "He turned himself into a dream."

Lilith looked at Cyrus blankly and then held out her hand. "Welcome to hell, Cyrus, it's nice to make your acquaintance."

"You too, huh?" he mumbled to himself. Aisling had also mentioned something about the life of a dreamgiver being the epitome of awful.

"Oh dear," Lilith murmured as she pulled away her hand. "At this rate we'll miss the paperman. Hustle up, you two, and get a move on!" Suddenly the young girl grabbed Cyrus by the hand and ran across the top of the hill.

"Where the heck are you taking me?!" Cyrus shouted.

"To the paperman! I'm assuming that if you think you're human then you can't keep up on your own!"

"Gee! Thanks! Now I'm stupid and slow!"

"Glad you agree!" Lilith smirked as they reached a cliff side that must've been a twenty miles away from the hill.

"I don't," Cyrus retorted, "Never heard of sarcasm? Why'd you leave Aisling behind?"

"She didn't leave me behind."

Cyrus turned around and found Aisling standing perfectly still behind him, as if she'd barely moved a muscle. "How…?"

"Humans tend to not move in our world if they run. That, or they move terribly slow. Lilith probably thought you'd need a hand. I personally think you could've managed on your own."

"Unlikely, Aisling," Lilith giggled, "Humans have too much perception for distance in Reality. He might've moved faster than he would in a half form, but I doubt he'd make it very far. Now the paperman should be here soon, so here are your tickets." Lilith tossed Cyrus and Aisling each a copper nut and revealed one of her own.

Within mere seconds, a giant open book with a plain white binding sped over to the cliff side and rested five inches above the ground with its pages facing the floor. A strange spindly man in a shabby old coat with two thin coattails stepped off of the book, revealing that his entire body was made of paper that seemed to molt off of him from various clumps and float away.

"Where to?" he said in broken voice, as if his whole body rustled when he spoke.

"The ivory castle, please," Lilith replied, "Boarding for three, two way!"

"Your tickets? You must pay for yourselves."

"Yeah yeah, no freebies! They have payment too, okay? Take it, you big crook." Lilith handed her nut to the man, and then motioned for Cyrus and Aisling to do the same.

"Boarding for three, to the ivory castle, two way," the paperman examined the nuts with his blank visage, "This should be sufficient. All aboard." The trio climbed onto the book slowly, and as soon as they sat down the book sped towards the ivory castle in the distance.

7: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 6: Lilith

The book came to a screeching halt as it came to the ivory castle, and Lilith barely stifled a giggle as Aisling's newborn friend flew forward and landed hard on the stone cold ebony hands.

"That was entirely unnecessary," she called out in an effort to hide her amusement.

"Unnecessary?!" the boy exclaimed, "How in the world did you manage to stay on?!"

"Easy", Lilith replied, "I wanted to stay on, so I did."

"I wanted to stay on too!"

"Then you should have willed yourself to," she said in a huff, "Now thank the paperman for the ride."

Cyrus glared at Lilith a little longer and then turned back to the shabby book conductor. "Thanks," he mumbled.

"Much obliged, myself," the man replied in his fluttering voice, "Having customers is such a rare pleasure."

"Maybe you should charge them with something else," Lilith spoke up as she hopped off the book, "Do you have any idea how hard it is to get those copper nuts off the trees? Not to mention that they're only in the clockwork forest."

"But I like copper nuts…" the paperman murmured; he seemed entirely emphatic with his current payment, and Lilith sighed since his attachment meant for sure that no change would be made.

"So why are we here?" Cyrus asked while he lifted himself to his feet.

"To see The Dreams that Never Sleep, obviously. Were you listening a few moments back or did the piece of jello you call a brain erase it?" Lilith grinned as the young boy blushed in embarrassment, but the impending argument was averted as Aisling glided past him; she had been entirely ignoring the two ever since the book had started flying. Her thoughts were preoccupied, and Lilith frowned in knowing that the answers Aisling sought to gain here were no more than fool's gold. The woman shoved the giant doors open, and walked in swiftly, entirely disregarding her two friends out in the open. Lilith and Cyrus glanced at each other for a mere moment, and then Lilith broke her eyes from his and began to follow Aisling.

"Well come on pokey!" she called back to him, "We don't have all eternity to waste!"

"I feel like I might've met you before…" Cyrus mumbled in an exasperated tone.

Lilith ignored the comment and grinned at Cyrus's awestruck as they entered the hall. Brilliant shades of every color glistened across the ceiling, twisting in and out of each other in stunning displays. Large silver stars broke the rainbow's brilliance and scattered it across the walls like specks of paint. The dome walls fell only halfway—decorative mahogany had been shaped into pedestals on which nine statues stood—circling the group and staring into their souls with unblinking eyes.

"Wow…" the newborn whispered, causing Lilith to giggle.

"You are a riot, Cy," she said once her laughter died down.

"What, am I not allowed to appreciate it without being teased?" he retorted, clearly offended by her giggles.

"Not at all. I'm simply enjoying the refreshing difference you are compared to most Dreams," Lilith smirked, "Your kind is rare. Hey do you normally wear your shirts like that?"

Cyrus glanced down at his bare right arm, and smiled. "Nah, though I guess it does sort of look like my handiwork. Actually, Arianna did this."

Lilith raised an eyebrow. "Arianna? Who's she?"

"Um…would it sound weird if I said that she was a Nightmare that harassed me and threatened to destroy my arm?"

"Highly," Lilith replied. "Nightmares don't harass Dreams, they kill them."

"She said she didn't want to because I used to be human," he shrugged. "Wanted to keep me as a pet instead…"

"I really don't wanna know. Anywho, why haven't you fixed your sleeve?"

"Uh…." Cyrus blushed a little and his eyes fell to the floor. "I don't know how to…"

Lilith giggled again as she grabbed the boy's bare arm. "You don't know how to do something this simple? That's a highly impressive level of stupid."

"Hey!"

"Alright, is ignorant better?" Lilith smiled and conjured the shirt sleeve back onto Cyrus's bare arm so that it was identical to the left sleeve.

"How…?"

"Living Dreams decide what they look like, to an extent. Only your human is capable of changing your age or gender, but clothing is easy-peasy to recreate. All you have to do is think it's there, contrariwise, if you think it's not, it isn't. Do you understand or should I say it slower?"

Cyrus scowled. "Hey, can you name a great word to describe you that starts with an A?"

"Amazing."

"I think 'annoying' works much better."

"You know I just did something nice for you, right?"

"And then acted like I have no brain because I can't do something I was never taught. Are we not getting the picture?"

"You're too sensitive."

"And you aren't worth bothering with," Cyrus smiled and walked past Lilith towards Aisling in such a manner that almost made the young girl wish she wasn't so good at putting her foot in her mouth.

A voice broke the air above them, and a low and slow sentence made its way to the ears of the trio.

"What… Do you… desire…?" Lilith looked up at the center statue and let out a soft groan. Its stone structure had leaned ever so slightly, and after several long moments its eyes faced down towards Aisling and Cyrus.

"This is why I like Aisling more than the rest of your lot," Lilith spoke up in the direction of statue, "All of you Ancients are just so goddamn slow, and I'm just too goddamn impatient." Lilith really did like Aisling more than the rest of the Ancients; she wouldn't dare mention the god complex right now in front of Aisling for fear of upsetting her.

"We need to know where Dreamer is," Aisling called out to the statue.

