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A floodgate of memories burst open – the quirky owner of that old antique shop; the pendant that her father had mysteriously acquired from there; the almost supernatural protection it had provided her during the harrowing Black Sun event; a twin pendant, Vanna’s perplexing inquiries into the origins of the antique shop, and now… Duncan Abnomar’s sudden appearance and cryptic words…

Heidi, a trained psychiatrist, felt her pulse quicken. The dots began connecting in her mind, painting a picture that made her question her own sanity.

“Take a deep breath and be cautious of where your eyes wander. There are things you shouldn’t gaze upon,” Duncan remarked, flashing a knowing smile. “Your father insisted I give you that reminder.”

A ringing sensation consumed Heidi’s head. Was she being affected by some sort of subtle mind manipulation, or was it just her anxiety playing tricks? She held her head, trying to regain her composure. “Where’s my father now?”

“He’s offering his expertise on the Vanished. He kept it from you to spare you the anxiety. Little did we expect you’d be caught up in this chaos.”

“How is he?! He’s with you on your vessel?” Heidi blurted out but immediately regretted it upon seeing the composed figure of the captain.

Without showing any sign of discomfort, Duncan said, “He’s in perfect health, sticking to a strict routine, and is invaluable to our crew. Anything else on your mind?”

Heidi hesitated for a moment. Another event, around the time of her father’s sudden departure, kept nagging her. No matter how absurd it sounded, she needed answers, “Is Vanna… with you too?”

Duncan’s expression, though unchanged, revealed everything she needed to know. “Would you want to meet them?”

Caught off-guard, Heidi stumbled over her words, “I… Can I? Really? I apologize if I overstepped, but there are so many rumors about you… I thought…”

She was cut off mid-sentence.

Emerging from a sudden doorway illuminated by an emerald flame, two recognizable faces greeted her. Morris was all smiles, while Vanna appeared slightly abashed.

After an extended absence, Vanna slowly approached Heidi, her footsteps tentative. As she got closer, she affectionately touched Heidi’s nose, a quirky gesture that harked back to their childhood games. “It’s been such a long time, hasn’t it?” she began, a hint of nervousness in her tone. “I’m truly sorry for not letting you in on my new role sooner. It’s quite a delicate position with many confidentiality clauses. The captain only just granted permission for this visit. Tell me, are you angry with me?”

Heidi seemed momentarily frozen, her gaze fixed on Vanna. Her eyes, which held years of memories and questions, then drifted to Morris, another face that was oh so familiar. After a few moments that felt like an eternity, she finally let out her bottled-up confusion, “Would either of you care to shed some light on this baffling situation?”

Watching the initial tension between his companions, Duncan stepped in, trying to diffuse the situation. “You two have a lot to talk about,” he commented, waving his hand dismissively as he turned on his heel, “Meanwhile, I’ll engage Lucy in some light conversation.”

This casual intervention left Vanna, Morris, and Heidi in an awkward triangle of unspoken words and unresolved feelings.

Unaware or perhaps choosing to ignore the mounting tension between Vanna and Morris, Duncan confidently approached Lucretia. However, upon reaching her, he found her evading his gaze. Her expression was a blend of anxiety and vulnerability.

Vanished in her whirlpool of thoughts, Lucretia had been mentally preparing herself for this inevitable confrontation. The unexpected appearance of her father in this surreal dreamscape left her disoriented. As he interacted with the ‘psychiatrist’, her mind raced to find the right words to explain her long absence and the mystery surrounding the scythe.

Yet, when he finally stood before her, words eluded her. The fierce “Sea Witch”, a title that struck terror into the hearts of sailors and pirates alike, found herself tongue-tied and emotionally overwhelmed. As she was about to speak, her chain of thought derailed further.

“We can wait,” Duncan interrupted gently, signaling her to halt. He directed his attention to Heidi and her companions, who were still a short distance away, “Let’s just observe for a bit.”

Confused, Lucretia struggled to decipher her father’s intentions. The phrase “let’s observe” triggered a cascade of possible interpretations in her mind, from conspiracies to elaborate schemes. However, a closer look at Duncan’s demeanor revealed pure, unadulterated amusement.

Following his line of sight, Lucretia tried to process the scene before her. The reality was far from the elaborate reunion scenarios she had imagined over the years with her father.

