Dio - Wheel (2)

The gray sky flared with light, and in the distance, in the direction where Ray was, a small sphere shot upward. It flared with a thunderous crack and sent a shockwave across the sky, driving away the dusky gray and revealing a radiant blue in its place. And back there, where the sphere had come from, now hung...

…the sun in the sky.

“It’s noon…” Dio murmured.

“It’s noon,” Brela echoed.

They looked at each other.

Around them, people began jumping to their feet, snapping out of their stunned silence. They laughed and cheered, almost like they had when they first saw the wheel. This time, however, the reaction was far more intense. Some rolled on the ground, others began to dance together.

“The sun! The sun! There it is... How could we have forgotten it?” voices rang out across the square.

Dio couldn’t help but grin.

I knew something was missing…

“How did that happen?” Brela asked. “Not that I’m complaining, it’s beautiful… I think it’s how I should’ve remembered it. Though how did it happen?”

Dio ran a hand thoughtfully through his curls. The clarity with which he had sensed Ray in the distance had faded again, and the connection to her was back to how it had been before the sun’s rise.

“I… I think that was Ray…”

Brela looked at him with her bright green eyes, something like concern in her expression, and she gave him an encouraging nod.

“Ray… That’s amazing. Now I really want to meet her! To cause such a change in the Dream... I don’t think I’ve ever heard of anything like it,” she said.

“I hope she’s okay…” Ogan added.

Dio looked at them both with gratitude.

“Yeah, she’s fine. I can still feel her. Still, like Brela said, such a change… what kind of power must be behind that? What kind of Lucidity?” he wondered aloud.

“Des, have you ever heard of anything like this? You’ve been here longer than most of us,” Lot asked.

“Well, not much longer than Ogan…”

“DES!”

The old farmer grumbled and ran a hand through his shaggy gray beard.

“I don’t know. I never put much stock in stories, and the people here aren’t exactly known for being open or talkative… myself included. Maybe the Sage once said something like that. The one who was around before Elga. I don’t even remember what he looked like. Maybe it was someone else, someone who was here before me. A time before we knew fire. When the fire came, they say, the Dream truly began. I don’t know, I’m probably making stuff up…” Des shrugged.

“Not talkative? Not open? Have you looked around?” Dio said, shaking his head in disbelief.

Around them, people were still dancing with abandon, and some were singing songs Dio didn’t recognize.

“Yeah… now that you mention it, I’ve never seen them like this before. And even if I had, I probably wouldn’t have noticed. I was always looking down at the ground at my feet,” Des said after a long pause, clearly thinking hard about Dio’s question.

“Yes, I can confirm that. You all weren’t any better. Lot, Ogan, you barely said a word to me. And believe me, I tried! I always felt a little ignored…” Brela added, in an exaggeratedly accusatory tone.

“I was always just content,” Ogan mumbled, lost in thought. “I pulled the cart, ate, kept to myself, pulled the cart again…”

“I mostly carved sticks for hunting,” Lot added. “Or built little hammers from stone, wood, and vines. I never really thought of anything else. People came, needed weapons or tools, and I made them. It was nice, yet… I never thought beyond that.”

“Until you saw the circle…” Dio observed.

They all fell silent, then nodded.

Dio, too, went quiet, thinking.

“The sun, it’s a circle too. Do you think it brings not just daytime, but also… openness? Or new ideas? I know, it sounds crazy, and it’s only a guess…”

“It might be,” Brela said, looking up at the sky, where the sun still blazed brightly at the zenith.

With a sigh, Dio leaned back and let himself fall onto the ground. “We’ll see. I’ve thought enough about things like that for one day. I only want to enjoy the warm rays…” he said, digging his hands into a patch of fresh grass growing beside him.

“I get that. It’s been a long time since I broke out of my daily routine and sat down with people to enjoy the village. Or nature… Have I ever really done that?” Des said absentmindedly.

The others remained quiet, even Brela, who let her gaze drift dreamily across the colorful treetops. The sun was slowly but steadily sinking toward the horizon. Lot was the first to leave, followed soon after by Ogan, who walked over to his little wheeled cart and whistled as he pulled it away from the square.

The others began to leave too, one by one, ending their dancing and laughter. Some watched the sun with wistful eyes as it slowly descended. Dio spotted Oli, who was also stepping away from a group that had eaten and celebrated at the far end of the square. He gave Dio a brief nod before disappearing down one of the nearby streets. He saw Ha too, though she was so deep in conversation she didn’t notice him. Yorm, who had been telling stories to everyone who wanted to hear, made a point of saying goodbye to everyone one by one.

Soon, Dio was almost alone in the square, staring into the flames of the firepit, which were now nearly gone.

It gave him peace, knowing he had found a home.

At least for now, Dio thought, remembering his promise to Ray. Maybe she’ll want to stay here too, when she comes back. I think she’d like it. No chaos, no pressure, only a life full of meaningful work…

Still, he was a little worried about her. What had moved her to bring the sun? Was she all right? Was she unharmed? At least he could still feel her, so she hadn’t woken up. That alone brought him comfort. He didn’t have to guess about that part, he could be certain, thanks to their connection: she was still in the Dream.

“It’s kind of fast, huh?” Brela said suddenly, thoughtfully.

“What, the sun? Fast? Feels pretty slow to me…” Dio replied.

“Slow, really?”

“Yeah, I think normally it’s almost three times as fast… Well, whatever ‘normally’ even means. Maybe I’m remembering it wrong?”

