what nightmares may come

The cave was as calm and quiet as ever, though the signs of a disturbance were obvious. Kevin sat, perched atop a large rock. Her new fingers seemed to shine in the low light of the cave. Even in the dark, the water hadn’t yet washed away the blood that clung to the cave floor. Poor sweet Dot, she had finally been set free. The body was still, cold, the eyes open and empty. Kevin had no use for them, nor for most of her, but someday, she would feed the earth. The sound of familiar footsteps drew Kevin’s eyes to the mouth of the cave. One of her dreamers had returned. “Queenie, my dear, is that you? It’s so lovely to see you again.” 

Queenie hated this cave. She hated Kevin and her stupid task. She hated Alcher or Ada or whatever name she was going by. The only one involved in this nightmare with a shred of common sense seemed to be Nicole, and even she seemed far too open to the idea that Kevin’s party tricks were actually magic. So she was on thin ice. “It most certainly is not lovely.” Queenie tossed back, unsure how the woman could even pick Queenie out of the darkness. The daylight barely pierced through the turns and narrow passages of the cave. It left nothing but a dim glow in the open space that the group had originally gathered in. She flicked her phone light on and shined it around until she could find Kevin’s figure. “I haven’t gotten any answers. There’s no sign of this piece of jewelry you are looking for! I’ve been doing nothing but wasting my-” Queenie froze when something else came into view from the flashlight. Something was lying on the cave floor. Unmoving. “What the hell. Is that a person?!”

“It was.” Kevin regarded the body. The sadness she had felt with the taking had faded. Dot was gone, her spirit no longer clinging to the damp, chilled flesh. Now there was only peace. She hoped Dot had found it as well. Her smile was placid as she looked back to Queenie. “She wanted to be set free, so I did. It is better this way. There was so much pain, so much turmoil wrapped up in her. That has all passed now.” Kevin moved slowly down from her perch, bare feet moving over the floor of the cave toward the pool of water that was never entirely stolen away by the tide. Her new fingers danced across the surface. “Do you require more guidance, Queenie? Or perhaps I can offer you something else. Whatever you wish, I will grant it.”

Queenie hadn’t wasted anytime running over to the body. It was second nature to her. She saw someone injured or unconscious and she immediately investigated. But it only took moments to realize that there was nothing that she could do for this person. Their time had long since passed. The body was ice cold and stiff. Completely lifeless. In the dark, Queenie couldn’t see much beyond that. She didn’t get to examine the body long anyways before she processed what Kevin had told her. That Kevin had done this. That she had released her. “Are you- Did you say that you killed this person?” She felt her chest tighten at the confession. Nothing in Kevin’s tone had changed. She still sounded as casual as she always had. She was still offering her empty promises. “Enough of the wish bullshit! Did you kill her? Are you planning to kill me?”

“I did. Does that upset you?” Kevin stared at Queenie, brows furrowing. Humans were so very strange. They killed each other constantly. What was a bit more death? Dot hadn’t even been like them. With a soft laugh, Kevin shook her head. “Of course not, my dear. You’re one of mine. My hands. I chose you. She was so full of pain, so conflicted. But that is all over now. Is that not better? Now she can find peace.” She took a few slow steps toward Queenie, offering one hand. Perhaps this had been a misstep, selecting Queenie. Her dreams had been so vibrant, so lovely. But she wasn’t ready, she didn’t yet understand… maybe she never would. “She is not all gone, I am putting her hands to use.” Dot no longer had need of them, the grisly remains of her arms were unpleasant, but that was one more necessary evil. 

“Upset me?” The question was so asinine and idiotic that Queenie was momentarily distracted by her fear to be genuinely offended. This woman, this Kevin had always been a frustrating mystery, but Queenie had never considered that she was downright dangerous. She had always pegged her as the harmless unhinged type. “You just confessed to murder. How the hell am I supposed to feel?” Queenie was trapped here. Within this cave, in this darkness, she wasn’t sure how she was going to get away safely. If she didn’t get attacked by Kevin, she could sleep on one of the damp rocks. The exit was slippery and sharp. Kevin said that she never wanted to hurt Queenie, but what else was she going to do? Let Queenie leave this place and head straight for the police station? Queenie was smarter than to believe that. Unfortunately, she was starting to believe that Kevin was smarter than that too. Through the disbelief and adrenaline, that feeling of confusion and anger was starting to wear off. Slowly, fear was bubbling on the surface, slowly making its way through Queenie’s body and threatening to take over entirely. If she waited too long, she would be too panicked to do anything useful. In the darkness, Queenie slid her hands over the ground, looking for something that she could use. She jerked back when her hand cut across something sharp on the ground, and she slowly moved again until she had her palm wrapped around it. A broken piece of rock was what it felt like. Maybe Queenie’s only hope. Using what little bravery she had left, Queenie reached for Kevin’s extended hand and let the woman help her up, cringing when the woman claimed that she was using the dead girl’s hands But that couldn’t be true. Just more delusional rambling. Queenie’s grip on her Kevin’s hand tightened and she used her free hand to lift the rock and jab it down towards Kevin. 

The sharp rock slid through Kevin’s skin, like water through desperate fingers. Not even a scratch was left behind. Still, Kevin found her eyes drawn to the spot. Her lips curled into a frown slowly, her brows knitting together. There was no blood, no pain. Not where she was meant to have been struck anyway. Deeper, in her chest, now there was an ache. She looked to Queenie slowly. “Why? My dreamer, I would never hurt you. Do you not understand? This was for the best.” She stepped back slowly, her hand falling away from Queenie. This was wrong. Her dreamers, her chosen weren’t supposed to be this way. They had been so bright, shining and warm. But now this. Lashing out. Anger. Fear. Queenie was terrified… of her. Kevin looked at her stolen hands. Had the way of things changed so much? Had she made a misstep? No. No, the world had changed too much. Humans had grown too frightful, too distant from what lurked just beyond their reach. “Is this what humans have become,” she mused aloud. “You’re so fearful… so cruel. I thought the world was ready to wake once more. Perhaps I was wrong.”

There was no way to describe the feeling of the rock moving through Kevin. There was no logical way to describe it because it was impossible. Queenie had been cutting into people for ten years now. Never in the way that she had just tried to cut Kevin, but she had the basic idea. She knew exactly how it should feel. The opposition that the body would offer before finally giving way to the blade. Here, there was nothing. No flesh breaking. No blood. No pain. Kevin didn’t even react to the pressure. Any ounce of fight that Queenie had left dissipated instantly. She only had fear now. Maybe fear mixed with confusion. None of this made any sense. How could this even be possible? She could barely register the things that Kevin was even saying to her. “How did… How is this even possible?” Despite the fear, curiosity held onto her mind. All of this time spent in White Crest and she had seen so many things that she had been able to explain. Even when she had to go outside the normal reaches of reality to do it. But this one, this one she had no explanation for. “What do you mean humans? What the hell are you?” She couldn’t believe that she was even asking that question out loud. What the hell was going on?

“I could have given you everything, Queenie, whatever you wished, I would have granted it.” The hurt was welling up. Kevin blinked, her eyes wet, nearly ready to spill over. The air around her shifted, an unnatural chill filling the cave. A cord had been cut. All the wonderful futures, all the dreams she had envisioned for Queenie, for the world, they were severed, drifting into nothing. “I was human once, but I was never like you. You’ve closed your heart to me. To what lies beyond you. You cannot understand it--you refuse to. You could have been so much more. My hands, you were meant to guide them, to help me shape this world.” Tears rolled down her cheeks and fell to the cave floor, leaving tiny scorch marks on the rock. She turned away, stolen arms wrapping around herself, holding tight. “I see now. The world is just like you. It is not ready. It should never have come this far. It must be stopped. You must all go back to sleep. Perhaps you will learn in your dreams.”

