Short Stories

“What are dreams? A journey into the subconscious or a world of their own?” That was the first question I asked myself when I became a dreamer. Many of them carry special keys to remember what they dreamed, but I realized that I could do it without needing anything. My dreams were rich in stories of different kinds, so I captured them in complex and detail-rich stories. I was gaining good recognition online as an amateur reader.

I also had popularity online, talking through different social media applications, as I liked to participate in live streams (although I never used my face) or debate rooms, where I met quite a few friends and learned other languages. The name I used as an alias on that platform was “John Doe.”

In my travels to the world of dreams, I could see my friends and visit them, of course without them realizing it, as I had been warned about the consequences of interfering in others’ dreams. There, I could find out about their most intimate desires, longings, emotions, and more.

I also loved telling my dreams to my wife, with whom I had been married for more than 20 years, and especially to my children, who were amazed by the travels of a dreamer and the adventures I lived in that world.

Then I discovered the art of prophetic dreams when I visited an oracle in Ulthar, where I met its residents and their peculiar relationship with cats. I had one myself at home, so I could understand them very well.

Of all the friendships I made during my waking hours using the online platform to search for new lands to visit, I met a guy named Pedro. There were many traits about him that reminded me of myself, and we got along very well, especially in music, as he was an avid guitarist. Pedro loved to play music in his sessions where many of us came to listen, but I was always the first to arrive and the last to leave. We got along with each other and the chemistry was natural.

After him, I met another friend named Irina, who introduced her difficult language into my learning repertoire. Her schedule was very different from mine; I normally connected from work, and we would stay for many hours. Every time I looked at the time zone, I worried that she would stay up all night talking to me, but I ignored everything; I also liked the chemistry we had.

We, the three of us, loved to chat and tell anecdotes, but I had sensed they both had a unique kind of chemistry, something special.

Then I decided to visit their places in the world of dreams. Pedro’s house was like a luxurious apartment, and there were many musical instruments. There, searching the walls of her dream, I found the lovers’ section. I didn’t want to look, but my natural curiosity as a dreamer won out.

“Oh gosh, that’s her. Is he in love with Irina? But this section is for future events; I don’t understand,” I thought as I contemplated a photo where he was next to an apparent photo that eventually seemed to be materializing into nothingness.

I quickly left there and felt bad, but I didn’t want to roam into his private life, so I let it go.

A couple of days later, while writing about my adventures in which I escaped from the Men of Leng, I decided to connect with my other friend Irina, who had left me a message to chat with another of her online friends.

And while I was preparing to connect, my wife calls me and says:

“Remember, next week we’ll have to go on vacation with the kids; you have to talk to your boss.”

“Yes, love, I will,” I replied.

From there, I connected, but I only saw Irina, so I decided to ask her:

“Where is our friend Pedro?” I asked.

“We already talked; he went to sleep,” she told me, and so we continued chatting for hours, and I had to tell her about my family vacation.

“How long will it be? Will you be available afterward?” she asked.

“About two weeks, but I’ll be back, although with work, I don’t know if I’ll be as available as I was before.”

“Please, don’t take too long. It’s boring being here without your company, Pedro also has a job trip.” she said, with a melancholic tone.

“Are you okay?” I asked her.

“Yes, no problem,” she said, and after a pause, she finished, “I’ll give your regards to the others.”

And so I ended the call and went to bed.

While I continued to walk the streets of Ulthar and gave some milk to a cat, I couldn’t stop thinking about Irina’s last words and her tone, so I decided to visit her dream home and look for something that would reveal an interesting aspect of her.

I found a country house, hidden among exotic forests with interesting contours, so I went in. The place had a very rustic tone, and I liked the decoration; it seemed that she loved photography, but of all things, there was something I had to know: the content of the lovers’ box. I knew it was wrong, but I needed to see it.

Upon opening a green-colored box with herbal aromas, I saw the photo, her and the outline of her new future forming, Pedro, but it vanished again.

“No, this is wrong. what is happening?” I thought, while contemplating the implications of the revelation of the photo, so I quickly left there; I had to consult the oracle.

I returned to Ulthar and entered the dark altar, where there was a rudimentary pot. To consult the oracle, I had to leave a true tear, and the oracle would materialize into a being that would give me a premonitory dream, so I cried over the pot, and it came out.

As it manifested in front of me, it showed me my future.

“The destinies of your best friends have changed, but not yours, you will become a successful writer...” it babbled.

While looking at the events in a conflicted way without understanding, I thought about my first relationship, which ended because of my inattention to my expartner, and the second current one, in which I have been amending my mistakes from my first relationship, but I couldn’t believe that I would may have make another mistake in the future. Seeing the vanishing images of Pedro and Irina caused me a strange sensation. I sensed that something was wrong, so I asked it:

“How can I change that future? What happened?”

The oracle paused, then babbled:

“The talismans of each one of them were altered by the gravitation of the eye of destiny; they are now linked to yours to preserve the balance, you have inadvertently altered them.”

I looked at the houses floating in space in the vision and asked it:

“How can I change it? What happens when I do?”

The oracle thought about it and, after a long pause, spoke:

“You must put the talismans back in their floating houses, and then take them out of the orbit of the eye of destiny. The houses must return to the planet Phu, where yours is. If you succeed, the lover of each one will return to the original designated partner...”

“Each other..” I muttered in my mind.

I thought about it for a moment. “And if I abandon my friendship with them in the waking world but I stay active onl, so they can regain their bond and be together, as it should have been?”

The oracle simply replied, “The future of both would be uncertain, then.”

Finally, the water transforms into gas, disappearing and leaving me with more doubts than certainties:

“Typical of oracles,” I thought.

I left the place and returned to the waking world. I meditated throughout the journey about what I should do, and my son shows me an online video:

“Look, Dad, a superhero with a green cape is fighting a dinosaur! He's ”

I saw the images, and they seemed to come from some volcanic place in South America. I just told my son not to believe everything on the internet and to leave the smartphone for a while.

We arrived at the hotel, and I had several messages from Pedro and Irina, asking me if I was okay and wishing me a good trip. I prepared during the night and finally returned to the world of dreams, where a man received me.

“I heard the rumors about an adventurous dreamer, and I’ve come to offer you a proposal,” he told me as we walked towards a place.

“What proposal?” I asked him.

“I visited the oracle, and it told me about an adventurer, a dreamer, and that he would help me with my research on celestial bodies,” he smiled.

I thought about the possible mission; I hadn’t made the decision yet. I had a moment of deep contemplation. The oracle is not usually wrong.

“Don’t worry, son, the ship is equipped with everything necessary; you can return as soon as you finish your mission,” the scientist smiled.

We talked about what I wanted to do and negotiated the terms. The only thing this man wanted was to store data about the nature of celestial bodies through a robot that was going to accompany me on the journey.

“I accept,” I finally smiled at him, giving him a handshake.

I boarded a small ship with two thrusters, plus a spacesuit hanging and a small circular robot that rolled, and feet came out when it wanted to express itself; it only did so with sounds.

“This is Claud, your new companion. Put on the suit.”

Claud did some jumps, and I put on the heavy suit. Then I sat in the ship that was starting to move upwards. The scientist gave me the instructions, and I could understand the commands, aided by Claud.

I moved the lever and could feel the roar of the two thrusters, and slowly it began to levitate, then shot out into space.

“My dream adventure has begun.”