The Knight of Her Dreams (Dragons and Dreamphasers) (35 page)

Julianna could hear the pain in his
statement, but still had too many doubts which needed to be settled, even if
they never affected them.

“What if...” she began uneasily,
“before we can find a way to each other, one of us found someone else while in
either of our real worlds?”  His eyes darkened slightly.  “I’m not saying it
would
happen,” she continued quickly.  “But if a great deal time of elapsed, and it
did...”

“Our souls are connected, so it
wouldn’t,” he interrupted, but as her questioning gaze remained, Dominick
relented with a sigh.  “
If
that happened, which it won’t, I would
think it only fair for the person in question to be honest with the other, and
break off our engagement first.  In regard to the honesty and fidelity that go
with commitment, I think that’s only to be expected, don’t you?”

“Yes,” she agreed absently, more
worried that he’d be the one to break this commitment if too much time passed.

He must have sensed her thoughts, for
he suddenly gripped her shoulders tightly, locking eyes with her.

“Julianna, there’s been no other
woman in my life—either in reality or the dream-state—since the day I met you. 
I swear there never will be again.  And in case you’re curious, you’re the only
woman I’ve ever proposed to.  After a decade of searching, I’ve finally found
you, and I’m not about to let you go again without a fight.”

“Oh, Dominick, I’d never leave you
either,” she replied, leaning forward to hug him again.  Tears stung her eyes
as she continued.  “Even if we can only be together at night, I’ll settle for
anything we can have, children or no, and not let the shadows of reality come
between us.  And I promise, I’ll certainly never have an affair with anyone
else.  I love you too much for that.”

“By Chavernos, Julianna, I love you
too,” he murmured, with a smile.  “And all that you’ve said holds true for me
as well, since no other woman holds a candle to you.”

Kissing her quickly, Dominick added,
“Now, as far as this engagement of ours goes, maybe your world can’t recognize
it yet, but I do know some people of my world who will.  If it’s all right with
you, I’d like to arrange for some of my dreamphasing friends to be present
tomorrow night, so I can introduce you to them, as well as to announce our
engagement.  At least it’ll bring us one step closer towards our hopefully
future marriage.”

Julianna’s eyes shone at the
determination she found in his.  How could she have any doubts with a man like
this in her life? she wondered, touching his cheek.  “I’ll look forward to it,”
she whispered, kissing him deeply.

He responded in kind, rekindling
their former desire.  Gently easing her back against the pillows, his gaze met
hers.  “Since I know how you’ve felt lately regarding our nights together, if
it makes any difference, we can wait on more of this until our engagement’s
official tomorrow.”

“Hmmm, give me a chance to think
about it.”  About five seconds passed before Julianna shook her head.  “No,
that’s all right,” she said finally.  “With you, I don’t mind this wild abandon
anymore.”  She smiled knowingly.  “Of course, if it’s all right with you.”

Dominick laughed quietly. 
“Sweetheart, I do believe you’re gaining your own capability for reading
minds.”  His mischievous smile matched hers, as they embraced each other again
passionately.

Feeling the comfort of his arms
around her, Julianna felt so much joy.  Yet her unyielding thoughts couldn’t
help wondering.

“Dominick, do you really think it’s
possible?” she murmured.

He pulled back, never losing his
smile as he gazed into her eyes with conviction.

“I promise, love… We’ll find a way.”

There was no denying it. 
His grandson was crazy.

As Chaos paced about the
large room, silently contemplating Dominick’s words, the younger man stood
calmly awaiting his response.  The older man’s piercing green eyes were
calculating while his gaze appraised his grandson as if seeing him for the
first time.

So the boy had finally
fallen in love, as incredible as it seemed.

Despite his detached
attitude towards most others, Chaos knew the feeling well, as it had never left
him, even after his own beloved wife’s death many years ago.  If half the
things Dominick said about this Julianna were true, then perhaps he’d made a
good choice indeed, except...