Was Kevin… crying? Queenie couldn’t figure out what was happening. All of this talk about granting wishes. About humans. None of it made any sense. It couldn’t make any sense. It just wasn’t possible. But neither was someone being completely unharmed by a rock stabbing into them. Her body was shaking with fear. She had never felt this lost before. Suddenly, nothing made sense. She was questioning everything she had ever seen in this town or back in New York. More than anything, all she could think about was Regan. “I don’t understand. I don’t know what you’re saying to me!” Her voice was whiny, a tone she had never heard from herself before. But one thing did register. Back to sleep. Kevin planned on silencing her. “No! No! Stay away from me! Don’t touch me!” Queenie was fumbling backwards, the darkness hard to navigate. But she had to get away. She had to live.

“Then go!” Kevin hadn’t raised her voice so in hundreds of years. It wasn’t right, the tone discordant, a rumble like thunder shaking the cave. Rejection, it still stung. All she had offered Queenie and now it was being thrown in her face. This was proof. Even her dreamers could turn against her, could be so very cruel. The world was wrong. This town was a broken, bloody thing. It needed to sleep. She would make it so. She lifted a hand, the water rising with it. The sudden surge of water pressed against Queenie’s back forcing her toward the cave entrance. “Tell the others, they are no longer welcome. None of you are. It is time for all of you to go to sleep.”

The farther into the cave one went, the more slippery, the more treacherous the way became. Kevin kept a firm, but gentle grip on Alcher’s hand as she led the way. They didn’t have to go far. She stopped at another rise of smooth, slick stone. Beside it was a deep pool that always seemed to linger no matter the tide. Kevin let Alcher’s hand fall away as she moved to sit beside the pool. With a wave of her hand, a soft light flickered into being beneath the water. It drifted up, ever so slowly to the surface, the cave walls dancing with soft blue light. “Sit with me,” she said, patting the rock beside her. “You’re different than the others. You believe in me. So tell me, dear, what is it you wanted to speak of?”

Alcher followed Kevin farther back into the cave, finding the slickness of the rocks only slightly more difficult to walk along in her bare, human feet. She watched, fascinated, as Kevin called a light from beneath the pool of water she’d sat beside. She sat beside her slowly, staring at the light bobbing up and down, then at the reflections dancing on the rocks. Her eyes finally settled back down on Kevin. “I grew up in this world,” she answered simply, “I don’t believe either of them did. It’s...not their fault, but the doctor is proving difficult. Nicole is...lost, I think.” Her brows knit together. “Even though she is not like me, I know she is different, too. I’d like to help her, I think. But--” she looked sternly to Kevin, “--I want to know about your abilities. What can you tell me? If we’re to forge this trust, I want to know.”

Kevin nodded. She had noticed the same. “I understand. Humans, those like Queenie, they have such difficulties with us. It’s easier for them to wrap themselves in their gentle delusions. I hope, one day, she might wake up properly.” Head tipping to one side, Kevin blinked slowly. About her? How curious. This new world found her so much more interesting than the one she had left behind centuries before. “My abilities? I will tell you all that I am able to, my dear. In truth, I don’t know what I am fully capable of now. I’ve been asleep for so very long. In some ways it’s strengthened me, but in others, I fear I have decayed. What else do you wish to know? I’ve no secrets to keep, not from you.”

“We can only hope,” Alcher said back, trying to withhold her disdain of humans for now. She didn’t want Kevin to think poorly of her, until she was sure she had similar thoughts. But then again, Kevin had chosen the human herself. Perhaps this would be more difficult than that. “So, then, what were you? Back before you slept? Do you know how long ago that was?” She paused, wondering if she should wait for those answers or ask what else was on her tongue. She decided she couldn’t quite wait. “And-- the sleepwalking. It-- has not ended for me, and the others. Why is this happening to us? I’ve--” she bit her tongue slightly, afraid of the next words in that sentence, “I’m afraid I might hurt people.”

“I can hardly recall. I was a witch, I think, but I always meant to be more. So I found power and made it mine.” Kevin frowned, thinking. Time was such an odd little thing it moved and swayed and refused to hold its shape. She had never been particularly good at keeping it. “Long before we harnessed lightning and had anything more than a horse or our legs to take us from place to place. I’m afraid I can’t recall the year.” Though her hands were the wrong shape, they could still be kind, gentle. She touched Alcher’s arm carefully. “You won’t. Where you walked at first was my will, but more and more, it can be yours. I’m sorry, it was my doing that it began. I needed help. But you have done more than your part. If you wish to stop, I can make it so, but know that I would never let any harm come to you while you’re walking in your dreams.”

If someone gives to you, it is a gift, little one. And you should accept it, faults and all. Alcher’s father’s words rang in her head as she listened to Kevin. The pained look upon her face when she tried to recall her closest memory of time, or the way her brows drew together when she felt worry over Alcher’s words. The gentle touch of her arm, ice cold fingers on her skin. Alcher had been given a gift by Kevin, chosen to wander in her hours of sleeping in order to help a higher purpose. For something greater than herself. That was Alcher’s duty in life, and perhaps every moment of it had been leading up to this moment. “No,” she finally said, astute in her words, “I don’t wish it to stop. I will learn to control it, this gift you’ve given me. I will learn to use it, to help you. Whatever you need.” Because, perhaps, maybe she, too, was still searching for where she belonged, for what her life was meant for.

Warm smile on her face, Kevin gently touched Alcher’s cheek. So sweet, so understanding. What a beautiful creature her dreamer was. “Thank you. That means more to me than you know, my dear.” The world wasn’t ready for her to return to it, not yet. Her dreamers would have to pave the path, find what she needed to make it hers once more. “Your dreams hold power, you know. Yours are bright, they gleam, brighter than the stars. Have you tested them? When you walk in your dreams, have you pressed at the limits? You ought to try, darling.” Her hand fell back to take Alcher’s again, fingers squeezing gently. “Is there anything you wish me to give you? I can do a great many things, ease pain, tug at fate, bring your dreams to life. You and the others have done much for me. I wish to return the favor.”

Alcher felt a warmth spread from where Kevin touched her cheek, and she was reminded of her mother, and the warmth she always gave her children. “Of course. I understand this world, I understand how it works. Better than most. It has taken so much from me, but it has also given me purpose, given me life. If I am chosen for a greater purpose, then I will accept this gift.” Tested her dreams? She was not aware of what that really meant, but she supposed she could try. If there was something she could do with her dreams, then she wanted to know. “I will give it a try, then,” she agreed, watching Kevin take up her hand. The offer felt strange. “I...do not know the limit of your powers. There are many things I wish for. Right now, I simply want safety for my pack. Everything is so tenuous. Some of them are so lost. I just want to be able to give them the proper guidance.” 

“This world is quite a cruel one, isn’t it? It’s never understood people like us. We have to take control of it where we can, bend it to our will. You and I, my dear, we have the strength to shape it to our liking. We must.” Alcher was certainly meant for greatness. Kevin could feel it, the possibilities, a dozen strands of fate dancing about her. All Alcher would need to do is pick a few and start tugging and the whole of it might unravel. “Your pack? Ah, you’ve a family? How lovely, my dear. Are they one you’ve made or chosen? Or a bit of both? Let me see what I might do.” Kevin let her gaze drift about the cave. The water gleamed. Ah, that would work. She took a smooth rock from the cave floor. With a soft breath, she took it in her hands, reshaping it, forming a small bottle. One hand rose and water moved with it, lifting from the puddles on the cave floor. Kevin muttered ancient words and the water began to glow as it shifted through the air, twisting and turning until it found home in the bottle. Exhaling slowly Kevin shaped another stone to stop up the opening before offering the bottle to Alcher. “Have your pack drink of this water. It will help them find their way when they stray from the path.”

“Cruel doesn’t even begin to describe it,” Alcher murmured, a deep pain evident in her voice. “But the world can also be kind, and powerful.” Kevin might have been new to this time, this place, but Alcher could tell she was older and wiser beyond the youth of her body’s face. “I agree. We must take what is ours.” Whatever it was Kevin was, whoever she had been, Alcher was proud to know they shared these thoughts. “I found them. I want nothing more than to help them, guide them, so that they can grow into proud, strong wolves. I want them to feel safe in this world, I want them to have what I never did.” And she wanted them to have the strength and the will to do what she never could-- live a life free of hunters. At least here, perhaps. She held out her hands and took the bottle offered to her, watching in awe as Kevin crafted magic from the Earth itself. Her hands wrapped around the cool bottle. “Thank you,” she said, “I will not forget this kindness. Anything you need in return, I will do for you.” 

