Verita's Chronicles, The Dreamer

Chapter 11

- hey, Claec?
- Yes?

Claec turned to face Henry. Once again, he had fallen asleep and found himself in this dark zone with this visitor. But this time, Claec had offered to take him to another place, and somehow, he ended up on the main street of his city. However, everything around them seemed to be made of the same black and misty material. Instead of the usual population, there were shadowy, smoky silhouettes moving as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Some seemed to tremble, others flowed like water in a river on a dark night, and a few appeared chaotic, their shadows moving erratically in every direction.

- Where are we?
- In my world. A world made solely of the darkness from yours.
- I'm not sure I understand.
- Look at the buildings around us, especially those near the torches.

As Henry turned to his right, he noticed a house with a large hole in the middle of its wall. The next building had a similar hole.

- What are those holes?
- The illuminated areas of your world. Here, it's like a manifestation of what I am on a larger, unconscious scale. Shadows appear here, but light is invisible. During the day, this place is mostly empty, but at night, secrets cease to exist.

Henry approached one of the houses and reached out to touch it. He felt nothing as his hand passed right through.

- If I were you, I'd pull my hand back.

He did, turning to Claec, who was smiling, visibly amused by Henry's curiosity.

- This world also transforms shadows into portals. If you step into a shadow here, you'll come out of one in your world.
- But I'm only here in a dream. What would happen if I stepped through?
- No idea, but I don't think you'd want to try. Here, consciousness and body coexist, forming a connection between dream and reality. Stepping out in this form would break your last link to your sleeping body, and then... well, I really don't know what would happen.

Listening to Claec, Henry stepped back to stand in the middle of the street, a few meters from his guide. A shadow passed by him, and Henry felt a shiver, followed by a strange connection, as if he had glimpsed into its soul for a moment. It left him with a feeling of anxiety.

- And these people?
- As I said, here we see the darkness of your world. These silhouettes are the shadows of people. Their fears, regrets, anger, resentment, sadness—these feelings form their shadows. Here, you can see their true forms.
- I see. And what happens if you touch them?
- You enter their darkness. It lets you see who they really are.
- Who they really are?

Claec chuckled and approached Henry, stopping just a few centimeters away and looking straight into his eyes.

- What you behold are the true faces of humans, stripped of illusions and lies. These shadows reveal their authentic essence.

He turned to point at one of the silhouettes.

- A liar, deceiving themselves before anyone else.

He gestured toward another.

- An arrogant hypocrite, convinced they're the most important being.

And another.

- A coward who bows to everyone out of fear of pain.

He continued, pointing at each one to reveal their true nature.

- Every shadow is unique, with its color, the movement of its darkness, its size, its texture. All of this shines a light on the true nature of a person, and here, we can observe them.

- And you, you don't have one?

Henry expected a negative reaction to his question, but Claec burst out laughing, as if Henry had asked something so absurd it was comical.

- Henry, I don't have a shadow. I *am* a shadow—the shadow of humanity. The embodiment of everything they hide, their darkness.
- I thought you were a nightmare.
- And I am. Dreams are the only moments when a person's soul is truly revealed. I'm humanity's nightmare, a being composed of all their resentments. What you see here is what I perceive constantly—their true nature.

Henry began to understand. The person in front of him wasn't simply a conscious nightmare but an evolution of human darkness. However, a new question formed in the dreamer's mind.

- And... my shadow? What is it like?

At that moment, Claec stopped smiling and laughing. He grew serious, running a hand slowly through his hair and leaning so close that Henry could feel his breath.

- Henry, your shadow is flat—no waves, no color, no texture. Just a simple shape of pure black.

- I don't understand.
- You've spent so much time in other people's dreams that you haven't created your own. It's like in your darkness last time—you're empty. No conscious fears, no haunting regrets, at least none that are visible. When I entered your mind the first time, I saw nothing.

Henry pushed Claec's hand away and stepped back, unsettled by what he'd just heard. He was... empty? Him? But he remembered feeling emotions—when? He suddenly realized that even now, he remained calm. He wasn't trembling, his expression was still passive. He didn't understand.

- I-I'm empty?
- Yes, and that makes you a creature as strange as me. Bearing human traits but lacking their true nature—their darkness.

As Henry processed this revelation, he looked up at Claec, who had regained his smile.

- But Claec, why are you showing me all this?
- Because you and I are the same—or almost. By traveling through others' dreams, you can see their true nature. I can only see their nightmares. When I enter someone's dream, I corrupt it. Your human birth means you can see both their false and true faces, while I can only see the latter. I want to help you understand that.

- Why?

- Well...

As Claec pondered how to explain his motives, Henry felt his body being pulled backward, as if a rope was wrapping around him.

- Looks like it's time for you to wake up. Listen, from now on, I'll stop pulling you into my world when you sleep. But if you ever decide to see me, just call my name aloud, and I'll enter the dream you're in.

- Wait...

- See you!

Before he could protest, he was pulled out of that world and back into his body. Opening his eyes, he saw sunlight filtering through the curtains. He didn't want to wake up; he still had so many questions for Claec.

- Henry, can you hear me?

Next to him, the same blond boy was shaking him with all his might.

- Yes, why did you wake me?

- Miss Elaine wants to see you in her office, now.

- Alright, tell her I'm coming.

- Yes, sir!

The boy turned and ran to the door, then down the hallway. On his nightstand, Dream was staring at him with strangely expressive eyes, looking worried.

- Don't worry, everything is fine.

He offered his arm, and the little owl hopped onto it, climbing up to his shoulder. After that, Henry hurried to get dressed and head to the headmistress's office. Normally, she only summoned him when he had given a nightmare to one of his classmates, but last night he hadn't done anything.

When he arrived, he knocked on the door and heard a voice from inside:

- Come in.

He opened the door, and there, sitting on one of the chairs in front of the desk, was the same man from his dream, smiling and staring at him with his one visible eye.

- I told you I'd find you, kid.