The Less I Know the Better

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Prologue
Dasim was a loyal servant of Xeren. He dedicated his life, his entire being, to the service and worship of the Power. As Dasim was skilled in the art of war, he quickly rose to become one of the highest commanders of his forces. His rank and devotion did not go unnoticed by Xeren, who allowed him to be one of the few who could speak to his god at his leisure.

While Dasim was aware of the great abilities Xeren possessed and his apparent invulnerability, he was still concerned that his god would go out into the field. He did not bring this up to Xeren for quite a long time, but eventually it became too great for him to ignore. Dasim finally brought the matter before Xeren at one of their meetings.

In response, Xeren got up from his throne. He said, “Dasim, there is something I must show you.”

The Power led Dasim from the throne room to a part of the palace which was rarely used. It was a large, spacious room which held a great collection of weapons. Bows, arrows, swords and axes were all hung up on the walls. Xeren directed Dasim to a particular longsword. It was unremarkable in design, only distinguished by the crown etched onto its hilt.

“Why have you shown me this, my lord?” Dasim asked. “What am I to learn from seeing this sword?”

Xeren took the sword and held it. The steel blade abruptly turned into rocky soil, which could not maintain its shape. A sharp, icy interior was revealed beneath it. Xeren switched hands. The ice turned to smoke, then into burning flame. The fire became something Dasim could not quite make out. He felt a pain in the back of his head when he tried to squint at it.

“This sword is Ahriman,” The god explained. “You asked what would be done if I were to be defeated in battle? The answer is simple: I would begin the next battle with this in hand.”

Narrative
As the sun slowly set behind the mountains, the covered wagon descended down the road, debris flying in its wake. Pulled forward by large birds, it continued on its path, the road between the mountains tightening with time.

At the reigns sat Samuel Brownlee, with Atticus Anoethite and Marshall Rooke on either side of him. The rest of the group sat inside, asleep or keeping watch from the back. After descending down a rocky path, Samuel pulled the chicaro to the side, bringing the wagon to a stop. They had left the mountain side behind and were now in a snowy nook, a majority of the view ahead of them hidden.

"We should be near the ferry now," Samuel stated, as he got down from his seat and untied the birds, leading them over to the side.

"Where are we exactly?" Marshall asked. "In case you didn't notice, everything looks the same here."

"There's a village close by, you can't see it from this view though. Kaipo is the name. Tomorrow, a few of us need to go there and get some resources." The older man replied.

Climbing down from the back, Chris got on the ground and walked towards the other three.

"I am thrilled to leave that thing," he said. "It's quite late now, maybe we should camp here for the rest of the night?"

"That's what I was thinking," Samuel responded. "Let's get some firewood."

With a fire set up and night surrounding, the group scattered around the area. Samuel and Atticus sat near the chicaro. Wen Li, still healing due to his wounds from the encounter in the Shadowlands twenty days earlier, sat near the fire with Zade Santello. Blossom Cane and Chris, deep in conversation sat across the fire, with Marshall and Blackmore Veers leaning against the wagon.

Zade also sat by the campfire, enjoying the warmth of the flames nearby. "You know, I do find it ironic that the Beast of the Shadowlands ended up being killed by the very thing he had hunted for so long. " Zade then adjusted himself a bit on where he was sitting.

Li chuckled. "We're so close to the ferry. It'll be nice to get some real rest."

"Yeah, but where do we go once we reach Aiola?" Blossom asked. "What's next?"

"I can acquire us a vehicle and I will drive us to sanctuary," Li answered.

"What sanctuary? We're fugitives!" Marshall countered.

"Da's parents' Monastery. I'm sure they'll help us," Li assured him.

The group remained unsure of the future as they silently agreed to Li's suggestion.

A bit of small conversation continued before the campfire for the next several minutes, mostly about what lied ahead and the events since arriving in Muné. It slowly died down as people broke off to prepare for sleep.

Samuel walked toward the chicaro carriage, where the two large birds had now closed their eyes. He noticed Atticus nearby, sitting on a log and poking at a rock with a branch. Before Samuel entered the wagon to rest, he approached the boy.

