It was a sunny Friday morning.


    The sun itself had never been brighter, lighting up the city and its outskirts. Glowing, warming everything up, bringing life to the normally bleak and uneventful world. The flowers in the field were blooming more than ever, the various animals everywhere wandering the plains and the forests with glee. One thing was for sure – Summer had come to the City of Dissonance, and the warmest days of the year were ahead of its citizens. Tom couldn''t get enough of the weather – With how much work he, Taza, Will and Fonda had put recently into their potion scheme, he barely had enough time to just rest. The work they had managed to get done itself was impressive – But tiring.


    In the span of a single month, potions went from being exported privately to Dissonance to being sold at fair prices to all citizens, behind his and his two companions'' backs. With Tom helping him, Taza managed to keep up with both Dissonance''s demands to keep him in the dark, and the orders coming in from the citizens. And when the four ensured that everyone in the City of Dissonance could protect themselves if the need arose, they finally gave Dissonance his ultimatum – They asked him to pay Taza at prices equal to everyone else or lose his supply completely. If Tom didn''t know Dissonance any better, he would have said he took it rather well. But that small twitch in the edge of his smile as he reluctantly agreed and the whisper into Sapana''s ear on his way away from the caravan was enough to reveal that he was far from complying – He had a plan, and it could not bode well.


    And so, it was a sunny Friday morning, and Tom was bleeding out.


    If you were to ask him how exactly he got here, he would most likely say something along the lines of, ''I guess that little bitch boy couldn''t handle a fourteen year old who can pack a punch.'', but then again, Tom also had an incredibly dangerous habit of lying to unimaginable degrees. How exactly the whole thing spiralled into where he was now, in overwhelming agony and trembling on the cold, hard floor of a cave, was a mystery to him. At one point, it became a blur of sounds and images, only becoming clear when his head met with the stone below. And as he lay there, he swore he could feel his own muscles being torn to shreds.


    How to describe his situation accurately... he was completely in the dark, the only source of light being that beautiful summer sun peeking in from above. Something was slithering behind him, something else moved across the wall. But Tom could not move – And that was what scared him most. The moment his body hit the floor it were as if his ability to move at all ceased, his limbs refusing to listen to any of his orders. All he could truly feel was the trail of blood moving down from his nose, onto his lips, and eventually dripping onto the floor below. Every muscle in his body pulsated with endless pain, and his head was spinning so much he felt as though he was about to lose consciousness any minute. The aching in his body, however, would not allow him to drift away quite so easily. So he was forced to listen.


    Up above, over the sound of whatever creature was watching him in this cave, he could hear arguing. It was distant and unclear – The pounding of Tom''s heart and how it made his ears pulsate kept him unable to hear anything at all. He knew one of the voices must have been Will – And after some time, he recognized the other as Sapana. Everything that had led him to this moment was still swirling around his mind – But he knew that pyromaniac with a crappy sense of style and cocky grin was responsible for it all. The shouting was vicious – Even without understanding any of the words, Tom could tell that these two were definitely not having a pleasant debate about their newly-established potion business. He just hoped that someone would come to look for him soon enough – He was not alone in this cave.


    The hissing and scratching was now growing ever closer, and Tom felt himself slowly spiralling into this awfully familiar feeling of helplessness. That same helplessness he felt with the stranger with the crown pointing the edge of his sword at his throat. And this helplessness told him one thing – If he wasn''t saved by waking up from this as if it were just another nightmare, he would die. He wished this could have all been a dream, or memory, or whatever the hell it was that his mind constantly tried to shove down his throat. He just wanted to be back in that make-shift bed Will prepared for him. He just wanted to check his bag, like he did every morning, ensuring his three discs were still there. He just wanted to eat a peaceful breakfast with all of his three companions, and continue that work of theirs.


    But Dissonance wouldn''t let them, Dissonance wouldn''t allow them to, because Dissonance would never, ever, let anyone take his power away. Dissonance would never, ever let anyone be better than him and he wouldn''t let them and I''m gonna die here, I''m gonna die here and no one will ever find me. I''ll never find who those discs belong to, and I''ll never help Taza and I''m just an awful person because if I had just calmed down if I just never hit him if I just never started any of this I wouldn''t be here I wouldn''t be alone I wouldn''t be scared everything wouldn''t hurt so much and maybe I''d just run away again and find another town and ruin another life because I can never do anything right and maybe it''s better if I just die here and-


    For the first time in a long time, Tom cried.


