Chapter 10 Preparations.

Chapter 10 Preparations.

 "Mosh, Just tell us who you see in that dream image over there." Culexor commanded. Culexor was dressed like Q from star trek seated as a judge on  a giant throne. Mosh looked down at the crowd from his booth. He saw Raven, nomad, and Asuka in the audience. Aeona was sitting at the defendants table in chains, she was looking down and her hair tips were touching the table. She didn't look happy. Mosh finally figured out that he was in court as a witness.

 The prosecutor showed Mosh and image again. He looked at it and saw himself sitting in a police station desk with a dark specter floating over to him. In the next image Mosh as standing and the specter was shooting strange black arms from it's torso.

 "Is that the defendant?" Mosh was asked by the prosecutor. Mosh noticed the shape was very similar to Aeona. Mosh pointed his pinky at the image and it slowly transformed. The darkness went away from the image and all that was left was Aeona. It was very clear that who was attacking him in that dream was Aeona.

 "Yes it is her," Mosh said, "Undeniably." Lots of whispers emerged from the crowd in shock. Culexor slammed his hammer and demanded order.

 Aeona was found guilty of multiple charges of dream assault on sentient beings in the dream plane. Culexor sentenced her to one year of dreaming only inside her inner world. There would be no travel, dreaming or astral for a year.

 Aeona was transported to her inner world. A large shield was surrounding her inner world now. Nothing could get in or out. But at least her inner world was clean of any dark energy or other influences.

 ***

 "I'm going to introduce you to my parents." Asuka said to Mosh as they got home to his inner world, "I don't really keep in contact with them all that much, but this... I should at least let them know. They should be at the wedding."

 Mosh agreed to that. Still he seemed a bit nervous to her suggestion. He sort of shivered while he sat on the couch.

 "Don't worry," Asuka said, "They'll like you! really! Though I should warn you. My dad has sort of a strange sense of humor."

 "You mean like my dad's?"

 "You're dad thinks he has a good sense of humor, but he doesn't since he is the only one that seems to understand it. With my dad... you'll see. Anyway with Aeona out of the way it should go off without a hitch... anyway how did you meet Aeona?" Asuka explained.

 "A few months ago on a lucid dreaming forum. Just like how I met Nomad and Raven. At the time I wanted to try shared dreaming. I had done attempts a few years in the past with a girl from the same forum. Her username was Vex. But it didn't end so well."

 "What happened with Vex?" Asuka asked.

 "Well I had a crush on her. We did come pretty close to sharing dreams. like one night I would dream about a yellow truck, then the next she saw dozens of yellow trucks in her lucid. Things like that. It seemed wonderful at first. But I became obsessed.... a little too obsessed. I wound up freaking Vex out to the point that she would have nothing to do with me. Then very night... for several months... Vex would be in my dream. Like almost every single night. She would taunt me and torture me. I later found out it was dream demons just giving me a hard time. I eventually conquered them though. But to this day... Vex won't talk to me. I have tried to apologize many times. but she won't hear it."

 "Not everything works out the way it's supposed to. But it sounds like you and Nomad had very similar early experiences right?" Asuka stated.
 
"You mean with Rachel? Yes, he freaked her out too. And with Raven. She used to share dreams with her ex boyfriend. They would even make one another lucid so she claims. But their relationship ended terribly too. It's really weird... all of us had so much similar experiences with pain revolving around shared dreaming, and all of us met within a month. Very odd timing. it's like we were supposed to meet you know?

 "Oh yeah! back to the subject of Aeona. I wanted to try shared dreaming again. So I posted on the forum asking for a partner. Some guy got me in touch with Aeona. She was really nice and pleasant at first. We had a couple of solid shared dreams. We both shared a pretty cool flying dream! Then like clockwork, within a month Nomad and Raven made public that they were just beginning to share dreams! i thought the timing was impeccable so Me and Aeona joined on with them. Then... once that poet guy got involved everything turned wacky. Aeona started getting attacked. Raven and Nomad did everything to help her. Lots of epic dream battles and what not. Then all this weird drama with some spirit child living inside her. Either she is a multiple personality, or it's true. I don't know what to think. I don't think she is bad necessarily... Her heart seems to be in the right place. I know this because she seemed fine before this Poet guy showed up."