The stone figure's crumbling visage revealed nothing, but in a moment it spoke.

"Dreamer is… safe… Dreamer is where Dreamer has always been…" The statue tilted its head in a sickeningly gradual manner, and Lilith worried that they might spend the entire eternity here if these stone boneheads didn't pick up the pace.

"Then why have the Nightmares been released?" Aisling stepped forward as she confronted the statue, "Do not tell me you have not seen them, brother, for any dream coming from Deimos Ring would have to come through this world first. And we have seen the ancient Nightmares elsewhere!"

"There… have… been no… Nightmares… in this world…" the statue insisted.

"Bullshit!" Cyrus protested, "I lost a shirt sleeve and got harassed by one and you're going to claim that none have passed through?! It's a lie and you know it!"

"Silence!" the voice of another giant rang out behind them.

Lilith nearly jumped backwards, and Cyrus grabbed Aisling's hand out of what the young girl could only imagine was fright.

The statue in front of them moved back quickly—if quickly was the speed of a frightened sloth—and spoke one last time.

"You… are… mistaken… Our Ancient brethren… have… not left this land…" the giant paused for a minute or so to collect the thoughts in its dust filled brain, "You… should… go… sister Aisling, go… back to… your… dreams… and leave… this place… Leave us to… mourn… over our… fallen… brother, Sage."

"Have your minds rotted away over the passing eternities?" Aisling cried out in despair, "Our worlds are in danger! The nightmares are beginning to seep out!"

"Even… if… such lies… were… True… What… could you… do… to… stop it? Dreamer… has long… since… abandoned their… children, even… you, Aisling the… Changer."

"It doesn't seem like they're going to listen to you, Aisling," Cyrus said sympathetically as he looked at his fear filled companion.

"They need to!" she protested despondently, "Our very lives are at stake in this matter. Everyone's lives are at stake!"

"Maybe everyone else's lives are at stake, but theirs aren't." Lilith spoke up as she caught her chance to cut this meeting short, "They died long before we even noticed."

Cyrus and Aisling both turned to the young girl, confused by her words. "But they're still there," Cyrus refuted out of confusion.

The young girl considered this for a moment and spoke once more. "Well yes… they are there," Lilith gestured to the slow stones on their mahogany pedestals, "But they aren't 'there'," she continued as she gestured to her own crown.

"You should know it by now, Aisling, they aren't Dreams any longer; they're hollowed out shells now. They've forgotten what it means to imagine, gone blind from the dust collecting in their unused brains. No matter what you do, it can't save them; they've already got one foot hovering over their graves and the moment you wake them up, they'll jump right in. So you best not bother them any longer," the child sighed, "you know full well that the dead cannot help the living."

Lilith waited patient for her words to sink in, and then watched Cyrus turn back to Aisling. The woman didn't at all look like she was in good condition, it looked more tears would stream from her eyes at any given moment. She looked up at the young boy, and he smiled sheepishly in a failed attempt to cheer her up.

"We'll find someone who can tell us what's going on," he whispered gently, "we haven't reached the end of the line just yet."

Lilith smirked and headed back to the book, knowing full well that Cyrus could coax Aisling out of giving up. She nearly envied his ability to do that. The two fell back onto the binding and Lilith crawled over to the paperman while they were occupied.

"Hey, paperman," she whispered.

"What is it?" the man spoke in his raspy voice so loudly that Lilith nearly rushed to cover the ragged seam that passed for its mouth.

"Shhh! Whisper you dolt!"

"What is it?" he murmured, now confused as to why he had to be quiet.

"I'll give you five copper nuts if you change our course."

"But that's against the rules!"

"By whose rule?"

"Mine!"

"Five copper nuts, all for you if you break your rules."

"I'll do it for fifteen."

"I only have ten."

"Fine. Where to?"

"The cottage."

"But—"

"I'm giving you ten copper nuts, you aren't allowed to be a wuss, and you can fly away as soon as we're off."

"Very well. Pass me the payment."

"Only after you take us there."

The paperman grumbled and Lilith went back to sitting cross legged next to Aisling and Cyrus just as they reached the tail end of their conversation. Lilith was relieved in knowing the newborn Dream was too preoccupied to notice the sharp dip in the book as the dive down towards her friend's cottage; it meant for sure that Aisling wouldn't notice either in her current state.

As the book finally rested, Cyrus sat up and solemnly glanced at Lilith.

She stared blankly back, ruining the moment of despair for Cyrus entirely. "You make for an awfully good boy toy", she commented as she miraculously pulled out another bag of popcorn.

Lilith held back a smirk as Cyrus's irritation with the young girl was resurrected again. "We are not your personal sitcom!" he bellowed in annoyance.

Lilith shrugged. "Quite likely, you're much too entertaining for that."

Lilith hopped off the book and paid the paperman as soon as Cyrus became distracted by the place they'd landed; in the forest of silky white willows, and in front of a very strange willow tree in particular, for nestled in its roots was a tiny little cottage, its little wood and brick walls squashed ever so unpleasantly under the White willow's weight.

"This… is… not where we woke up," Cyrus concluded to himself aloud.

Lilith looked at him, her mind brimming with facetious comments just waiting to be unleashed, but stopped herself and turned away. "I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

"Where are we?" he clarified from behind her.

"Well isn't it obvious?" she turned around jokingly, "We're 'not where you woke up'." Lilith turned her attention past Cyrus to where Aisling lay sulking, "Aisling, stop moping already! I need you in the world of the living right now!"

Cyrus turned back to the woman as well. "Aisling, come on! The world's not over quite yet, right?" he called out in an attempt to comfort her.

"I know someone you can ask," Lilith offered, knowing full well that Aisling would bite.

Aisling's frame seemed to stiffen, and she gracefully pulled her back away from the White binding and stared past Cyrus to Lilith. "Who is it?" she asked.

"Someone who knows you…" Lilith spoke carefully, "another Ancient like you."

"You said that there were only ten Ancient Dreams left," Cyrus said suspiciously as he turned back to Lilith.

"Ancient Dreams? Well yes, there are only ten of those left," she lied, "But this someone isn't a Dream." The fox child paused and glanced cautiously towards the unpleasant cottage before speaking again, "It's a Nightmare."

8: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 7: Aisling

The tree stood ominously before Aisling, as the Whisper of the fearful sort became clearer to her ears. The atmosphere in this world was as dead as its masters—if not for the cottage the lonely sounding Whisper might've swallowed the world whole. It was a clumsy sort of architecture, Aisling gathered the assumption that Lilith must've been in a hurry when she'd made it.

"So there's a Nightmare in there," Aisling whispered to herself. She fell gracefully down from the White book and began to walk towards the cottage when suddenly two pairs of hands restrained her.

"Whoa, girl," Cyrus spoke on her left, "We want to befriend this one, because if I'm not mistaken Lilith is already friends with it."

"Hm?" Lilith spoke to her right, "Odd, I wouldn't have expected such a bright conclusion on your part, Cy. What gave you that impression?"

"Well, did you not build a house for it? Why in the world would anyone build a house for their enemy?" Cyrus turned his attention back to Aisling. "This isn't the Sphinx we're dealing with Aisling, you aren't allowed to kill it!"

Aisling relaxed where she stood and turned back to her two friends. "What gave you the impression that I intended to kill it?" she asked faintly.

"Your battle face is unmistakable," Cyrus and Lilith spoke simultaneously.

