Dreamsavers

Prologue

Will strode down the corridor with the haste of a man with the devil at his heels. If he didn't get to Phillip within the next two minutes, then the mission would have failed. The Crowes would win, and he would surely be killed.

His footfalls echoed on the stone steps as he rushed out into the frigid night air. "I can't believe I fell asleep," Will mumbled to himself. He broke into a sprint, as an attempt to lessen the distance between himself and Phillip's house, or as a way to keep his body heat up, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that the running made him less worried.

The streets of Washington were busy despite the late hour. To his right, Will could just see the monument through the trees. A woman dodged out in front of him, making him trip and fall to the pavement.

"What the hell?" he snarled at the woman, wincing as he brushed his scraped and bleeding palms on his cargo shorts. He looked up under the hood of the woman and gasped.

"You!" he shouted.

The woman let out a screech and her mouth morphed into a beak as she jumped at Will. He scrambled away, narrowly dodging the attack. Jumping to his feet, he continued to sprint towards Phillip's home. Slipping into an alley shortcut, he turned to watch as the Crowe ran past the alley, looking for him on the main street. Will continued through the alley and emerged two houses down from where Phillip lived.

Will's fist pounded against the oak door of the townhouse, hoping to God that Phillip's mother was still awake and watching her soap operas. Fortune seemed to be on his side for once because through the door's window, he spotted Mrs. Jackson coming down the stairs in the midst of wrapping herself in a daisy covered pink bathrobe.

She peaked through the window before hastily pulling the door open. "Will, you're here. Oh, I was so worried."

"You still should be," he warned her. "One of the Crowes tripped me up on my way here. They're coming."

Mrs. Jackson blanched. "He's upstairs in his room," she said, pointing towards the stairs.

Before heading up the steps, Will turned to Mrs. Jackson once again. "It's going to be okay, Linda. I promise that we can protect him."

She nodded, and Will kissed her forehead before taking the steps two at a time. He pushed open the door at the end of the hallway, and the familiar solar system night-lights danced across his eyes. Tiptoeing so not to wake Phillip, Will went over to the window. A large purple geode sat there, seeming to glow in the dim light. Will took a vial out of his jacket pocket and reaching has hand up, stuck his hand through the stone. Purple light shone out of the rock, and as he pulled his hand back out, it seemed to shine in his closed fist. Will opened his hand and the purple light shrunk down to the size of a small pebble. He uncorked the vial and dropped the stone into it before stoppering it once again.

"Success," he thought to himself, smiling slightly. He heard a rustling behind him, and when he turned, Phillip was rubbing at his eyes.

"Will?" he asked, sitting up in his bed. "Why didn't you tell me you were gonna come later? I would've stayed up!" The six year old pouted and crossed his arms.

"Hey buddy, I didn't know I was going to be late. You should go back to sleep though." Will tried to coax the boy back under his covers.

"But I don't wanna!" Phillip shouted.

Mrs. Jackson's voice rang out from down the hall. "Will, we need to talk, and Phillip, you do not shout at this time of night. Go back to sleep!"

"You heard her," Will said. "I'll try and visit tomorrow okay? But only if you go to sleep now."

Phillip nodded and threw his arms around Will's neck, hugging him tightly.

"I love you, Will," Phillip murmured into Will's shoulder.

"I love you too, kid. Now go to bed."

Phillip slid back under his covers, and Will slipped out of his room, closing the door behind him.

He made his way down the hall to the den where Mrs. Jackson was sitting at the window, looking down into the street. When she heard Will come in, she turned to him, her face a mess of worry.

"What's wrong?" Will asked.

She just looked back out the window. Will rushed to look out, and the sight made him swear. Five Crowes were standing in the street, staring up at the house. Will could just make out the face of the Crowe that had attacked him earlier. She was younger than he had first thought. She seemed to be his age, maybe a bit older. It was a pity they started recruiting so young.

"No worries," Will said in a voice that was braver than he felt. "I've got what they came for, so they'll leave once they see I have it." Linda didn't look convinced.

"Honestly," Will said in earnest, trying to reassure her. "If I run outside and flash this around," he said waving the little vial, "then they're going to start chasing me so that they can get to it. I'll be able to lose them without a problem."

Linda grabbed his hand and looked up at him from her chair. "Thank you, Will. You've helped this family so much. I don't know where Phillip and I would be without you." She shuddered at the thought.

"I'm just doing my job, Lin; you know that. I'm happy to help. Phillip's a good kid. I'll see you next week," Will said, giving her hand a quick squeeze before sprinting down the hall.

Opening the front door a fraction, Will did a quick head count of the Crowes lurking in the shadows. He saw four less than he had originally thought. This would be easier than he had believed. Flinging the door open, he jumped the three front steps and waved his arms wildly to catch the attention of all the perpetrators.

"I have what you came for," Will taunted in a singsong voice as he pulled the vial out of his jacket and showed it around. "You'll just have to catch me." His voice had turned menacing, and as the last word slipped from his lips, he took off like a bullet down the street, the Crowes following just on his heels.

As Will ran down the street, a hooded figure stepped out of the bushes across from the Jackson house. They quickly scaled the tree in the front yard and slipped into the attic. Mrs. Jackson's soaps were playing too loudly for her to hear the thump. The only one that heard it was Phillip, and he just rolled over in his bed, thinking he had dreamt it.