“Possible. Everything feels normal to me…” Des added.

They looked at each other.

“What does that even mean?” Brela asked.

Dio thought for a moment.

“I’d say there are three possibilities. Either the sun moves at different speeds and we just remember parts of it each…”

“That sounds wrong,” Brela interrupted.

“Or we don’t actually remember the length of a day correctly…”

“That could be,” Des admitted. “Though I’m really sure the sun isn’t this slow…”

“Or… we don’t come from the same place at all. And by that I mean… not the same world.”

Brela laughed.

“What’s that supposed to mean, Dio?”

“I’m not sure. In the end, we may never know. Which of the three it was. Or if I missed another possibility entirely…”

Des rubbed his forehead. “That’s too much for me. Does it even matter?”

Dio looked at him, then at Brela.

“No,” he said. “Yet I find it fascinating.”

“You goofball! In the end, what matters is that we’re here, right? And we can enjoy the sun! Look, it’s almost at the horizon. We’re going to see our first sunset!” Brela cheered.

And indeed, the sun was now close to the treetops, starting to glow more reddish.

“There’s a fallen tree back there. It’s at the edge of the field, and I think you can see the sun setting much better from there,” Brela said after a while.

She shivered a little and bounced in place with anticipation.

“That sounds lovely. Let’s go,” Des agreed, and Dio noticed that Brela blushed slightly.

Soon they were walking along the forest’s edge, enjoying the crisp evening breeze. Some fir trees nearby gave off a distinct scent, and Dio saw a few small unfamiliar rodents scurrying through the underbrush not far from their path. Before long, they reached the fallen tree Brela had mentioned. It was large but not yet rotting, the bark still clinging tightly to the trunk. A few big knot holes pocked its surface, though there was no question that it made for a good place to sit and rest. And Brela had been right: the trunk offered a clear view over wide fields, and on the horizon, the sun now glowed an even deeper red. They settled onto the old wood, Brela in the middle, and watched the scene unfold.

“It’s exactly like Brela said! It really is a beautiful spot, Des,” Dio whispered, since speaking loudly somehow felt wrong in the stillness, like it would break the magic of the moment.

“I come here often. After my walks in the woods,” Brela whispered back. “It’s not meditating, exactly, only kind of like it. Letting the Dream soak in. Just finding some quiet for once. I don’t need it often, though when I do, this trunk is a really… beautiful place.”

She was still shivering. Dio nodded.

“What do you think will happen when the sun is gone?” Brela asked suddenly, a note of excitement in her voice.

“What do you mean, ‘what’ll happen’?” Dio asked, puzzled.

“Well, then the light is gone. We’ll be sitting here in the dark. And what if it stays that way…”

“Unlikely.” Dio glanced sideways and noticed her lips were trembling slightly.

“Don’t worry. I mean, there was light before the sun, right? Why would it disappear completely? Besides, the sunset doesn’t feel scary to me. It’s beautiful. I trust my gut before I let myself worry about things like that. And I trust Ray. She brought the sun, she wouldn’t have done that for a short while… Plus, she hates the dark…” he reasoned.

She looked him in the eyes, swallowed once, then nodded. “You’re right…”

“You two are worrying about stuff again…” Des chuckled and leaned back, fully relaxed.

Dio thought back to Ray’s behavior in the forest. To her fearful voice, stammering something about whispers in the dark. But it had just been a patch of woods… hadn’t it?

Did she see something I missed, because I’m not lucid?

Brela, despite his reassuring words, shifted restlessly on the trunk, bumping into both Des and Dio now and then. Her gaze darted around, nervous, then she gasped with excitement and her face lit up.

“Look! The moon!” she laughed, pointing to a silver disc that had appeared almost directly opposite the setting sun, casting a soft, noble light across the sky.

Brela leaned back more comfortably now, and Des furrowed his brow as he stared intently at the new disc.

“The good old moon. Shouldn’t there be another one?” he asked, his forehead wrinkling deeper.

Dio thought for a moment, trying to remember, even though he already knew it would be in vain.

“No, I think there’s only one. Right, Brela?”

“Yeah, I think I only know of one too. And that one up there feels really familiar… Though the sun, now that you mention it, should there not have been two as well? I dunno. Anyway, as you said, it does not matter...”

Dio nodded in agreement, even if he felt like something else was missing, something he couldn’t quite recall. But soon his attention was caught by the many tiny, sparkling points spreading reverently across the sky. The sky grew darker, turned deep blue, then finally black.

Night had fallen, the first night in their part of the Dream, and Dio was glad he could experience it with Des and Brela. As if in greeting, soft rhythmic sounds filled the air, as animals emerged from their hiding places between trees and bushes, releasing their excited nighttime calls unheard until now.

“Do you think every evening here will be this beautiful?” Brela asked, looking at them both, full of hope.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Des replied, letting his eyes wander across the stars, and she nodded once more.

“For me,” Dio said after a while, “I think it’s wonderful to just sit here like this after a long day and enjoy the Dream. I’m sure I’ll get used to it quickly.”

He looked back at the moon. It had climbed higher, partly veiled by a small cloud, its light dimmer in places.

“One day, Ray will be sitting here with us too. After all, we have her to thank for this amazing view! I can’t wait!” Brela beamed, her eyes wide with anticipation and glowing faintly green in the darkness.

“Yeah, that’ll be nice,” Dio agreed.

I can’t wait…