"I wasn't aware that I was so notorious," Aisling said, making no attempt at hiding her irritation with the two, "And I wasn't going to kill it, only interrogate it."

"Even worse!" Lilith protested, "Look, I promised Poltergeist that you wouldn't hurt him, and that means that your questions are asked nicely and without any force!"

Aisling paused, and just before she could speak again, Cyrus spoke up. "His name is Poltergeist?" the young man asked in a curious tone.

"Got a problem with it?" Lilith asked bluntly.

"Nope."

"Good."

Aisling had since tired of the small talk and started towards the cottage once more, only to be stopped by Lilith in mid step.

"Now hold it, Aisling," Lilith said in exasperation, "We're going to lead this parade in the manner most comfortable to my buddy. So," Lilith clapped her hands together, "I'll go in first, then Cy-Cy McNoobster can go," Lilith gestured to Cyrus at this point, causing him to look at her incredulously, "and then you can come in. So, single file line behind me. That means you, Cy."

Cyrus looked at Aisling and raised his eyebrows, nonetheless he nonchalantly followed close behind the fox tailed child. "Well, come on then, Aisling!" he called back to her, "You're the one that needs to ask the questions."

Aisling shrugged off her irritation with the two and followed, thought she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable while approaching a Nightmare in such a defenseless manner. Her feet cautiously drifted across the soft black ground, and slowly but surely she made it into the cottage behind Cyrus and Lilith.

9: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 8: Poltergeist

Poltergeist didn't look like a Nightmare—at least, Poltergeist didn't think so. He looked transparent and wispy, like humans, and barely visible below his knees. The entirety of his body was a ghostly white, and that alone seemed to scare humans away. But if that wasn't enough, his Whisper sounded isolated and alone, it sent chills down a person's spine as they imagined losing everything they loved. He didn't really know how to control that last bit just yet.

He sat there alone, his Breath causing a subtle wind in a room with no windows, when at last the door opened and revealed two Whispers, one new and one old.

"Lilith?" his voice echoed out upon itself. "W-Who are you with?" Poltergeist backed away into a corner of the room—he was honestly more afraid of other people than they were of him.

"Oh don't be such a scaredy-cat, Mr. Geist!" Lilith appeared around a foot in front of him, lit up only by the ghostly light that he spread through the room.

"W-who is it?" he stuttered.

Lilith sighed and then smiled. "This is Cyrus," she explained quietly, "he's a friend. Now be nice and introduce yourself." Lilith had a particularly subtle way of forcing the man to do as she told him: her red eyes would drill vicious little holes into his and one corner of her mouth would curl just a tiny bit above the other to give him a good view of her sharpened left canine, almost as if to tell him that she'd dig that fang into his throat if he didn't behave.

Poltergeist looked up towards the shadowy figure in terror, well aware that refusing Lilith would be much more painful. "I-I'm P-Poltergeist. N-Nice to meet you…" Poltergeist cowered behind Lilith, who was his only friend and faithful wall of defense (though he feared ever admitting that impression for the sake of his own hide).

The shadowy shape stood still for a split moment, then it contorted and a cackle bounced across the walls into Poltergeist's horrified ears.

"H-He's a monster! He's g-gonna eat us! W-We need to r-run away!" Poltergeist yanked at Lilith's sleeve in an attempt to move his short friend, but sadly her will was much stronger than his, and she stood still in front of her monstrous new friend.

Moreover, she was ready with criticism towards his wimpy actions. "Grow a pair, Geist!" Lilith scolded, "You know he's only laughing because you are a very unexpected being, seeing as Nightmares should even intimidate Dreams, not just humans."

"A rare beast indeed!" the figure choked out, "The only reason I can tell he isn't human is 'cause of the music!"

"M-Music?" Poltergeist found this term curious. Was he referring to something in particular?

"Hey McNoobster, hasn't Aisling taught you anything?" Lilith asked critically, "That 'music', as you call it, is his Whisper, and possibly the only scary thing about him."

"D-Did you just say A-Aisling? Was that y-your Dream friend?" Poltergeist looked to Lilith in dreadful anticipation until she turned around and looked at him with her apathetic red eyes.

"Well… yes she was… why, Geist? Is that important somehow?"

Poltergeist backed further into the wall in a frantic manner. "W-W-What?! She h-hates Nightmares! I'll be k-killed!" Poltergeist attempted to will an escape route into existence, but Lilith caught him before he could.

"Calm down! She promised she wouldn't harm you, so you have nothing to worry about," Lilith said in exasperation.

Suddenly the door opened, revealing the third most sinister Whisper; while it seemed calm and composed to his ears, Poltergeist knew that if the Whisper belonged to Aisling, then nothing good could come of it. He shivered in anticipation of the horrid death that would befall him, when his eyes finally came to meet Aisling's. She lit the room with an orb of light in her hand, warm light that spread across her pale grey skin and set a glow to her White dress, and outlined the bright golden irises as dark melancholy pools swimming into the depths of the lady's body.

Poltergeist was surprised, though terrified of the woman standing before him, he could not see any contempt for him in her eyes; he had anticipated more hatred in her captivating eyes—instead he sensed concern. She started for him quickly, and backed into the wall until he had nearly willed himself to flatten against it.

"What were you thinking Lilith?" the woman spoke faintly, "why didn't you fix this?" her darkened grey fingers grabbed Poltergeist's chin and forced him to look at her. "You've grown a bit," she spoke softly, as if curious about him much more than she should have been.

"Um, Aisling, what are you doing?" the boy named Cyrus spoke, making no attempt to hide his surprise towards the lady's actions.

"I would have never seen you as a two-timer," Lilith joked. Poltergeist felt his mind pounding in his wispy head when he considered Lilith's perceptions, but such feelings came to rest when Aisling finally turned to the young girl and promptly scolded her.

"I haven't the time for such ridiculous notions," she said sternly, "are you blind, Lilith?"

"Well, unless there's a magical unicorn pegasus by the name of Bobina standing next to you right now then no, I guess not," the fox child said facetiously.

"You made no mistakes in concealing him in the shadows, Lilith," Aisling scolded, "but you failed entirely in fixing his complexion." At that moment the lady grabbed him by one wrist and willed him across the room to a solid flat spot in the floor.

"Well no wonder I didn't think of that!" Lilith protested, "After all, who in the world is going to care—"

"Try looking for him in a crowd of humans and then tell me that this is okay," Aisling interrupted swiftly. A woven throw rug grew out of the barren tiles below Poltergeist's feet, and Aisling willed him to sit across from her on the soft mat. A golden mirror appeared to his right, and to his left a shimmering pedestal grew to meet the light in Aisling's hand. She finally looked up at Poltergeist, forcing him to hide his head behind his legs before she could trap him in the labyrinth of her eyes.

"D-Don't hurt me p-please…" he shivered, "I p-promise I've n-never hurt any humans, I p-promise…"

"I know that," the lady spoke faintly to him, "could you give me your hand please? I promise I won't hurt you."

Poltergeist absentmindedly lifted his head to look at Aisling, and at once he found himself ensnared in her eyes and giving his hand willingly into hers. She caught his silvery white hand swiftly; in an instant he felt shivers crawl across his arm as her soft grey fingers studied the skin of his palm. He watched as Aisling's golden eyes flitted about to capture every detail on his palm, unable to tear his eyes away from her portrait.

