Between Dream and Reality

The spectacle I admire is most striking, at our feet we see our reflection as if we were walking on water and a blue and pinkish sky overlooks us. This universe seems to have no limits. When I turn my head back, I can't see anyone except a little girl. She may be ten years old and she tilts her head from right to left, analysing me from top to bottom.

-Hello, have you seen my friends? They are accompanied by Captain Soryo.

-Interesting.

-Er... What's your name?

-My name is Shalpie and yours is Myo, isn't it?

-Yes, it is. How do you know it's Myo?

-I just see it and so do your friends.

-So you saw my friends come in.

Yes and we even talked together and that's what we're going to do with you and that's what we've already done.

-What? I don't quite understand.

-Come and follow me, it'll seem simpler. Will you give me your hand? I'm always a bit scared alone.

-Of course you are.

I reach out my hand and we both start walking. It feels stranger and stranger. I feel calm and light, not at all worried about my friends disappearing, just curious about this world and what this little girl really is. Her long blond hair goes up to her waist and she walks around in her tangerine dress, barefoot as if nothing had happened.

-It's a pretty place, isn't it?

-Oh yes, of course it is. I've never seen anything like it, not even in my wildest dreams.

-Oh it's nothing really. What do you see around us?

-Well, a blue sky and a kind of water at our feet that we walk on.

-Oh. That's funny, I'll have to think about it.

-Do you see that mirror in front of us?

-Yes, I do.

-Well look inside and you'll see what your friends are doing and how you should act.

This little girl is very enigmatic but I listen to her and obey her without too much hesitation and then... Something makes me believe her and trust her. Then I approach this mirror, it is small. It is a hand mirror, it is silver and it is decorated on the handle with a sort of dragon that serves as a wrist. It's crazy, it looks like my mother's mirror. But this is impossible because it was my father who drew my mother's dragon and had his name engraved on the back. So I take it in my hand and turn it over without really knowing what I'm waiting for.

"Lucie Arashi", my mother's name. It is my mother's mirror that I hold in my hands. The one she used to use for her make-up and hair every morning before she took me to school or before Dad came home from work.

-How is this possible? How is it possible?

-Because you wanted to, that's how. This world only exists through the eyes of each person who observes it. Nobody sees it the same way because nobody has experienced the same things, nor the same dreams. The same sorrows. Not everyone has lost their parents as you lost them, Myo.

-How do you know these things?

-I know everything there is to know about the people who come here, their joys, their sorrows, everything that is most secret and most conspicuous. I know the desires, the feelings, the fears. And that's why I'm here, so that you too can see what's inside you and learn how to control this new fire within you.

-What fire are you talking about?

-The one you've been wearing since you met the Cloud of Rey, the one you wear on your wrist. It is not surprising that you have acquired this power. Everyone who has been given power has been given it for a good reason. You, it's because you ran out of time, you ran out of time to warn your father and save him. In any case, that's what you believe.

-The powers conferred by the Cloud of Rey have something to do with who I am.

-With what you are and even what you would like to become. Some people get wealth, others get strength, sometimes even courage, but the Cloud gives nothing. It only makes us aware of who we really are deep down inside, nothing more. The watch you are wearing, which is a relic of your father, will be a very precious instrument to move forward in this world. By turning the dial to the left you will be able to go back in time by ten seconds and not one more. But to repeat this feat, you will have to wait a minute before you can do it again.

-Going back in time...

-It is a power that many men have dreamed of, so don't use it lightly.

-I will do my best to prove myself worthy of it.

-You will be, I am sure you will be, and so will your friends, on the condition that you trust and stick together. You can look in the mirror, you will see your friends and how they are doing.

Then I look in the mirror and I see Lyra, she too is facing this little girl. The world in which she is, is funny to say the least, everything is very colourful in the sky as if it had been painted. As for the ground, it is strewn with apple green grass. As well as seeing the scene perfectly, I can hear it too.

-Excuse me, but I'm lost and I don't see my friends anymore.

-Don't worry Lyra, they are there just like you. They are taking the test at the same time and they will soon go out with you again.

-Oh and what do I have to do during this test?

-Oh nothing special, just be yourself.

-I think I should be able to do that.

-It's a fun skill.

-What do you mean?

-Take the stone that is on the floor and shake it in your hand.

Lyra does this by bending forward in the grass and holding a stone in her hand. Then the pebble is surrounded by a bubble and floats slightly in the air like a soap bubble when she releases it.

-I didn't expect this.

-Yes, I know. You would have liked something more spectacular, but know that your power will be very useful in any circumstance if you learn how to use it well.

-Thank you very much. What is your name exactly?

-Shalpie.

At these words, the picture starts to get confusing and I now see Wistom in what looks like a cricket field. This time I am not even surprised by the vision, it is so much my brother that the opposite would have surprised me.

