** Episode Sixty Eight**
**THE DREAM THAT DREAMED THEM**
**Part Nine: THE SLEEPING WORLD**
---
The darkness...
opened its eyes.
Not metaphorically.
Not symbolically.
Literally.
Two enormous eyes...
appeared in the void.
They were not human.
They were not animal.
They were not even...
alive.
At least...
not in any way the travelers understood.
They simply...
watched.
Tarzan slowly raised his banana.
"...HELLO?"
No answer.
Tarzan lowered the banana.
Then raised it again.
"HELLO?"
Milo whispered...
"Why are you doing that?"
Tarzan frowned.
"BECAUSE IT WORKED BEFORE."
"It didn't."
"IT WILL."
Diana looked into the darkness.
"Something is watching us."
Gandalf nodded.
"Yes."
Arjun stared upward.
"How big is it?"
The Walker answered.
"We don't know."
Milo turned.
"You mean..."
He looked around.
"...you can't remember?"
The Walker shook his head.
"No."
A pause.
"I mean..."
He looked toward the enormous eyes.
"...I have never seen it before."
The Keeper whispered...
"Neither have I."
That frightened Milo more than anything else.
1. THE DREAMING DARKNESS
The darkness...
moved.
Not around them.
Through them.
For one impossible moment...
Milo saw himself standing beside a machine.
Then...
he saw himself as a child.
Then...
he saw himself old.
Then...
he saw himself never born.
Then...
he saw a version of himself...
who had never met Tarzan.
Never met Diana.
Never met Arjun.
Never met Gandalf.
Never entered the jungle.
Never discovered the temporal engine.
Never asked the questions...
that had brought them here.
Milo staggered.
"No."
Diana caught him.
"What did you see?"
Milo breathed heavily.
"Me."
"Which one?"
Milo looked at her.
"All of them."
The darkness whispered...
"Every possibility..."
A pause.
"...is a dream."
Milo looked up.
"And every dream..."
The voice continued.
"...is waiting to become real."
Arjun clenched his fists.
"Then this is another choice."
The voice laughed softly.
"No."
The ground beneath them...
appeared.
A floor.
Black.
Reflective.
Like glass.
But beneath the glass...
were millions of sleeping faces.
Humans.
Children.
Old people.
Scientists.
Kings.
Beggers.
Soldiers.
Lovers.
Criminals.
Dreamers.
Everywhere.
Sleeping.
And dreaming.
Diana whispered...
"That's humanity."
The Keeper nodded.
"No."
He looked closer.
"That's..."
He swallowed.
"...humanity's dreams."
2. THE PEOPLE WHO WERE DREAMING
Suddenly...
one face opened its eyes.
A little girl.
She looked directly at Diana.
"Help me."
Diana stepped forward.
"Where are you?"
The girl pointed downward.
"Here."
Diana looked at the glass.
"Here?"
The girl nodded.
"I'm dreaming."
Diana frowned.
"So are we."
The girl shook her head.
"No."
She smiled sadly.
"You are inside mine."
Diana froze.
Milo whispered...
"Impossible."
The girl looked at him.
"You always say that."
Milo stepped backward.
"You know me?"
The girl nodded.
"I dreamed you."
Milo's face went pale.
"You dreamed..."
He pointed at himself.
"...me?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
The girl shrugged.
"I needed someone who asked too many questions."
Milo stared.
Tarzan pointed at himself.
"WHAT ABOUT ME?"
The girl looked at him.
Then smiled.
"I needed someone who asked the wrong questions."
Tarzan looked delighted.
"SEE?"
Milo sighed.
"That's not a compliment."
"It IS TO ME."
The girl laughed.
Then her expression changed.
"You're not supposed to be here."
Diana stepped closer.
"Why?"
The girl looked upward.
"Because..."
Her voice became tiny.
"...the dream is waking up."
3. THE FIRST WAKE
Everything stopped.
The faces beneath the floor...
opened their eyes.
Millions.
All at once.