"How did you manage to escape the guards of Deimos Ring?" she asked suddenly, still distracted by the details of Poltergeist's being.

"I d-don't know…" he answered meekly as the memory of his escape left him.

"Not even the slightest memory?"

"N-No…" Poltergeist shrunk away from Aisling out of fear and embarrassment. "S-Sorry…"

"It's alright, it's good that you're still okay. When I heard all the Nightmares were attacked I was a bit worried." The woman looked up at Poltergeist and smiled gently. "Am I to assume that you don't remember me?"

Poltergeist stared at Aisling in confusion. "You're A-Aisling of the Ancients…t-the one w-who f-fought against the N-Nightmares…r-right?" He was confused by this woman—she didn't appear as the terrible monster other Nightmares had made her out to be. The lady stared at Poltergeist and he could see it—the grief welling up in her eyes was not befitting of a monster.

"I suppose…that we left you alone too long, little brother," she spoke softly.

"B-B-Brother?" Poltergeist repeated in a bewildered tone.

"I feel like I missed something somewhere," Cyrus spoke up.

"I feel like I've been thrown into the fifteenth episode of a bad television soap opera," Lilith commented bluntly, "But hey, maybe this finale will be vastly explained in the next five minutes."

Poltergeist looked over to Lilith, now even more bewildered than before. "S-Soap opera?" he repeated curiously.

"Everyone quiet please," Aisling spoke as she finally completed the study of Poltergeist's present physique. She gently straightened out his arm and ran a single index finger across it. As the lady's finger ran across the apparition's wispy skin it grew to be several shades darker until it became a darkened grey tone. Aisling appeared pleased with the change and continued on by making his hair black, and shifting his fuzzy eyes to match the color of her clear golden irises. At last she altered the robe that swallowed Poltergeist's torso and thighs until it shown in a bright blood red. Aisling smiled at her handiwork and lifted Poltergeist to his feet. And he immediately noticed that his legs were still nearly invisible below the knees.

"It is wonderful to see you in good health, brother," Aisling smiled as she let go of Poltergeist's hand.

"Okay, hate to be nosy here," Lilith spoke up from behind, "but why in the heck are you calling him 'brother'?"

"Yeah, I'm with squirt on this one, what are you failing to tell us?" Cyrus added.

Poltergeist was confused as well—how could a Nightmare and a Dream be siblings?

"He is Dreamer's child," Aisling spoke faintly as she continued to gaze into Poltergeist's eyes, "Dreamer's only fear. The last Ancient Nightmare to ever be born."

Poltergeist's eyes flitted between the Dreams before him. Lilith appeared to be entirely aware of this, considering the minute smirk growing on her lips; however Cyrus seemed surprised and concerned, but moreover his attention turned back to Aisling and above all else she seemed thoroughly unaware of his newfound shock. No one else (except possibly Lilith, who seemed to be enjoying herself) had handled this passing moment well, and Poltergeist himself felt the most uncomfortable, or so he thought. He stressed himself out in denial and backed away from the beauty before him that was now, much to his disappointment, his sister. His eyes flitted back and forth between Lilith and Cyrus, and they both caught his frantic message—Do something!

Lilith stepped forward, composed in demeanor, though in her eyes her emotions were gleaming with an extreme giddy passion. She cleared her throat and looked up at Aisling in a semi-sophisticated manner. "Come again?" she spoke in a calm and questioning tone, but Poltergeist could've sworn he heard a giggle.

"What do I need to clarify?" Aisling asked in confusion.

"Alright kiddo, let me take over", Cyrus swung his arm around Lilith's shoulder and pulled the shorter child away from Aisling.

"Oy!" she protested, "who gave you permission to touch me?"

"If you get too feisty, I think we'll have more problems than just the world ending on our hands," he said playfully, "Besides squirt, there's an art in speaking to Aisling that you quite clearly haven't mastered yet."

"I never gave you permission to call me squirt!" Lilith shouted as she quirmed, "Or kiddo!"

"And I never gave you permission to call me Cy Cy McNoobster, so I guess we're even," Cyrus turned his attention to Aisling as the little girl continued to squirm in his grasp, "To clarify, Aisling," he spoke clearly, "He's you're brother?" Cyrus gestured to Poltergeist with his open hand

"Well, yes, I believe I did say that already…" Aisling stated in faint confusion.

"And how long has this been true?" Cyrus inquired.

"Since the moment he was born," Aisling said sternly, making no attempt to hide her irritation.

"I must be dreaming right now," the boy muttered under his breath.

"McNoobster, you're a Dream," Lilith stated bluntly, "There's never a time when you aren't dreaming."

"Right, thank you for reminding me…" Cyrus muttered in a distracted manner as he looked past Aisling back to Poltergeist himself, "So Poltergeist!"

Poltergeist jolted nervously and fidgeted as he turned toward Cyrus, "Y-Yes?" he stuttered.

"Is this the first time you heard of this?" He asked. Poltergeist sensed a hint of gentleness amongst the boy's voice and in turn stopped fidgeting out of stress.

"Y-Yes…" he answered quietly, "it is…"

"Well, that makes three of us," Cyrus stated as clearly counted the fox child struggling against his headlock, "One of the joys of being Aisling's friend is never knowing what she's saying and never being able to expect what she'll say."

"I hear ya," Lilith muttered.

"You two are aware that I'm still standing here, right?" Aisling spoke in a soft irritated tone.

Poltergeist was more confused than he had been a few moments ago. "W-What do y-you mean?" he asked out of curiosity.

"Aisling has a bad habit of never explaining anything," Cyrus stated.

"I'm still in the room," Aisling reminded them again out of irritation.

"Though I guess this isn't really an explaining issue, more of a failure to understand the bombshell effect," Cyrus stated thoughtfully.

"W-What?" Poltergeist stuttered.

"Just forget it," Cyrus brushed off the issue with his open arm, "let's all just forget about that issue for now. For the rest of this dream you're the strange wimpy Nightmare that befriended Lilith, and me and Aisling have only just met you, 'kay?"

"But—" Aisling began to protest before Cyrus raised a hand to silence her.

"No buts! I've learned dealing with people like you from a professional baby sitter and a kid sister, so I'm asking the questions now, because the lot of you are too socially awkward to do it yourselves," Cyrus complained.

"I hate having to admit how right he is," Lilith stated.

"Socially a-awkward?" Poltergeist repeated in confusion.

"Alright, first," Cyrus continued without hesitation, "Geist dude, are you positively sure that you remember absolutely nothing about escaping Deimos Ring?"

"Uh… u-um…" Poltergeist went back to fidgeting as he tried to remember his escape, and suddenly it came back to him, that gentle voice he'd forgotten came back. "A serpent saved m-me…" he spoke quietly.

"A serpent?" Cyrus inquired.

"Y-Yes. It drove away a g-guard that was attacking m-me and told me I was f-free to press forward…"

"It spoke?"

"Y-Yes. It s-said—"

"He's alive."

Poltergeist turned to see Aisling staring at him, and he could see hints of joy around the rims of her eyes, her lips turned ever so slightly in a genuine smile.

"Okay…" Cyrus said slowly, "Who's alive?"

. Aisling ran from the room, entirely ignoring Cyrus's question and leaving only a light, a mirror and a throw rug behind.

"Aisling, where are you going?" Cyrus called after her, "Wait up!" The boy released Lilith from his arm and followed the woman out the door.