"Hey, Atticus," Samuel told him.

"Uh, hey," Atticus said, dropping his branch. "How's it going?"

"Good," Samuel replied. "Have you been holding up well?"

"Yeah, decently. Why do you ask?"

"Just curious," Samuel replied. "We've been through so much I'm not sure if it really has been twenty days. When Fontaine proposed this mission, I expected we could've been killed, captured, or maybe caught by the authorities. Not this," he paused for a moment. "Do you think you were forced into this, Atticus?"

"I..." Atticus paused, before continuing. "If you want the honest answer, I'm not sure. I was against the idea originally, but I joined because it felt like I was needed."

"It was quick and sudden, right? Knowing what Fontaine had told you and seeing how everyone was joining him, maybe you didn't want to feel left out," Samuel scratched his head and laughed awkwardly. "Sorry about that. Shouldn't be assuming things."

Samuel walked over to the log and sat beside Atticus. "Do... you remember when you first came to the laboratory? The dream everyone had?"

"The one with the barn and all that? Yeah, I do." Atticus replied. "This might sound weird, but I've never stopped thinking about it. It's always on my mind."

Atticus' comment slightly surprised Samuel. "Wasn't expecting that. Guess we see eye to eye, then," he responded. "By any chance, do you remember how it ended? Those seven or eight figures that appeared in the grass? The one that talked to you?"

"Yes. Is there any reason you're asking all of this?"

"Atticus," Samuel cleared his throat. "You can choose whether or not to believe what I'm about to say. Since one of those things came up to you, I'm going to try and tell you first."

"I was forced to come here. This was never supposed to be my fight. When Fontaine was made his offer, I left the room. As much as I think the actions during the mission were necessary and just, and as much as I say I would have done it again, I would never partake in something like this."

Atticus remained silent.

"After Fontaine laid out his plans, I left you all and went upstairs. I wanted to rest, and I was still concerned about what happened last night. I turned on the Allucinor and started a dream — and then I saw it. The things in the dream, one of them appeared in front of me, it spoke to me," Samuel explained. "You know what it did? It killed me. It spoke to me and then killed me."

"But I didn't die," Samuel continued, slightly choking up. "Trust me, I was dead, but I was very much alive. The next time I woke up, I was with you all during your training. But my movements weren't my own. That thing — I couldn't walk, I couldn't do anything. I couldn't scream, I couldn't cry. And this continued for three months, only ending the day after we got to Muné. The one who helped train you all, the one who flew you out of Remnant Rock, all of that was not me."

After several moments of silence, Atticus finally spoke again. "I understand. My own experience is much different from yours, but I understand."

"It began right after that dream," the boy continued. "The first vision I had was odd and seemed real, I saw myself inflicting violence on Blossom. Later on, when we were seated with Fontaine at your table, I had another one. I saw him as the figure that spoke to me in the dream. He asked me if I wanted to join him, and then the other group members surrounded me, before things returned to normal."

"After that one, I didn't have one for several months. But when they came back, they were different. They were obvious visions and seemingly prophetic. I saw how people were going to die before it happened. Before we left for Remnant Rock, I had a vision involving Steven's death. I didn't know what to do and I kept quiet about it. It happened, of course, and I've felt awful about not being able to save him all this time. I haven't been able to tell anyone."

Atticus continued telling Samuel about his other visions and thoughts on them, before finally finishing.

"But lately, my dreams have been different. They keep calling to me, calling me an apostle and similar things."

"I believe you," Samuel slowly said. "I believe every last bit of what you're saying. I don't know why, but these things — they seem to want something to do with us, specifically."

"I had that same feeling," Atticus nodded. "But I don't understand why."

"Since I was 26," Samuel started. "I've been researching these things. Past historians have given them all sorts of names. One book I have calls them 'dream eaters,' documenting their existence as far back as 12 TP. The others... need to know about all this. We have to tell the others once they get back from Kaipo tomorrow."