“The world is complicated. I suppose it always has been, but… it is different now. There is so much more to take in, to understand.” Kevin shook her head faintly. Not for the first time, she wondered if it might be too much, this world, if it had grown too far beyond her. But there were still some things she recognized, strength, love, both poured out of Alcher. She took Alcher’s hands, her smile warm. “You’re giving them all you can, Alcher, I can see that. Take care of them, teach them. That is the most we can do for anyone, pass on what we know, let them have as much of us as we can give.” The magic was potent, enough for the entire pack. It would serve them well. “I thank you, my dear. There is little I need at the moment, except… tell me of this world. What do you make of it? I have seen so little of what it has become. So much has passed me by.”

Alcher listened to Kevin’s words and felt the pang of her disconnect. Alcher had at least been around to watch the world turn into what it was, and even she felt a disconnect from it. She couldn’t even imagine Kevin’s loss. She pondered a moment. “The world is...detached now. Cold. Everyone is so concerned with themself and what they want from life. Community...barely exists anymore. It’s a selfish, distant world that I do not understand all the time. And the world is full of those who deny us, the supernatural, and choose their seemingly blissful ignorance over the truth. They are cowards.” She finished, looking over at Kevin reassuringly. “But there is good in this world. There are still those who give their whole selves to making this world better. Safer. Those who care for the world over themself. The trees and the rivers and the animals that roam it. They are few and far between, but they’re here.”

The cave was made of whispers. Kevin could hear them, drifting about, calling to one another. It was so very lovely. She sat in the dark, tucked in between a pair of rocks. They were smooth, worn soft by the waves. If only she could feel them properly. What should have been hands brushed over the surface. The sensation was dull, distant. Her smooth, willowy arms had served her well in her prison beneath the waves, but now they weren’t right. Weren’t what she needed. They weren’t dexterous things that were proper for spells. But that was alright, she would remedy the matter soon enough. Her dreams had slipped free, reaching out, finding willing minds. And one was drawing close. Any moment now one of her darlings would join her. All there was to do was sit and wait. 

Dot didn’t usually dream such lovely things. She dreamt of blood and feeding, dreamt of family leaving, dreamt of herself trapped. This dream was peace, it was cool air against her flushed skin, it was the ocean singing as it kissed the sand, it was irresistible. Her bare feet carried her sleeping body to the cave, to where her dream laid. Finally, blinking awake, the siren blurrily recognized that this was not her room. The frigid breeze that blew through, left her covered in goosebumps. Finally, she took in the woman in front of her. “Hey! You were in my dreams!” She was pretty sure she wasn’t dreaming right now.

There she was, her sweet dreamer. Kevin rose slowly, drifting toward Dot, a warm smile on her face. “I was indeed, my love. You’re even more stunning in person. Come, sit with me. Tell me of yourself. I saw only a glimpse when we met in your dream.” She perched atop a large, smooth rock, patting the spot beside her. Maybe it was not the best spot for a conversation, but the cave didn’t provide many comfortable places to recline. Still, it would do. The gentle motion of the waves outside was peaceful, soothing. They were so far from wandering eyes, the sun just beginning to set. Such a lovely time of day. “It has been some time since I visited you, you must tell me what you’ve been up to.”

This town always made Dot’s skin buzz with excitement. People were constantly doing strange things, showing her a deeper part of the supernatural world. Yeah, sometimes all she wanted was her mom, but she couldn’t regret her path when it showed her this. Her colony had hidden away the coolest parts of this world. She preened at Kevin’s words, always one to be distracted by compliments. She settled next to Kevin, her head tilted to the other woman. “What’s there to say?” She loved herself, but she hated the question. She wasn’t sure how to sparknotes her life, she couldn’t categorize the important things she went through. “Well, I’m deciding if I should quit school. It was cool at first but I don’t like it anymore.” She picked at the rock, her fingernails gliding over the smooth surface. “How do you get into my dreams?”

“Oh? What sort of school are you attending? I’m afraid I am a bit out of touch with the state of things. I was asleep for so very long, the world spun on without me.” A touch of melancholy slipped into Kevin’s voice. The long sleep had not been her choice. She had been trapped, a prisoner in her own dreams. Still, she had put the time to good use. Her eyes followed the motion of Dot’s hand, such a lovely thing. “Magic, my dear. Are you familiar with it? Dreams were always my specialty. I feel them calling to me and I simply follow where they lead. Your dreams are particularly loud, my darling. I find that the loudest dreams have need of me, or I of them. I’ve not quite determined which you are.” Though she was starting to form an idea. 

Dot waved a hand, “Master’s of Education. I was going to be a teacher.” Was, wasn’t that an answer in itself that she should give up with it? She had no path now, hadn’t for some time she supposed, but she had thought finally found a new path through Lydia. Then it had all gone wrong and Lydia had left town after being found out. She eyed Kevin for a long moment, “How long is very long? Very long to me is ten hours, but I don’t think you mean that.” She knew that the other woman didn’t, in this town things were not so simple. It’s chaos, and danger, is what kept Dot here even when she was tempted to wander away. “Magic? I thought that people who said they did magic were just humans who wanted to feel special.” She had met a few at the one of the supernatural bars in town. Her nails stopped scraping against the rock for a moment, contemplating what loud dreams could mean. She had always been loud, her dreams would fit that, but she hadn’t thought that dreams could be so loud that others could feel them. There was so much in the world her colony kept from them to ensure that each siren thought they were special. “What happens if they need you? Or when you need them?”

She was? So that dream had passed. Kevin nodded, a soft hum resonating. She could sense no more dreams from Dot. Curious. Her path had brought her here… perhaps this was where it was meant to end. She laughed softly. “Decades, centuries. I still can’t quite believe what year it is.” Even the year two thousand seemed rather absurd, and they were now well past that. She would not sleep through another millenia. One of her hands moved to rest gently over Dot’s. Her own was a strange, misshapen thing. It wasn’t what it wanted to be. But it could be replaced, most things could. “Oh, magic is far more than that. Do I seem human to you, my dear? I think… I may have been once, but I don’t feel like much of one anymore.” She rarely thought of such things. What people were was so much less important in dreams. What mattered was what they could be, what they could create. “It depends. If they need something of me, I will see that it is done. If I need something of them, I can offer a favor in return. There’s a balance to these things. Need and want, push and pull. The tide comes in and goes out again. Is there something you would ask of me, my dear?”

The siren mulled over the word century for a long moment, there were a lot of strange people in this town, Dot supposed she could imagine that someone could live for so long. Did that make Kevin some undead thing? They didn’t die like other people did. She watched Kevin’s hand closely, it looked wrong. Why did it look so wrong? She wondered what could have happened to make it so deformed like that. “I don’t think you seem human,” She replied, her tone indicating that that was meant as a compliment. Nothing was worse than being human to Dot. Kevin could see that anything was done if people asked for it? The possibilities flashed through mind as she considered the meaning of this. Licking her lips, she looked toward Kevin with wide, tentatively hopeful eyes. “I want to be free. I don’t want to have to go to school or work. I don’t want to get in trouble when I hunt or break the rules. I’m tired of living to everyone else’s standards,” The words tumbled from her, thoughts that had been stirring in her for sometime finally having a reason to come out. “Can you do that?”

“Kind of you to say, my dear.” Kevin beamed. Long ago, she had resented humanity, her own most of all. The why had been worn away, too many years of dreams. Humans now were different than they had been in some ways. But in others, they remained just the same. Even so, there was no more room in her heart for hate. Not for them anyway. “Freedom? Ah, what a sweet dream. It takes many forms, you know. Freedom can be found in so many things. But, if that is what you wish me to give you, I can. Will you let me?” There was freedom in dreams. In life, it was so often fleeting. One could fly from one cage only to be caught in another. But there was one place, one way, that freedom could be all. Could be everything. She smiled warmly at Dot, holding out her hands. “If you wish to be truly free, close your eyes, and let me take your hands, my darling.” 