In reality, they were
literally light years apart!

Inescapable truth was never
easily accepted by youth.

Running his hands through
his pure white hair, his powers sometimes exuding a soft glowing aura about him
when agitated, Chaos felt half tempted to pull out some strands in
frustration.  Clapping his hands together in silent decision, he spoke.

“Dominick,” he began
quietly, “I’ve always seen to it that you had everything you’ve ever wanted. 
Obviously too much.  Even when I helped hone those dreamphasing skills of
yours, knowing what you’ve used them for since you were a hotheaded teenager. 
Now before you say a word, I’ll admit to your credit that your reputation with
women in the dream realm is somewhat better than your brother’s, although I still
happen to disapprove of it, as you well know.”

Dominick nodded, and the
subject was dropped for once.

“However,” Chaos continued
sternly, his eyes deadly serious, “this latest stunt tops any of your former
teenage escapades.  Proposing marriage to a woman in the dream-state, not to
mention one who’s from another world!  Have you lost your mind, boy?  Do you
honestly believe an engagement of this type holds any chance of withstanding
the test of time?”

“Ours will,” Dominick
stated, his gaze never wavering.  “We’ve had a minor disagreement or two, but
we still love each other, and now wish to share our lives together.”

Chaos was silent for a
moment, just before a grin formed, throwing back his head with hearty laughter.

“Oh, Dominick, for all your
years, you’re still little more than that selfsame reckless boy of your
youth.”  As Dominick stiffened in silent irritation, Chaos grew serious once
more.  “You’ve known the girl all of a few weeks or a bit more, and yet you
profess to be in love with her.  Dominick, even if love can happen that
quickly, any marriage will only last so long without a solid foundation, and
you may never even be able to get past the engagement itself.  You haven’t
dealt with any world-shattering problems yet, and that’s fine, but should this
occur eventually, will your love sustain you through the hard times, including
this long distance separation you’re dealing with now?”

“Yes,” Dominick replied
firmly, fairly hissing the word.  “Have I just been telling you all to have it
cast back in my face?  Grandfather, I love Julianna more than any woman I’ve
ever known.  We belong together, and it’s only through a quirk of Fate that
we’re kept apart.”

“Exactly!” said Chaos,
slamming his fist on a table.  “You
aren’t
together in reality. 
Wake up from the dream-state, Dominick, and listen to me!  You say you love
each other
now
, but what happens when the months and years roll
by, and you’re
still
separated?  And also, what if one of you
comes to need more than what you have in the dream-state, and seeks it with
someone else in reality?  While it might not be considered adultery, I
guarantee it would still have the same bitter taste.”

“That won’t happen.  I’d
never cheat on Julianna, and I know she feels the same way.”

“You
know
,”
hissed Chaos.  “You barely know the girl!  Besides that, you’ve told me she
wishes to have children of her own.  Bear in mind, my dear naive grandson, that
for all the endless attempts you might make in the dream-state, you will
never
be able to father any children of hers there.”

“She knows that, and she
accepts it,” Dominick replied quietly.

“Does she?” he sneered. 
“Yes, I suppose for now, she might be temporarily dissuaded from the notion. 
And for all that, she’s no doubt as young and innocent—and foolish—as you are. 
But mark my words, Dominick, sooner or later, most women come to a point in
their lives when the maternal instinct strikes them.  When that time comes,
this Julianna is bound to change her mind about how tolerant she can be to this
aspect of your engagement.  What will you do if she not only has an affair with
another, but has a child by someone else as well?  Will you condemn her for it
later, or will you still
love
her as you claim?”

Dominick’s jaw tightened
angrily.  “I told you, Grandfather, we’ve discussed this.  And she knows I
won’t hold her to this engagement if such problems should become more than she
can bear.”

Chaos laughed again.  “You
should listen to yourself.  You make it sound like the girl will suffer because
of your relationship, and you’re already planning out what to do
when
it ends.  Why bother to announce an engagement at all?  It sounds like she’s
been a willing enough partner to warm your nights so far without a ring on her
finger.”