 "I hope you are right." Asuka said. "Anyway, are you ready to meet my parents?" Asuka got off the couch and stretched. Mosh nodded.

 They teleported to a house in the middle of a forest clearing. The house looked semi japanese and semi modern style. The roof was atypical for japanese style but there was also a garage. Mosh and Asuka entered in through the garage door.
 
 "I'm home!" Asuka announced as she entered with Mosh. there was a space to leave their shoes. they took them off. Mosh was nervous as they both heard two sets of footsteps coming down the hall. An older asian woman emerged first. She was in normal western clothes but had her hair done up in a bun with a few strands of hair hanging down. She smiled when she saw Asuka and Mosh.

 "Is this the man you were telling me about?" The Woman said looking him over. "He looks like a nice man! Well done Asuka! it's about time you moved on from your tragedy from so long ago." She went over to Mosh and patted him on the head.

 "I'm going to make sure that no other tragedy happens." Boomed a loud manly voice in a japanese accent. A tall asian man with short hair and dressed like a Samurai emerged from the hall around the corner. He had ancient eyes which seemed to pierce Mosh when he looked at him. The man towered over Mosh, who seemed semi frightened. "I'm going to make sure..." The man repeated. "By giving you this!" And he handed Mosh a pair of nun chucks. "Now you can protect my Asuka 100%!" He said and laughed slapping Mosh's back. Mosh felt a bit relieved and chuckled.

 They all followed Asuka's father into a dining room. The mother began to bring out dishes of various sushi, sashimi and a few noodle dishes. They all ate and talked to one another. The mood was splendid. Asuka's father kept making jokes about how Mosh looked like a wimp. Every now and then he would throw something at Mosh with the speed of throwing a dart or throwing star. Mosh caught them each time. The Father praised his reflexes.

 After dinner Asuka went with her mother into another room and began talking. Mosh was left alone with the father. Asuka's father showed him into a dojo. They both bowed before entering. "Sit and watch Kohai." he said as he got into a fighting stance. Mosh just sat and watched.

 "This is shadow kenpo! The best dream fighting martial art in the entire dream world! I will give you a demonstration."

 Mosh watched as Asuka's father began doing a karate form. It seemed simple at first with straight punches and kicks. Then, slowly, The punches, kicks, steps and stances reached a strange fluidity. It looked very graceful to Mosh. Some of the movements became so fast that It was impossible to see. Some of the arms and legs left so many tracers that he couldn't tell exactly where the arms were. Which ones were shadows and which ones were real. After a few moments. He finished with a bow.

 "Well, what do you think?" Asuka's dad asked.

 "Amazing... I've never seen anything like this!"

 "With this art you can surely protect Asuka!" he said, "She can even teach it to you. She is the best at this herself!"

 "Then... Why doesn't she use it?" Mosh asked, "She's been attacked at least twice since I've met her. She never once fought back."

 "She's just being modest." The father said, "She is better than her father at dream fighting. She's been at it for a long while, over a hundred years. She can run circles around you and your dream friends. Even your future friends and enemies. She can beat them all!" he boasted.

 Mosh was clearly shocked at his boasting. Asuka? a strong fighter? "But, I can't believe that she's just being modest... If she is so skilled, why doesn't she just use it and defend herself?"

 to that her father just responded, "You must be her strength for now."

 ***

 After a somewhat long visit it was clear that Asuka's parents had accepted Mosh into their extended family. they looked forward to the wedding. As Mosh and Asuka got ready to leave, the father stopped Mosh one last time.

 'I'm going to teach you something simple called the shadow hand game." and he put his hands in front of him chest level with the palms facing down. "This is very basic, now put your hands like mine but with the tips of your fingers barely on top of mine."

 Mosh followed the instructions. In an instant Asuka's father slapped mosh's left hand away from his right, repeated the movement on the other side until both of Mosh's hands were in the air. He finished with a  fake karate chop directly to Mosh's face stopping just an inch from his nose.