    He wasn''t sure what it was. Maybe it was the pain, controlling every part of his body, muting out every other sensation and leaving him immobile. His whole body was trembling but no matter how hard he tried he could not control his movements. And that was another feeling – This helplessness, this complete inability to stand up and defend himself, or to even call for help when he needed it. He wanted to stand up and run, get away from whatever was lurking in this darkness, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn''t. And of course, there was also the regret. The regret over starting all of this in the first place, the regret over escalating it so much, and the regret of never telling Will what he''d been wanting to tell him since the first time he saw him. Because there was another reason he stuck around, another reason he clung onto him so much, another reason he didn''t want to leave no matter what happened. Because this was not the first time-


    Crack. Slash. Splat.


    Silence.


    "...It''s okay.", he heard a voice, a deep and foreboding one, from behind him.


    He wished he could turn around, see who was speaking. But once more, his body failed to listen to him. In the corner of his eye he noticed something – A pile of pitch black and hairy limbs, with ruby red eyes slowly losing their colour. Whatever it was in that darkness behind him was now dead, a far worse foe having defeated it. And although the monster was gone, its blood slowly seeping out of it, the strange feeling of helplessness did not fade.


    Somehow, it only seemed to grow stronger.


    "I''m here with you. You''re not alone."


    He felt someone''s hand touch his head, slowly running their hand through his hair. He shuddered at the touch, fearful of who it may be standing so close to him. He just wanted to see someone, anyone, a familiar face that could give him peace of mind. This encounter did far from that.


    "...I''ll keep you safe until they find you. Just calm your breathing and focus on my voice. Don''t sleep. No matter how tired you are, stay awake. That thing was only a spider.", the voice carried on.


    Tom looked briefly at the pile of unrecognizable remains and felt his heart skip a beat. If a spider that large lured in this cave, he truly feared what else could emerge from those shadows.


    "I killed it. One stab and it was dead. Even if it had gotten to you, it wouldn''t have done much. But it could have moved you, made your condition worse. You most likely broke something. Once they get here, they can''t move you. They need to lift you up on something. Are you listening to me? If you weren''t, then do. If you are, keep at it."


    The stranger''s tone of voice alone made Tom listen, afraid of what could happen if he did not. He could hear voices above getting closer – Familiar voices calling out his name.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    "This is far too much to heal with bandages and rest. You''ll need potions. Daffodils make for good healing potions. Those, you can drink. Make another one from peonies. Those you can pour onto cuts and breaks and they''ll make recovery faster. They are hard to make, though. They can be harmful if not done right. Are you still with me?"


    The boy could now hear someone shouting down from the edge of the cave, and the stranger slowly backing away deeply into it.


    "Stay awake until they take you somewhere safe and take care of you. Just stay strong. You''ll get out of this, just stay focused. Oh, and here are your discs. They fell out of your bag and flew everywhere. I put them back in."


    Tom heard some shuffling and noticed his bag being plopped down next to him.


    "I have to go now. Good luck, and stay strong."


    And in that very moment, so many things happened at once that Tom could barely keep track. The stranger ran away, with their footsteps echoing further into the cave behind him. From the top, both Will and Fonda slid down along the side of the wall and started inspecting him and calling out to him almost instantly. He wanted to ask questions – Where''s Taza? What happened? Where''s Sapana? Where are our potions? But of course, nothing came. Just as he couldn''t move his body, his mouth did not let a single word through. He wanted to say something – About the stranger, about the advice he gave, about what he''d been wanting to tell Will for a long time and now felt like he would never get the chance to. But once more, his voice failed him as he tried to speak. All he could do was lie there, hoping that the father and son standing over him knew what to do.


    "...Tom? Tom, can you hear me? Just stay with me, alright?"


    Will was soon kneeling by his side, touching his shoulder gently but not moving it at all.


    "Fonda, we''re gonna have to carry him out of here... and grab the..."


    The man''s voice started to fade as Tom failed to grasp onto reality, everything slipping from under his control at a worrying rate. He wanted to stay, remain awake as the stranger had told him, try to stay strong. But it was impossible. In the haze that everything was, Tom only heard one thing from above before losing consciousness completely;


    "Hey, you three down there! Do you need help?"


    And so, the world was dark. But a dream prevailed above it all;


    "Why are these discs so important to you, anyway?"


    "I don''t know, to be honest. I''ve had them for as long as I can remember."


    "And you just keep them? Why? If you don''t know why you have them..."


    "I''m... not sure. It just feels like someone really important gave them to me."


    "Do they even play any more? They look super old!"


    "I haven''t really checked... wanna give them a try?"


    "You''d trust me with your discs, Will? Aren''t they like... super important to you?"


    "Someone else trusted me with them before, Tom. About time I do the same."


    Now he remembers. He remembers what he has to tell him.


    And he wakes up with a task.