His eyes flew open as
Dominick abruptly turned, striding from the room.  Chaos hadn’t expected
that
response.  But despite being many years older, he didn’t need to rely on
physical stamina to overtake the younger man.  With a swift incantation, Chaos
vanished to reappear just before him, gripping his shoulders tightly.

“Let go,” hissed Dominick.

“Not until you’ve calmed
down, boy.  You look madder than a guardian devil who’s had his horns removed.”

Dominick shrugged his hands
away, his eyes blazing.  “What did you expect, Grandfather?  That I’d either
cast Julianna aside, or ask her to be my permanent mistress?”  At Chaos’s
silence, a grim smile stole across his face.  “Oh, yes, that’s exactly what you
thought, isn’t it?” he snarled. “Well, you can forget that idea entirely!”

“Dominick, listen to
reason.”

“Your
reasoning
is nothing but a route to unhappiness, and I won’t subscribe to it.”  He gave a
short forced laugh.  “You know what really bothers me?  I actually came here to
ask you to help us find a way to reach one another in reality, and I foolishly
assumed you would.  I suppose I should have known better, since you’re so much
like Riff!”

“
Cease!
” 
Chaos’s tone had its desired impact, as the room fairly shook, silencing
Dominick instantly.  “Now if you can manage to keep your tone civil, what
nonsensical help are you referring to?”

“It’s not nonsense,”
Dominick said slowly, fighting to keep his anger down.  “You’re the most
powerful multi-abilitied supernatural in Barokka.  You’ve used those powers to
make this island what it is today, a haven from those of outer Chavernos who’ve
looked down upon us for our extraordinary abilities.  Now if you can create an
island paradise such as Barokka now knows, surely a means of teleportation is
possible.”

“As strong as my powers
are, there are limits, Dominick.  And while teleportation might not be the most
difficult thing here on Barokka, or even the outer regions of Chavernos,
teleportation to another world—one at least twice as far as the sun—would be
much more complicated.”

“Complicated... but
possible?” Dominick interjected.

Chaos sighed heavily. 
“Many years back, there actually
was
a time when teleportation to
Earth was possible,” he replied, holding his hand up before Dominick could
respond.  “But that was
many
years ago, before you or your father
were even born.  The knowledge of that teleportation ability was lost after the
Mage War.”

“I’ve heard mention of the
Mage War once but very little spoken of it.”

“With good reason.  It was
a sad time for Chavernos that most would care to forget.  Many good people and
gifted sorcerers died for their beliefs.”

“What happened?”

“Before I explain this
properly, we’d best sit down.”  Chaos gestured to the chairs nearest them. 
Once they were seated, he steepled his hands.  “To this day, I believe the
reason for the Mage War was a foolish one.  Regardless, to understand both
sides of the argument, you need to know that long before I was born, the races
and creatures of Chavernos had initially migrated from a world outside of this
solar system.”

Dominick nodded.  “Yes, the
schools do speak of this.  They say our ancestors came here via crafts of
purple light that were destroyed upon arrival.”

“With what they felt to be
good reason.  All we know has been passed down from generation to generation,
although it’s said that some of the elder dragons, and possibly elves, may
remember more than we know.  What we’ve been given is that our origin world was
once a thriving world where both magic and technology existed in harmony.  They
say there were many wise leaders to guide it.

“However, there were others
of power that regarded the peaceful world as weak, who were determined to take
control to provide a stronger influence and shape the world as
they
saw fit.  Several of the most powerful beings who desired this were dark
sorcerers.  In many ways, they saw humanity as especially weak, and sought
either to control or destroy them, leaning strongly towards the latter.  Wars
were fought against them, but only keeping them at bay.  The culmination was
their use of technology that began to threaten habitability on the planet, but
the dark sorcerers cared only for domination, ignorant to the needs of the
world.