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Sol Dreaming: Part Three


by 30pets

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Deep in a forest on the outskirts of Neopia Central, a blue Lupe clutching a yellow Shoyru plushie lies with her eyes wide open, wheezing hard.

     "Quack," Captain Quack, the Lupe's Mallard, sighs dolefully. Aquamarine gives the same sort of moan.

     "...Why... Where is he... Who is he... What does he want with my family... Why does he want to get rid of... me...?" Aquamarine says, half asleep. She sighs. It is too sudden. Nothing can go right for her. First her owner leaves, her brother and sister are kidnapped, and some lunatic now wants her dead. What more can go wrong?

     Just then, Captain Quack starts doing what he does best: quacking as if the world would end if he didn't.

     "Not now," Aquamarine gripes. It then hits her that Captain Quack isn't quacking for any reason, but is pointing something out.

     "That way! That way!" the Mallard seems to say. He then gets up and waddles as fast as his legs can carry him. This puts Aquamarine into a better mood. She loves it when Captain Quack attempts to run. She wants to track her petpet, not knowing where she's headed or what the Mallard is up to. So, she gets up and pursues her Mallard.

     After what seems like hours, Captain Quack stops in front of a large building, although he is quacking more softly. "Shh! We're close!" he seems to say.

     Captain Quack turns and faces Aquamarine. The Mallard's eyes suddenly go wide with fear. "Quaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!" the Mallard screeches, then turns and runs into the woods.

     "Wait!" The Lupe hisses to the Mallard, then turns. Her sensitive ears just detected movement behind her. She turns around and gasps.

     A silhouette now faces her, holding what seems like a large branch. Then, the branch is lowered, and then dropped. The figure then runs to Aquamarine, and embraces her in a hug.

     "I'm so glad it's you!" a red Kau cries.

     "Me too... how did you get away?" Aquamarine answers. Ever since she saw only Sunshine enter the room, she apprehensive about the whereabouts of her brother.

     "That doesn't matter," he answers. He lets go of his sister. "All we need to focus on is Sunshine. I already know she's in this building; I saw her being led in. How do we get in without being noticed?" He then goes on about some extravagant plan to get in, but Aquamarine isn't listening. She is more interested in something on the building.

     "How about there," Aquamarine says interrupting her brother. She smiles, then points at a door with a sign that says, "USE THIS DOOR. PRETTY PLEASE!"

     "That works," Maroon says, embarrassed, then says urgently, "Wait, it's probably a trap! Let's use the other one!"

     The Kau points a hoof toward another door that cautions, "BEWARE! DO NOT ENTER!"

     They go in. Maroon leads his sister into the building. Only they don't set foot on hard floor, like expected. Instead, Aquamarine screams as they fall down a chute. Maroon seems totally calm. The chute goes down about fifty feet. Its ending point is in a cage identical to Sunshine's. In fact, it's right next to a cage where a yellow Shoyru is sleeping peacefully.

     "Good. Sunshine's out of harm's way. For now, at least she is. What are we doing here?" Aquamarine inquires to Maroon in a hushed tone.

     "I'm not sure," Maroon responds, but the Kau's voice doesn't sound that way. Aquamarine is rightfully getting suspicious.

     The Lupe doesn't get a chance to reply to her brother. The air fills with some sort of gas, and she falls asleep.

     * * *

     "You're forgetting what I told you," the shadow Sol says. He and Aquamarine are sitting on a cloud again.

     "No, I didn't forget. I listened to what happened last dream, and I followed up on what you showed me! How could I forget!?" the Lupe retorts angrily.

     "No, you remembered that. The first dream. You are forgetting that one; the last part," Sol declares.

     Aquamarine thinks back to the first dream. She recalls the last paragraph of what Sol had said. "Okay, but what am I doing wrong? What isn't the way it seems? You aren't, so why don't you show yourself?"

     "I will show you later if you figure out the rest of the riddle," Sol says bitterly, then continues in a voice a little softer than before, "Think harder!"

     "...The sun holds the key... red will hurt you... and blue shall overcome... but not without the help from family, friend, and foe... the biggest help of all is green... And, all is not the way it seems, including me. That's the last part of the first dream. What does it mean? You're not going to help me, are you?" Aquamarine asks Sol. Sol gives an exasperated sigh.

     "Sorry! I forgot. You helped me there..." After a few minutes of silence, Aquamarine finally gets it.

     "Are you sure?" Aquamarine states seriously, after telling her answer to Sol.

     "I'm confident. I would prove this to you, but it would bring too much harm to you. Plus there are still some things you need to find out for yourself...."

     "Now can you do me a favor by answering five questions for me?"

     "You just asked me one; therefore you technically have four left."

     "I know. Do I look stupid? Anyway, here is my first question: Can I trust you?"

     "Would I answer your questions if I wasn't to be trusted? I don't want to hurt you, Aquamarine. You are already hurt, and there is more pain - both physically and mentally - that you aren't aware of."

     "What are you?"

     "Your language has no word for me, or to accurately describe me."

     "Thanks. Anyway, here is my third question: Are you real, or do you only appear in my dreams?"

     "Yes, I do have a real form in the place you call the Universe. I chose to make my appearance in your dreams first."

     "My fourth question is: What do you really look like?"

     A flicker of a grin appears on Sol's face. "Ah. You finally got to that, eh? Well, I did promise, and I shall show you. Be warned: I am not anything you have seen before; and after I shall show you my real form, you will go back to dreaming.... Also, I communicate through telepathy on Neopia...

     "And concerning you; when you awaken, be prepared for anything. True enough, I will be with you, but I can only help you to a certain degree. You have to do most of this on your own. I haven't told you who He is or why He wants to kill; you need to figure that out on your own. This is your tribulation, and I call only help you so much."

      The form begins to turn into wispy smoke-like shapes. Then they are gone. Where Sol stood, a bright, intense ball of light no larger than a head of a needle appears. This is the true Sol.

     * * *

     Aquamarine stirs. Muffled voices wake her up. She keeps her eyes shut tight. It's a bad dream, she tells herself.

     (No, it isn't.) Sol tells her. The ball of light hovers inches above the ground, next to the blue Lupe. Maroon is nowhere to be seen.

     (You weren't kidding about that telepathy thing, were you? Don't answer that. It was a stupid question. I should have known. So far everything you've shown me has happened,) the Lupe thinks.

     (Yeah, I know. It is both a curse and a blessing of my kind. Comes in handy, doesn't it? Anyway, keep that in mind. Right now you've got a problem. I have to hide. I'm going to hide in your backpack, ok?)

     (It's fine.)

     Sol floats into the backpack. It is then that the voices became clear.

     "Ah, you're awake. I've waited a long time for this moment." The voice is a handsome one, and fairly familiar. It jars her memory.

     Aquamarine continues to pretend to be having forty winks. She is very good at fake sleeping. In fact, it is one of her specialties.

     "You're awake. I know you are. You can't lie to me," the voice tells her. This jars Aquamarine's memory a bit. I could never get away with anything with Dad before. He always seemed to know what I really did... she thinks.

     The Lupe sits up and glares warily in the direction of the voice. There is a person standing there, laughing silently. Then she realizes who it is. Her face turns into a look of mixed horror and shock.

     In a strangled voice, she says, "...Dad...?"

To be continued...

 
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Other Episodes


» Sol Dreaming: Part One
» Sol Dreaming: Part Two
» Sol Dreaming: Part Four



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