    It was hard to describe what his body was feeling – It were as if the pain was still there, but instead hidden behind some sort of fog, overwhelming his whole body. The smell of herbs and some sort of food floated around him, the strongest aromas making his nose scrunch up as they got too intense. His body was stiff and uncomfortable, but he could move it – And that was enough for him. With that complete helplessness he experienced in the cave, even being able to turn on his side and look at his own hand as he moved it in front of his eyes was good enough. He wasn''t sure where he was, but he could tell he was in a rather comfortable bed in a small bedroom, chatting to be heard right outside his door. With not much else to do, he listened in;


    "So how did this even happen?"


    The voice that spoke was deep, but it was not the stranger from the cave. Tom would never forget that voice – And if he ever heard it again, he couldn''t even imagine how he would react. This person, however, sounded just as calm and collected, speaking slowly and with focus. Tom listened in.


    "...It was Sapana."


    The voice replying was that of Will, and instantly, Tom flinched. He had something incredibly important to tell him, after all.


    "...I don''t know if Dissonance sent him or if he was working alone, but he showed up at our door and demanded Taza go back to the flower field and that we hand over any potions that we had left over. And of course, all the money we made."


    "What an asshole.", the other voice muttered.


    "...But that still doesn''t explain how the kid ended up at the bottom of a cave. I''m guessing he escalated things a little?"


    Tom gulped. A little was definitely an understatement to how he reacted back there. But there was no taking it back now, and at least he was still alive. But where was Taza and the potions?


    "...Sapana got violent when we stopped cooperating. First he grabbed Taza and pulled him away, throwing him on the ground. Then he lit a torch and threatened to burn down our caravan if we didn''t listen. So... I did. I started handing all of our supply over, and Tom, he-"


    Will paused, sighing.


    "Just... came up and punched him in the face."


    To this, the unknown voice laughed.


    "Kid''s got some spunk!", he exclaimed after a pause.


    "And Sapana, fully armed, still decided that the more mature thing to do would be to grab the kid and throw him into a cave?"


    "...I didn''t even know how to react. I told Fonda to go get him while I tried to talk it out with Sapana, but there was no way. He said the only way he would let us stay in the city without burning down our home is if Taza went back to the flower field and continued making the potions the way he did before."


    Will paused, his voice beginning to tremble.


    "And I... I just had no choice. So I let him take Taza away, and we went to get Tom. And then you got there. You saved his life, Errett. We''re forever in your debt."


    "It''s no big deal. I''ve started getting tired of Dissonance myself..."


    Finally, Tom decided it was time to get up and ask questions. Questions about Taza, questions about their plan, and questions about that stranger – If they had even seen them. And of course, Tom had a task. A task to tell Will something very, very important. As he shot up, he could feel his head spinning, his hand moving to his forehead. There was a bandage there now, laced with various herbs that formed a sickening smell. Most of his body was bandaged, and he couldn''t even imagine walking with how agonizing the pain in his legs was. Still, this sudden movement was enough to get the attention of both Will and this ''Errett'', who were standing right outside the doorway. They both rushed in, the man he knew sitting by his side while the other kept his distance.


    "Tom, Tom, take it easy-", Will tried to say, but the blonde instantly cut him off;


    "Where''s Taza?! Where did they take him?!"


    The strain in his voice couldn''t be ignored, but no matter how much it hurt to scream, he could not stop. He just wanted to be assured his friend was safe – But both Will''s and Errett''s expressions showed him he was most likely far from that.


    "...He''s in the flower field. In his house."


    Will put his hand on the boy''s shoulder.


    "They''re keeping him there but he''s safe. And he''s okay. So relax and focus on yourself for now, okay? You need to rest. We''ll figure everything else out later."


    Tom hesitated for a moment, stammered, and then sat back. He couldn''t hide how calm Will''s voice made him feel.


    "...Okay.", he whispered after a moment.


    "...We''ll figure it out later."


    "I better replace your bandages now that you''re awake. I need to get some from storage. You two stay here and lay low, alright? It''s best if you don''t get in Dissonance''s way right now."


    Here, Tom finally noted Errett to be a tall man with brown hair and dark sunglasses covering his eyes, obscuring whatever colour could be hiding behind them.


    "Thank you again, Errett."


    Will looked at the man but stayed close to Tom, his hand still on his shoulder.


    "If you ever need anything just-"


    The man with the sunglasses, however, would not let himself be thanked so much. He chuckled and then spoke;


    "Don''t worry about it."


    The man grinned.


    "You''ll get a chance to pay me back some day, I''m sure."


    And with this he left, leaving Will and Tom alone in an uncertain silence. Errett turned the corner where he could no longer hear them, and almost instantly, they both spoke;


    "Tom, there''s something-"


    "Will, I need to-"


    They paused for just a moment.


    "You say it-"


    "Go first if-"


    And once more, a pause.


    "Tom, I-"


    "Wilbur, I-"


    And in perfect unison, they blurted out;


    "I''ve seen you in my dreams before."


    And for that single moment, the whole world seemed to freeze.