My dream started simple; random images of everyday things, most of which are of little importance. I’m in a deep sleep, so I let the dreams take me wherever they want, just enjoying the rest. After a while, my dream started to change, slowly at first with the images becoming fractured as if multiple ones overlap, very much like a kaleidoscope. The dream begins growing blurry in some places and hyper-focused in others. I can’t make out what I am seeing.

I suddenly find myself walking along a silent road, darkness surrounding me. I feel a presence next to me as I walk, instinctively I know I should be weary, but I find it calming as if it were there to protect me. After a while, rustling from all around me alerts me to danger. Masked figures with a variety of weapons leap out of the darkness, charging me. My body moves on its own in conjunction with the mysterious companion until we are fighting as one. It’s like something out of a fantasy story you hear with epic battles. I fling fireball after fireball at my enemies, watching as each falls before me.

The being helping me pulls away, locked in its own battle. I catch a glimpse as a massive hand the size of a large oak wipes out a good portion of enemy forces.

I’m too distracted by the carnage in front of me to see the enemy approaching from the rear. I don’t notice until it is almost too late. The masked figure growls at me as it pulls out a serrated knife and moves in to kill. I try to flee, but something stops me from behind, and the next thing I see is blackness.

The battlefield was quickly replaced as my dream led me in a strange direction.

In one image, I see a young boy in bed holding a book in his hands with his eyes glued to the door. In the same image, as if it had crashed into it, I see the same young boy run through a wooded forest alongside a great beast. The beast towered over the boy, standing on all four legs at ten feet. It had scales that shimmered a vibrant green in the evening light. A tail jutted out from its back-side swiping side to side, destroying the trees in its wake. At first, I thought the beast was chasing the boy, but the boy fell and started laughing, and the creature pounced, its giant wings snapped open, letting it glide to the boy where it began licking his face with a long-forked tongue.

A loud tapping rang throughout my dream causing me to snap awake. A voice called out in the distance, but my addled mind couldn’t comprehend what was said. Again the voice called out, this time I managed to understand. "You alive in there?” asked a gentle feminine voice.

My head was still fuzzy, so it took me a minute to respond. I laid there trying to understand what I had just seen, but as I tried to recall the dream and the strange images, they quickly started to fade. Each time I tried to grab onto one and focus on it, it disappeared like sand slipping through my fingers. I sighed and released the images I was trying to hold onto, sure that what I had just seen was important but unable to do anything about it.

"Come in," I called out.

The door crept open, and a head slowly entered my vision, and for a second, I saw an older man with a silly smile on his face, but I blinked, and the image was gone. In its place was the head of a dark-haired woman.

She stepped into the room, and my jaw dropped, and I couldn’t help but stare. She had long black hair that flowed down her back in soft curls, with a tan body clearly earned from days spent underneath the summer sun.

I did a double-take as I gazed into her eyes which were two different colors; the left purple, and the right brown. She was lean but muscular and wore a tight-fitted black top with the top two buttons left undone, just barely showing off her cleavage. She had on dark slacks that fit her perfectly and hinted at the outline of her fantastic figure. I also took notice of the stunning purple gem set into a choker necklace around her neck and the little black book in her hand.

I grew self-conscious as her eyes looked me up and down. Anxious about my appearance I glanced down and saw that my beard was long and scruffy, and my hair was way down past my eyes. I could also detect a faint odor of sweat and dirt wafting from my thin body that would turn anyone’s stomach. I fidgeted with my blanket to try and hide my unsightly figure. I dragged the covers close as she came around to the side of my cot. I’m barely able to notice the three figures follow her into the room, mesmerized as I am with her.

The people who entered after her nearly send me spinning. I say people but only one was what you would classify as a person. The other two are something from a fantasy novel.

The first was a man who couldn’t be much older than me, wearing light blue attire carrying an assortment of medical equipment. The other two appeared to be women, both covered head to toe in fur. The one on the left had red fur covering most of her body except for her chin, which had a small patch of grayish-white fur. The other had hazelnut brown fur with droopy ears and a button nose.

A fox and bunny girl popped into my mind. It took a lot of effort not to stare at them, but the dark-haired girl was still the most interesting person in the room.

The black-haired woman looked around the room with a sorrowful expression before she turned to me.

She smiled at me and said, “About time! Some of us...," she glanced at her companions, "Didn't think you would ever wake up." She laughed softly. "There was even a bet going around about when and if you would!" She leaned down next to my ear and whispered, "Another week and I would've won." She laughed again, and I felt butterflies. She smelled wonderful, a mix of lilac and honey. "You cost me five hundred credits!" she jokingly glared at me. "But it's okay, we're just glad you’re finally awake, and we can get some answers."