 "Now, you try." He instructed Mosh. Mosh p[laced his hands out facing down and the father put his on top of Mosh's. Mosh took his right hand away and slapped the man's left hand down. then he slowly began repeating with movement with his left hand. "No!" Her father said, "Not that way!" Asuka chuckled. "I will do it slow for you." They tried again and Asuka's father slowed down his movements. He slowly pushed mosh's hand away with his right, and then he did another slap motion down in between the two hands which Mosh hadn't perceived before. Then with his left hand he pushed Mosh's right hand away and followed with a slow right karate chop in the air.

 "Your hands must be so quick," he said to Mosh, "that your opponent doesn't notice your extra movements. That way he is hit even before he knows that you hit him. This exercise seems pointless and silly, almost like playing knuckles, but it trains you in imperceptible speed."

 "I don't think I'll have a good time remembering this exercise." Mosh said.

 "The instructions are on here!" He said handing mosh a couple of cloth bundles wrapped in plastic. Mosh stared at the plastic and saw no instructions on them, obviously not realizing that the instruction were on the cloth bundles. Dream logic. "Asuka is good at this game too you know. even better than me."

 Mosh wasn't listening. He walked into the dark garage which was empty and began going into his Tiger and Crane form feeling inspired to become a better fighter.

***

 Asuka and Mosh just spent the next few dreams hanging together. In one dream they wandered through a dark town at night time. They began exploring an empty apartment building. They eventually found an empty room with a clean bed.

 In another dream Mosh was wandering around in a strange building on top of a man made hill. When Asuka found him she saw that he had the appearance of an asian female with large breasts. Asuka found that amusing and changed herself into an asian male. She stopped mosh from wandering aimlessly. She brought him to a table with a large mirror on it. Mosh looked perplexed when he realized he looked like a woman. This made him lucid. He had no idea that asuka was the man beside him. He looked annoyed and got into a fighting stance. Asuka created a fighting DC version of the man she took the form of and teleported away leaving the DC in her place. She watched them fight all around the room.

 In another dream Asuka brought Mosh to the very green field where mosh shared his flying dream with Aeona. They were walking and talking. They were both startled by a flash in the sky. It almost looked as if a second sun had appeared in the sky and it was heading towards them. The second sun turned into a pillar of yellow light which touched the ground instantaneously. In a flash it was gone. Standing where the pillar of light was were two figures. One was Aeona, who looked like a tall green elf but the same black hair. the second and holding her hand was a mischievous looking raccoon boy.

  Fear overtook Mosh. How had Aeona gotten out of her prison? Mosh thought he had dealt with it for good. He turned to run when asuka grabbed his arm. "Wait Mosh," Asuka stated, "That's not the Same Aeona we know. I'm detecting no dark energy from her at all. Her heart is more pure."

 Aeona took a step toward them spoke to them in another language. Mosh was still skepitcal, "Don't come any closer!" he yelled.

 Culexor appeared in a flash of white light. He observed the scene for a moment and said, "Ah, this must be Aeona and your former self from the time of Mu! i will give you all a dimensional translator."

 Aeona had a pained look on her face. She said, "Why are you afraid of me? Don't you recognize me? I mean you no ill will, honest."

 "Yeah, like I haven't heard that one before," mosh said, "Last time you said that I was attacked in a dream school."

 "That was not me, I can assure you. I am a dreamer from the time of Mu. This," she said pointing to the raccoon boy, "... is you, but different. He is also from the land of Mu. He told me he had dreamed into the future to find out what his future self was like. and indeed he found out. He said you guys even had a little dream battle."

 "I remember," Mosh said, "Little bugger gave me a wound that carried on into several other dreams." The raccoon mosh chuckled to himself in slight arrogance.

 "So, you DO know me?"

  "Yes."

 "How?"

 "In my incarnation, I met the current incarnation of you in this life... we were dream companions for a few months. We even shared a dream in this very field. But the experiences began to get too negative and overwhelming for me." Mosh stated.

