Page 16 of A Spark Of Revenge

“Turns out my Bloodline’s Senior was a Demon. He and his brothers snuck into the castle under the guise of a few other high-ranking Hunters and established themselves deep in the Umbra Hunter’s ranks. Everything came to a head last night when Senior Axford took a big group of humans out to try to capture a Royal Demon. Axford killed Senior Drakos when he tried to stop him, and well… Lennox killed everyone else,” I say with a shrug, still unsure how to feel about Theo’s dad’s death. I’m glad he’s gone, but I know his death may cause pain for my friend. I wince at the thought of Theo, then purposely shove him to the back of my mind, his betrayal still too sore of a topic to think about.

“You don't seem too upset about the deaths,” Valen points out as we duck under a particularly low-hanging pine branch.

“I’m not. Axford was a dick who enjoyed killing humans. I’m glad he’s gone,” I say truthfully. I don't care if that makes me a bad person.

“So why are you mad at the Demons who took over?” Valen asks, and I tsk, waving a finger in the air as I continue to tread carefully on the snowy path.

“Uh-uh. My turn,” I inform him. “You said Dream Walkers are similar to Umbra Hunters. But... aren’t they Umbra Hunters? I’m confused,” I admit. There is a long pause from Valen as we climb down a super steep portion of the path, where my foot slips more than once, and my heart rate elevates. My hands are freezing, and I wish I had thought to grab gloves before I ran out of the castle last night.

“No,” Valen finally rasps when he steps next to me.

“No, what?”

“No, Mi Sol. Dream Walkers are not Umbra Hunters,” Valen whispers, making me freeze mid-step.

“Excuse me, what? How is that possible? They said… but we can see the Demons,” I practically shout, making Valen wince and dart a panicked look around our surrounding area.

“Yes, we can,” Valen confirms, his expression brittle. “But that doesn’t mean we are Hunters.”

“I had my blood tested. It came back as Regalis,” I stammer, turning to face him, no longer interested in walking until Valen coughs up some more answers. “I’m a Hunter,” I state, my mind short-circuiting, unable to process the information.

“Yeah, I’m somewhat confused about that. Maybe your Dream Walker parent married a Hunter?” Valen asks, and I snort, trying to picture my middle-aged deadbeat of a father as a Hunter.

“Yeah, no. My father was a human, and a shitty one at that. And Mom…” I trail off, looking at Valen, then move my hand to a strand of my dirty hair, picking up the long pale lock and frowning.

“Was a Dream Walker,” Valen guesses, and I nod.

“Yeah. I mean, maybe? She could have been a DeLuca, right? Her fair coloring could have been a Hunter trait,” I point out, making Valen shake his head.

“But you are Regalis, Mi Sol. Not DeLuca. Or at least that's what the Seniorem says. I won't know for sure until I bring you home and run tests of my own.”

“Tests? I don't think I like the sound of that,” I murmur, my head throbbing as I try to wrap my mind around all this. Hands suddenly cup my face, startling the crap out of me since I hadn't seen him move. I stare up at Valen in surprise as he frowns down at me, his thumbs rubbing soothing circles on my neck.

“Take a breath,” he instructs, warmth radiating into me suddenly, making me shiver.

“Is that a Dream Walker thing?” I ask, after inhaling sharply, unable to ignore Valen's command. It’s like Valen's words become a part of me, and I can't help but do everything he says.

“No, it’s a—complicated thing,” he says hesitantly, making me narrow my eyes on him in response. “It's not bad. I just don't want you to get overwhelmed. I’ll tell you after you calm down a little.” I take a few more breaths, then nod at him to continue with his explanation.

“When you called me into your dream, I knew I had discovered another Dream Walker. The first time, I thought maybe I was hallucinating, I didn’t believe what I was seeing. You had called to me, but it was almost like you were underwater. I could see you, but not clearly. I was observing, but couldn't do anything more. It wasn't until the third time that I was actually tugged into your mind and ultimately added as a physical presence to your dreams,” Valen explains, looking down at me with earnest eyes. “You were scared and didn't know how to use your magic. You also made the Beastia as physical as I was, meaning they were hunting you and could have killed you, Mi Sol. Try never to make a creature physical in your dreams again.”

“I don't know how I did that,” I admit, trying to remember anything about those dreams besides the feelings of terror and, eventually, safety when Valen had come.

“I know. I’ll work on it with you once we collect your friend and cat. I need to ensure you are safe and can't be pulled into dreams while we are here with so many enemies around us.”

“Have I tried to pull you back into a dream?” I ask, curious.

“Yes. Last night, you called me while we slept. I answered long enough to ensure you hadn't called anything else to you, then sent you into a deep, dreamless sleep.”

“I don't remember any of that,” I admit, and Valen nods like he already knew that.

“I know. You hadn't reached REM cycle yet, and I stopped the call before you had,” Valen murmurs, watching me closely like he's waiting for my reaction. The problem is, I'm too overwhelmed to give him one.

“That's why I had a hard time waking up this morning? Why I felt so warm and comfortable?” I say more to myself than Valen.

“Yes. You were shivering in my arms, even though I had you covered in as many blankets as I could find. I decided to give you the mental comfort you needed, even if you couldn’t physically replicate it.” I gape up at him, not sure what to say to that. The gesture was super nice, and the thought that he had taken the time and effort to ensure I was as warm as possible helped calm a little of my anxiety.

“Um, thanks,” I finally rasp, sounding like an idiot. But from the way Valen beams down at me, I try not to let it embarrass me too much. “So, how can you make me do things?” I ask point blank, sick of waiting for the answers I crave.

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