Rising Shards

I was stuck in some kind of weird dream state, a side effect of getting common shift sickness after experiencing some entwined memories via Tik Moonheart’s powers, and now Tik had beamed herself into my dream to help. Or she was just standing in the living room with Stella, but there was definitely some kind of connection she was using, because I could barely hear Stella, but I could hear Tik clearly. It didn’t make much sense to me.

“It’s good you were able to stop by so quickly,” Stella said.

“How did you get over here so fast?” I asked.

“Well, I was at school for class, but Kara and Mars will have to handle my first lesson.” Tik said.

“Hold on, since when are you a teacher?” I asked. “Aren’t you a detective?”

“There was a job opening, and I thought a semester at your school would be a good way to keep an eye on you.”

“Huh.” I said. “What class are you teaching?”

“I have taught art classes before, and there was fortunately staff needed in that department,” Tik said.

“I was wondering how you’d show up this week,” I said. “I figured another meeting with Caya, I did not guess art teacher.”

“On that note, have you made your decision yet?” Tik asked.

I shrugged. “I guess I have shoulders in this dream thing too. Sorry, it feels like I only have a tummy and legs. Do I look like I’m me, still? I’m kind of half a cat right now in the real world. Maybe fully a cat.”

“You look like you did the last time I saw you,” Tik said.

“Huh…” I tapped my foot. “So what do we do to get me back to normal? Is it like untangling a Safe Silver mobile’s strings? Like I’m in some quantum brain entanglement? I’d say that’s kind of cool, but I did just see my mom like I said before, so I don’t like the idea of being stuck with her in any way.”

“If it’s not too much trouble, could you describe that for me?” Tik said.

“She was in an office, I think,” I said. “Definitely on a computer. Then she saw me and tried talking to me. Do the numbers 4, 12, 7, or 13 mean anything to you?”

“I can’t say they do,” Tik said.

“She told me to remember them,” I said. “I don’t wanna remember them, but if they’re important, there you go.”

“I wrote it down,” Stella said.

“I will look into it later,” Tik said. “First, let’s get you sorted out.”

“Right,” I said.

“It is a bit like untangling, but it can be tricky when my abilities are amplified by a Cani illness.”

“Great…” I said.

“Luckily, you have an expert helping you out.” Tik said. “If we view another memory, that should fix this.”

“This won’t turn out to be a secret traitor deal where you orchestrated this to get me to watch more memories, right?" I asked. "Because that would make me want to help you out less, not gonna lie.”

“No, it really is a side effect of your shift sickness,” Tik said. “I was hoping to gently ease you into this if you decided to help. That is still the plan even if we have to view a memory today.”

“Alright,” I said. “I think I can handle one more memory right now.”

“Excellent,” Tik said. She began conjuring her powers, making shapes from the smoke, gradually creating a clear image of the past. It seemed more vibrant in this dream state, more concrete and real. A grand stage appeared in front of us, with thousands of people around it. There was a giant statue of a guy holding a bunch of cords with also gigantic blocks swinging on them.

“There was a ceremony in our hometown,” Tik said. “Where future leaders would be selected.”

“Is this Mom’s memory?” I asked, squinting. “Seems kinda far out.”

The view remained far away from the stage.

“I’m keeping it here for your protection,” Tik said.

“How come?” I asked.

“Many terrible things happened here,” Tik said. “There are things we will see from that day on this quest, should you join me. Some I’m not ready for yet.”

“It’s alright,” I said. “I get it.”

The crowd continued to move about, cheering, getting food, taking their seats.

“Is this what Mom and Dad got kicked out of their home for?” I guessed. “Do you know what she did? They were talking on that boat about getting blamed for killing someone, right?” If I was awake, that would have been a lot harder to say, let alone process, but while dreaming with a cold that turned me into a cat, talking about something bleak was a bit easier for some reason.

The crowd screamed as the statue fell apart before our eyes, the big blocks swinging around before they started to fall. The whole scene froze as soon as one of the blocks snapped from its cable.

“They had an elaborate display that collapsed and killed an elder. Your parents were blamed for it, and exiled.”

“Oh,” I said. “Do you think they did it?” Again, easy to blurt out in a dream. I am not sure that would have been the first thing I asked if I had been awake.

“I have spent many nights wondering.” Tik said.

“Can’t we zoom in and figure it out here?” I asked.

“I…would you be alright seeing that?” Tik asked.

I felt a pit in my stomach. “If we can maybe not see the elder die…I can maybe be alright.”

“I’ll do my best to shield you from that,” Tik said.

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