 "How so?"  Aeona asked a little perplexed.

 "It's a long story. But your current incarnation was attacking me in the end. covering herself in a sheet of blackness trying to mask her identity. But me, nomad and Raven uncovered who it really was... your future incarnation... or your present. er... this is confusing."

 "Raven? Nomad?"

  "Yes, the other dreamers in your group that look like him," Mosh said pointing at Raccoon boy.

 "Oh you know about us?"

 "Yes," Mosh stated as a matter of factly, "Nomad had a series of past life regressions after your present self told him that she was from the time of Atlantis. He recalled five of us from Mu use to share dreams, and that we all vowed to re-unite in later incarnations. We all did so just a few months ago. But we fell apart quickly once you began attacking me."

 "I can't believe that I would turn against you."

 "Well, it happened. I can even show you if you like."

 Culexor piped up as if he had an idea. "I have an idea but it's a bit risky." Everyone looked at him wanting to know more. "Every dream leaves a record on the dream plane. Like a dream akashic record. I can take you back to the time and place where it happened. But you must not interfere. you would be invisible. If you interact in any way it might change the timeline. and then i would have a real mess to clean up."

 "Understood." mosh and Aeona said in Unison.

 'I want to see too!" Said Asuka.

 "Oh no, two people viewing is enough. They'll be back before you notice they are gone. I will set up a telepathic link between you two."

 Culexor snapped his fingers. mosh and Aeona were trnsported and floating over a scene. They both saw Mosh below fidgeting with a jukebox. He cursed at it loudly and then decided to sit by a man at a table. they began talking when a dark specter got behind the man and extended something black into him, They Man swung At Mosh. They were in a tangled but Mosh twisted out of it and ran out the door.

 "I don't understand," Aeona said to Mosh. "That wasn't me."

 "Keep watching," mosh said back.

 The scene shifted to Mosh walking outside of a police station. He was walking on a driveway outside with green grass on both sides. A cop car pulled up and a police officer got out. But there was more. the dark specter was back. The specter and the officer kept eyeing one another as if the officer was getting instructions from the specter. Mosh ran towards a barn when the officer grabbed his arm. Mosh was yelling at him.

 "I know him," Aeona from mu said.

 "And that specter over there... that's you!"

 "I can't sense who it is." Aeona said and floated more towards the scene.

 "Be careful," Mosh said. "We don't want to leave a paradox for culexor." He reminded her. Aeona floated back to Mosh.

 "It's me," She said with a pained look on her face."

 the scene shifted back to the bar. Mosha nd the bartender were telling one another to F off. The entire bar had a dark aura and Mosh ran out in fear.

 the scene shifted to the police station again. It was nigh time now but Mosh was inside with the officer. The specter looked annoyed at the officer and took matters into her own hands. She flew at mosh and attacked him with dark arms coming from her torso. They watched as Mosh blocked and returned every hit until he landed a punch right into her stomach region. The specter flew back. She looked frustrated for a second, then i looked she like she was going to try something else, and finally an almost imperceptible look of guilt. She zipped off in a flash.

 "See," Aeona said, "She didn't really want to hurt you. She seemed desperate for something else."

 The scene changed and they were back in the green field with culexor, raccoon boy and Asuka. Asuka was petting Raccoon boy and he was grinning from ear to ear. Mosh then noticed Aeona. She was almost in tears.

 "I... I can't believe I would do that to you." She said.

 "It is your fate."

 "Well, maybe... I don't know. Maybe I can change it." Aeona said.

 "you can't. You'll be incarnating time after time on this plane and others before you reach my time. That's the curse of incarnating as a human... you forget everything. It's programmed into our genetic code."

 "Yes," Aeona said, "We are trying to save your race from the genetic manipulators that would use you as slaves. It's becoming an all out war."

 "And it's one neither side will win." Mosh said.

  "I'm sensing that." She began waling towards Asuka and Raccoon boy.

 "Wait..." mosh said, "Before you go. Promise me you'll tell him everything you saw with me. It may damage your friendship with him a bit. But he has a right to know. In this incarnation there were many things that you never told me,, or held back from me. You owe it to me... to him at least."

