Secrets Beneath the Surface

The air in the room was thick with tension long after Sable left, his sinister invitation still echoing in my mind. Raelle paced, her expression a blend of frustration and something darker, something I hadn’t seen in her before. Fear, maybe?

“Who is he?” I finally asked, breaking the silence. “Sable. He seemed to know you.”

Raelle stopped pacing, crossing her arms as she looked at me, her jaw clenched. “Sable is… complicated. He was one of the first Dream Crafters I ever knew. Back then, he was sharp, driven, one of the best. But the Dreamscape got to him. He wanted control over it, over the Nightwalkers. Eventually, he became one of them.”

I absorbed her words, a sense of dread pooling in my stomach. “So he wants… power? Over the Dreamscape? Over everyone?”

“Not just power,” she said, voice low. “Dominance. Sable believes that fear is the purest form of control. He thinks Dream Crafters should rule the Dreamscape with it.”

I shuddered, remembering the cold gleam in his eyes. “And why is he interested in me?”

“You’re an anomaly here, Elliot,” Raelle explained. “Usually, the Dreamscape finds people who are ready for it—people who know how to handle their fears, their desires. But you? You were thrown into the deep end.”

“Because I’m not ready?” I asked, feeling a strange mix of embarrassment and frustration.

She softened slightly, a hint of sympathy in her eyes. “Not just that. You were pulled here for a reason. It means you have potential that even you don’t realise. And Sable… he can sense it. He’ll want to twist that potential to his own ends.”

I nodded, the reality settling in. The Dreamscape was no longer just a place of possibilities; it was a place of danger, of twisted desires and power struggles. And I was caught in the middle of it.

Raelle straightened, her resolve hardening. “We don’t have much time. If Sable knows about you, he’ll come back, and he won’t be alone. We need to get you prepared. Lesson two: Fear Crafting.”

“Fear Crafting?” I repeated, sceptical. “I thought we were trying to avoid fear.”

“It’s not about avoiding it,” she said. “It’s about channelling it. Fear is powerful here. If you learn to control it, it becomes a weapon. Ignore it, and it becomes a weakness for others to exploit.”

She extended her hand toward me, and I felt a surge of energy pulse through the air, raw and electric. “Close your eyes, rookie. This one’s going to be harder than Anchoring.”

I shut my eyes, focusing on her voice, on the charged feeling of the Dreamscape humming around me. “Reach into yourself,” she said, voice soft but intense. “Think of a fear—something that shakes you to your core. It doesn’t have to be a nightmare, but it has to be real. Something that makes you vulnerable.”

I resisted, instinctively pulling back. Why would I want to summon something I’d tried so hard to bury? But her voice broke through my hesitation, steady and sure.

“You need to face it, Elliot. Here, in the Dreamscape, fear is only as strong as you let it be. Control it, and you control yourself.”

Taking a deep breath, I reached into the depths of my mind. Memories surfaced—moments I’d tried to forget. The feeling of falling, the helplessness of losing control, the looming shadows of doubt that had haunted me since I was young. My heart began to race as I let the fear rise, and allowed it to take shape.

I opened my eyes to find myself surrounded by darkness, thick and suffocating, closing in on me. My breathing quickened, panic creeping in as the shadows shifted and twisted, morphing into towering shapes.

“Good,” Raelle’s voice cut through the darkness. “Now don’t run from it. Command it.”

I swallowed hard, fighting the instinct to turn and bolt. Instead, I stood my ground, focusing on the shapes, willing myself to stay calm. Slowly, I raised my hand, imagining the fear bending to my will, shrinking before me. The shadows paused, quivering, before they began to retract, swirling into a small, contained form in front of me—a miniature storm, contained in a glass sphere that appeared in my hand.

“Impressive,” Raelle said, sounding genuinely pleased. “You’ve created a Fear Ward. It’s a shield of sorts, one that protects you from fear-based attacks.”

I looked down at the swirling storm in the glass sphere, feeling a strange sense of accomplishment mixed with residual dread. “And this… will help against Sable?”