"W-Who's alive?" Poltergeist finally asked in confusion.

"That's our cue, Poltergeist."

"W-What?"

"We need to follow them!" Lilith spoke in rush, "Now get a move on!" Suddenly the fox child had clasped her hand tight around Poltergeist's wrist and sprinted out the door.

"L-Lilith, what are you d-doing?!" Poltergeist screeched, "Y-You said I'm s-supposed to stay in the c-cottage!"

"No!" she spoke sternly as she sped between the trees, "I told you, they were going to fix our problems, and they can't do that if we stay here!"

"I d-don't want to l-leave!"

"Too bad!" Lilith retorted, "We're going with! And don't be surprised if I strangle you upon landing, I'll need someone to blame!"

"What?!"

"Oh forget it, you'll find out later!"

"L-Lilith!" Poltergeist shouted frantically at the top of her lungs, "Let me go!"

"Look, there they are!"

Poltergeist looked past his young friend to see Aisling and Cyrus just starting to fall asleep. As their forms began to fall into the Abyss below, Poltergeist hoped they wouldn't make it in time, but Lilith pounced onto Cyrus's ankle just before , and within moments they found themselves wide awake in the vacuum of the Abyss.

10: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 9: Cyrus

Cyrus hadn't much understanding of why Aisling ran off abruptly, he simply knew that if she got too far off he'd lose her, and then they might both be in trouble. He was nearly out of breath from running after her when he finally caught up to her on the path of blackened soil.

"Aisling!"

Aisling turned back to see Cyrus running up to her. "Why are you panting?" she asked faintly.

"You run fast…" Cyrus choked out in his exhaustion, "What was that all about?"

"My brother… he's alive!" she smiled and hugged Cyrus, "I'm so happy!" she released Cyrus from her arms and he gave her a bewildered look.

"You're acting really strange, are you feeling alright?" he asked, and within a split second the smile on her face disappeared to reveal her normal solemn expression, and a rather alarming look of secrecy in her deep golden eyes.

"I'm fine," she said, "Can we leave now?"

"If you say so…" Cyrus slumped down on the ground and held his hand out to her, "I don't really care where we fall asleep, do you?"

Cyrus felt that Aisling's secrets were more or less a matter he shouldn't pry about until she wanted to tell him, and it seemed clear that his concern was less than welcome. Aisling hesitated at his hand for a moment, then lowered herself down to the ground beside him as if she didn't want him to recognize her worry. Cyrus let it go, and as he lay on the soft soil with his eyes closed, he felt his senses fade one by one until he felt a hand yank him by the ankle and jolt him wide awake again.

His eyes sprung open and shot down to see a familiar fox child and ghost man clinging to his legs for dear life. "Lilith?!" he addressed the small child in surprise. He turned to the ghost man. "P-Poltergeist?!" he stuttered out of bewilderment, "What are you guys doing here?"

"What do you think I'm doing here?!" Lilith yelled out scornfully, "Poltergeist went AWOL and dragged me out with him! Now if you'll excuse me, I have some praying to the almighty Lordie in sandals to do!" With this, Lilith pressed her head against his leg and began muttering frantically, "Find a happy place find a happy place the world is made of lollipops and gumdrops you'll be alright Lilith baby you'll be alright…"

Cyrus felt the Abyss' resistance all around him; the force pushed in on him from all sides and the cacophonous wind rushed past his ears. He squeezed Aisling's hand firmly as he looked down at Poltergeist, who was pretty much scared beyond shitlessness from what Cyrus could tell.

"W-What is the p-purpose of these s-s-strange items on y-your feet?! I-I'm slipping!" he squealed.

Cyrus struggled his free hand down to Poltergeist. "Grab hold!" he shouted to the ghost like figure. Poltergeist struggled to reach Cyrus's hand, but it wasn't working.

"I c-can't!" he cried out.

"Geist, you're an idiot!" Lilith cried out, "You're all idiots! I hate you all!"

"What in the world are you three doing?"

Cyrus looked up towards Aisling. She seemed perfectly calm, her eyes closed and her body untouched by the vacuum of the Abyss. "Aisling?" he called.

"Close your eyes, all of you! And relax! You're making it hard for me to find where we're going, Cyrus!"

"What?" the young boy inquired.

"Just close your eyes, Cyrus!"

"But—"

"Just do as I say and close them!"

Cyrus didn't think it would work, but he did as she said, and once his eyes were closed, the vacuum stopped. He relaxed a little but something still felt off. He thought Aisling's presence would have disappeared after he closed his eyes; however he was still very much aware of her presence as they floated along. He was curious about that, and suspicious, for she had no reason within his knowledge to remain there.

"We're here."

Cyrus opened his eyes to see a deep blue twilight sky detailed with thin clouds. They were in a canoe now; Cyrus could feel the waves rocking them back and forth as he sat up. Small lanterns littered the waters with candlelight around their tiny boat, and occasionally a serpent would break the calm waters in the distance before re-submerging themselves in the endless ocean.

"What is this place?" Cyrus mumbled to himself, only to find himself tackled from the side in mid thought. "Ow! Who…?" Cyrus looked up from the floor of the boat and saw Lilith grinning childishly above him.

"You're my new best friend!" she exclaimed merrily.

"What?" Cyrus inquired.

Lilith wagged her little fox tail. "You saved me!" she said.

Cyrus furrowed his brow in confusion at the girl's merriment since she hadn't been too nice previously. "Saved you? From what?"

"The Abyss, silly, don't be so modest." Lilith giggled, and then abruptly turned to Poltergeist. The two held eye contact for a few seconds and then Poltergeist scrambled to the edge of the boat as Lilith pounced off of Cyrus towards him.

"You idiot!" Lilith bellowed as she caught Poltergeist and began to strangle him.

"Whoa, Lilith!" Cyrus said as he removed the young girl from her ghost like friend, "You might tip the boat with all your rage!"

"You were supposed to stay in the cottage, imbecile!" she shrieked at Poltergeist.

"W-What?!" Poltergeist stuttered.

"You were supposed to stay there! Did you forget, numbskull? You're a nightmare!" Lilith roared, "If any human sees you, they'll go insane with fear! You're only a hindrance if you tag along!"

Poltergeist's wispy eyes widened with sorrow as Lilith's harsh words hit his ears. His head hung low, and his wispy frame trembled. Cyrus frowned and flicked the fox eared child in the forehead.

"Ow!" Lilith whined, "Why in the luminous raptor head would you do that McNoobster?"

"I'll ignore that elaborate curse replacement…" Cyrus muttered, "You went too far, Lilith."

"What's that supposed to mean?" the child asked bluntly.

Cyrus looked over towards Poltergeist. He didn't need to make eye contact with the ghost man to know he was hurt. "Look at him and tell me that he likes being called a hindrance," Cyrus scolded her as he gestured to Poltergeist.

"I-I was only telling the truth…" Lilith muttered in reluctant recognition.

"Apologize," Cyrus demanded.

"S-Sorry…" Lilith mumbled.

"A sincere apology, please."

"That was sincere!"

"Bullshit," the young boy spat, "You're only apologizing because I told you to, not because you think you're wrong."

"Well, maybe the reason I don't think I'm wrong is because I'm not wrong!" Lilith shouted.

"You hurt his feelings," Cyrus retorted, "You're wrong."

"No, she isn't, Cyrus. He is a hindrance."