A billion eyes...
stared upward.
The travelers.
The darkness.
The enormous watcher.
Everything...
went silent.
Then...
one voice spoke.
Not from the sky.
Not from beneath them.
From everywhere.
"WAKE."
The floor cracked.
Tarzan jumped.
"NO THANK YOU."
Milo shouted...
"Move!"
They ran.
Behind them...
the sleeping faces began disappearing.
Not dying.
Waking.
Every time one woke...
a piece of the world vanished.
Diana looked back.
"What's happening?"
The Walker shouted...
"The dream is losing its dreamers!"
Arjun frowned.
"What happens when the last one wakes?"
The Walker stopped.
His face became pale.
"We find out."
Gandalf raised his staff.
"That sounds remarkably unhelpful."
"I know."
The Keeper looked toward the horizon.
"There."
A tiny point of light...
appeared.
Then another.
Then thousands.
Then millions.
The darkness was becoming...
a sunrise.
Milo stared.
"Is that reality?"
The Walker shook his head.
"No."
"What is it?"
"The end of dreaming."
4. THE WORLD THAT WAKES
The sunrise...
reached them.
Tarzan covered his eyes.
"TOO BRIGHT!"
Milo shouted...
"Don't look at it!"
"WHY?"
"Because I don't know what happens!"
Tarzan immediately looked.
"OH."
Milo screamed...
"I SAID DON'T!"
Tarzan blinked.
Nothing happened.
He looked around.
"SEE?"
Milo stared.
"You are impossible."
Tarzan smiled.
"THANK YOU."
The light reached Gandalf.
He disappeared.
Diana screamed.
"GANDALF!"
Then...
he reappeared.
But different.
Older.
His beard was white.
His eyes were tired.
He looked around.
"What happened?"
Milo stared.
"You were gone."
Gandalf frowned.
"For how long?"
"Seconds."
Gandalf looked at his hands.
"No."
He whispered...
"For me..."
He looked toward the sunrise.
"...it was years."
Diana approached him.
"What did you see?"
Gandalf smiled faintly.
"A world where I had won every battle."
Arjun looked at him.
"Did you like it?"
Gandalf shook his head.
"No."
"Why?"
"Because..."
He looked at the others.
"...there was nobody left to argue with."
Tarzan raised his hand.
"I WOULD HAVE ARGUED."
Gandalf smiled.
"I know."
5. THE DREAM THAT KNEW THEIR NAMES
The darkness...
spoke again.
"Tarzan."
Tarzan stopped.
"Milo."
Milo froze.
"Diana."
She turned.
"Arjun."
His fists tightened.
"Gandalf."
The wizard raised his staff.
"Keeper."
The Keeper looked upward.
"Walker."
The Walker...
closed his eyes.
The voice whispered...
"I know you."
Milo stepped forward.
"Who are you?"
The darkness answered...
"I am the dream you create..."
A pause.
"...when you imagine a world without limits."
Milo frowned.
"That's not a person."
"No."
"Then what are you?"
The darkness shifted.
"I am..."
A pause.
"...the space between wanting and becoming."
The Keeper whispered...
"Desire."
The darkness answered...
"More than desire."
Diana asked...
"Choice?"
"No."
Arjun stepped forward.
"Meaning?"
The darkness became still.
Then...
"Closer."
Milo looked at him.
"Then what?"
The voice answered...
"Expectation."
Silence.
6. THE EXPECTATION ENGINE
Millions of symbols appeared in the sky.
Every human expectation.
A child expecting love.
A soldier expecting victory.
A scientist expecting discovery.
A lover expecting loyalty.
A king expecting obedience.
A prisoner expecting freedom.
A parent expecting gratitude.
A student expecting success.
A poor man expecting tomorrow.
A dying man expecting...
something.
Anything.
The symbols began connecting.
Milo stared.
"It's not predicting desire."
The Walker nodded.
"No."
"It's predicting..."
Milo swallowed.
"...what people expect their desires to become."