 "I promise that I will." Aeona said.

 Culexor stated that Mosh was probably going to forget this dream since it took place entirely within the span of an earth minute.

 "I'll make sure he remembers." Aeona said. She leaned down and kissed Mosh on the forehead. A white light emanated from it. Mosh suddenly found his perception looking through Raccoon boy's eyes. He saw himself and Asuka in the distance waving as they walked away. They stood in the exact same spot as they had arrived.

 "Let's go home," Raccoon boy said to Aeona in another language. Mosh felt Aeona grasp his hand. They both focused as a yellow circle formed around them. Mosh felt a tremendous wave of energy come out of his chest as it hit with Aeona's chest. He then felt a sudden pressure propelling them up in the sky at the speed of light.

***

 Raven fell asleep with the goal of completely cleansing Aeona from her dark energy. Only she and a few select others were permitted to enter Aeona's inner world.

 Raven found herself in a dark place. It seemed completely dark. It was as if she couldn' t see anything. It was like she was blind. She focused on Aeona's energy signature. She couldn't sense much. But she felt drawn in a certain direction and walked blindly towards that way.

 She finally noticed a bit of light. She could vaguely make out the outline of some trees in the darkness. It looked like a park shrouded in blackness. She could make out outlines of various other plants, a bridge over and unseen stream and a bridge. Raven wondered what had happened to this place. It obviously had once been beautiful... and maybe it could b that way again. Raven felt the need to restore it.

 As Raven got closer she noticed a  woman sitting on the bench. She was dressed entirely in black. There was still dark energy around her. But it wasn't strong enough to hide the fact that Raven had just found Aeona.

 "I thought I told you not to come here," Said Aeona. Her tone of voice sounded more casual instead of angry.

 "I can't let such technicalities keep me away from someone who needs healing." Raven said.

 "And why are you so certain that i am the one who needs healing?"

 "Who else needs healing?" Raven asked not sure what Aeona was referring to, "You're not the only one. Any of us can be infected with dark energy. I am not immune to it myself. It's inside me all the time. Somewhere concealed deep inside. I have been searching for a way to heal that too, but do far it can't be reached. I can't do anything except look. But I can do something for you. that's why i am here."

 "Because you think I'm evil?"
 
 "no," Raven began, "Quite the opposite! I think you have good energy and a good heart. That Dark energy you have just needs to go away. Will you accept my help this time?"

 Something was quite wrong. Raven sensed hostility moving about in her periphery of the area. She looked up. The sky was nearly black. But even in the blackness Raven saw a dark form moving outside what appeared to be an invisible shield. Raven could only describe the creature as a Shadow demon. It was trying to get through an invisible barrier surrounding Aeona's inner world. but it wasn't anywhere close to getting itself in. It was clawing at the shield and roaring in rage. It was poet.

 "He's back," Aeona said, "He won't stop you know."

 "If he won't stop we'll stop him," said Raven pointing to the creature outside the barrier, "But for no he's out there and we are in here."

 Raven started with her healing songs. They had the effect of pulling dark energy off of Aeona and from around her area. It all seeped into a dark shard in one of Raven's blades. Aeona didn't protest or interrupt  the healing. She seemed to be somewhat cleansed. Raven noted that the last time she did this the energy seemed to have an effect on her. so she decided to get rid of it. She opened a portal to the moon.

 "Will you come back?" Aeona asked?

 "As many times as it takes," Raven said, "But, your inner world also needs to be cleansed. As you are healed, so will your inner world be."

 "Some people won't accept that I can be healed," Aeona said.

 "Then we'll prove it to them... sionce the difference is as clear as night and day." raven smiled and left.


***


 Mosh and Raven were chatting on Skype. They were talking about setting up a dream place to hold the wedding. Raven said that she was trying to design a video game level that was based on a church/ temple. She was going to try to create it in a dream. She invited Mosh to check it out.