The young boy turned to Aisling in disbelief. "Oh, so now you're siding with her? Isn't he your brother?"

Aisling turned slightly from where she stood at the head of the boat. He could sense a slight flare of anger in her eyes. "Poltergeist is still my brother, but nonetheless, he is still a nightmare," she stated.

"Really?" Cyrus replied, "But that's not what you're angry about, Aisling, is it?"

The woman turned to him in surprise. She was easy to read. "What were you doing in my mind?" Cyrus spoke in a soft threatening tone.

She turned away from him in an attempt to hide her guilt. "That's not important," she spoke faintly.

"Don't give me that crap, Aisling," Cyrus continued, "My mind is my property, you had no business there."

"She's just using your mind to navigate, I guess," Lilith commented as she squirmed out of Cyrus's grasp.

"What?" Cyrus replied in confusion while he stared daggers into Aisling's back.

Aisling sighed heavily. "I wasn't there without reason, Cyrus. I needed to borrow your mind because I am no longer capable of finding places on my own," she murmured as she turned to him.

"I don't know what you're even talking about," he stated.

"Aisling, why haven't you explained anything to your boy toy?" she moaned and Cyrus glared at her, "Your ability to jump to specific worlds. You control it by thinking of them, but if Aisling hijacks your mind temporarily, she can pilot your body and hers to wherever she'd like to go. You don't know where anything is in the Dreamscape, so I doubt it would be of any use to you anyway. But she no longer has any ability to navigate because that's one of the first things a living dream loses to Loneliness."

Cyrus turned his attention back to Aisling. He sighed, "You could've asked you know." Cyrus slumped down onto a bench in the canoe. Aisling looked back at Cyrus tentatively.

"If you only needed to find where we were going I wouldn't be half as sour. But my brain is my private property; I'd prefer that you get permission. Now then, mind telling me why we're here?" Cyrus asked as he yanked Lilith down in front of him and pulled her into a bear hug.

"Lilith may not need air but Lilith still likes air," she choked out in surprise, "In fact, why in the world are you hugging me anyway?"

"Because you're huggable," he replied.

She stared at him blankly for a moment and then looked at Aisling. "Did you drug him before you two fell asleep?" she inquired with a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

"No, he's always like this," the woman answered her.

"My, what a lively group you have with you, Sister."

The entire group turned their attention to the lantern lit space of water from which the voice had emerged. The calm surface ruptured and a giant humanoid body rose from the ocean before them. Well, humanoid was a loose term, Cyrus thought. The beast's body was in the shape of a human's, but its skin was black as pitch, white silky hair sprung from its head in an effeminate manner and fell smoothly down on its muscular shoulders. A large ram horn protruded from the left side of its head, and three amber eyes sat in asymmetrical positions and sizes on its flat face, swiveling around in separate directions. As it rose, many eyes of various sizes, shapes and colors opened across the surface of its body and they too swiveled in all different directions. It looked thoroughly grotesque in Cyrus's mind.

"It's not nice to stare, little Newborn," the beast spoke again.

Cyrus looked up at the thing's face again and noticed that the three amber eyes were now fixed on the boat. Cyrus hugged the young girl in his arms tighter—he wasn't so fond of creepy eye covered beasts.

"Cyrus, I like air, can I have air?" Lilith rasped as he squeezed her tighter.

Cyrus loosened his grip a bit, but he was starting to work up a good tremble. "What is that thing?" he whispered to her in a distracted manner.

"I know I'm not the prettiest dream in the Dreamscape, but don't you think 'thing' is a little harsh?" the beast answered for Lilith, "I am the All-Seeing Eyes, little man, I see everything there is to see in The World of Dreams, and I've been paying close attention to you four for quite some time. A bunch of little troublemakers, you've been lately."

"It's nice to see that you're alive, brother," Aisling called out to the beast with a smile.

"How could she possibly be related to that guy?" Cyrus muttered in disbelief.

"There's no such thing as blood relation in the Dreamscape, Cy," Lilith reminded him, "family relation is based off of who made you."

"Cyrus the newborn and Lilith the fox child… whoever decided to keep the both of you in close company ought to kick themselves repeatedly. And of course I'm still alive, sister. I'm not so bone headed as those decaying little statues down in their ivory castle; they thought they were so superior because they didn't need a million eyes to keep from sleeping, allow me to show them who's so superior now, while they're all puny husks and I'm just—Oh fiddlesticks!" the beast turned its head away from the group's boat and back towards its hands. It seemed to be studying the lump of clay it was holding in its right hand. "It would seem that I smashed the head of my newest creation. I guess I ought to keep my temper."

"Why not graduate from that archaic method anyhow?" Aisling spoke jokingly.

"Making dreams is an art," the creature scoffed, "It ought to be respected and done as one."

"I came to ask something of you," Aisling called out.

"I know that, sister. I've seen so already," the beast replied haughtily.

"He's a tiny bit cocky, isn't he?" Cyrus whispered to Lilith with a smirk.

"Well he's the Dreamscape's personal peeping tom," Lilith whispered into his ear, "Think about it, if you saw all, and knew all, wouldn't you have a bit of a god complex under your belt?"

Cyrus considered this, "I guess so."

"If Dreamer had had the consideration to give me a mouth and eyebrows, I would be glaring at the two of you right now," the creature spoke with a hint of exasperation in its voice.

"Will you two please be quiet?" Aisling added in irritation, "You're both being terribly disrespectful."

"Ignore them, sister, I doubt they would stop anyhow. Ask your questions, lest our time here be cut short."

"I need to know where Dreamer is."

"That is a demand, and furthermore a request I simply cannot fulfill. You ought to ask a different question." The beast replied.

"What a helpful All-Seeing being," Cyrus commented dryly.

"Please, brother!" Aisling persisted, "we need to know!"

"It is the only question of yours that I cannot answer; please, my knowledge is great and your questions are many. Ask something else."

"Do you know what I should do, brother?" Aisling inquired faintly.

"You need to travel to the Centre of the Dreamscape," the creature tilted its head back towards the group's boat, "I can tell you the way, but first…" it leaned slightly over them. "Could you please introduce our little brother to me? It seems my sudden appearance has led him to use your friend Cyrus as a wall…"

Cyrus turned to look behind him in surprise. Poltergeist had indeed latched on to the back of his shirt and was trembling profusely. Cyrus had barely noticed the movements of the ghost man when The All-Seeing Eyes had appeared. "Spineless as usual," the boy commented.

"How many times must I tell you to grow a pair before you stop using the closest convenient object or person as a shield?" Lilith scolded.

"Y-You knew?" Poltergeist stuttered in surprise.

"You attempted to hide behind a tree seedling when we first met," she noted apathetically.

"Hey Aisling!" Cyrus called to the woman, "could you widen up the boat for me please? Around three people wide would be nice."

Aisling turned back to Cyrus solemnly and lifted a single finger into the air. As she did the boat widened enough to fit five people in the middle. "Is that sufficient?" she spoke faintly.

"Perfect! Now then…" Cyrus made eye contact with Lilith. It seemed that she knew what she needed to do. The young girl disappeared from his lap and less than a second afterwards he heard Poltergeist yelp.

"Arm lock!" the fox child grinned. On Cyrus's queue, she had reached under Poltergeist's arms and held his shoulders firmly between her torso and fore-arms.

"L-Lilith? What are you d-doing?!" the ghost man stuttered out in terror.