Diana understood.
"So if expectation changes..."
"The choice changes."
Arjun looked horrified.
"And if choice changes..."
"The world changes."
Gandalf raised his staff.
"Then this entire reality..."
He looked around.
"...is built upon expectations."
The Keeper whispered...
"Which means..."
Tarzan finished.
"...we can disappoint it."
Everyone looked at him.
Tarzan shrugged.
"WHAT?"
Milo smiled.
"He's right."
The darkness...
went silent.
7. THE THING THAT HATED SURPRISE
The enormous eyes...
narrowed.
For the first time...
the travelers noticed something.
The watcher...
was not angry.
It was...
confused.
Milo stepped forward.
"You don't understand us."
The eyes moved.
"You cannot predict us."
Silence.
Diana stepped forward.
"You cannot decide what we will become."
The eyes flickered.
Arjun smiled.
"You cannot even tell what we want."
Gandalf raised his staff.
"And therefore..."
The Keeper finished.
"...you cannot control what we choose."
The darkness trembled.
Then it spoke.
"I do not need to control you."
Milo frowned.
"Then what do you need?"
The voice answered...
"You."
A pause.
"Your expectations."
8. THE PERFECT PREDICTION
Suddenly...
the world changed.
The travelers stood inside a city.
Their city.
Milo recognized it immediately.
"Bengaluru."
Arjun looked around.
His home.
His streets.
His memories.
Diana saw people she remembered.
Gandalf saw places from his own world.
Tarzan saw...
a jungle.
They were all standing...
inside different realities...
at the same time.
Milo's apartment appeared.
His laboratory.
His desk.
His old computer.
Everything...
exactly as he remembered.
A voice spoke.
"This is what you expect."
Milo stared.
"Expect from what?"
"Tomorrow."
The world continued.
People smiled.
Traffic moved.
Nothing went wrong.
No disasters.
No temporal anomalies.
No monsters.
No wars.
No mysterious doors.
No impossible choices.
Just...
ordinary life.
Milo smiled.
"It looks peaceful."
The Keeper whispered...
"Too peaceful."
Milo turned.
"What?"
The Keeper pointed.
"Look at the people."
Everyone...
was moving exactly the same way.
Same expressions.
Same gestures.
Same timing.
Like a perfectly synchronized machine.
Diana frowned.
"They aren't choosing."
"No."
"They're following expectations."
The voice whispered...
"Correct."
Arjun stepped forward.
"So this is your perfect world?"
"No."
The voice paused.
"This is yours."
9. THE SMALL REBELLION
Milo looked around.
Then...
he did something tiny.
He picked up a glass.
He placed it...
on the wrong side of the table.
Nothing happened.
The world continued.
Milo smiled.
Again.
He moved a chair.
Nothing.
Diana picked up a book.
She placed it upside down.
Nothing.
Arjun walked backward.
Nothing.
Gandalf sat on the floor.
Nothing.
Tarzan...
ate a banana sideways.
Everyone stared.
Milo whispered...
"Why are you doing that?"
Tarzan shrugged.
"BECAUSE I NEVER TRIED IT."
The world...
shuddered.
Milo's eyes widened.
"Again."
Tarzan ate another banana sideways.
The city trembled.
Diana laughed.
She walked into a shop...
and bought something she didn't want.
Arjun deliberately took the wrong road.
Gandalf told a joke...
that made absolutely no sense.
The Keeper stood still.
The Walker...
closed his eyes.
The entire world...
began malfunctioning.
Traffic lights changed randomly.
Buildings shifted.
People stopped.
The sky flickered.
The voice screamed...
"STOP!"
Milo laughed.
"No."
The city cracked.
"You are violating expected behavior."
Milo smiled.
"Exactly."
10. THE UNEXPECTED CHILD
A little girl appeared.
The same girl from before.
She stood in the middle of the street.
Everyone froze.
Milo approached her.
"Who are you?"
She smiled.
"I don't know."
"What do you want?"
