Dreamwalker

2. Chapter 2

Somewhere in between careening to my possible death and going blind from the endless, bright, white light, I lost consciousness as I tumbled into the unknown.

When I came to, the cheerful melody of birds chirping outside of a wide window filled my ears first. I sighed softly, tightening my hold on the pleasantly warm body beside me, wishing I could stay asleep for just a few more minutes.

“Wake up, beautiful...” A voice whispered beside my ear.

I groaned, my eyes finally opening groggily. Something cold and metallic slid against my chin, and my eyes shot open, meeting the wary gaze of two glaring obsidian orbs. Panic flooded my senses, and I gasped as the stranger in my bed used the dagger in his hand to lift my face up, taking a hard look at my eyes. If looks could kill, I’d be vaporized on the spot.

He was a young guy, at least my age or a few years older, with a face that was a mixture of hard angles and soft, graceful lines. He was breathtakingly gorgeous, with a small forehead, nose, and chin, accented by dark, close-set, hooded eyes. He gripped my waist tightly with an arm that was surprisingly sturdy for his appearance. His shoulders were broad and his body was lean; much leaner than Lucas’.

“You’re the prettiest assassin I’ve ever had the pleasure of waking up to,” He murmured sardonically, examining my face while he held me close to his body like a lover. My heart was pounding in my chest, but I wasn’t sure if it was from his words or the knife delicately resting against my skin.

Given that I had a limited range of motion, it was impossible for me to turn my head any further without possible poking a hole in my face. I managed to get a glimpse of the bed we were in though.

There were two massive pillars that reached from the floor to ceiling on either side of the bed, draped in dark curtains that gave the room a sensual feel. The bed felt like feathers beneath me and boasted two headboards that were carved in intricate patterns, swirling infinitely around one another. Even the blankets pooling just below my waist were beautiful and elaborate, feeling like silk against my skin.

“Can you speak?” The young man asked impatiently, and I turned my eyes back to him. If there was any indication that I was somewhere else, it was because of him.

Firstly, the guys at home wouldn’t let their hair grow down to their lower backs (some might have, but it was rare), and they didn’t wear giant robes like his either. The dagger he held against my chin was covered in jewels and made from some precious metal that I wasn’t going to bother guessing.

Instead of answering him verbally, I simply nodded, wondering why his satisfied smile at my response made my heart beat just a little faster.

“Good. Now, answer every question I have. Immediately.”

I nodded again, being sure not to move my head too much since I didn’t want to accidentally stab myself.

“How did you get in my room? Who sent you?” He questioned, staring into my eyes intently.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly because I actually didn’t.

He frowned, giving me a skeptical look, “You don’t know how you got here? Or you don’t know who sent you?”

I shook my head, “No one sent me, but I don’t know how I got here either.”

He gave me a frustrated sigh, “That doesn’t make any sense. Aren’t you here to kill me?”

“Kill you? No! Why would I want to kill you?” I gave him an incredulous look and he narrowed his eyes once again, tightening his hold on my waist.

“Who doesn’t want to kill the firstborn Prince of the Onyx Kingdom?” He asked sarcastically, as if his rank and status were common knowledge. If he actually was a prince, of course, it would be.

“Onyx… Kingdom?”

The prince holding me closely finally moved the dagger away from my face, a smile lighting his intense eyes, “If you’re not here to kill me, perhaps… Did my Father send you as a present?”

Despite my situation, I glared at him, feeling annoyed by his suggestive tone, “A present? What kind of freaky prince are you?!”

Dropping the dagger on the bed, the Prince gave me a devilish smirk that made me weak in the knees. He wrapped his other arm around my waist, dragging me closer to his chest, “Oh, you must be a gift. A very special one.”

“I’m not! Let me go, ert!” I shouted, wiggling against him while he laughed at my efforts.

“Your Highness, are you all right? I thought I heard a shout,” A voice called from behind a huge set of double doors at the far end of the room.

Both the prince and I turned our gazes towards the door, and the prince smiled at me, pressing his fingers to his lips in a shushing motion. He tucked me into his chest, laying his chin on my shoulder softly.

“I’m fine!” He called over my shoulder, locking his arms at my lower back. I struggled against him, and the prince shook his head gently, hugging me anyway.

