A Dreamer's Knight

Chapter 22 - The Five-Shard Tour

Mikaen was still staring at the space One previously occupied when Tirinia and Teria appeared at the far end of the corridor. Teria wasn't exactly smiling, but she no longer looked angry.

"Oh, hello again," he said as they drew near.

Smiling shyly at him, Tirinia said, "Hello."

Teria gave him an odd look. "You okay? You looked like you were zoning out there for a sec."

"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine. I was just talking to someone."

"Who were you talking to?" Teria asked, glancing at the spot in front of Mikaen.

"I'm still not quite sure." Mikaen admitted. "I think he's trying to help me, but I get the feeling his goal may not be the same as mine."

"I see. And do you listen to what 'he' tells you to do?"

Mikaen shrugged. "I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt. I suppose I trust him, but it's hard when he keeps popping in and out."

"Popping in and out?"

"He tends to disappear when other people come around."

"Oh, so no one else can see him." Teria said, crossing her arms.

Mikaen frowned at the increasingly sarcastic tone of her voice. "I suppose you could say that."

"So you listen to the advice of a man that only you can see." She glanced at Tirinia and said, "Hoo, yeah, this one's a keeper, all right. Let's just hope the voices don't tell him to start fires or to go skin babies or something."

His cheeks flushed, Mikaen said, "Believe me, I know how this sounds, but One's really-"

"One?" Tirinia asked, clearly surprised by the name, "You don't mean Narrator Number One do you?"

"Yeah, the Dreamer." He said. "You've heard of him?"

Teria rolled her eyes and muttered, "Here we go."

Tirinia nodded enthusiastically in response to Mikaen's question. "Narrator Number One of the Elsewhere Incorporate, known most commonly by the name 'One'. He pops up throughout Vintan history more than any other Dreamer. Seeing him is considered a good omen in Longshore."

Teria sighed and rubbed her eyes. "He helped stop Calliban's Crusade, Tirinia. If I stopped a war, people would take my appearance as a good omen too. Seriously, Mikaen, if you get her started, we'll be here all week. She majored in Vintan History."

"Really?" Mikaen asked, raising an eyebrow. "Are you a teacher?"

She blushed, but seemed pleased by the question. "I'm working on my doctorate."

"Ah. Professor then." His tone was teasing, but he was rather impressed. With the fall of the standardized education system in North America, teaching had become a dying profession. "You know a lot about the Dreamers?"

Tirinia beamed. "Oh, yes! They-"

"Whoa!" Teria said, holding up her hands. "Sorry to stop you both from nerding out here, but I think there's something else we need to talk about, yeah?"

She turned to Mikaen and said, "Look, I'm gonna be honest; I'm not comfortable with this. Like, at all. You seem like an okay guy, but I think we both know that plenty of people out there seem okay at first glance."

"True enough." Mikaen said, thinking of the Revs. They had, after all, started as a group to assist the survivors of the Devastation.

"Now I won't pretend I don't share mum's feelings on alcians, but the fact that you know nothing about them either is something. As for being from Earth, well ... let's just say I've got some experience on that front, and it doesn't bother me."