Chapter Twenty-One – Choices
The old man seemed amused. The princess was learning to control the dream. His plans were accelerating a bit too fast for his liking, but he would adjust. Of course, none of it would matter if he was dead. So, staying alive had to be a priority.
“If you kill me, the dream turns into a nightmare and you all die.” The wizard answered. Gina hesitated. She had never killed anyone before. She wasn’t sure she had it in her to do it but she was sure it needed to be done. The wizard could see the hesitation in her eyes.
“Where do you think the magic comes from that allows you to control the dream?” The Wizard said, “Kill me and the magic disappears!”
Gina didn’t know who to trust. They had all lied to her. They had all kept her from remembering. They had all manipulated her for their own benefit. She needed to save her kingdom. She couldn’t do it stuck in the future. Because Gina hesitated, it gave someone else the time to act. Gina’s knife disappeared. The wizard did not try to move away from her. Gina looked around the room, but she couldn’t tell who had done it. All the other occupants of the room were still restrained except for her.
“Gina, don’t do it!” Carla screamed, “You’re not a murderer.”
“The old man isn’t your enemy.” Toby called out, “End the dream, now!”
“I know you’re confused,” Mark jumped in, “but you’re making a big mistake. One that will cost you your life.”
Only one of them knew Gina was no longer holding a knife besides the old man himself. Mark’s restraints disappeared next. He ran toward Gina and the Wizard and inserted himself between them.
“End the dream, now!” Mark ordered.
“You better listen to them.” The old man said smiling, “You don’t have much time left to decide.”
“Is this a game to you?” Gina said disgustingly, “Are you just playing with us?”
Carla’s restraints were the next to break. She ran to Gina and wrapped her arms around her. Gina pushed her away.
“Get away from me.” Gina declared, “You were only my friend because the ‘old man’ told you to.”
“I’m the best friend you’ve ever had. Think of all the things we did and all the secrets we shared. Think of how we laughed together and cried together, and we were always there for each other. Do you think you would have ever had a friend like that if you stayed here?” Carla asked.
Gina knew Carla was right. She wasn’t allowed to have friends in the castle. Everyone deferred to her out of fear, not out of love. She had been allowed to be as spoiled as she wanted.
“Do you really want to come back here for good?” Carla asked.
“I want the dreams to end.” Gina declared.
“That’s up to you.” The wizard cut in, “You’ve never finished the dream, finish the dream and it will end, for good.”
“No, I kill you and the dream ends for good.” Gina corrected.
“I won’t let you kill him.” Mark responds.
“I thought you served the King.” Gina said disgusted.
“That’s what I’m doing.” Mark shot back.
“Is that what he told you?” Gina started, “That he was doing this all for the King, The King didn’t order the old man to do any of this.”
“Yes, he did” The wizard said, “He killed himself rather than be handed over to the enemy. Before he did, he made me promise that I would keep you safe and that’s what I’m going to do.”
“You are not telling me the truth.” Gina declared.
“I am the only chance you have of avoiding death, young lady!” The wizard scolded.
The sounds of footsteps are heard in the distance. As time passes, they get closer. Soon they are loud. “Do you hear that, princess?” The wizard said, “They have found us. They will be here in minutes.”
Gina wasn’t sure what to do. She could end the dream and do the whole thing over again tomorrow night. She had to end the dream. She couldn’t stand reliving the same nightmare over and over. She had to put an end to it.
The enemy had found them. Several knights bearing the insignia of a rival kingdom entered the cavern. “Stop, don’t anybody move.” One of the knights ordered. Everyone froze, “We found the old man. Take him away.” Before anyone could obey the order, Gina froze everyone in time. Only the old man and herself were not frozen.
“What now?” The old man said, “You can’t keep the world frozen forever.”
“I’ll show you.” Gina replied. She made a knife appear out of nowhere and plunged it into the old man’s heart. She didn’t think she had it in her, but she had to make the dreams stop. Once the old man breathed his last breath, a wave washed over all of them. They all returned to the same condition that they had been in before. Mark had full armor on and a sword. Toby was restrained. Gina and Clara were free to move about. Gina remembered everything that had happened to her. It was like she was waking up for the first time after a long sleep.
“Drop your weapon and remove your armor.” The knight order Mark, “Your side lost, there’s no reason you should have to die.” Mark did as he was told.
When the knight saw that the old man was dead, he was alarmed. He saw the blood from an apparent stabbing wound, but he didn’t see the blade that caused it.
“We were supposed to capture the old man alive, who killed him?” the knight demanded.
“We don’t know, he just collapsed.” Carla offered.
“He collapsed because he was stabbed!” The knight explained.
“None of us have a weapon, how could any of us have stabbed him?” Toby offered.
“I don’t know, but one of you did.” The knight replied.
“I would have let you all go, but since one of you is a murderer and I don’t know which one it is, you will all have to come back with me to sort it out.” The knight determined. Mark tried to wake up from his dream, but he was no longer dreaming.