“If you’re not an assassin here to kill me, nor are you a gift from my Father, I have no idea who you are or what you’re here for. So then, what shall I do with you, Lovely?” He whispered into my ear, speaking in a low pitch that was y as hell. I could feel my cheeks growing warmer by the second.

“I-I don’t know, but please… Don’t kill me,” I requested, surprised at the desperation in my own voice.

The prince pulled away to get a good look at my face, his expression softening, “I can promise you that your life is safe with me.”

I nodded gratefully, breathing a sigh of relief as the prince finally released his hold on me. I smoothed down my shirt, realizing that I was still wearing my clothes from the night before. I moved away from the prince to finally get a good look at his room.

The bed was upraised on a dais, and with three small steps, I was walking across the dark wooden floor, examining the many silver and gold trinkets resting on wooden tables and shelves around the room. The prince watched me from his bed, his dark eyes following my every step.

To the left of the bed was another upraised area, where a huge oak desk sat, covered in scrolls and stacks of books. There were black rugs and tapestries all throughout the room, covering the dark wood in the onyx color scheme. Hanging behind the poster bed was a giant tapestry of a flaming phoenix against a jet black background. It was like I had stepped onto the set of a historical movie.

I gasped at the sight of a massive vase that was as tall as I was, made entirely of onyx. The prince stood up, finally climbing out of bed to stand beside me. He was certainly taller than I was, but he wasn’t towering over me. He wasn’t as tall as Lucas either.

I turned to examine his dark brown hair that fell like a waterfall down to his lower back. He was dressed in an eggshell colored robe that appeared plain at first, but upon closer inspection had been woven with a beautiful gold thread in delicate designs that spoke of countless hours of work.

“This vase was given to my Mother as a gift at my birth, from the High Priestess of the Jade Mountains.” He explained somberly, staring at me, instead of the giant pottery in front of us.

“The Jade Mountains?”

The Prince didn’t answer my question, staring at me with a funny look, as if trying to solve a puzzle, “Do you have a name, Mystery Girl?”

I gave him a soft smile, laughing at the irony, “I share a name with the mountains here, apparently.”

“So your name is Jade.” He guessed, a warm smile crossing his face. I felt my face getting warm again, too much for my liking, and turned back to examining the onyx vase.

“Yes. And your’s is Prince Onyx, right?” I joked, wondering if I would even be able to pronounce this guy’s name.

The prince laughed, a wonderful sound that was pleasing to my ears, “That is my title, but that’s definitely not my name. How would you tell me apart from all my little brothers?” He chuckled again, drawing my gaze back to his handsome face, “My full name is Wen Junhui, eldest Prince of the Onyx Kingdom.” With a playful smile, Junhui gave me a bow, “Since we know each other intimately, just call me Jun.”

My cheeks were on fire at this point. What did he mean by “intimately”? I opened my mouth to protest the insinuation behind his words, but three heavy knocks at the large double doors caused us both to stand still.

“Your Highness? Your morning meal is ready.” The voice outside called once again. The prince suddenly grabbed my wrist, pulling me behind the giant floor vase.

“Hide here, Jade, and don’t come out until I call you for you. Do you understand?” He asked, and I nodded obediently, crouching to the floor behind the huge object to hide my presence. I heard Jun open his bedroom door to whomever was delivering him a meal, and I listened intently as servant after servant came by to serve him.

As I sat behind the vase, trying not to give my position away, I placed my head against my knees. I closed my eyes and listened to Jun direct his servants this way and that, imagining how he looked while he instructed them.

The longer I sat there, the sleepier I became, until I could feel my head dropping into my lap. The last thing I heard before I fell asleep was Jun’s utensils scraping against a dish quickly. There was silence and darkness for a brief moment, but that quickly gave way to the same blinding white light as before...

I was startled awake to the sound of a door slamming loudly behind me. The tick-tock of hundreds of grandfather clocks surrounded me once again, and I realized I was back inside of the antique shop. Lucas was standing behind a counter this time, cleaning off a pocket watch with a cloth, when he looked up to see me staring at him in confusion.

