The Dream Shifter

Chapter 270

Simonides finished looking out the tent flaps of communication tent. He was pleased with the state of the camp and the soldiers. They recovered quickly physically. He knew the rest would take time, but he needed his men back. Their situation already grew worse with each passing hour. However, he feared something worse was coming.

A message came in for him, while he worked in the camp. It only recently made it to him. The message ordered him to speak with the General Demosthenes Alexander, again. He waited in the communication tent for the General's arrival on the other end. 'This is the second time. The General's taken an odd interest in an intrusion, even if it is getting worse. They're still contained in the outer lands, nothing for the army to worry about.' Simonides doubted his failure would risk his position, rather he feared the General might want to take matters into his own hands. He thought about what it might mean to the country if the army marched from the capital.

Unfortunately, the waiting forced upon him did not help his wandering thoughts. He kept glancing back at the fountain expecting to see the man waiting on him. 'Was he in a meeting? The capital's still in mourning, but the time for the Rite of Succession is soon. They could be preparing for it…'

"Captain Simonides," spoke Demosthenes, from the fountain of particles.

The echo in the tent turned Simonides back toward the table. He forced down his brow to cover up his moment of surprise, caught in thought. "General Alexander, sir. Pardon my earlier absence." Simonides sat down in the chair meeting eye level with the image of the General.

"That's fine. These things happen." Demosthenes voice deepened a little with the mood turning grave quickly. "I came to convey a decree passed down by the council."

'A decree? There's been no reports to the council about what happened here. What could this be about?' The curious part of him made him lean forward wanting to know what the General had to tell him.

"Due to recent circumstances, new orders are being passed down to all Captains on the border as well high ranking officers of the army. The council has determined Captain of the Guard Eudokia Ismene a threat to the peace and security of Atlantis."

"Captain of the Guard?!" Simonides could not help his shock. He remembered her from her time in service under him. "A traitor?" It felt hard to believe. He thought her knew her. 'She was absolutely devoted the King and Atlantis, why would someone like that turn traitor?' More of the words sank in for Simonides realizing the deeper meaning of what the General meant by the council's decree. "That means…"

Demosthenes nodded to confirm Simonides suspicions. A slightly pained expression crept through the cracks in his face from the weight of the words he delivered. "It is the same for any traitor of Atlantis. You've been granted the permission to execute her along with all of her sympathizers."

'Execution orders!? What's happening in the capital?'

"This is no longer about capture. Kill everyone connected to Captain of the Guard Eudokia Ismene. No exceptions, Captain."

Peacefully kept, the forest that housed those on the run remained quiet. Nothing stirred around; even the wind felt no interest in bothering the situation. The stillness ran through everything. However, eyes remained ever vigilant. They watched everything from the shadows, made like windows to peer through.

Chiharu did not bother with a normal patrol. She knew to keep a real eye on everything and act the fastest, she needed to use her powers. It gave her time to continue to test them and gain a better understanding them.

One eye glanced and shifted around at all of the panes quickly, still safe. She changed her gaze to her hand. 'There's still a lot I don't know about this power. I thought I understood it, but it's still growing and evolving.' Her thoughts went back to her fight with Miltiades. Something happened outside of what she planned, it saved her from the recklessness of Seiji's tactic. However, it still troubled her that her powers were not in her control. 'If I can't control this power…I…' She tried to remember the feeling.

The needles roared down onto Chiharu unrelenting. They tried to stop her and push her down, but she remained on course. Miltiades' eyes focused on Chiharu trying to understand her ability. His eyes thinned out when he saw it. In front of Chiharu's arms, a loose circle of endless black hovered protecting her from all of the needles. When a needle hit the circle, it disappeared. The void swallowed everything leaving Chiharu safe.

'It all happened too fast. I didn't even notice it the first time, my mind was elsewhere…' Chiharu cursed her own lack of awareness. She only saw it briefly once. The second time the power activated. After the wave did not hit her, she knew something was wrong.

She stretched out her hand pointed at no direction of importance. All of her focus drew to the point in front of her hand. A low groan came from Chiharu from the exertion.

Nothing happened.

Sighing, Chiharu pulled back her hand to stare at it. She was missing something. 'I remember seeing a strange distortion. It almost looked like a thick layer of cloudy water.' Thoughts returned to the moment, the short few seconds.

Ripples by the dozens appeared before her eyes. From the last time, she already understood what happened. Each ripple was a needle. She could not see through the film only the effect objects had on it. It made her wonder what Miltiades saw from his side.

She knew it was an extension of the power she already had. Something randomly new was too unlikely. It was the only starting point she had. 'Considering that my primary power seems to involve interaction with this other dimensional space, I must have somehow opened a window myself. But I've never been able to do that. I tried it already…' When she trained, she explored the different possibilities of it. However, she was never able to create a portal willfully.

The windows into the forest reminded her of what she knew and how little she seemed to understand. 'I've only been able to open portals in shadows and only ones large enough for me to fit in. However…' Her mind thought about her last two fights. She already analyzed them afterward in their march. Something about them bothered her.