As a child Dot had heard other little girls cry that they wished they were birds so that they could fly away and be free. She had watched the birds after those girls ran away, but she didn’t see freedom. They followed a pattern just as everyone else did. Birds didn’t have freedom because of their wings, just as Dot didn’t have freedom because of her’s. They were all stuck in their cycles. Those who saw freedom when they watched the birds weren’t looking close enough, didn’t see how wings were no match for shackles. “That’s what I wish,” She said softly, placing her hands in Kevin’s. She closed her eyes, dreams of freedom swimming behind her lids. Free to choose what she wanted, freedom to go where she pleased, and finally free from the feeling of being incomplete. She wouldn’t need anyone after this, she wouldn’t need anything soon enough. 

That was all Kevin needed to hear. She gave Dot’s hands a gentle squeeze and began muttering softly under her breath. Her misshapen fingers traveled up Dot’s wrists, gentle, almost caressing until she reached just below the bend in her arm. She clamped down hard, bones snapping like twigs beneath her hands, the crunch of it echoing through the cave. Crunching turned to tearing, to squelching as flesh tore away from flesh, blood spurting over the cool rocks, mingling with the water. Shattered fragments of bone gleamed in the low light as Kevin tore Dot’s arms away, her spell preserving them from the breaking point down, the fingers still twitching in her grasp. “There, my dear. In but a few moments, you will be free.”

Days had passed in a blur since the last time Nicole stood outside the cave. The month gone had not provided any clarity on the events that transpired that night. All she had was a hazy memory and the sleepwalking issues to show for. The only proof it had all been real. As she slipped for a third time climbing the rocks to reach the cave, part of her wished she was still asleep. When the doctor had proposed for all three to meet she had been reluctant. It seemed pointless. She didn’t expect a real answer unless they managed to find Kevin. Her stomach twisted into a nervous knot that tightened at the uncertainty of what they would find out. She spotted the other two close to the entrance, picking up her pace to meet them. She couldn’t remember their faces, despite the time they had spent together. She didn’t expect them to remember her either. How odd it felt, to be connected by something yet not knowing anything about the other. She raised an eyebrow in acknowledgement, biting the inside of her cheek. Her eyes averted to the inside of the cave, which appeared flooded, unlike the last time. “This feels— it’s bizarre” her hands were deep in her jacket’s pockets, expecting someone else to take the lead. “Guess you’re Queenie and…” was it Alcher? No. She didn’t want to be called that. “Ada?”

Despite being in a state of unconsciousness, Queenie was surprised to learn that she could easily find the cave again. Being back at the entrance didn’t feel familiar in the slightest. Her memory had only started after she had been inside the cave and yet somehow she had been able to retrace her steps here as if she had strolled past the place yesterday. The whole thing should be increasingly concerning, and it certainly raised plenty of alarms. However, Queenie was so stubbornly fixated on gaining answers so she could make sense of the entire situation that she shoved aside any worries and instead focused on the facts. She had woken up with two others in a state of trance. A fourth person was there and had them complete odd tasks. After that they went home. It wasn’t much to go on, yet with the small lead she did have, the three had found each other and made their way back to the cave it had all happened at. That must mean something. “Yes, that’s me. So you’re Nicole and Ada then? Nice to meet you in person, or officially meet you I suppose. Before we head in, anybody remember anything post our online conversation that we should know?”

Facing the unknown was a part of life Alcher was not entirely prepared for. Her father had taught her how to prepare for any situation, but it seemed his knowledge of what could possibly happen didn’t extend to things like sleepwalking to a cave and resurrecting a faceless figure. And so, Alcher found she needed to go and figure this out on her own, and with a little help from the two others who had shared this experience. When she made it to the cave, Queenie had already been there, and they’d stood for a moment in silence until Nicole, the third, had shown up. Nicole smelled of something distinct that Alcher could not entirely place. But she knew the scent, and she knew her memory would provide her the answer soon enough. For now, they would focus on this. “I cannot say that I remember anything, whenever I try to talk to other people about what happened, I find the memory has...vanished,” she answered, glancing between the two.

“That’s my— yeah…” Nicole nodded in confirmation, relieved once the doctor spoke. Was it nice to meet them? The verdict was still out on that one. Out of the two, she was wary of the doctor's reaction if they were to find the truth. She seemed in denial when they had talked. She was bound to be shocked. When the other woman began to speak, Nicole’s eyes finally landed on her. Her double take lacked any subtlety. There was a scent, something not human. She had to be mistaken, right? Maybe it was the wind, carrying that from the beach. Or— She shook her head, concentrating. She couldn’t ask —not that she ever would have— there were more pressing matters at hands. She rolled back her shoulders to ease some tension, eyebrows knit together as she tried to tune her out. Eyes trained on the ground, she started thinking. Her memory had always been terrible, but now she had the added mental fog that prevented her from talking to others about that night. “I uh— I remember that person,” her name escaped her in that moment, “she was— she was nice, I think...or sounded it at least” nice was a strange way of describing someone who had manipulated them while unconscious. “We all came with...we were carrying shit, no?” she figured connecting every version of the story was a good place to start. They could recreate some of those actions when they entered the cave. 

“Funny, I’ve also had trouble remembering the details of that night. And yet when I spoke with you I could remember things a bit more clearly.” Queenie admitted the odd coincidence, though she wasn’t willing to acknowledge that it meant anything. It was true that people tended to remember things better in familiar environments to the one they experienced things in. Perhaps that had simply been the case while talking with Nicole and Ada. That seemed more likely than selective amnesia or something like that. “Kevin. That was the name.” Queenie had never been able to recall the name until talking with Ada. Even now, when she considered discussing the event with her husband the memories seemed to fog up again. That was concerning for obvious reasons. “Sure, if you consider guiding us through some weird cult ritual in a cave to be nice. I don’t.” Though Queenie vaguely remembered thinking the opposite that night. As far as Queenie had been concerned, she would have done anything to help Kevin achieve her goal that night. “Yes. I used the pen to… write nonsense on the three of us.”

“Kevin,” Alcher repeated, tilting her head as she said the name. It was all so clear now-- Kevin, and the sleepwalking, and the lightbulbs. They’d all come here with something different each and handed them to Kevin, who had been so happy, so excited for them to be there. To help her. Alcher stepped forward, the darkness of the cave blacking out her vision. But she didn’t need it. The other two were still talking things through, but Alcher trudged along, following the familiar scent. “This way,” she pointed, looking back over her shoulder at the other two, waiting for them to follow but not instructing them quite yet. She had patience, but she did have more curiosity. More of a need to know what had really happened that night and why they had left with marks upon them. Alcher rubbed the spot on her ribs where she’d been written upon. “Heart,” she answered, the word suddenly coming to her, “you wrote the word Heart on me. I...think.”

No, a cave ritual didn’t sound nice. Nicole shook her head, regretting her initial words. Kevin had been persuasive, if anything. They hadn’t had any chance but to do as told. There wasn’t any reason to suspect anything but good intentions. Kevin. As the other women repeated the name, she realized how familiar it was. That was it. Kevin had been so proud of them, she remembered.  Surprised to see Ada separate herself from them, her eyes followed. A moment later she called out, knowing where to go. After a curious glance at the doctor, she nudged ahead. Carefully, she walked inside. She offered her hand to Queenie, if she needed to steady herself before stepping into the large puddle at the entrance. Though tempting, she didn’t try to adjust her vision to the cave’s darkness. Her heart was at her throat. “Not sure what you wrote...but it was on my forehead”. If ‘heart’ was written on Ada’s ribs, maybe hers followed the same logic. “Something mind related, maybe” eventually she caught up with Ada. “Still doesn’t explain— the ritual. Don’t know about you...but I’ve never heard or done anything like it”.