 Asuka found Mosh in a strange dream. He was walking in a town when a flood broke out. there was a young boy on a skateboard that got swept away by the water. The boy was struggling to to keep afloat. Mosh flew towards the boy to save him, but suddenly the drowning boy was a girl. An older man grabbed the girl. He looked at the girl perplexed and yelled in anguish, "Oh cruel world! Why is my boy suddenly a girl?"

 Asuka thought this dream was too strange even for herself. So she grabbed mosh while he was flying him and teleported him to his inner world house.

 As if on cue, Culexor appeared.

 "Good news!" He said to Mosh and Asuka, "Raven is almost finished designing her game level! You'll have a place to be married just in time!" you want to check it out?"

 Asuka nodded. Mosh was just looking disoriented and confused. Culexor didn't give time Mosh to think and teleported them to the level.

 They found themselves in a churchly temple. The entry hall had two large statues. Side passages led to rows of pews and the altar lined up at the front of the room. The door read, "The Temple of Gawn."

 Raven noticed their arrival. Asuka noticed Nomad wandering off inside the temple. "It's a level of the game Shadow Worlds that i am working on." Raven said, "Feel free to look around. Any ideas for it?"

 Asuka was looking around a bit and wandered into the chapel. Culexor followed her and they sat in a pew. Mosh was just looking confused still.

 "Hey, mosh!" Raven said, "Do a reality check! It's a dream!"

 "okay," Mosh said for once. He slowly floated off of the ground. He flew into the room with pews. He noticed Culexor and Asuka sitting in them and talking. He flew up to the rafters and pushed back down. On his way back he flipped over a support and landed squarely in front of raven.

 "Nice," Raven commented.

 Mosh lifted his right hand and pointed his pinky at Raven.

 "Don't you know that it's rude to point at people?" Raven asked.

 "I'm not trying to be rude. I am just trying to see your energy."

 "Well, you know more about the pointing thing than I do. but please give it a rest and explore this place some more."

 "Okay," Mosh said.

 "Oh yeah," Raven said, "I was going to try and do another healing on Aeona. Nomad is around here somewhere. Your culexor and Asuka are over there in the pews."

 "I'd like to come with you," Mosh said.

 Raven did a double take, "I said I'm going to do healing on Aeona."

 "Yeah, and i'd like to come with you."

 "but why?" Raven asked, "Don't you want to forget about her for a while?"

 "I want to see your healing for myself... I really want to know if she can be healed."

  Asuka was behind mosh now. "You really shouldn't go..." She said.

 "I want to see," Mosh said one last time.

 "Well..." Raven began, "Okay, we just need to be sure that she doesn't see you. either wise it could get nasty."

 "Fine," Mosh said, "Let's just go."

 Raven opened a portal to Aeona's inner world. Mosh and Asuka followed her through. On the other side it was all dark. Raven indicated to them that it was a good idea to stay behind. Raven focused a cloak over them to hide their energy. Asuka was uneasy and she was staying close behind Mosh. Raven kept through the darkness and found a small black pond. there was something under the water and Aeona sprang up from it.

 "You came back," Aeona said.

 'Of course," Raven said, "I have more healing to do here." Raven began her song and pulled more dark energy from Aeona into her dark shard. When the song was done Aeona wasn't all black any more. She was brighter and more vibrant. The rest of the park seemed lighter to. "There will be more," Raven said and figured Mosh had seen the process for himself. Raven turned back and walked directly into Mosh!

 "What are you doing? I thought I told you to stay back!" Raven said.

 "He wouldn't listen," Asuka chimed in.

 "What's he doing here?" Aeona asked.

 "Uh," Raven started, "Leaving, we're leaving."

 "I talked to another version of you." Mosh said to Aeona, "the one from Mu."

 "I was skeptical about that at first," said Aoena, "But then she came to see me. I'm not convinced she is who she says she is, but I'm also not sure she's not."

 "I was skeptical too... But nomad and raven have also seen her."

 Asuka spotted the dark creature in the sky. It was pounding on the outside of the shield. It seemed to be getting more pissed off. It clawed the shield, hit it with blasts of energy, and slammed itself into the shield. But it held strong.

 "You don't want to be here when it gets in." Aeona said.