Taking in the view before her, Blossom stood at the large, spiked wooden gate. It was the entrance to the village of Kaipo and they were going to most likely have to catch the attention of some guard before it was opened. Her companions, Blackmore, Chris, and Marshall, stood at her side. As planned, the four of them had been sent into Kaipo, under disguise and aliases, to gather resources before the group continued their journey to the Smithson-Reed Ferry.

Pausing, Blossom quickly ran her fingers along her crown-braided hair and looked towards the other three. "How do I look? Different from my usual self?"

Getting the clothes from a previous village, she was dressed in the traditional Munése green robe with zig-zagged patterns and wore a faded brown satchel over her right shoulder.

"Yes, very different," Chris agreed. He was wearing a white toupee, glasses, a blue t-shirt with a skull on it, and baggy yellow shorts. "Who will ask to open the gate?"

"I'll do it," Blossom said. "I probably don't need to remind you guys of this anymore, but remember, my name right now is Alaina Loker. Please make sure to remember your names."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Marshall said, waving her off.

Finished, Blossom turned to the gate and began to call out in broken Munése, taught to her by Li. Eventually, the gate opened, with the guard behind dressed in armor. He waved for them to continue onwards.

As the group made their way, Chris looked around at the different buildings. "Okay, we should be careful. The place we go shouldn't be anywhere noisy. I think I see a grocery store over there, that can help us find resources."

Blackmore flicked his hair out of his face. "The longer we spend here, the higher we run the risk of being caught. I'm getting antsy."

"We need to get some more shit. We're low on everything," Marshall commented.

"Then let's get some things," Chris said, trying to keep his voice to a whisper. Walking in a way that would not cause people to think they were a unit, Chris led the way and they hid in the back alley behind the grocery store. Once the coast was clear, the group made their way inside.

Keeping her eyes on the other shoppers, Blossom opened her satchel and swiped apples, oranges, and other fruits off their wooden rackes, dropping them into her bag. She followed suit by adding various pieces of wrapped up meat into it. Once finished, she walked by Chris, who was stationed at the other side of the shop by himself. Blackmore and Marshall were in similar positions across the store, grabbing accessories they deemed needed.

"Let's go find some new clothes," she remarked.

The party continued gathering clothing, making sure each to leave at a separate time and pay for at least one item each. They made sure not to spend more than ten gil﻿, and later gathered outside to make sure they still had enough to pay for a trip on the ferry.

"Good, good," Blackmore whispered. "This is just going splendidly. Are you all ready to-"

Unfortunately, it seemed their money had attracted some unwanted attention. Marshall felt a cold hand on his shoulder, and felt an undoubtedly demonic presence.

"You piece of shit!" He shouted, swinging his bag to hit the creature in the jaw. It fell down, hitting the ground with a heavy thud as Marshall and Blackmore began to kick it in the sides. Blossom closed her eyes and sighed to herself.

Immediately, she began to join in, stomping on the attacker's stomach vigorously.

"Wait a second," Chris said, "This isn't a demon! That's just some man." A groan escaped the unconscious man's lips.

"Hey!" A man's voice bellowed out. "What are you all making all that noise for?"

Looking up, the group noticed a guard standing nearby, holding a small pistol in his left hand. Spotting the man on the ground, the guard lifted the gun and pointed it at them.

"Stop right there! You're all under arrest. Any sudden moves can and will result in deadly force being used."

Chris turned to Blossom and Marshall and nodded, motioning for them to run along. Chris followed, and once they had finally hidden behind a tree, asked, "What's Blackmore even doing?"

Blackmore approached the man calmly, showing his hands before grabbing the man's shoulder and whispering something to him. After an exchange of words between the two, Blackmore turned and caught up with the others, obviously faking a grin with anxiety in his eyes. "Let's get the fuck out of here," he spoke, between clenched teeth.

"Come on, the entrance is this way, hopefully they haven't already closed the gate!" Blossom shouted, running ahead of Chris and pushing her way through the assembled crowd.

After various turns, they finally noticed the gate in the distance, still open. "Do you think it's safe?" She asked, turning to the others, slightly out of breath. "There could be more guards."

"We're good." Blackmore responded. "Just get out of here soon and we'll be safe."