“Wow! You came back so quickly! You really are new, huh?” Lucas commented, while I shook my head and rubbed my eyes in disbelief. I turned back towards the shop’s back door, twisting and turning the knob, but the door wouldn’t budge.

Lucas sighed, stepping from behind the counter, “You’re not strong enough to go back just yet. You gotta wait ‘til the door opens again.”

“Lucas, please. You have to tell me what the hell is going on! Where did I just go? Where am I right now? What’s happening?!” I begged, desperately trying to make heads or tails of what I just saw.

“You’re dreaming,” Lucas said simply, as if that would explain everything I just saw. It did, but there was no way that this was how people dreamed.

Not that I actually had experience with dreaming anyway.

“Do normal people dream like this? Every night?”

Lucas snickered, “No way. You’re a Dreamwalker, so of course, only you can dream like this. Thank the Gods for that -- I wouldn’t know what to do with that many customers!”

I glared at Lucas, crossing my arms, “This isn’t funny. What the hell just happened to me?”

“Jade, I told you already.” Lucas replied, in an exasperated tone, “You’re a Dreamwalker, so your dreams do just that… They let you walk.”

“Walk where?”

Lucas shrugged, “Anywhere. You can reach any world you want to, if you can find the door.”

“And your door leads to the Onyx Kingdom?”

“Oh, there’s a lot more in my world than just the Onyx Kingdom,” Lucas said with a smile, “But yes, this door leads to the Onyx Kingdom’s world. Other doors lead to other worlds, but you were called to this shop.”

“You mentioned that before,” I recalled, tapping my finger on my chin, “How was I called here?”

“I have no idea.”

I balked, “If you don’t know, then who will?”

Lucas shrugged cluelessly, “I dunno.”

I groaned in exasperation. This conversation was going nowhere fast.

“Ok, another question: why are you dressed like you’re from my world?” I asked, motioning towards his clothes.

“Oh that? Yo, jeans are super comfortable! Those giant bathrobes are annoying and hot.”

I couldn’t fight the giggle that escaped me, “That was a much simpler answer than I expected.”

“A lot of things are simple if you just accept them.” Lucas told me sagely, holding out the pocket watch, “I should be charging you for these things, but since you clearly have no clue what you’re doing, it can’t be helped.”

The pocket watch looked much like the necklace Lucas had given me earlier -- the cover was woven with golden flowers and a jade set right in the center. I opened the watch to find a plain white watch face and black Roman numerals. It was already ticking away the seconds.

“When this watch chimes, you can come back.” Lucas explained, “Until then, save your energy and try to learn more about your powers.”

“My powers?”

Lucas rolled his eyes, “Keep up, Jade! You’re a Dreamwalker! Dreamwalkers have powers. So go find something out.”

I crossed my arms in annoyance, kissing my teeth, “And how the hell am I supposed to do that? If I knew, you think I’d be wasting my time here with you?”

“You’re not the only Dreamwalker in all the worlds, you know? Your kind has left traces in every world. Since you’re here now, that means there was another Dreamwalker in your world at some point. Maybe you even know each other?”

“I have never in my life heard of a Dreamwalker.”

“You’re just a baby compared to someone like me,” Lucas teased, with a grin, “Your life isn’t that long, you know?”

“How old are you, Lucas?” I asked curiously.

“Old enough to know I was alive before your great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great-”

“Ok, ok! I get it, I get it. You’re an ancient guardian.” I cried, holding my hands up in defeat.

“Hey! Don’t call me ancient!” Lucas pouted, his pride wounded by my joke.

“Whatever, Old Man.”

Lucas laughed, “Jade, you better get out of here, or you’re going to feel it in the morning.”

“Feel it in the…? So, I really am dreaming?”

Lucas huffed, “Ugh, you’re not listening at all. Just go.” Lucas waved his hands, shooing me away from him.

“...How do I go back?”

Lucas shook his head with another sigh, moving towards the front of the shop. He opened the door and white light flooded into the shop, “You leave the same way you arrived.”

I slowly made my way towards the door, taking hesitant steps towards the blinding light. When I finally reached the doorway, Lucas chuckled loudly, and shoved me forward into the light again.

I screamed as my body lifted off the ground and soared up into the sky.

End Chapter 2