 "I'm not afraid of him," Mosh said.

 "You should be, and you should go now," Aeona said.

 "We should leave, "Asuka agreed, "go for some healing, this place is so dark."

 Raven opened up a portal to the bio-dome and everyone went through.

***

 Asuka checked Mosh's dream for the night. He remembered fragments of his two lucid moments with Asuka nearby. He had flown right past Asuka lucid and didn't pay much attention to her. Asuka was a bit upset with this. But at least his recall and lucidity was getting better. Asuka sighed. This was really going to take some more time just like Culexor had first told her.

 There was something she had been wanting to ask culexor. About her vision from the orb. It had been bothering her lately. Asuka got up from the computer. She decided to open a  portal to find Culexor. One opened and Asuka was stepping through.

 She found herself in a barren desert. Mosh was with her, he held her hand and smiled at her. Asuka was confused as to where she was. She asked Mosh if culexor was around. Mosh said he had called to him but he was nowhere to be found. He had just wound up here. They walked together until it was night time. They spotted a fire in the distance and walked there as if in a trance. There was someone seated at the fire. He had long greying wavy hair, eyes that were as cold as an eagle. He appeared to be an indian and had a dreamcatcher hung around his neck. He looked like a shaman.

 He laughed at them as they approached.

 "Fools," The Shaman said, "You think you know where you're going, but you have no idea. I've been watching you and your friends mosh. You and your culexor, it's like the blind leading the blind." The man laughed and slapped his knee.

 "That's not very funny," Asuka said. The man looked at her and laughed again. "Who are you?" Asuka asked him.

 "I am known by many names. Sometimes a different name to each person. Some think I am mescalito, and perhaps maybe I am. some call me a madman or an idiot. But you can call me Sir John."

 "Sir john?" Mosh asked, "That's a peculiar name for an indian Shaman. It was people with names like that who used to slaughter your people."

 Sir john laughed and slapped his knee again. Asuka and mosh sat down with him. "Yes yes!" He said, "How very ironic for a name isn't it?" he laughed again, "Which is precisely why you should call me that Mosh." Mosh rolled his eyes slightly. "What would you rather have called me? A Nagual?" He laughed even harder at that.

 "Oh my god!" Mosh said in amazement, "You're..."

 "Shhh," Sir John said, "I'm quite displeased of that name and title. If I'd have known that Carlos did with my teachings precisely what I trained him not to do, perhaps I'd be rolling over in my grave... If I had a grave that is!" He laughed again. "I'm dead but I have no grave. I am dead and yet I'm here!"

 "Anyway, why are we here?" Mosh asked, "Did you bring us?"

 Sir John fiddled with the fire a bit and said, "Did I bring you? No, Let's just say that power brought you here. You had an appointment with infinity, so power brought you here."

 "What kind of power?" Mosh asked.

 " What kind? Why do you ask? you already know. you've read about it and even lived it at times. you know what power. You think I am going to tell about power and say that it can get you anything you desire, or that you can get any woman to choke on your whanger whenever you please? No, I'm not talking about that kind of power. You already know silly. You've known it all your life. It's just beyond your grasp you feel, but what you don't realize is that it's always already been in your grasp. you're just too slow to realize. Perhaps that's where I come in. Perhaps not. We'll see won't we." he got up and started walking away. Asuka got up and started following him.

 "But I...' Asuka began.

 Sir john turned around and laughed. "ah, of course, Power brought you here as well. You're wondering about your visions. visions are just visions, Psychics claim to see but most do not. Many look but do not see. Many see without even looking. Don't worry about past or future. There's only one path to walk. The one your on right now. You can change it any time you please as long as it has heart. If you can do that, in spite of all frustrations, what other people tell you, or what happens to you... If you can stay on that path unwavering.... That's power. And don't let anyone tell you different or convince you otherwise. Why would any healthy being go against itself in such a way by letting someone else's words run their entire life. That's not living, That's death. Maybe that's why i am still alive after I am dead..."

 Sir john kept babbling as he walked completely into darkness. Asuka and Mosh just looked at one another perplexed.