She nodded. “Sable knows how to turn fear into power. If you can contain your own fear, you limit his control over you. But he’s not our only worry. There are others in the Dreamscape—Crafters, Nightwalkers, even rogue Echoes—that would exploit any weakness they find.”

“Echoes?” I asked, intrigued.

“They’re fragments of dreams that linger,” Raelle explained. “Sometimes they’re harmless, but sometimes… they become sentient. They can be unpredictable, even dangerous.”

Just then, a faint ringing filled the room—a strange, melodic chime that seemed to vibrate through my entire body. Raelle stiffened, her eyes narrowing as she looked toward the door.

“Stay close,” she whispered. “We have company.”

The door swung open, and two figures entered, moving with a predatory grace. Their faces were obscured, cloaked in shadow, but I could sense the intensity of their gazes. They were Dream Crafters, like Raelle, but something was… different. Their presence felt heavier, darker, like they were tainted by something unnatural.

“Raelle,” one of them drawled, his voice smooth and mocking. “Still recruiting lost souls, I see.”

Raelle’s jaw tightened. “What do you want, Voss?”

The man, Voss, stepped forward, his gaze flicking to me with a smirk. “Just here to welcome the rookie. Sable’s orders. You know how it is.”

Raelle took a step closer to me, her stance protective. “He’s off-limits. Sable knows the rules.”

Voss chuckled, a sound that sent chills down my spine. “Oh, Sable doesn’t care much for rules these days. He wants a demonstration of the rookie’s… potential.”

Raelle shifted her weight, her hand subtly moving to her side, where a faint glimmer of energy crackled. “If Sable wants a demonstration, he can come himself.”

“Feisty as ever,” Voss sneered. He held out his hand, and the air around him began to shimmer, a dark, twisted energy swirling in his palm. “Let’s see what the rookie’s made of.”

The second figure stepped forward, their face still hidden, but I felt their gaze fix on me, sharp and calculating. Fear spiked in my chest, but I clenched my fists, grounding myself, drawing on the Fear Ward I’d created. The sphere in my hand pulsed, its energy radiating through me, steadying my heartbeat.

“Don’t overthink it, rookie,” Raelle murmured. “Remember your training.”

Voss lunged, his hand crackling with dark energy, and I raised my Fear Ward, willing it to expand. The storm within the sphere flared, and a shimmering shield of light erupted between us, absorbing his attack. The force of it sent a shiver through me, but I held my ground, channelling the fear into strength.

Voss let out a low growl, his eyes narrowing as he stepped back. “Not bad for a beginner.”

I glanced at Raelle, who gave me a quick nod. She stepped forward, her energy crackling around her. “You wanted a demonstration, Voss? Here’s mine.”

With a flick of her wrist, Raelle summoned a torrent of light, shaping it into a whip-like arc that lashed toward him. Voss dodged, but Raelle was relentless, her movements fluid and precise, each strike pushing him back. The second figure moved to join him, but I stepped in front of them, raising the Fear Ward again, using it to create a barrier that held them back.

Finally, Voss held up his hands, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “All right, Raelle. We’ve seen enough.” His gaze flicked to me, cold and calculating. “Sable won’t be happy to hear how… protective you’re being.”

“Tell Sable if he wants to speak with me, he can come himself,” Raelle replied, her tone icy.

Voss laughed, a low, mocking sound, before turning and heading for the door. His companion followed, casting one last glance at me before they disappeared into the shadows.

As the door closed, I let out a shaky breath, the tension in my body finally releasing. Raelle looked at me, a hint of pride in her expression.

“Not bad, rookie. You held your ground.”

I managed a small smile, still catching my breath. “So… this is what I signed up for, huh?”

Raelle nodded, her eyes serious. “The Dreamscape is a dangerous place, Elliot. But you’re starting to find your way. Just remember—fear is only as powerful as you allow it to be.”

Her words echoed in my mind, a strange sense of purpose settling over me. The Dreamscape was filled with mysteries, dangers,