Retreating a little, the ground rolled around her knocking her on her back. She glared back at the man as he made no action to take her. He acted too casually for her, but in her state, she had few options. Chiharu rolled over letting the ground guide her away from him. It dumped her out of his sight. 'I need a plan… I can't let it end like this, not failing…again…'

Sighing softly, he ignored the blood dripping. 'Can't keep delaying things, Bakkhos. I've wounded her pride enough, just want to wrap this up.' Bakkhos stepped forward paving out the ground in search of Chiharu's body. The last place he found her came up empty. "Hmm…" he muttered with his eyes narrowing. He preferred not to doubt his eyes.

She knew she escaped into the void in the moments she fell out of his sight. Yet, she also knew she should not have found a large enough shadow. The tests she ran she understood the limitations of the power. 'I can only enter shadows large enough for me to fit through. If I can't fit, then I can't use it. Though, I can see through it. I can't use my own shadow to enter the space, it has to be another's shadow. And I can't create a portal.' She thought she understood, but her fights proved her wrong.

The only answer she had to what happened was that she broke the second rule. She could not use her own shadow to enter the void. It was the only explanation. During the fight, her mind focused on surviving and fighting that anything that happened she accepted. Reviewing the fight, she understood better.

'The only rule I haven't broke yet is the shadow has to be large enough. Will I break that one eventually as well?'

Further attempts followed by Chiharu. Each effort produced the same results. She theorized if she could open a portal in the real world the same should be possible inside as well. Nothing worked. She sat down and scanned her windows, maintaining her regular duty to stay on watch. An hour already disappeared on her wasted efforts. It bothered her knowing something was out of her control.

Chiharu's mind ran through the details again. She replayed everything she tried through her mind. Her fights ran in review to try to understand everything moment of what she did. Every thrown punch and movement of her legs had to be analyzed. It needed to be figured out. She would keep watching until she found the answer. Chiharu knew the answer lied within, somewhere.

'Weakling,' echoed a voice from behind her.

It interrupted her thoughts and sent a cold trickle down her spine. Her eyes slide around with a tilt of her head. Nothing. She knew it was nothing, but still felt compelled to check. Yet the voice came out to her clearly. The sound settled deep in the pit of her stomach. Everything inside grew aggravated.

'Weakling!'

"Shut up!" shouted Chiharu, already on her feet. She faced in the direction of the voice, even though it was still nothing.

'You're relying on her. Because you can't find the answer yourself.' The voice almost turned into a laugh as it mocked Chiharu further.

Chiharu spun her head around as the voice was behind her again. "I'm not relying on anyone!"

'It's because you're weak. A weakling that can't do anything. You're not strong enough to even stand on your own.'

"I don't need anyone! I'll achieve my goals by my own hands!"

'What hands? You have none of your own. You couldn't even beat him. You had to use someone else to win. You're weak.'

Shaking her head, Chiharu ran off into the black void. The voice followed her never getting any softer. It actually felt like it grew in volume. "You're wrong! I just fought two fights in row! I would have beaten him easily if I had by full strength."

'Just excuses. You failed, again. Just like before. You're always a failure. You can't even protect your men. You're worthless.'

"No! It's not like that!" Chiharu tripped over her feet. She fell to ground with her face pressed in against the bottom. Flashes of her past whipped through her mind's eye nearly blinding her. She tightened her fist struggling with the memories. "I…I don't need…any of them…"

'Try that with better conviction and maybe even you will believe. Pathetic. Weakling. Worthless.'

Chiharu pushed up against the surface, but only managed to lift her upper body. She stared down at the endless black void. Windows into the real world covered everything, even below her. It went on without her. "I already told you to shut up!" Her voice echoed around the space to an empty reply. She forced herself back to her feet. "Keep up your meaningless words! I show you! Just like everyone else! I'm the right one to lead! No one else will die!" Chiharu's face narrowed with her brow pulled down in determination. Resolve sharpened the corners of her face.

She turned back to the place she started. She drew up her power and focused on it. The answer could not hide from her.

'This is no longer about capture. Kill everyone connected to Captain of the Guard Eudokia Ismene. No exceptions, Captain.' The General's words echoed in Simonides' mind long after their meeting ended. It left him with a heavy weight. As Captain of the South Gate, his duties meant the capture and safe return of those accidentally passing through the barrier. Even in the most difficult of cases, they succeeded without resorting to taking a life. It was not their assigned duty.

A new order, a new duty, he did not know how he should take it. The military training taught to everyone tried to make the soldiers understand that sometimes killing would happen. However, it was a rare occurrence left for extreme situations.

Simonides wandered aimlessly in the camp with his mind occupied on the orders. So much of it changed everything and made him question everything that he knew about the ones he hunted. 'Captain of the Guard…it's hard to imagine someone like her plotting against Atlantis. I've never seen anyone more devoted to the King, in spite of everything he did. Nothing swayed her.'

He thought back to the time when she was assigned to him. She came under recommendations from both the academy and the General. A young child already pressed with an unimaginable weight, yet he never saw it break her. He found her strength surprising for someone her age. After she distinguished herself, no one doubted her position or appearance. 'Could it have been the King's death? What would happen to someone so young and devoted to suddenly lose the one thing that meant more to them than even themselves? Was that enough to break her?'