"Oh what a delectable revenge," she giggled maniacally, "it gives off the flavor of chocolate chip cookies…"

Cyrus stood up and grinned at the child. "Alright then… where should I grab his legs?"

"Since it's you, I'd say the knees," Lilith replied.

"You ought to be more careful with the boy…" The All-Seeing Eyes commented in concern.

"Why in the world are you handling him like that?" Aisling inquired.

"Look, I know we haven't known him for very long," Cyrus sighed as he grabbed Poltergeist by the knees, "but the guy reads like an open book! Do you really think he'll come out of hiding because the giant eye-covered beastie asked him to?"

"N-No!" Poltergeist squirmed as he realized what they were doing, "He'll k-kill me! H-He'll drown me i-in the ocean and e-eat my s-soggy remains! Let me go!"

"Oh come on, Geist dude!" Cyrus frowned at the ghost man, "He's your big brother! Sure, he's sorta creepy, but he's still family! Why not say hi?"

"Maybe you should let him walk on his own," Aisling stated in irritation as she met Cyrus and Lilith in the middle of the boat. She took Poltergeist by the hand and glared her two other companions until they let go. Cyrus smirked. He guessed that Aisling herself hadn't noticed, but from the first moment she had met Poltergeist, he'd had affection for her that clearly wasn't sibling affection. So of course, even though he trembled more when she touched him, the ghost man let Aisling lead him to the front of the boat.

"This is Poltergeist, our little brother," Aisling smiled gently at The All-Seeing Eyes as she reached the front of the boat with the ghost man.

"Hmm… he seems attached to you, sister," the creature was sharper than his absolutely clueless sibling, that was for sure. "Hello, little brother. May I assume that you do not remember me?"

"I r-recognize your v-voice…" Poltergeist trembled.

"Well that's a start of sorts. I suppose it would be rude of me to request a 'Thank you' for earlier…" The beast crouched down so that his face was at water level. "The changes Aisling made to you look nice, you looked so dull back at Deimos Ring…"

"Ah, that's r-right!" the ghost man stuttered, "the

s-serpent that saved m-me! He had the same v-voice…" Poltergeist finished meekly and hid behind Aisling.

The All-Seeing Eyes chuckled. "Yes, that serpent was one of my incarnations… I may not be able to make living Dreams, but since I can't fall asleep, the dreams I create never die… they usually stay here though. It's so hard to control them outside this dream."

"I had another request for you, brother," Aisling called out, "It seems our little brother wants to accompany me and Cyrus."

"See? I told you, he's attached to you," the beast chuckled, "Do not fret; I have something that may disguise his whisper…" The All-Seeing Eyes slowly reached a hand down beside the boat. Cyrus moved to the front of the boat and and peered over the edge of the boat in a failed attempt to see what the beast was holding. "It's not for you, Cyrus," the creature spoke apathetically.

"I'm only curious…" the boy blushed and took a step back.

"Oooo, pretty!" Lilith's head popped out over the rim of The All-Seeing Eyes' hand, "This is absolutely gorgeous! Ack!" the young girl jolted. "It moves," she squeaked.

"It's not for you either, Lilith," the creature groaned, "You ought to give it to Poltergeist."

"Sorry, I don't like to touch living inanimate objects," Lilith refuted, "Absolute yttchiness, if you ask me. No thank you."

The creature looked down at the fox child with its three asymmetrical amber eyes. "Give it to him. Now."

"No. Dun wanna."

The All-Seeing Eyes paused for a moment, and then it closed the three amber eyes on its face. Across its surface, Cyrus saw two other eyes open, and as they did, Lilith screamed.

"Eyeball! Eyeball under my feet oh dear Lordie in galoshes save me! Cyrus!"

Cyrus tilted his head at the curious display above and suddenly the fox child was clinging to him with all fours and breathing heavily. "Lilith?" he addressed her with a smirk.

"I hate eyeballs," she whined.

Aisling turned to the two behind her and smiled. "He sure is convincing," she chuckled.

"H-He opened an eyeball r-right under your f-feet?" Poltergeist trembled, Cyrus could only assume that he didn't take kindly to the idea either. Aisling walked towards the trembling young girl and removed a pendant from her little clenched fists.

"You're right, Lilith it is quite beautiful…" the woman murmured. Cyrus squinted to see the little thing. It was a gold embezzled pendant with a ruby gem in the middle and a long golden chain; it was pretty… pretty expensive looking.

"If I sold that in reality I could be rich…" Cyrus breathed.

Aisling glowered at him and let the pendant fall from her hands. The pendant jolted, and swerved around until it met Poltergeist's wrist and and wrapped itself around his wispy skin. At that moment, Cyrus heard the change: the eerie music that usually surrounded the ghost man had been replaced with a softer, sweeter sound.

"W-What is t-this?" Poltergeist breathed.

"It's an incarnation of mine," The All-Seeing Eyes answered, "It will shield the Dreamscape from your whisper and make your true form invisible to humans."

"Oh…" Poltergeist studied the pendant cautiously—he didn't trust the object at all from what Cyrus could see.

"Oh and one more thing, little brother," the creature leaned forward slightly as it reopened the amber eyes on its face, "It may only work if you believe it can. So you ought to believe in it, and hopefully in me as well, since I do intend to guide your little band of rascals as best as I can. Now sister," the beast raised its head and brought its empty hand back to its lump of clay, "You need to get to the Centre of the Dreamscape, correct?"

11: The Path to Dreamer--Chapter 10: Lilith

Lilith glared at the All-Seeing Eyes for many reasons. If one were to ask her why she hated him (if she even decided to make it apparent), she would note that she despised his level of arrogance—but naturally, it was more than that. The All-Seeing Eyes knew exactly where Lilith's human was and wouldn't tell her, and knew exactly what had happened to Dreamer and kept it secret. The only thing that irked Lilith more than a liar was a liar who treated other people like puppets.

"You need to get to the Centre of the Dreamscape, correct?"

Lilith sighed inwardly and plopped down next to Cyrus. The All-Seeing Eyes should've known better than to think Aisling would fall for his trap that easily.

"What I need is to find Dreamer," Aisling refuted, "why can't you just tell me where Dreamer is?"

"The road that leads directly to Dreamer is simply too much for you, Sister. Do not fret, you will indeed find the answers you seek along this path. The road to the Centre is a very simple one, you know."

"I've already tried to make it to the Centre of the Dreamscape, it was not possible for me to enter," Aisling mumbled in defeat.

"Ah, but you were trying to enter a locked door without the key. You ought to ask for for directions once in a while," The All Seeing Eyes scolded her. "The way to the Centre is a bit of a contradiction, a paradox, if you will. It is simple, yet complex. Long, yet short. You may face many a trial, and while I can guide you, I cannot help you any more than that. Allow me to bring up a map to the Centre before I explain it any further."

Lilith tapped her fingers with impatience as a whirlpool shattered the surface of the lantern lit ocean to reveal a glass orb with a galaxy stuck inside—the perfect map of the Dreamscape that only The All-Seeing Eyes could create. The fox child let out a soft groan as she noticed the eyeball floating around the perimeter of the orb.

"Leave it to The All-Seeing Eyes to not dis-include its own detached body parts from the most important map of our world," Lilith mumbled.

"What are you talking about?" Cyrus raised an eyebrow and glanced at her. "Detached body parts?"