Though nothing seemed familiar at the time, Ada reminding Queenie of the word heart jump started the memory. She had written something different for each of the three, Queenie’s own arms had said hands. What had possessed Queenie to write those things on people she hardly knew? Nothing about that night made sense. She wanted answers. But she was concerned that coming back to this cave was just going to leave her more confused than ever. Slowly making their way into the cave, Queenie accepted Nicole’s hand to climb through the area. “Can’t say I’ve ever been part of any ritual. Certainly not willingly.” That night in the cave had been no different, correct? Even if Queenie had been going along with Kevin’s commands, they still hadn’t been willing. Queenie in a normal state of mind would never entertain anything crazy like that. “I’m still suggesting that we were hypnotized or perhaps drugged in some way. Otherwise, nothing about this makes any sense.” As the three ventured further into the cave, Queenie was growing less and less patient, “What are the chances that we will even run into this Kevin person anyways? I hope we are not just wasting our time here.”

The cave had visitors once more, her dreamers had returned. Kevin could feel them, moving about, asking such wonderful questions. The ritual had been a success, but it was only one of many more to come. Her powers were returning, slowly, but surely. She rose from where she had been resting, feet quiet as they carried her into one of the larger caverns. “I’m here, my darlings,” she called. A flick of her hand to ease their way, to make the rocks less slick. It wouldn’t do for any harm to befall her dreamers. They must be protected. Another motion of her wrist and the cavern was filled with a soft, blue light. She would have to see their lovely faces properly. “You’ve come back to me. It is so lovely to see you once more. What can I do for you, my dears? You have already done so very much for me.” 

The voice reached Alcher’s ears before it reached her nose, which was odd for her. Very odd. Her sense of smell was greater than her hearing, than her eyesight-- and yet no scent filled the cave. But as sure as her ears could pick up the sound of Kevin’s voice, her eyes finally focused enough to lay on her form. The other two suddenly didn’t matter anymore, and Alcher moved swiftly over the rocks towards her, as if drawn in. “What-- what are you?” she asked automatically when Kevin opened the floor for them. Her golden eyes drank in the sight of her, trying to remember what she’d looked like the night they’d first found her and why she seemed so different now. “Why did you bring us here that night?”

Nicole let Queenie theorize as much as she wanted, even though she didn’t make any sense. She didn’t think the doctor was prepared to hear any supernatural possibility. Saying Kevin’s name seemed to have an immediate effect inside the cave, the ground turning easier to step in. “Fuck” came out in a hiss. She had not expected to hear that voice again. She breathed out, shuddering as Kevin announced her presence. On a second thought, she was fine not getting answers. She wanted out. Instead, she remained rooted to the spot, because her desires and her actions could never agree on something. Ada seemed to have her questions ready. She had to admire her decisiveness. On the other hand, her thoughts were all jumbled together. Only one thing stood out for her. She had to know if they had been randomly selected, or if there was something else, something deeper.  “Why...” she peeked behind the other woman’s figure, voice smaller. “Why did you choose us?” 

A light from inside the cave caught the three’s attention quickly. Despite all logic stating otherwise, the person that Queenie and the others were searching for was inside this cave. How long had they been here? The place hardly seemed sustainable for somebody to live in. Queenie had been hoping to run into this Kevin figure again, and yet the moment Kevin spoke and announced themselves, Queenie was left with even more questions. The two were quick to launch into questions. What are you? Queenie’s eyes darted toward Ada with an incredulous look flashing across her face. What sort of question was that? Both Ada and Nicole seemed dead set on this person standing in front of them being some type of supernatural, mythological figure with mind control powers or something equally outrageous. Instead, Queenie saw someone with an unassuming disposition and even more boring name taking advantage of the creepiness of the cave and her lowlighting to make this exchange seem more ominous than it needed to be. “I want to know how you managed to get the three of us here in the first place.” She wasn’t willing to accept that Kevin had somehow been responsible for the sleepwalking. But even that was too coincidental for Queenie to ignore completely.

So many questions, so many lovely questions. What thoughtful dreamers they were, so curious, so considerate. Kevin motioned them forward as she gracefully sank to the floor of the cave, sitting and stretching out her legs. “Join me, won’t you, my loves? I will tell you all you wish to know,” she said, with an open, earnest smile. “I am not so strange, my dear. I am… what you would call a caster, or I once was. I am something more now, though even I cannot say just what. Your question, Alcher, and yours, Nicole are one and the same. I could feel your dreams, your wandering minds calling to me. Each of you is a lovely little spark, so bright. I wished to see the light of you so close. And my darlings, believe me, you glow.” Her kind eyes turned to Queenie. Belief was difficult, Kevin knew that well, and faith was more complicated still. “I’ve always had a talent for it, darling, pulling at dreams. I touch something in there and it draws the dreamers to me. It was once a spell, but now it is easier than keeping my eyes open. Now, I have answered your questions, may I ask something of you, my loves?”

Tentatively, Alcher moved forward at Kevin’s request. Somehow, she knew not to fear her. Knew that Kevin would never harm her, or the others. It was an inherent instinct she supposed wasn’t part of the other two. They were both skeptical and wary, and though Alcher took note of Nicole hiding behind her, she did not acknowledge it yet. As she moved, she turned back to the younger woman and held out her hand. “She won’t hurt us,” she said, urging Nicole to join her-- and Kevin-- at the center and sit. She listened intently to Kevin’s answer. A spellcaster. Or, someone who used to be. Someone who was something more now. Alcher didn’t know much about magic, but she understood enough to know that whatever Kevin was now, it was far beyond human. She was one of them. At the request to ask something of them, Alcher glanced between the other two. “My answer is yes, but only if the other two agree,” she stated firmly.  

The pet name made her Nicole’s skin crawl. She was trying not to judge her unconscious self too hard, but how did Kevin make her feel at ease that night? She didn’t move, despite the invitation to join her. Despite Alcher’s assurance that it would be okay. She seemed more prepared than the rest. Apprehensive eyes fixed on her hand, her gut telling her to follow the woman. Instead, she shook her head. She wasn’t sure what a caster was, and it didn’t matter much to her, but she let Alcher satisfy her curiosity. “I haven’t called anyone” she scoffed, that didn’t answer her question fully. Why them? Why not other little sparks or whatever bullshit she was spewing. It wouldn’t mean much, but at least she could find some comfort if it was only them who could have fulfilled the tasks. That they didn’t risk their lives arbitrarily. She couldn’t bother with the rest. The dream pulling, it was all insane. She glanced tentatively at Queenie, who had to be struggling even harder to comprehend all of it. For once she thought she might be the voice of the reason. Alcher was expecting all of them to agree to more nonsense. “How do we know— how can we trust you— you kinda, you crossed a line already”. Did she really think one answer would be enough?

Perfect, so this Kevin person wasn’t a mastermind manipulating the three of them, Kevin was simply psychotic. A caster. Queenie had no idea what that was supposed to mean, but the casual mention was enough to elicit a small chuckle from Queenie. This had all been a coincidence. A wildly unrealistic but technically plausible coincidence. This person just happened to be around the cave and noticed the three sleepwalking. It had to be something like that. The laugh morphed into a scowl as she remembered that they had willingly come back to this cave just to be dicked around by Kevin again. But they were here, and Queenie was genuinely curious to see just how far they planned on taking this. And just how dumb her two colleagues were. “I’ll admit I’m curious though,” Queenie interjected, adding onto Nicole’s statement. Kevin had crossed a line. But she had peaked their interest, “I’d like to hear the question, personally.”

Sweet Alcher, so understanding. The other two were more distant, Kevin could feel it even now. That was alright. Not everyone took to it easily, they weren’t yet ready to see the truth, to truly wake. Still trapped in their own little dreams. She looked to Nicole, her smile soft. “My apologies, I meant no harm. I am unused to the way of things. I was asleep for so very long, it seems the world went right on spinning without me. But I mean you no harm, dear. If you do as I ask, I will grant whatever favor you wish in turn. Would that be a fair exchange?” She had that power, or she would, once she found what was hers, once her lovely dreamers returned it to her. “I’ve lost something, an amulet. It is very precious to me. I believe it is here, somewhere in this town. If you find it for me, I will give you anything you wish.”

