Chosen by the Fates

Plan A

Aisling~

We tumble out of the vehicle into the hotel lobby as an exhausted group. When we finally are all sitting down, I check my phone. An entire day has passed since I fell asleep.

That can’t be right.

I check social media to find an entire days’ worth of date and time stamped posts. The same is true with my chat messages. Blinking, I still feel foggy and disoriented trying to make sense of everything.

Is this a dream?

I look slowly around me.

Tiffa is staring out the window at the city below, features knit with worry. Cian is watching her, concern writ across his dark features. Sionainn is lying back on the couch, eyes searching the ceiling. Ashleigh sits beside me, staring out into space.

After so much time in my dreams with the brothers, and practicing lucid dreaming again as an adult, I can feel the difference. This is undeniably my waking life as Aisling.

Looking at my friends, I am filled with worry. Every part of me knows something is deeply wrong. Something terrible has happened.

I don’t know how I slept for so long, but I’m starting to suspect I’ll need to take some time off from work for whatever explanation is incoming when their shock wears off.

Not wanting to disrupt everyone’s silence, I quickly access my work schedule and put my upcoming shifts up for pickup. Worst case I can call in, but it’s better to try and find someone to cover first.   

As I look at my phone, my own thoughts spin.

In my dream that wolf had been Sol. I am certain of it. And the wolf saved me. It didn’t feel like something or someone I had conjured. The dream felt different, it felt more vivid than other dreams, and different from being awake. The wolf even smelled like Sol when I think about it.

If I am correct, that means that somehow Sol is a wolf. Despite what the brothers had said about the amount of energy it takes to shape change.

That means I first saw him hunting that moose, even before the coffee shop. It also means he is the one who saved us in the woods that night I blacked out.

I don’t know how to reconcile the feeling of Sol as my savior from my own hurt feelings about our date. But I do know that even if he hurt me, he could still be a good person if I am right. More than that, there is probably a lot he hasn’t been able to tell me.

Some small piece of me rises up at the thought. This time I don’t squash it down, I feel the hope and longing to know more about Sol. I give those feelings space to breathe within my mind, recognizing them consciously. Then I face that part of me with logic.

Being a good person is a basic qualification for friendship. It does not mean I should date him. That little part of me settles, growing quiet. As if content to just not be ignored.

Looking around, I realize the suite is beautiful with floor to ceiling windows and vaulted ceilings. The kitchen and living room are adjoined in an open layout. It is similarly designed to the one we stayed at in the Metropolis.

I wonder if they are owned by the same company?

I get up, heading to the open kitchen to make tea, coffee, and hot cocoa. I have no clue what anyone will want, but anything seems better than staring off into space.

Occasionally I glance up to check on everyone. They literally haven’t moved, except Cian who has scooched closer to Tiffa protectively. Maybe I should have started off with hard alcohol.

As I return with drinks, it dawns on me that Tiffa looks like she is keeping watch. Her shoulders are tense. She visibly startles at my touch. Her eyes stare into mine for a long time, then she takes the cup of coffee I am offering her. Cian takes hot cocoa.

Sionainn seems to come back to present as I pass him the tea. He smiles at me in thanks. I settle beside Ashleigh after he shakes his head.  

“Okay, so… this probably goes without saying, but why am I missing a day? Why was something shrieking outside our door? Why did we flee our house?” My voice sounds surprisingly calm for all the weird things I feel like I’ve just asked.

“Not that I’m complaining. I missed living in the lap of luxury.” My words are an attempt at a joke, but only Sionainn smiles weakly.

Tiffa turns, looking at Cian. His lips form a tight line, and he drops his gaze. She then looks at Sionainn and Cian. Finally, she looks back to me.

“When you first fell asleep on the couch, I figured you could use some regular rest. I didn’t think anything of it. I just took care of some chores and studying that morning.

The brothers were asleep most of the morning and afternoon in the dreaming or whatever.”

Well that explains part of her exhaustion, Tiffa hasn’t slept yet.

She continues, “But then later in the afternoon the light in the living room seemed to change. I don’t know how to describe it. At first I thought it was just the early winter sunset, but then it seemed to happen faster than usual. It was like everything in the house started getting darker.

I started to worry because you still hadn’t woken up. But we’d been up really late, and everyone was still asleep. I didn’t know if it was ok to wake you up.”

I feel a knot form in my stomach. She was all alone.

Her voice becomes anxious, “As the sun set, all the shadows grew long. I kept catching movement in the corner of my vision, but when I’d look, nothing was there. I felt like I was being watched.