I inched further away from her as she spoke, "Um... Yeah...” I glanced back at the animal girls before returning my focus to her. “I'm not sure what, umm... Lena, I think her name was… told you, but I was hoping to get this bandage removed, and I can't remember anything. My first memory was waking up in this room and falling on the floor. She said you might be able to help me?" I questioned uncertainly not sure whether these people could actually help me or not.

“Yeah I talked to her, and yes her name is Lena. I can’t say for sure we can cure you until we examine you but I’m confident we can. My name is Wren, and those standing behind me are Perkins, Kira, and Noreen." She indicated the man first as Perkins, then the red-furred woman/fox girl as Kira which left the bunny girl as Noreen. The three of them gave me a quick nod in greeting. As the girls dipped their heads, I noticed a black collar around the neck of each. Noreen caught me noticing, she blushed then quickly tucked the collar back under her shirt.

Wren pulled my attention back to her. "They are the healers who brought you back from Xolgonik's grip, and I am the mage who helped to heal you. As Lena explained, because of the seriousness of your wounds, my magic couldn’t fully heal you. We’ve had to let you heal the old-fashioned way. That said, I think we can safely remove the bandage and see the damage.” She grinned at her little joke before she stood up. Almost imperceptibly she took another look around the small room before addressing me.

“She said you were worried about the memory loss which is understandable considering the extent of the wound to your head. However, with our combined knowledge and my magic, I think we should be able to help you recover your memory. First, I have some questions. How are you feeling? Tell us everything. Is there anything, anything at all that you can remember? Maybe your name to start?”

I hesitated, at a loss for words, unsure how to answer her.

Damn, she was so gorgeous! Her breasts are mere inches from my face, and it takes all my self-control not to drool. I shake my head to clear away the fog her presence was causing and thought about what all she had said. "I guess I’m feeling okay. About as well as anyone who can’t remember who they were or how they got here could, I imagine. And no, I can’t remember my name. Not a clue," I said sullenly.

"I don't remember anything from before waking up although I think I had an important dream, but I can’t really remember it. Also, I can barely understand half of what I’m being told. You mentioned you are a mage and helped to heal me but that's a joke, right? Magic isn't real. And who is Xolgonik and what’s with the animal people? Just exactly, where am I?"

I looked at each of them as I spoke, so I was able to notice the slight changes in their expressions when I said magic wasn't real and then the complete shock at my asking who Xolgonik was. Kira and Noreen flinched slightly at my words as if hurt by them, adding to my confusion.

Wren rose from my bed with a look of pure curiosity and a little apprehension. She quickly crossed the room to the workbench.

With her back to me she began to speak, "Hmm, I'm not entirely certain what is going on with you. Unless you have been living under a rock, you would know that the world is full of magic. There aren’t a lot of mages, unfortunately, but magic exists all around us in the form of ether. Now, the fact that you don't know who Xolgonik is, surprises me and I find it hard to believe you have never seen a beastkin let alone encountered one. Animal-people is offensive so watch what you say in front of Kira and Noreen. Xolgonik is known all through the land, and all answer his call when he truly beckons. He is the one who ushers us into the unknown and leads us to the next life."

The term beastkin excited something deep down in me. I fight the urge to grin, but I don’t understand why I feel this way.

Wren then began mixing items on the table using a mortar and pestle; a dark red liquid with a green substance that started to smoke. "It's peculiar how you can remember some things and not others. You can remember what a dream is and what all the things around you are called. You seem to know about magic and yet do not know that it exists. I do not know how to explain this. Do you healers know of any such thing?" she questioned. They each, in turn, shake their head.

Turning back to her table she grabbed a vial and poured her concoction into it and slapped a stopper on top. "Just before I knocked, I heard you calling out in your sleep. You kept repeating something. A name I believe. Emily. Who is this Emily?”

She turned to me, vial in hand, with an expectant look on her face as if she was waiting for me to confess to something. She leaned back on the table and stared directly at me until I was forced to look away from her intense gaze.

"I honestly don't know. I don't remember saying that." I put my head into my hands, and my voice comes out muffled, "I don’t know an Emily…” As I push my mind to think harder and harder, somewhere from the crevices another name pops to the surface and I can’t help but grin.

“Grey!” I declared happy that I could remember something. “My name is Grey,” I said tasting the word to see if it felt right. I thought for a second I knew my last name but that slipped away before I could voice it. I sighed, “It's so frustrating. When I try and think of my past, all I see are blanks."

I glanced toward Wren who is watching me with pity in her eyes. She nodded to the healers who slowly crept toward me. They come around to the side of my cot with instruments in hand.

