The Girl and the Guardian

In the world of Aeden, as in all worlds where there is life, there is a place called the Dreamweb. There fragments of souls may meet in jumbled forms and veiled communications; there also walk the lucid dreamers, who know the secret of waking-sleep. These may use the Dreamweb to speak to one another – or to those sleepers whose minds are unguarded.

  Out of the Dreamweb of Aeden, in the middle of a dreamless sleep, something crept into Shelley’s mind. It spoke wordlessly to her, and, still asleep, she got out of bed and followed it to a door in the big room with the glowing crystal. When the door opened there was white light all around, and she was standing on the brink of a high cliff far above the badlands, looking out across a vast space of air to a distant mountain with many peaks – five, she thought, sure that she could not be dreaming, since she could count quite easily, something she never could do in dreams. She found herself flying towards this mountain, levitating, gliding like a seagull. The sensation of flight was the most blissful thing she had ever felt, and she hoped she could do it forever. As she approached the mountaintop she saw it had a high stone wall running between its tall peaks, but she flew easily, blissfully, over the wall and came to rest on a green lawn with many apple trees, laden with beautiful red apples. Their sweet fragrance filled her with a strange yearning. The smell was richer than the apples she had eaten that night, darker, like autumn leaves or rich red wine, mingled with a musky sweetness like angel’s trumpet or jasmine on a warm summer’s night.

  Then some of the Thornmen appeared. They were no longer dark and ugly, but radiant beings of light. They spoke into her mind and told her how special she was, that she should find a way to come to them in the waking world and eat the apples, which they called Apples of Peace. Then she would know what they knew, and together they would build a wonderful future for the whole world, and all the worlds – even the Earth.

  They told her sadly, ‘You have been deceived and led astray by Korman the Outcast. You must pretend to trust him, but escape and come to us at the first opportunity you get. He is trying to reawaken an ancient Heresy which was in this land in ages past. He is a servant of an evil witch, the so-called Lady of Avalon, the “Apple Isle”. But her apples are not apples of Peace and Enlightenment, but of sick indulgence and false hope leading to endless, painful life.’

  ‘Why did you seem so dark and frightening in the wagon when I was shown those terrible things and the Black Hole?’ Shelley asked.

  ‘That was a false dream put into your mind by the one you have trusted. For he is a sorcerer, an evil Dreamcaster. But also, it is true that we will appear as grotesque thorny beings to you, and the Void will seem as a fearful darkness, until your eyes are opened by eating the fruit of these apple trees, these or others like them which we have planted for the redemption of this land. Seek out the Apples of Peace, and fear them not, but eat of them, and you will be like us, able to fly on beams of light into the peaceful Void. We can give you many gifts. Remember, we are the wise ones, the Travellers. Trust no other knowledge: it leads to strife and unrest. We alone bring peace.’

  Beams of light – as they said these words the intoxicating vision began to melt into ordinary daylight, and she awoke. She heard, very faint through the air vent, the sound of the gong which, Korman said, called the people to the worship of the Void.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The Battle for the Mind