In her musings, she had visualized a dramatic encounter between her eternal self and the ‘Vanished’ returning from the void, much like Tyrian’s experience. She had foreseen an epic showdown between the Bright Star and the Vanished. The nefarious entity from the void would wreak havoc, reminiscent of the devastation it had once unleashed on the thirteen islands of Witherland at the frontier…

In her softer, more whimsical dreams, Lucretia had sometimes painted an entirely different picture.

She would visualize her father making a genuine comeback, possibly on a serene afternoon or as evening descended. Their chosen location was reminiscent of a cliff they once visited during her formative years. The exact city-state eluded her, but the memories of gentle sea breezes and fields blanketed with white flowers remained vivid. The family would be perched atop the loftiest rock, with her father sharing tales of far-off events. Lucretia, in turn, would eagerly present her “Bright Star” adventures, her state-of-the-art laboratories, and her cherished book trove.

However, these scattered dreams evaporated in the stark light of day, akin to soft murmurs carried away by the wind.

She hadn’t anticipated that their actual reunion would unfold this way: immersed in a seemingly boundless dream and listening to gossip…

Yet, as time lapsed, it appeared Lucretia was piecing together her father’s motives.

She followed his line of sight, observing the psychiatrist, family members, friends, a worried daughter, a father clumsily attempting to make amends, and a friend who appeared completely out of place.

Her father’s suggestion, “Let’s watch for a moment,” began to resonate.

It seemed Lucretia was catching on.

However, Duncan’s sudden remark made her second guess: “I did counsel Morris earlier to approach Heidi for a chat. Sadly, the right moment never came. But perhaps this is a blessing in disguise; had he cleared the air sooner, I’d miss out on this intriguing drama.”

Lucretia wondered if she’d been too hasty in her assumptions.

Amidst this fleeting perplexity, she remembered an observation Tyrian had shared in a past conversation—

Her father had rediscovered his human essence.

Yet, possibly, a tad excessively.

At that juncture, she couldn’t decipher her brother’s cryptic comment. But now, a semblance of understanding dawned. The entity that emerged from subspace bore semblance to her father, but not entirely in the manner she remembered.

“Lucy, what are your thoughts?”

Duncan’s voice broke through, jolting Lucretia from her reverie. Her focus shifted to her father, whose eyes probed her for an answer.

The whirlwind of emotions and the dissonance between past memories and present reality momentarily dissipated. The “Sea Witch” felt a newfound clarity: those tangled conundrums seemed inconsequential. The man before her was perfect in his imperfections.

After all, life isn’t bound by the rigidity of academic scrutiny; not every riddle demands a solution.

“Miss Heidi is more than capable of managing the current situation. Although our interactions have been minimal, I recognize her logic-driven approach. And Mr. Morris? Don’t stress, he’s on your vetted list of consultants…”

“Oh, I’m not referring to them,” Duncan dismissed with a gesture, his gaze shifting towards the vast expanse of a forest. The woods were bathed in a perpetual “twilight” glow, yet surprisingly, they stood firm and unwavering. “This feels like a dream, doesn’t it? But there’s a unique aura about it, quite distinct from any dream realm I’ve ever ventured into…”

Caught off guard, Lucretia hesitated. Duncan’s perspective seemed tangential, a stark deviation from the pragmatic and calculated man she fondly recalled. Pushing aside her momentary disarray, she refocused her energy, filtering out the distant murmurs and whispers of the crowd. Collecting her thoughts, she began, “Our entryway into this surreal dimension is through Scholar Taran El, the static figure stationed over there. His consciousness is dormant. Let me sketch out the events that transpired…”

She then proceeded to distill the vast swathes of information at her disposal, providing Duncan with a crisp overview. As he listened intently, the gears in his mind started to turn.

“So, if I grasp correctly, this forest acts as a mere veil, merely concealing the actual essence of the dream. While the core of this dream realm remains hidden deeper within, the puppeteer behind the strings isn’t the elvish Scholar Taran El but rather, a ‘third dreamer’.”

Lucretia nodded gravely, “The existence of a third dreamer does not negate the possibility of a fourth, or even a fifth entity influencing this realm. Heidi’s accounts suggest that the tendrils of this dream reach out and intertwine with other realms, potentially connecting to myriad dreamers. The forest’s uncanny ability to self-regenerate and shroud its secrets… is something we might never have encountered before.”

Duncan’s response was a deep, contemplative silence.

Then, in an unexpected twist, he noticed a subtle movement from the peripheral of his vision: Scholar Taran El’s eyelids fluttered open with a sudden blink in the distance.