The young girl sighed and pointed vaguely towards the eye as it circled the orb like an electron. "God's Eye. The only piece of a living Dream that can be so far away from its body and also a great way to prove that The All-Seeing Eyes is a peeping tom and a prick."

"That's his eye?"

"I believe I did just say that. God's Eye watches over everything since the eyes on said All-Seeing beastie can't view every dream at once. So instead God's Eye sees everything and streams everything back to the million other eyes on the main body so they can decide what they want to peep on."

"So basically it's like his personal television?"

"That's one way of saying it."

The All Seeing Eyes brought his hand down once more and pressed his index finger up against a single light in the orb.

"We are here," The creature noted.

"That's great!" Aisling replied with joy, "we're already halfway there!"

"You are mistaken, Sister. You can find this world with your mind because it moves. But the Centre is stationary. You cannot reach a dream when it stands still."

"Also quite backwards compared to Reality…" Cyrus mumbled to himself.

Lilith yawned and flopped her head down on Cyrus's shoulder, "Hey Cy."

Cyrus looked over at the fox child. "What?"

"Your shoulder is a fantastic pillow," Lilith could feel her level of consciousness fading as Aisling's conversation with the All-Seeing Eyes became muddled to her ears. She had stayed awake to long in Poltergeist's cottage for sure.

"What?" he repeated.

"Never mind."

Lilith gazed past Cyrus into the sky momentarily and saw a certain winged man flying off in the distance, one whose Whisper was idiotically distinct and would risk the whole operation they had planned if he came any closer.

Skylar.

No doubt the All-Seeing Eyes had noticed him too, but frankly, it wasn't like the beast to be helpful. That, or it honestly thought Skylar's presence in this dream posed their endeavor no threats. In any case, Lilith knew she had to try and get them out of this dream as fast as possible, and with her exhaustion brimming, she could only think of so much for her to do.

"Hey McNoobster!" she announced in feigned eagerness.

"What?"

"What does Reality taste like?" Lilith stared at Cyrus eagerly as she awaited the answer she knew he couldn't give.

"What?" he repeated.

"What does Reality taste like?"

"I really don't know what you mean."

"What does the air taste like?"

"I don't know, maybe it tastes like air?"

"Well that's superbly boring. What does the ground taste like?"

"Well I guess it tastes like dirt."

The fox child paused and blinked at this moment, her barely functioning mind working overtime to process an answer to catch his attention with. "Dirt…" she finally said, "that sounds delicious…"

At this precise moment, Cyrus grabbed the young girl by the shoulders and shook her back and forth in an attempt to correct her wild and fake assumption. "No Lilith!" he shouted, "Dirt does not taste delicious! Dirt tastes bad! Very bad!"

Lilith giggled maniacally. "Faster, faster!" she shrieked, "You can't call yourself a roller coaster until my head is spinning at at least twenty miles an hour!"

Cyrus stopped shaking the fox child and looked at her inquisitively. "Um, Lilith, are you feeling okay?"

"Mm. Fine and dandy like watermelons," she mumbled as she climbed onto his lap and latched her arms firmly around his torso.

"Okay…Aisling!" Cyrus called out, "We're gonna have to wrap this up, I think we've been out past squirt's bedtime!"

"Squirtle doesn't need bedtime!" Lilith protested despite a slight smirk forming on the corner of her lip, "Squirtle just needs love, affection, and a bathtub!"

It seemed that Lilith's protests were enough to make Aisling understand, and she nodded her head at Cyrus in agreement. Lilith could barely hide her amusement in how well that had worked.

"McNoobster, you meanie!" Lilith whined, "Lili don't need no nap!"

"I-Is she really that t-tired?" Poltergeist inquired. Lilith managed a subtle glare in Poltergeist's direction as she sensed the skepticism in his voice—knowing her well was all well and good so long as it didn't blow her cover.

"Well then, I'd better tell you how to get to the Centre before little Lilith fades on us…" the creature turned his entire body towards the boat, "no matter where you start your journey, you will start on the outer ring. The string you build into the Centre must be twenty dreams thick. You must build your way there through dreams, and you must build your way alone, you cannot ride on another's Imagination. Sleep until you wake, and then make a dream.

"Once your one eternity there is spent and no humans remain in your dream, sleep once more, then wake and make another dream. Once the eternity is past from your twentieth dream, sleep, and think of the Centre. It must be the twentieth dream. If you imagine the Centre on the nineteenth dream, it will send you to another lingering dream. And if you wait until the twenty first, you will already have gone through the Centre and you will have to start anew. Do you understand, Sister?"

Aisling nodded, "I believe so, Brother."

"I am glad to hear so. Now…" the beast stood slowly until it towered miles above the group's tiny boat, "I have business to attend to on the other half of this dream. And you ought to get Miss Lilith to bed before her mutton headed behavior gets out of hand."

"Monkeys and squirrels are too related!" Lilith whined out as she slapped her hands up against Cyrus's cheeks, "They both climb trees and they all have bad manners! I want pasta for dinner! Vivi pass the cheesecake…" Lilith's eyesight was already beginning to fade, she knew in a matter of moments she would be comatose.

"Heh, what a tough little twerp," he chuckled, "she must've been awake for ages with Poltergeist, but she's still struggling to keep her eyes open…" Cyrus sat on a bench near the helm and hugged the young girl in his arms.

"Farewell, Sister. Farewell, Little Brother. And farewell, Cyrus and Lilith. I hope that we may meet again after all is resolved." In that instant, the creature turned and slowly trudged away from the little boat. Lilith could barely see with her blurred vision as Skylar landed on the water barely distant enough to not be heard.

"Man, you're already out like a light," Cyrus smiled. "You two should get over her before she falls asleep for real."

Aisling turned around and stepped towards Cyrus and Lilith. "Should I move her?" the woman inquired.

"Nah, she's fine," he answered cheerfully, "remember, I like being hugged."

"She's not too heavy?"

"Lilith is as light as pillow filled feathercases…" the fox child mumbled onto Cyrus's neck.

The young man held out his hand to Aisling, "She's fine, but I only have enough arms left for one more person. That being said, you'll have to continue holding Poltergeist's hand. Or rather, letting him hold yours…I promise that I have no interest," he assured the ghost man, who was likely hugging Aisling's arm with no intent to let go.

"You're a liar with a capital L-A-R," Lilith mumbled again.

"Oh?" Cyrus smirked, "Is 'I' too good to be capitalized?"

"Shaddup," the child pouted.

Aisling took Cyrus's outreached hand and laid down next the bench he was sitting on. "Lilith, you can close your eyes now, we're all ready to leave."

The fox child let out one giant yawn in response and snuggled her head into Cyrus's chest. "Oh green t shirt," she murmured, "thou art a perfectly soft material. May I use you in lieu of a genuine pillow?"

"Just sleep already, you little twerp," Cyrus twitched in slight irritation.

"Mm… nighty nights, Cy Cy," Lilith whispered as she finally closed her eyes. In a moment, a hole into the Abyss had formed below them and the group began to fall.

"You need to close your eyes Cyrus," Aisling called faintly, assuming that Cyrus was the only one still awake, but Lilith had yet to close her eyes either. She watched the hole in the dream carefully, knowing that if the All-Seeing Eyes trusted her as much as she trusted it, they would have a tail. Within moments of the hole in the dream fading, the young girl had seen the blur pass through, and she knew her assumption true. Skylar had followed them.