—Narrated by Eli Whitmore
---
Preparing for the Dream
We didn't rush. Not this time.
The Dream Between Worlds wasn't something you entered by force. It had to invite you. And you had to listen. We gathered in the Moonlight Chamber—a sacred, hidden hall beneath the Arcane Institute, where time slowed and mind met magic.
I sat cross-legged on the sigil-carved floor, the scroll Seraphina left resting beside me. A gentle hum of enchantment surrounded the room, like the veil of sleep just before you fall. Luna kneeled across from me, her hands glowing softly as she formed a ring of stardust and moon petals. "This circle will protect us while we sleep."
Thorne stood behind me, silent as always. His presence was my anchor.
Felix was scribbling protection runes on stones. "Just in case our dreams… try to eat us."
Ryker grumbled. "I don't like this. Dreams don't follow rules."
"Neither do we," Draven replied dryly.
I gave a small nod to everyone. "Whatever happens… stay close in the dream. I don't know what we'll find, or what will try to pull us apart."
Thorne knelt beside me. "You won't lose us, Eli."
He looked into my eyes—his fingers brushing mine.
"Not now. Not ever."
I took a breath.
Then, we closed our eyes.
---
Into the Dream
There was no falling.
No spinning.
No sound.
Only a stillness, like diving into warm water—until I blinked… and opened my eyes in a place that wasn't real. A dark sky stretched above us, scattered with slow-moving stars. The air shimmered like glass, and everything around us felt… half-formed. Like it hadn't decided what to be yet. We stood on a path of silver mist that hovered in the middle of nothing.
"This is…" Luna whispered, stunned, "the space between."
Felix turned in a slow circle. "Is this a dream?"
Ryker shook his head. "No. This is deeper than dreaming."
Draven pointed toward the horizon. "There."
A single door floated in the distance. No wall. No frame. Just a door—wooden, tall, with a jagged crack splitting it down the center. Carved into it was a symbol none of us recognized—a crown made of thorns, with an eye in the middle.
I felt a chill crawl across my skin.
"That's it," I whispered. "The Gate of Dreams."
Thorne reached for his sword.
But I held out my hand. "No weapons."
He paused.
"We face this one with our hearts," I said. "Not with steel."
---
The Door That Shouldn't Exist
We walked carefully, step by step through the mist.
No sounds. No wind.
Only the slow creak of the dream as it shifted with every move we made.
The door grew larger the closer we got, until it towered over us.
And then—
It opened on its own.
A wave of cold swept out from it, carrying whispers too faint to understand. Like memories trying to remember themselves.
Draven frowned. "This shouldn't be open. Nothing forgotten ever wants to be found."
Luna looked at me. "Are you sure?"
I nodded slowly. "I don't think I have a choice."
Felix took my hand. "Then we go together."
Thorne stood at my other side. "No matter what's on the other side."
And we stepped through.
---
The Realm Between Light
We emerged into a place where reality bent.
The sky was filled with broken moons and floating ruins. Trees grew upside down. Water flowed upward. Shadows had no source, and whispers chased us like wind. Every step echoed like we were walking inside someone else's memory.
"What is this place?" Ryker muttered, gripping his jacket.
"It's a realm that forgot itself," I answered. "The deeper we go, the more unstable it gets."
Luna reached toward a flower that turned into ash before she could touch it. "Even time is dying here."
We walked through a ruined palace—its columns cracked, its throne shattered, and walls inscribed with strange names that vanished when we blinked.
Thorne paused at one engraving. "This one… this one said your name, Eli."
I turned. "What?"
He pointed. "But now it's gone."
The dream was watching us.
Felix's voice shook. "Something's following us."
---
The Monarch's Watcher
The shadows gathered into a shape.
Not a beast.
Not a man.
But an outline of a crown.
And a single glowing eye.
> "You seek the Forgotten."
> "You are the breach."
Its voice came from inside our heads. It wasn't loud—but it filled every thought.
I felt my knees weaken. "Who are you?"
> "We are what memory threw away."
> "What truth buried."
> "What Seraphina feared."
Luna stepped forward bravely. "You're the Monarch."
> "We are what came before the Monarch."
> "We are the Unremembered."
The shadows lashed toward us—cold, unreal, and fast.
Ryker pushed Felix aside as one almost struck him. "Run!"
"No!" I shouted. "We can't run. That gives it power!"
I closed my eyes and reached into the light of the seal—calling the Marks of the Seven. One by one, they responded: The Star's wisdom. The Flame's courage. The Spring's healing. The Sea's memory. The Forest's peace. The Moon's instinct. The Light's hope.
They bloomed around me like a shield.
And the shadow screamed.
---
A Light the Dream Cannot Break
The seven marks formed a circle beneath us. A beam of light rose from my chest—splitting the veil. The door behind us closed. The shadow retreated. And in its place… a path appeared. Cracked stone steps. Leading downward into a spiral of stars.
Luna touched my shoulder. "This isn't over."
"No," I said. "But we've opened the true Gate now."
Felix shook his head in awe. "A gate beneath the dream…"
Draven nodded. "This is where the Monarch sleeps."
Thorne held my hand tightly.
"Let's go," he whispered.
And we stepped forward…
Toward the Throne That Time Forgot.
---
The Dream did not break us.
But what sleeps beneath the spiral may.
To be continued…