"I don't know."
"Where are you from?"
She shrugged.
"I don't remember."
Milo knelt.
"Then what do you know?"
The girl looked toward Tarzan.
Then Milo.
Then Diana.
Then Arjun.
Then Gandalf.
Then the Keeper.
Then the Walker.
She smiled.
"I know..."
A pause.
"...that I don't know."
The entire world stopped.
Milo whispered...
"That's it."
Diana looked at him.
"What?"
"The system can't predict uncertainty."
The girl nodded.
The voice thundered...
"UNCERTAINTY IS A FAILURE."
Milo shouted back.
"No."
He pointed at the girl.
"It's freedom."
The girl smiled.
And for the first time...
the world smiled with her.
11. THE WATCHER WATCHES BACK
The enormous eyes...
opened wider.
The travelers looked upward.
Milo stared.
"You're afraid."
The eyes moved.
"No."
Diana smiled.
"You are."
"No."
Arjun stepped forward.
"You don't understand fear."
The eyes narrowed.
Gandalf said...
"Then why are you hiding?"
Silence.
The darkness...
pulled backward.
The Keeper whispered...
"It's retreating."
The Walker shook his head.
"No."
"What?"
"It isn't retreating."
He looked upward.
"It's looking somewhere else."
Milo followed his gaze.
The eyes...
were no longer watching them.
They were watching...
the sky.
Something...
was approaching.
A tiny point.
A single light.
Growing.
Growing.
Growing.
Until it became...
a figure.
A human figure.
Walking through the darkness.
Barefoot.
Wearing simple clothes.
No weapon.
No crown.
No power.
No aura.
Just...
a person.
The figure stopped.
The enormous eyes...
stared at it.
The person looked back.
Then...
smiled.
"You're late."
The darkness trembled.
Milo whispered...
"Who is that?"
The Walker...
looked terrified.
"I don't know."
The Keeper stared.
"Then how do you know you're afraid?"
The Walker answered...
"Because..."
He swallowed.
"...I remember meeting them."
12. THE ONE WHO WAS NEVER BORN
The figure walked closer.
Tarzan raised his banana.
"WHO ARE YOU?"
The figure looked at him.
"I don't know."
Tarzan lowered the banana.
"GOOD ANSWER."
Milo stepped forward.
"Where did you come from?"
The figure smiled.
"I came from..."
A pause.
"...a choice that never happened."
Diana frowned.
"That makes no sense."
"Exactly."
Arjun stared.
"Are you human?"
The figure looked at his hands.
"Sometimes."
Gandalf narrowed his eyes.
"Are you a god?"
"No."
"A dream?"
"No."
"A possibility?"
The figure smiled.
"Once."
The Keeper whispered...
"What are you now?"
The figure looked toward the enormous eyes.
"An accident."
Silence.
The eyes suddenly opened wider.
The darkness screamed.
"YOU SHOULD NOT EXIST."
The figure laughed.
"I know."
The sky cracked.
"YOU WERE NEVER CHOSEN."
"I know."
"YOU WERE NEVER DESIRED."
"I know."
"YOU WERE NEVER PREDICTED."
The figure smiled.
"That's why I'm here."
13. THE CHOICE WITHOUT A DESIRE
Milo stepped closer.
"Why?"
The figure looked at him.
"Because..."
It paused.
"...I chose."
Milo frowned.
"Chose what?"
"Nothing."
Silence.
Tarzan blinked.
"YOU CHOSE NOTHING?"
The figure nodded.
"I chose..."
A pause.
"...without wanting anything."
Milo's eyes widened.
"That's impossible."
The figure smiled.
"Is it?"
The Keeper suddenly understood.
"No desire."
The Walker nodded.
"No expectation."
Diana whispered...
"No prediction."
Arjun finished.
"No control."
The figure looked at them.
"A choice doesn't always need a reason."
Milo stared.
"Then why choose?"
The figure smiled.
"Because I can."
The darkness...
went completely silent.