Nicole’s hesitance felt strange to Alcher. She could tell Nicole was something beyond human, unlike the strange doctor who had written upon her ribs. Alcher’s hand went up to the spot where she had drawn upon her and she recalled the strange warmth it brought her. Why were the other two so opposed to this? Of course they had been chosen, they were all special. Alcher just hadn’t figured out how. She looked back at Kevin, giving a short nod. “Sounds fair to me,” she answered, frowning slightly. She looked back over at Nicole. “And what, may I ask, has she done to garner your distrust? Kevin has never hurt us, and she’s willingly answered our questions. What reason do we have to fear her?”

Queenie voicing her curiosity made her stomach twist. If the doctor was on board, then that didn’t leave her with a lot of options. Was she about to be peer pressured into doing some strange creature’s bidding again? Definitely. Nicole listened then, as Kevin explained her actions. Being asleep for long, the world spinning without her. Her throat felt heavy. Fuck it, why did that resonate with her? “I don’t… I don’t want anything. Whatever” she said weakly, turning her back to them to gather her thoughts. She hadn’t expected to be addressed by Alcher. The question was uncomfortable. Being put on the spot sent her heart racing. “The— she…” she huffed, pointing at Kevin. Were they not sent to sleepwalk around town in search of crazy items? How was that not dangerous? She woke up with somebody’s bones in her hands. She could’ve been arrested. Could’ve crashed her car. Her mouth opened and closed more times, as she scrambled for the words that refused to come out. “But…how can you— ” she clenched jaw, glaring at Alcher. She let out a sharp breath, shrugging. It was pointless. “We’re really gonna get this amulet...aren’t we?”. Maybe that was fine. Maybe Kevin would let them alone if they did. That would be her wish.

Now Kevin was offering favors? How provocative. Queenie rolled her eyes at the empty promises. She’d love to read the fine print on that verbal contract. And what exactly did Kevin mean by asleep for so very long? Had she been in a coma? Maybe that was why they seemed so disorienting and out of this time period. “So let me get this straight, you want us to find some mysterious amulet for you? And if we find it you’ll ‘owe us big time’?” Queenie gave air quotes around the phrase and crossed her arms. The obvious thing to do would be to scoff, insult Kevin followed by berating Ada for even considering the deal before dragging Nicole out of there so the two could laugh the entire scenario off over brunch. Queenie wasn’t going to claim that Nicole seemed completely sane, but her apprehension definitely gave a better look than her other two options. But yet, the idea had intrigued her. “I assume you have a lead for us then? The town isn’t huge, but we certainly need more to go on if we are expected to find an amulet.”

“Indeed, Queenie,” Kevin said, smile growing. Even though the doubt, the distrust rolled off them in waves, Nicole and Queenie were ever so dependable. She was so very lucky to have them. A brief frown passed over her face, even as she nodded. “I believe I do. It is… difficult. The amulet has been masked from me. If I could find it, I would not ask such a thing of you. But I believe it has been unearthed… or will be soon.” Time was so difficult. In dreams, it was fluid, the past winding around to meet the future, the present in all things. The waking world was rigid, full of hard lines, strict rules. “Here, if you will allow me, I will imprint it in your minds. You will know it the instant you see it. But you must be careful, there are others seeking it, they will try to keep you from it. The words I gave you before, they will protect you when you find the amulet, it will cast away those who have not been granted permission. Alcher, dear, if I may touch your hand?” 

Alcher’s patience for the doctor was beginning to wear. So human, so ignorant, enveloped in her denial. She’d met plenty of people like her, who stuck their heads in the sand , and it only ever ended in tragedy. If Kevin hadn’t taken a liking to her, Alcher would have probably eaten the doctor by now, despite their “civil” conversation. She, instead, turned her focus back to Nicole. “Yes, I think we are,” she answered, “plus, once we’re done, you can go on your way, no?” Again, she motioned for the younger girl to sit near her. Glanced to look back at Kevin, listening intently to her explanation. She could understand needing to find something lost, she’d searched so long for her own loss, after all. Held out her hand without hesitation. “I’ll find this amulet for you,” she said firmly, her eyes set and rigid. Even if the others did not help, this was something Alcher could do. This was something Alcher felt she must do.

Nicole didn’t like that the doctor was asking for more details on the amulet, but she was not about to object and risk being put on the spot again. She kept her mouth shut, hands on her hips as  Kevin offered more information. The more she learned, the harder it was for her to believe they were choosing to go along with it. That she was willing to go and fetch it for her. Maybe she was still connected to Kevin subconsciously. Maybe it wasn’t her fault. She never had a choice, as soon as Kevin had voiced her desire. It had to be. She mentioned they had to be careful, that others were seeking the same treasure— did that not raise any flags? Alcher called for her again. And her confusion grew. She ignored Kevin’s presence for once, eyes darting between the two older women. This was about the people she had experienced that night with. She worried more for them than she cared for mysterious amulets. She swallowed against the knot in her throat. So where did she sit? With Queenie’s blind disbelief or with Alcher’s unquestioning loyalty. “Uh—” Alcher was right. She would go her own way once it was all over. But at the moment, she couldn’t let the woman do it all by herself. “As long as I’m awake, I guess…” she mumbled, watching Alcher extend her hand to Kevin. 

This was all ridiculous. But how many times could Queenie remind herself that this was ridiculous? It all came down to a simple choice. Leave, or extend her hand in whatever crazy ass ritual Kevin had planned. Two options, where one was the obvious and objectively correct choice. And yet despite that, the three of them all seemed to be leaning towards the latter choice. It was the stupid choice for sure. Maybe the dangerous one as well. Queenie didn’t know if there was any truth to Kevin’s theory that others were looking for this mysterious amulet, but it had done exactly as Kevin probably intended - it peaked Queenie’s curiosity. Ada seemed entirely over the two being apprehensive, and Nicole didn’t seem anymore sure of their choice to continue their discussions with Kevin. Overall, it seemed like the three helpers couldn’t be any more different from each other. “Fine.” Queenie sighed, dropping her previously crossed arms and holding out her hand towards Kevin, “I’ll play along and join the little scavenger hunt. From the looks of it, the three of us could use some group building exercises anyways. I am curious about what makes this amulet so special after all.” 

“Thank you, Alcher.” Such an open mind, so welcoming, Kevin’s affection was warm and bleeding, thick enough to seep into the air. Her hands were still not as they should be, but her glamor was powerful, enough to hide them, to make it look, even feel as though they were everything they should be. She closed her eyes as her hand found Alcher’s. The amulet was so clear in her mind, bright and gleaming, a gem ensnared in a knot of petrified wood, as white and solid as bone. A slow breath passed from her lips, so too did she pass the image to Alcher. As her eyes opened once more, she smiled. “There, you have it now.” She reached next for Queenie. “It has power. I will lend you some, if you like, though be careful, I’ve been told it burns.” She let the image pass to Queenie next before her bright eyes turned to Nicole. So sweet, so unsure. “You will be awake, my dear. I will never force anything upon you that you do not wish. And you may leave whenever you like. But if you wish to join them, your hand, please.”

At least the doctor was on board with the crazy plan, Nicole sighed in relief. They would need her, surely. There was no way the hunt for a precious amulet would end with all of them sound and safe. She watched Kevin pass her vision to Alcher. Alcher who was completely sure of herself. She didn’t know much of her yet, but she admired that attitude. She let herself be curious. She tried to make sense of what Kevin was doing, how it worked. Magic? If the circumstances had been different, she would’ve died to learn more. To ask about the extent of Kevin’s powers. Queenie offered her hand next, and her eyebrows rose. She didn’t realize they were all supposed to do that, and it became clearer when Kevin spoke to her. She didn’t look at her. She didn't know what to make of her kindness. Sometimes it felt genuine. But then, she had to wonder if she was just very skilled at manipulating people. “Oh— my bad. I didn’t— I thought...” she pointed at Alcher. That should’ve sufficed. She pressed her lips tightly, before she could retort that Kevin had already forced something on them. She glanced at the other two women, who already had the amulet in their minds. It was okay, neither looked particularly affected. She raised her hand for Kevin to take before the doubts growing within her could push her to back down.  