-Sorry little one, but you wouldn't have seen people passing by and where are we now?

-As for the first question, I would answer yes, as for the second one I would answer wherever you want.

-You are very enigmatic for a little girl, sorry but I really have to hurry because I have to take a test.

-I know it well Wistom, you are in the process of taking it.

-What's up? You're the one who's taking the test? I was expecting...

-To doctors and sports courses. Unfortunately, you didn't dream of them. But it doesn't matter, I'm here to show you your new power. You and your friends and you have very different abilities, but they will surely complement each other.

-Go tell me that I will be even stronger with a superb armour.

-Hum... There is some truth in it but it is not you who will be in armour. In any case, not right away, I present you your Croger.

A samurai slowly comes out of the earth and faces Wistom. He has a mechanical face and his eyes are blue, they are made of a kind of crystal. As for his outfit, he wears a sort of traveller's toga to which he has attached a katana and a wakizaki on his belt. His toga is a sort of empire green, with orange outlines. Finally, he wears a large beige jingasa.

Wistom is both proud and very impressed by this immobile and proud character who stands up to him.

-He will be your travelling companion and you will be able to invoke him if you are in need.

-Nice.

-Take good care of yourself and also of him because if he is injured, it will take time for him to regain all his strength.

-All right, Shalpie. Thanks for everything.

-You're welcome, future warrior.

The mirror is getting cloudy again and I see to my greatest surprise, Hirion. He is facing Shalpie and he is in great shape. The world around him is familiar to me, it is the hill in the heart of Himawari. The only thing that surprises me a little is the fact that there are several big apple trees around him when in reality there is only one.

-I was told that here I would understand what is happening to me and what I have to do.

-In a way Hirion. This morning you finally woke up after completing your transformation. It caused you a lot of pain but it was the price you had to pay to be reborn.

-Rebirth?

-Yes, in the form of a plant man. From now on, your whole organism has been metamorphosed whether it is your bones or even your heart, everything is just vegetation in you.

-Uh... I don't know what to say.

-So don't say anything and join your but, they are waiting for you impatiently.

Finally, I let go of the mirror which remains suspended in the air, turning slowly on itself.

-Now that I've told you what there is to know you can go home.

-Our life will never be the same again. Won't it?

-Indeed, this gift that has been given to you by heaven, you will have to use it, in whatever way you want. But it's true that you won't be able to return to your quiet life in your little town. Now the world is waiting for you and it needs you badly; more than you can imagine.

-I am nothing and nobody and despite my power I still feel so helpless.

-This is normal. If it had been otherwise I would have taken you for a madman. However, you have to be patient and get to know yourself and discover the powers that lie within you. Things don't happen by chance, at least that's what I believe.

-Thank you Shalpie for your advice. May we meet again some day.

-It will happen, but not right away. You still have a long way to go.

When she finishes her sentence, my eyes face the silver door again. I turn around and see Lyra, Wistom and Hirion.

Wistom is crushing her in his arms and crying.

-Never again do you frighten me like that. That's understood, never again.

-Yes Wistom. But don't crush me like that because I'll really die if you do.

Lyra holds her hands together, smiling and holding back from crying. This reunion does us all a world of good and even Captain Soryo smiles in a corner.

-I'm sorry to cut your reunion short, but there are two other friends who would like to talk to you.

When he finishes his sentence he shifts to the left and we see Pold and Zoe walking towards us. They both walk forward holding hands and smiling, their eyes soaked with tears. Hirion rushes to kiss Pold while Zoe and Lyra run towards each other to hug each other. I watch the scene as I greet them while taking the trouble to admire the building once again. Despite having looked at it for several minutes, I continue to discover magical details such as this small statue carved into the wall where an octopus confronts a shark. I look at Pold again and he looks changed and his right eye has turned green whereas his were green. But after all that has happened to us a simple minnow's eye is far from being shocking or a priority.

-Now that you have had a chance to meet up and exchange the usual amenities, I will introduce you to Captain Haka who is in charge of recruit training. You will see, he is a bit special but he is a wise man who knows how to motivate and train his troops.

So the six of us follow him, we pass again in front of Vorka who is always drinking his tea but this time reading his newspaper. So we go up the stairs and we go up quietly and we arrive at the second floor which has a very different decoration where all kinds of wood have been used to make the statues, the walls and even the floor. The parquet floor is matt beige while the wall is made of a kind of oak. A lot of people move around in what looks like a giant armoury. We are walking in the middle of a kind of armoury library. All sorts of katanas, spears, swords and bows are displayed in showcases, all transparent. We don't linger here and we continue our way through a large arch produced by two big trees. I have just noticed plants coming down from the ceiling supporting stones and candles to light the place. It is a delight and at the same time very straight where weapons break through with this idyllic and calm ceiling.