"Did you pay them off or something?" Marshall asked, chuckling. Feeling confident, he started walking towards the gate first, watching his surroundings. Without trouble, he crossed to the other side and waved for the rest to follow him.

The group returned to the wagon shortly after without incident. Each person was able to take a bit of what Marshall, Blackmore, Blossom and Chris had recovered from Kaipo, with the chicaro getting a small portion of meat and fruit as well. The four that had gone to the village briefly shared with the others what happened.

Li munched on a blue apple. "I love Muné's culture."

"I wouldn't say I like it, exactly," Chris replied. "Some cities we had quite the rough time, as you've heard. But we should probably head out soon enough."

"The next time we get on the road, it'll be a straight trek there. I heard its pretty nice," Samuel began. "But before we do, could Atticus and I talk to you about something?"

"What's up?" Blossom asked, setting her plate down near the fire. "Is it important?"

"Say it, guys," Marshall said impatiently.

Everyone closely watched Samuel as he started to speak. "If I told you the man you knew for half a year wasn't me, would you believe me?"

"Would you believe me if I said all my life's work, my vision, culminated into being possessed by some phantom? Because that is what happened," he tried to explain further, but no words came out. "Atticus, are you able to explain?"

"Are you saying you didn't accompany us to Remnant Rock?" Chris asked, surprised. "Because it's as clear as day that you did, and haven't left us since. Sounds like a way to get rid of us."

"So some ghost just possessed you and you've been Ghost Samuel since we met you until now?" Marshall asked.

"He's speaking the truth," Atticus said. "The same goes for John Fontaine. The one we knew wasn't the real one."

"I stand with Samuel and Atticus on this. Samuel has been my friend for years, and in that time, I have known him to be a reliable man. I noticed something strange when I saw him on the day I met you all in the laboratory. I'm sure Blossom felt it too," Li stated firmly.

"Yeah. Yeah, I guess," Blossom said, looking down at the ground. "I noticed something was off about him for the longest, but just ignored it because I didn't know what."

Resting over in a corner of the camp, Zade could be seen getting up. Completing such, he slowly walked towards the rest of the group. "Sorry for my absence; I needed some rest, that was all."

The man then realized he was facing the wrong direction. "Oh, sorry."

Zade turned around, regrouping his surroundings.

"What goes on here...?" Zade asked, in a curious tone upon hearing the conversation.

"Can you step aside for now?" Atticus asked, folding his arms. "This is a private conversation. It won't take much longer, of course. Blackmore is keeping guard on the other side of the camp, you can join him there maybe."

"Very well then, I won't interfere." Zade then stepped aside and went over to find Blackmore, going out to join him on guard duty.

"All of this is the truth," Samuel pleaded. "What we saw in my laboratory, those things, one of them came to me, they stole my body. 'Dream Eaters,' that's what scholars like to call them. I've studied them for years," he coughed.

"These things have names, they're real, they can think. They want something to do with us, they've terrorized us. The one that stole my body is named Yaakov, and whatever shared the body of John Fontaine was called Xanvi. For some reason or another, they have made us our enemies."

Several hours later, with dusk settling, the group stood near the Ares port. The large shadow of the Smithson-Reed Ferry loomed over them as they prepared for the next part of their trip.

"So, we've finally made it," Atticus remarked, standing at the side of the parked wagon and petting one of the chicaro.

"There it is. Our ticket to salvation," Li sighed as he held his cane. "I'll be back here again some day." He wiped droplets of sweat from his wrinkled forehead.

"It is quite the sight," Chris said, staring in awe at the ferry.

"I hate boats and I hate the ocean. Let's just get it over with." Marshall whined.

"It's really as nice as they say," Samuel spoke out. "But I will not be boarding."

"What do you mean, Samuel?" Chris asked. "Don't you think it's a little dangerous, any of us staying in one place by ourselves?"

"What?!" Blossom blurted out, turning from gazing at the ferry to face her former employer. "You have to come with us. You can't really be thinking about staying here?"

"I am," Samuel said. His speech was quick. "You will all continue without me."