It had to be a coincidence that Queenie did picture an amulet once Kevin grabbed onto her hand and completed whatever mind trick she was attempting. It made sense of course. Kevin had talked about this amulet. The idea had already been planted deeply within Queenie’s mind. It only made sense that once she had offered her hand to Kevin that Queenie’s idea of an amulet would appear in her head. It wasn’t as if this amulet - if it existed at all - would look like the one Queenie kept thinking of. “Uh, thanks.” She drew her hand back slowly from Kevin after she had finished. She glanced over at Ada. It didn’t seem like the two had much interest in the other, but Queenie wished she knew if a similar image had appeared in her head too. She shook off the feeling. Clearly she was playing along for kicks, because she wanted to see where this was all going. It wasn’t as if she actually believed in any of this crap. “Well, we have the image now. I guess there’s nothing left to do but scour some thrift shops or lost and founds. Maybe we’ll get lucky and come across this magic amulet that you’re looking for.” Queenie glanced at the other two women that had come with her to find Kevin, “Do we leave now, or?”

Kevin’s hand was smaller and softer than Alcher expected it to be. The vision that flashed through her mind gave her a clear picture of the amulet, but she found herself longing for more information. The others were both tense and on edge, but Alcher was almost completely relaxed. She had no reason to fear Kevin, as she’d mentioned before. Perhaps their sleepwalking and nightmares were part of this magic, but Kevin would help them if needed, wouldn’t she? She did not seem the devious type. She nodded at them and waited for them to start their depart before turning to Kevin. “May I...speak to you privately?” she asked, unable to sate her curiosity just yet.

The night air was still, not even the usual whispers thought to break the silence of it. So strange for the Cave of Voices to be so quiet. Kevin wondered if it knew what was to come. There had been a few children poking about earlier, though none had seen her sitting in the dark of the cave. They had all gone off now. It was better that way. Tide was low. Perfect for her dreamers, it wouldn’t do for them to slip on the treacherous rock. Kevin sat in the middle of the cave, eyes shut, waiting. They were coming. Three lovely little souls walking in their dreams, following the path she had set before them. It wouldn’t be long now. They were bringing the elements to her, the things she had lost. Soon they would be whole again. She would be whole again. 

The first thing Alcher registered was the weight in her hands. As her blurry vision cleared in front of her, a dim glow could be seen between them. It blotted out most everything else around her as she squinted. The next thing was the cool touch of rock under her bare feet. She did not slip or falter as she walked along them. Her body carried itself until it came to a dark cave, lit mostly by the object in her hand. It felt soft and cool against her hands as well, much smoother than the rocks digging holes into the pads of her feet. She did not know where she was, only that there was someone already here, and more coming. Her body stood stiff as she came to a stop. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. The figure in front of her swayed, blurry, in and out of her vision. Who are you? Her mouth begged to say. Where am I? Her eyes asked.

Nicole’s steps were determined as she entered the Cave of Voices. It hadn’t been easy, driving all the way to the docks. Then the climbing. Stepping in a few puddles inside the cave was nothing in comparison. But as she blinked back into consciousness, she felt the familiar jolt of fear in the pit of her stomach. Worried brown eyes scanned her surroundings as she blinked into consciousness. Confused, the bag she held in her hand almost dropped to her feet. Her grip tightened just before it could slip from her fingers. Disoriented and frozen on the spot, there was a sense of deja vu. It wasn’t the first time she had woken up in the middle of sleepwalking. It was the first time, however, where she was unable to panic. If the adrenaline running through her veins was any indication, the stakes were high. Her own feelings could wait. “What…” she opened her mouth to speak, all her thoughts vanishing before she could string more words. She turned to her side, to the person carrying the only source of light in the cave, then to the figure ahead of them. She couldn’t make out who it was.

Queenie shivered back to consciousness. Her foggy memory was only enhanced by the darkness of her surroundings. There was nothing more than dim lighting and the cold bit at her as she slowly started to realize that she thought that she should be in her home, but this was certainly not her home. Despite this, Queenie seemed too dazed for this realization to truly affect her. Although logically she knew that her mind should be racing with questions, she couldn’t help but think that she was exactly where she needed to be. Even if where she was still remained a mystery, and the people gathered around her were nothing more than complete strangers. On instinct, her hand went to the pocket of her sleeping shorts. She breathed a sigh of relief when she felt the outline of the pen through it. She had no idea what the pen was or why she immediately thought that it was so important, but she felt calmed just knowing that it was there. Finally, her body seemed to recognize the cold and she found herself huddling into a fetal position and hugging herself for warmth, “What is this place?” She managed to ask through chattering teeth.

“There you are, my loves.” Kevin smiled as she slowly stepped toward the light. The glow of it was soft, warm, just as she remembered. They had done it. Oh how wonderful! Her perfect dreamers! If only her hands could hold theirs properly. Not yet. But soon. She looked to each of them, her eyes warm. “I’m so glad to have you here with me. Please, may I know your names? I won’t take them from you, I’ve already found one. You may use it of course, please call me Kevin. Show me what you’ve brought me, dears.” Three perfect dreamers bringing the pieces together.If only she could banish the cold--actually, now that she thought of it. Some of her strength had returned, maybe it was enough. She lifted one of her warped limbs, muttering under her breath. A rush of warmth billowed from her fingerless hand, filling the cave, forcing out the chill of the waves. “There. I do hope you’re comfortable.”

Despite the new warmth surrounding them, Nicole shuddered, hair standing up on the back of her neck as the figure spoke. Eerie yet welcoming, she didn’t know what to make of that combination. It shouldn’t be possible. And why was the voice speaking to them like that? She shook her head curtly at the request. “N…” no she didn’t want to give her name. But part of her craved pleasing whoever was speaking to her. Kevin, what a friendly name. Kevin wanted her name and her bag. How could she deny it? Her initial defiance only lasted a moment, taking a tentative step forward. She opened the bag, looking inside with apprehension. Luckily, the bones were still there. “Is this…” had she obtained what Kevin needed from her? Despite feeling awake, her brain still was too foggy to work properly. Every word she tried to speak slipped away before reaching her mouth. And what about her name? Right, she was supposed to share that as well. “Nicole”. 

Alcher’s eyes steeled themselves as the figure in the center spoke. She’d been joined by two others, but there was still only three scents, including her own. Why did this center figure not have one? Who were they? A name told Alcher nothing. But despite the initial distrust, despite her years of paranoia and watching over her own shoulder, she found herself compelled to speak. “Alcher,” she said, and she didn’t even hesitate. Didn’t even try and give her fake name. Alcher clicked her jaw shut and tried to look around, but found her body stiff and unwilling to yield to her own demands. Her hands stayed out in front of her, cradling the bulb as if it were a child, a newborn bastion here to save the world. Or perhaps just this mysterious figure. She narrowed her eyes to convey her distrust instead, but did not move otherwise. “Why are we here?” she found herself able to ask.

Despite her brain knowing that logically something was amiss, Queenie grinned against the new warmth that enveloped around her. There was conflict. Not outwardly, but within herself. Battling against every bit of her that knew none of this made sense. Queenie was a doctor, a woman of science and logic. This figure, this… Kevin defied those things. But instead of fear or disbelief, Queenie felt triumphant. Because this was where she was supposed to be at this moment. As if Queenie had always known exactly what it was for, she reached into her pocket and pulled the pen free, setting it on the ground in front of her but keeping her hand cupped over it so that it couldn’t roll away. She needed to keep it safe. “My name is Dr. Queenie Lin-King.” She glanced over at the two nearest to her. They were like her, not like Kevin. Were they here for the same reason? Could they explain any of this to her? Did Queenie even need any of it explained? Everything felt so confusing but yet it all seemed to make sense. The dissonance was jarring enough to build a tension headache.

