STOAN MADE IT BACK to his quarters unseen. The trip to Beothea had exhausted him and he fell into a deep slumber almost as soon as he secured the locks to his door and set the nightly security. At one time, sleep had eluded him most nights, but in the past months, he had begun to slumber easily.
It was easier to sleep when the dreams were sweet.
He didn’t so much wake up in the dream world as come to awareness of it around him. He was near a house big enough for a family, but so quiet that he knew it was empty. Beyond the fenced in yard, a mass of trees with purple and green leaves grew, and the tree closest to the house had a rope swing attached to it. A lone figure propelled herself back and forth, wearing a soft blue dress.
Stoan smiled, recognition sizzling through him. Over the las