I thought I heard something outside and thought it might be Miss Meow Meow. I hadn’t seen her for a while and thought maybe she’d gotten outside. But when I went to check Miss Meow Meow darted out the front door.”

I feel a small measure of relief knowing that Miss Meow Meow isn’t in the house with that thing trying to break in. She has a thick coat of fur, and we live far enough from the city in the woods that she is used to being outside even in the colder weather and can handle herself well. Hopefully she is off hunting some small winter creature.  

Tiffa’s voice gets quiet, “But when I opened the door, this frigid in rushed into the house, and all the lights went out.

It was scary as all get out. I felt like every shadow around me was moving at me any time I wasn’t looking. By the time I found the flashlights, the brothers were waking up.

Thank the lord.” She laughs nervously at that, then goes on with her story. ”Cian helped me get the circuit breaker flipped, but that’s when the wailing outside began.

Sionainn had me pack and grabbed my keys to go start the car. You woke up just as that thing started pounding on the door.”

“It was the void.” Ashleigh’s tenor is low and grim.

“Oh also, apparently Sionainn is a girl in the dreaming.” Tiffa offers a wane, teasing smile at Sionainn, who laughs with a shrug. She is watching Sionainn curiously as she asks, “But I’m a little curious why you’d choose to present as male now? You’d be just as beautiful as a beautiful woman.”

Tiffa’s tangent is interrupted by Ashleigh’s clipped voice. “I fail to see how that’s relevant?” He is scowling as he snips the words. It feels less like he’s admonishing her, and more like he’s lashing out in frustration about something else.

Before I can call him out, Tiffa is already replying. The smile has vanished from her features, “It’s not… I just…” Her eyes drop.

Everyone here is stressed, and my heart wrenches that her attempt at a light-hearted comment was crushed so readily.

Sionainn shoots Ashleigh a glare, but his voice is gentle as he answers Tiffa. “I’ve been enjoying the experience of being a man. Especially flirting with our little Aisling as one.” He winks my way, eliciting another involuntary blush from me.

Cian takes Tiffa’s hands in his own, “We all have lived many lives, as many people.”

“I thought it was cool.” She smiles weakly at Cian. He holds her gaze for a long moment before leaning in to kiss her deeply. She relaxes completely into him, holding onto him as if he’s a lifeline.

Ashleigh is scowling, eyes on the floor.

Sionainn regards him for a long moment before looking back to me. “We found Adah. Delphi is back in the dreaming. They murdered all of the guardians at Adah’s temple, and almost got to her as well. She escaped with a star stone.”

Sionainn appears to understand my questioning expression, and answers before I can ask.

“It’s a bridge made of pure light. Untouchable by the void.

Adah says – “

“-Claims.” Ashleigh interrupts.

Sionainn’s reply is firm, “Adah has no reason to lie.” Ashleigh averts his eyes at that.

Sionainn continues, “Adah says Delphi is acting of their own accord, and not controlled by the void. Which is unthinkable, since Delphi is wielding the void itself.

Adah will help. But she needs time to come up with some kind of a plan.

Further, it appears the void is somehow manifesting here, in proximity to you. But the question is how, and why?”

I wonder if my dream with Delphi has anything to do with it? But what? Sionainn asked me not to go to the beach or look for Delphi.

Heaving a sigh, I gather the courage speak up about my mistake. “I dreamed of Delphi again. “

Sionainn’s eyebrows go up in surprise. Ashleigh’s eyes have snapped to me.

I drop my eyes from Ashleigh as guilt washes through me. He doesn’t want to hear what I am about to say. I finally understand this is why he’s been on edge all night.

“Delphi tried attacking me. Like they were devouring my energy somehow? -”

Ashleigh makes an angry sound, casting his gaze away from me. Sionainn frowns, worry writ between his brows as he glances his brother’s way.

My voice is hesitant as I continue, “-I don’t think I can control my own dreams with Delphi there.”

Sionainn weighs my words carefully before answering, “Perhaps your shared dream is the gateway somehow.

Which unfortunately leaves us with an unsolvable problem. On this world, physically, we are all simply humans.

We have no way to combat the void here. But we need to buy some time for Adah.”

He looks thoughtful for a long moment before speaking, “How long are you able to go without sleep?”

I recall a few times I’ve pulled all-nighters with friends, “At least 48 hours, maybe more?”

Sionainn nods at that, “Then plan A is we stay here, and you don’t sleep while we come up with a better solution with Adah. One of us will stay awake with you at all times.”

“What’s plan B?” Tiffa’s voice surprises me. I don’t know when she and Cian began paying attention again.

Sionainn looks between us all, “We hope the wolves intervene again.”