Blackmore stepped towards the boat and stopped. "Let me guess," he spoke, looking away towards the sea. "....You don't want to run away. Well, I'm not going to be a righteous idiot."

"Dr. Samuel Brownlee. In the years I've known you, you've been a generous, intelligent, and hardworking fellow. I am grateful to have known such a man as you and hope nothing but good things to flow your steep, steep way. Perhaps our paths may cross again some day, old friend."

A tear dripped from Li's face. He smiled at Samuel and hobbled past him, patting on the back. Li's cane clicked as he walked along the pavement towards the ferry.

"You've always been such a great mentor to me," Blossom began. "Ever since I started working at the lab, you taught me so many things. And especially since we began this journey. Take care of yourself please."

Crying slightly, she quickly hugged Samuel.

The man looked down at her. "You have courage and passion, Blossom. I saw it when you worked with me, and I know how quickly you partook in the mission that led us all here. You'll get through this," he quietly said, patting her on the shoulder.

"The ones who took down that thing at the manor, the ones who killed the demons in Headre and drove us out, the ones who always went into the fire," Samuel told everyone. "Have been all of you. I'm supposed to be one of the adults here, but what have I done? I can't let myself lag you all behind. I will remain here, and I will accept my ticket with fate. You've proved yourselves capable, and I trust you will continue to do so in Aiola."

"I respect your choice, Samuel. And good luck in your next adventure and make sure to take care of the chicaro," Atticus said, holding his hand out.

Samuel waved to everyone as he turned and started to walk away. He only had a small hint of sadness as he took a look at Atticus, giving him a silent nod that the boy returned.

Chris waved at the man and shouted "Goodbye, Dr. Brownlee!"

Wiping her tears away, Blossom turned to face Zade and Blackmore. "Are you guys coming with us?"

"Absolutely. I owe you guys one after all for helping me get out of the Shadowlands finally." Zade then raised up his hiking stick, marching forth.

"That's my only option." Blackmore pulled his bag over his shoulder and stepped onto the ferry first, turning his head and giving Samuel a two-fingered salute. "Come on," he said to the others. "Let's get going."

Watching as the Muné shore slowly disappeared from sight and blended into the golden-orange ocean, Li leaned against the railing at the back of the ferry. "I'll miss him. Glad he's happy."

Epilogue
Silivia was dead and empty as a ghost town. Corpses lined the street, some human and some demonic. A large bomb had embedded itself in the pavement though refused to detonate. The air was misty and heavy with tension. The sound of metal scraping stone came from the middle of the road. Ten feet tall and made of sharp angles and metallic blue, wielding a nasty blade on the end of a scythe, the creature slowly walked forward on its bovine legs.

“I must admire your tactical skills. If only you’d been smart enough to let things be.”

A foul grimace came from a winged demon atop a water tower in response. He wielded a long-sword in one hand, sharpened to perfection alongside a small round shield with a golden eye embedded in the center. The giant continued.

“...But you can’t outrun me forever. I can see everything you’re about to do.” A smirk set across its unnatural features. A visor dropped down to cover the demon’s face. It shot forward like a bullet, arcing through the sky with its wings before speeding up alongside an explosion of sound.

The giant swung its scythe which was met by the sword of the demon. The blade slipped into a small notch on the scythe, one that only existed due to its ornate design. The demon grinned and finally responded to the giant’s taunts.

“You might know everything I’m going to do, but I can predict everything you’re going to do! Strange, isn’t it?” The giant placed its other hand on the massive handle of the scythe, thrusting it forward to knock the demon off-balance before elbowing him in the face. Returning to a one-handed grip, the giant then smacked the demon to the side and through the brick walls of a building labelled ‘Plant Empire.’

The giant prepared to approach, before the demon’s shield flew out of the wreckage and knocked the scythe aside. Improvising, the giant pulled a bright red street sign from the ground and walked towards the building, metal hooves clanging against the ground. He placed the sign under the demon’s chin and against his neck.

“Surrender.”

The demon spat.

The giant thrust the stop sign forward.

Atticus awoke screaming.

Riding the Wave >