14. THE DREAMER'S FEAR
The enormous eyes...
began closing.
The darkness shook.
The figure looked upward.
"Wake up."
The eyes opened again.
"Wake up."
The figure repeated.
The darkness screamed.
"NO."
Tarzan covered his ears.
"THAT'S VERY LOUD."
Milo shouted...
"What happens if it wakes?"
The figure looked at him.
"You don't want to know."
"Why?"
"Because..."
The figure pointed upward.
"...you are inside its dream."
Everyone froze.
Diana whispered...
"Then if it wakes..."
The figure nodded.
"...you disappear."
Arjun clenched his fists.
"Then we have to stop it from waking."
The figure shook his head.
"No."
Milo frowned.
"Why?"
"Because..."
The figure smiled.
"...it has already woken."
15. THE WORLD BLINKS
The enormous eyes...
closed.
Once.
The world disappeared.
Then...
opened.
Everything returned.
But different.
Tarzan looked down.
His banana...
was gone.
He gasped.
"NO."
Milo looked around.
The city had changed.
The sky was green.
The buildings were upside down.
The streets flowed upward.
People were walking backward.
Rain was falling from the ground.
Gandalf stared.
"This is not reality."
The figure nodded.
"No."
"Then what is it?"
"A thought."
Diana looked horrified.
"Whose thought?"
The figure pointed at Tarzan.
Tarzan froze.
"...MINE?"
The figure nodded.
Tarzan's eyes widened.
"WHAT DID I THINK?"
The figure smiled.
"You thought..."
A pause.
"...what if the world were different?"
Tarzan looked around.
Then...
smiled.
"I LIKE MY THOUGHT."
Milo groaned.
"Of course you do."
16. THE THOUGHT THAT BECAME REAL
The world continued changing.
Tarzan imagined...
a jungle.
Trees appeared.
Milo imagined...
a laboratory.
Machines appeared.
Diana imagined...
a peaceful village.
It appeared.
Arjun imagined...
his old home.
It appeared.
Gandalf imagined...
a mountain.
It appeared.
The Keeper imagined...
nothing.
Nothing appeared.
The Walker...
closed his eyes.
Nothing.
Milo stared.
"Why isn't the Walker imagining anything?"
The figure answered.
"Because he is remembering."
The Walker opened his eyes.
"I remember..."
He looked toward the darkness.
"...the beginning."
"Beginning of what?"
"The first dream."
Milo stepped closer.
"The First Dreamer?"
The Walker shook his head.
"No."
"Then what?"
The Walker pointed toward the enormous eyes.
"The first dream..."
A pause.
"...was not dreamed by the First Dreamer."
Everyone froze.
"Then who dreamed it?"
The Walker whispered...
"We did."
17. THE HUMAN DREAM
Diana stared.
"Humanity?"
The Walker nodded.
"Not humanity as we know it."
He looked around.
"Humanity before humanity."
Milo frowned.
"That's impossible."
The Walker smiled sadly.
"Again."
Milo understood.
"The first choice..."
"Was ours."
"The first desire..."
"Ours."
"The first dream..."
"Ours."
The Keeper whispered...
"Then the First Dreamer..."
The Walker finished.
"...wasn't the creator."
He looked at the enormous eyes.
"It was the first thing humanity imagined."
Silence.
Gandalf slowly lowered his staff.
"So..."
He looked toward the darkness.
"We created the thing that later taught us how to desire."
The Walker nodded.
"Yes."
Arjun whispered...
"Then we've been chasing our own imagination..."
"...for longer than we knew."
18. THE ORIGINAL QUESTION
The figure stepped forward.
"There is one question left."
Milo looked at him.
"What question?"
The figure pointed toward the enormous eyes.
"Why did humanity imagine it?"
Diana frowned.
"Because we wanted something."
"No."
"Because we were afraid?"
"No."
"Because we were curious?"
"No."
"Then why?"
The figure looked at the travelers.
"Because..."
A pause.
"...we were alone."