“So wonderful to meet you all.” Nicole, Alcher, and Queenie, what wonderful names. Kevin drew close to Nicole first, leaning close to inspect the bag. She sucked in a delighted gasp, bringing her hands together. If only she could clap properly. “You’ve done it, my love. You found him. Oh, I am so very proud of you. Here, lay him out carefully,” she said, stepping to the side, ushering Nicole forward. Perfect, so very perfect. Alcher next. “You’re here to help me, sweetling. You’ve already done so much, finding my things for me.” She took the lightbulb carefully. With a mutter under her breath, the glass fell away. The glow remained, a small, warm ball of light that she tucked back into Alcher’s hands. “When dear Nicole has him set out, put that in his chest, thank you, my darling.” She was so close, they were so close. Her sweet dreamers, they would all be handsomely rewarded. Smile wide, Kevin turned to Queenie, moving to crouch before her, inspecting the pen trapped beneath her fingers. “That’s it! A doctor, you said? So refined! Will you write for me? Here, let me show you.” She reached out, mangled hand gentle as it alighted on Queenie’s temple, giving her the words, where they ought to be on the bones, and the ones meant for each dreamer.

The joyful gasp should’ve soothed some of the doubts lingering in the back of Nicole’s mind. She had earned Kevin’s approval. That was all she wanted, right? But as the sound reached her ears, a shiver ran down her spine. Could she still back out? No, there was no time for that. She drew a nervous breath, kneeling as Kevin requested for the bones to be laid out. She set the bag on the ground carefully, memories of the night she had dug the grave flashing through her mind. Her stomach twisted unpleasantly when her hand touched the first piece. Never in her life she imagined she’d be putting together a human body, as if it were a puzzle. In hindsight, she really should’ve paid more attention in biology. Once she was confident enough with the job done, she dusted her hands off, shooting one last concerned look before stepping aside for Alcher. It was a good moment to look at the other two people there with her. She wondered how they felt. Desperately wanted to meet their eyes, search for any sign that they were doing the right thing. 

Alcher’s uncertainty didn’t matter in the moments after Kevin’s joy filled the cave. The approval sent a warmth through Alcher that she hadn’t felt in well over two decades. It matched the warmth in her hands, even as the mysterious figure took the light from her. She almost felt wrong without it, but then it was returned and instructions were given. She watched the woman named Nicole begin her task, setting out the bones. They had no smell and Alcher shivered. But she waited patiently for her to finish before she went over to the bones herself and kneeled. The light drizzled from her hands as if it were physical-- thick, heavy sand, sliding through her fingers as it dripped down onto the bones, and Alcher placed the light directly into the chest, whose ribs were all broken, collapsed in on themselves. Was she giving him life? Was this what Kevin wanted? When her task was done, she stood and backed away, hands empty, and looked to the last woman. Her task was perhaps the strangest, but somewhere deep down, Alcher knew she would complete it without question. Just like they had.

Everything made sense once Kevin had helped Queenie see. Before, the words would not come to her. It was all she could do to sit helplessly and silently against the cave floor and cradling the pen as if her very existence depended on it. She had questions, but no means to form the words to ask them. She had just waited for the opportunity, for Kevin to help her realize what it was that she needed to say. Once she knew, it seemed that she had never had any need to speak those words at all, but instead write them. It made sense, since she was carrying a pen after all. Queenie stood by, eagerly waiting for Nicole and Alcher to finish their pieces. Once that was done, Queenie crawled over and immediately got to work. It was as if the bones had been labelled for her and she was simply tracing over the lines. She slowly worked her way down the remains, filling in each spot before finishing up and turning towards the two that had woken up with her. She moved towards Nicole first, pressing against the woman’s forehead and writing across her, spanning its entirety. After she had finished she slid across the floor until she met with Alcher, motioning for the woman to lift her shirt and then proceeding to draw across the ribs, her pen rising and falling with Alcher’s breath. Then she finished with herself, scribbling up and down her arm before switching to her left hand to try to do the same to her either. After she was finished, she studied the work. She squinted her eyes as she tried to read them, but for some reason none of it seemed legible. Though it made perfect sense to her as she wrote it, now she couldn’t seem to make out any of the lettering. Giving up, Queenie slid back to her original spot and continued gripping the pen tightly.

“Wonderful, my loves,” Kevin said, positively beaming. They were all so wonderful, such good listeners! She could feel the energy coming off them in waves, so, so alive. But it wasn’t theirs that she needed. Still, they could give her strength. Breathing in deep, Kevin rounded the body, kneeling before the skull. She looked to her dreamers with an encouraging smile. “Sit with me, darlings. Nicole, at my left, I think. Alcher, if you would sit closest to the light, yes, just reach out and touch his ribs, be gentle, my dear. And dear doctor, if you would try to hold his hand--the right one, yes. We’re nearly done, I only need a bit more help, you will ground and guide me. Close your eyes and think of a dream.” She waited a moment, allowing them to take up their positions before she closed her eyes, a soft, even chant dripping from her lips, slow, like the water dripping gently from the roof of the cave. It would take a bit of doing, navigating to him. He had been so difficult, and that had been before he had been dead and buried for a few centuries, now he was likely to be an absolute nightmare. But as her chant went on, Kevin could feel him, a wisp of the wind flitting into the cave. She went on, her words, grabbing, tethering, pulling the ancient spirit back to the bones. “Now my dreamers, hold him tight, we have him. Don’t let him trick you.”

Nicole’s body stiffened, despite the gentle trace of the pen tickling against her skin. She wished to read what was being written, but as the woman— Queenie, reached for Alcher it became clear deciphering the words would be impossible. She observed in silence, brow slightly furrowed as the doctor completed her task. She waited for the next instructions, her hands balling into fists as Kevin asked her to sit with her. She did as she was told with no hesitation, she was past the point to rationalize what was happening inside the cave. With one cautious look at her companions, she closed her eyes at last. A dream. She could not think of any. She lowered her head, taking the foreign chant in. The repetition made her eyelids heavy, and as she began to think falling asleep wouldn’t be such a bad thing at all, a deep, chilling voice boomed in the cave disrupting the atmosphere. She jerked at the sound, shoulders rising to her ears almost expecting something to fall on them. Eyes opening wide, she turned to Kevin for answers. Her breath grew shallow as the cries continued to resonate against the walls. He wanted them to stop, he needed help. Were they not doing exactly that? What the fuck was she supposed to do?

Alcher stayed still as the doctor wrote upon her ribs, hands holding the tattered shirt she wore up so she had access to her ribs. As if she just knew where the writing was to go, and what it meant, and why it was there. But she did not. When the doctor moved on to herself, Alcher lowered her shirt and watched with curious eyes. When Kevin beckoned them to sit with her, Alcher obliged without hesitation. Though she was born and raised to be a family head, a leader, her body still understood how to follow. It still craved for the uniform movements of a pack. She sat and closed her eyes. A dream. A happy dream. Her brothers, her family. Mother and father watching as children played in the fields. Their laughter echoed in her ears and she smiled. It was interrupted by screaming. A man. Alcher’s eyes wrenched open but all she saw was the skeleton and its light and Kevin. Whoever this man was, he did not understand. They were helping her. They were giving her life. What could have been better than that? “Just let go,” she said to the man in her native tongue, “just stop fighting.” She could not fathom why she fought so hard for this Kevin, but everything inside of her told her that this was right-- that she was right. Alcher closed her eyes once again and pulled harder on her energies, keeping the man in place as best she could.

It seemed obvious that the other two dreamers as Kevin referred to them were in a situation much like Queenie. Confusion seemed to rest upon their faces just as it did on Queenie’s, but much like her they were readily complying. It should have raised so many red flags, but instead Queenie pushed any doubts aside because Kevin was there for them. She was going to take care of the three of them. All they needed to do was help her with this. Whatever this was. Through the fog, Queenie knew that something was amiss. This was something that Queenie would not participate in. Things that she did not believe in. Yet she sat eagerly with Alcher and Nicole and closed her eyes at Kevin’s commands. It was time to dream. But someone, or rather something, was trying to stop them. Another voice, different from any of the ones within the cave now permeated through Queenie’s thoughts. Begging all of them to stop. Queenie tried to ignore it, but the voice was constant and unsettling. If Queenie were completely insane she would almost call it inhuman. It had been enough to force Queenie to break into a cold sweat, but she ignored it and continued focusing on Kevin instead. She just needed to see this through.