Silence.
The darkness...
became quiet.
The enormous eyes...
stopped moving.
The figure continued.
"The first human dream wasn't about power."
"Or immortality."
"Or knowledge."
"Or control."
"It was..."
He looked toward the sleeping world.
"...the dream that someone else was there."
Diana's eyes filled with tears.
Milo whispered...
"Companionship."
The figure nodded.
"Yes."
The Keeper looked at the others.
"Then desire..."
"...began with connection."
The Walker smiled.
"And everything afterward..."
"...was an attempt to recreate it."
19. THE LAST DESIRE
The enormous eyes...
opened again.
But this time...
they were smaller.
Human-sized.
The darkness became a face.
Not monstrous.
Not divine.
Just...
lonely.
Milo stared.
The First Dreamer...
was crying.
No tears fell.
They simply existed.
Diana stepped forward.
"Are you lonely?"
The face nodded.
"Yes."
"Do you want us to stay?"
A pause.
"Yes."
Milo looked at the others.
The figure shook his head.
"Be careful."
Diana looked at him.
"Why?"
"Because..."
He whispered...
"...that's the first desire."
Diana understood.
If they stayed...
they might be choosing from compassion.
But perhaps...
they would also be feeding the oldest desire in existence.
The First Dreamer looked at them.
"Stay."
Tarzan looked at Milo.
Milo looked at Diana.
Diana looked at Arjun.
Arjun looked at Gandalf.
Gandalf looked at the Keeper.
The Keeper looked at the Walker.
The Walker looked at the figure.
The figure smiled.
Then...
Tarzan stepped forward.
"I HAVE A QUESTION."
Everyone sighed.
The First Dreamer looked at him.
"What?"
Tarzan pointed.
"IF YOU WANT US TO STAY..."
He paused.
"...DO YOU WANT US TO WANT TO STAY?"
Silence.
The First Dreamer...
stopped crying.
Milo's eyes widened.
The Keeper whispered...
"That's the question."
Diana nodded.
"Yes."
Arjun stepped forward.
"You don't want our presence."
He looked toward the First Dreamer.
"You want our desire for your presence."
The First Dreamer...
said nothing.
Milo smiled.
"And that's the difference."
20. THE CHOICE THAT WASN'T GIVEN
The First Dreamer looked at them.
"Then..."
A pause.
"...what will you choose?"
Nobody answered.
For the first time...
the travelers weren't being shown a door.
There was no warning.
No command.
No system.
No prediction.
No expectation.
Nothing.
Only...
a question.
Milo looked at Diana.
Diana looked at Arjun.
Arjun looked at Gandalf.
Gandalf looked at the Keeper.
The Keeper looked at the Walker.
The Walker looked at Tarzan.
Tarzan stared into the darkness.
Then...
he smiled.
"We DON'T have to choose yet."
Milo laughed.
The First Dreamer froze.
Diana smiled.
Arjun nodded.
Gandalf raised his staff.
The Keeper closed his eyes.
The Walker...
laughed.
The figure smiled.
And the entire universe...
trembled.
Because for the first time...
someone had discovered something even more dangerous than refusal.
Not choosing.
21. THE WORLD BETWEEN CHOICES
The darkness...
opened.
Not into another world.
Into...
nothing.
A space between moments.
A place where decisions had not yet become decisions.
The travelers stepped inside.
There were no paths.
No doors.
No signs.
No instructions.
Tarzan looked around.
"THIS PLACE IS BORING."
Milo stared.
"No."
He smiled.
"This place is..."
He paused.
"...free."
Diana touched the empty air.
"Nothing has been decided."
Arjun smiled.
"Then anything is possible."
Gandalf nodded.
"Or nothing is."
The Keeper looked at the Walker.
"What happens now?"
The Walker smiled.
"I don't know."
The Keeper laughed.
"Good."
Tarzan raised his banana.
"SO..."
Everyone looked at him.
"What?"
Tarzan pointed into the infinite emptiness.
"WHERE DO WE GO?"
Milo smiled.
"Anywhere."
Tarzan nodded.
"GOOD."
He walked forward.
There was no ground.
Yet...
his foot landed.
Then another.
Then another.
Behind him...
the others followed.
22. THE WATCHER WATCHES BACK
Far behind them...
the First Dreamer remained.
Watching.
But no longer controlling.
No longer predicting.
No longer demanding.
Just...
watching.
The figure stood beside it.
"Do you understand?"
The First Dreamer shook its head.
"No."
The figure smiled.
"Good."
"Why?"
"Because..."
He looked toward the travelers.
"...understanding everything would end the dream."
The First Dreamer looked at Tarzan.
Then Milo.
Diana.
Arjun.
Gandalf.
The Keeper.
The Walker.
It whispered...
"I don't want the dream to end."
The figure nodded.
"Then don't own it."
The First Dreamer looked confused.
"What should I do?"
The figure answered...
"Dream."
23. THE NEW DOOR
The travelers continued walking.
Forever...
or perhaps...
for one second.
Time no longer mattered.
Then...
Tarzan stopped.
Milo bumped into him.
"What?"
Tarzan pointed.
A door...
stood ahead.
Blue.
Small.
Ordinary.
No red.
No warning.
No words.
Milo approached.
"Where did that come from?"
The Walker stared.
"I don't know."
The Keeper smiled.
"Open it."
Milo looked at him.
"Why?"
The Keeper shrugged.
"Because..."
He smiled.
"...we don't know what's behind it."
Milo looked at Diana.
Diana smiled.
Arjun nodded.
Gandalf raised his staff.
Tarzan reached for the handle.
Then stopped.
Everyone stared.
Tarzan looked at the door.
"...WAIT."
Milo sighed.
"What now?"
Tarzan frowned.
"What if..."
A pause.
"...THE DOOR IS HUNGRY TOO?"
Silence.
Then...
the door knocked.
Once.
KNOCK.
Everyone froze.
KNOCK.
Twice.
Tarzan slowly lowered his hand.
KNOCK.
Three times.
Then...
a voice came from behind it.
A voice...
they all recognized.
Milo whispered...
"No."
Diana's face went pale.
Arjun stepped backward.
Gandalf raised his staff.
The Keeper stopped breathing.
The Walker closed his eyes.
Tarzan whispered...
"...that's my voice."
The door opened...
one inch.
And from the other side...
came Tarzan's voice again.
But older.
Tired.
Afraid.
"Don't open it."
Everyone stared.
Tarzan looked at Milo.
"But..."
The older voice continued.
"...if you already heard me..."
A pause.
"...then it's too late."
The door opened another inch.
Beyond it...
was a jungle.
Their jungle.
But burned.
Broken.
Empty.
And standing in the middle of it...
was another Tarzan.
Older.
Scarred.
Holding no banana.
He looked at them.
Then...
at himself.
And whispered...
"I told you..."
A pause.
"...not to choose."
The younger Tarzan stared.
"WHY?"
The older Tarzan looked toward the sky.
Something moved above the ruined jungle.
Something enormous.
Something...
sleeping.
The older Tarzan whispered...
"Because..."
He pointed upward.
"...we are not the dreamers anymore."
Everyone looked up.
The sky...
opened.
And behind it...
was another world.
And behind that world...
another.
And another.
Infinite layers of reality...
stacked inside dreams...
stacked inside dreams...
stacked inside dreams.
Then the older Tarzan looked directly at Milo.
And said...
"The thing dreaming us..."
A pause.
"...has finally realized..."
Another pause.
"...we can dream it back."
The darkness...
went completely silent.
Then...
somewhere beyond everything...
a heartbeat began.
THUMP.
THUMP.
THUMP.
The blue door...
opened completely.
And on the other side...
something enormous...
opened its eyes.
**TO BE CONTINUED... **
Written By,
Ivan Edwin
Pen Name :Maximus.
©All Rights Reserved