Noreen addressed me first with trepidation in her voice, “Please, lie down so that we may properly examine you.” I felt a pang of guilt for my earlier insult.

“I’m sorry about before. I didn’t know.”

She grinned, “It’s okay. It’s not your fault.” She visibly relaxed and I could tell I had won her over. Kira nodded to me as well in understanding. I wanted to ask about their collars but didn’t want to push them any further.

“We are going to try a few things to see if we can figure out what is going on with your memory,” Noreen said as she pressed a cold metallic cylinder to my chest and stared intently at it. A green light began to flash, speeding up with each passing second. It shined red and then stopped. Unsatisfied, she pulled away and made room for Kira.

“Are you sure you used it correctly?” Wren asked Noreen as she came to a stop beside her.

“Of course, this is even the good one that was system generated. It should have told us exactly what was going on. I do not understand.” Crestfallen, she placed the device back on the tray in Perkins's waiting arms.

System generated… Another term I was unfamiliar with.

Even with all the fur and strange features, I could tell both ladies were attractive in their own ways. Looking at them both suddenly made me crave pancakes which I found to be the oddest thing of all.

Kira leaned down and quietly spoke, "Lie still, I am going to remove the bandage and inspect the extent of the damage." She unwrapped my head and turned it side to side looking at the skin "You are fortunate, it shouldn't scar, thanks to our healing and Wren's magic.” She was a lot more straightforward than Noreen and her body language told me she was still on edge. The fur on her fingers felt soft against my bare skin, sending goosebumps down my arm.

She pulled out a small flashlight and lifted my right eyelid and shines the light. She holds the light there for a second as the pupil constricts and a secondary orange light shines into my eye. Content with the results, she proceeded to my left eye. As soon as the light hits my eye, she dropped the flashlight and jumped back with a yelp nearly falling off the bed. She quickly rose and backed away, never taking her eyes off my face.

"What's wrong?" I questioned., concerned that I am somehow dying or something.

"Your eyes..." she began as she turned to face Wren. "They're two different colors. One blue, the other black. You're a mage!" she exclaimed.

Wren moved faster than I had thought humanly possible, leaping forward until she was eye to eye with me. She stared for the breadth of a second and then she too was up on her feet. She uttered a word I didn’t know, and I felt a massive force press down upon me. The opaque box appeared before me once again but quickly vanished. I was too focused on Wren and what was happing to pay it any attention.

{W$%^YA4*8 energy rising}

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"Who the hell are you?!" she screamed, her face contorting in a variety of emotions.

The cute, laughing girl from earlier was gone in an instant.

"Who sent you! Did Idris have you infiltrate us? Tell me now!" she grew angrier as the seconds passed.

I could barely move as the force was crushing me. I was flat on my back on the cot, and I could hear it begin to creak from the pressure. My vision started to fade around the edges, and I couldn’t breathe. She must have realized this as she places her fist over me and slightly opened her hand. The pressure lightened but does not altogether leave. I could now breathe, but I couldn’t move even an inch.

I glanced at her beautiful face and all I saw at that moment was pure rage. I didn’t know who this Idris was, but she clearly despised him.

"You!" she pointed at Perkins, "Go and fetch me a pair of toil cuffs." he hesitated, stuck in his fear. "NOW!" she screamed.

"I don’t know who I am!” I cried out but no one was listening. “I don’t know who the hell Idris is! How are you doing this? I feel like I’m being crushed!” I tried to move, to get out of my invisible bonds but I am held firmly in place. Panic began to bubble up inside of me again as I realized what was holding me down. "Are you... Are you using magic...?" I stammered. Stunned from the realization, I quit trying to move, opting to lay there in disbelief.

"How?" Wren leaned over my immobilized body and stared into my eyes. Her eyes were so memorizing that I couldn’t look away even if I want to. "Don’t play dumb with me!" she accused. "Your eyes clearly define you as a mage. You can claim all you want the opposite, but they do not lie!" she backed away and waited on Perkins to return.

She must have seen something in my expression and my demeanor because she whispered in total shock, "Do you really not know?"

Unable to speak due to the intensity of her stare and the force holding me down, I shake my head from side to side, the only movement I could manage. A look of uncertainty crossed her face; she called out to Kira and Noreen then moves to stand with them at the workbench. They whispered to one another, two beastkin constantly glanced at me, but Wren's eyes never left mine. After a minute, it seemed as if they came to some type of consensus. The healers departed the room with a quick glance at my prone body.

Perkins arrived at that moment carrying a small length of cord. He passed it to Wren and left the room. She came to my bedside and wrapped the rope around my hands and bound the ends together.

She then mumbled, "Sodu Vira Nost."

The cord instantly melded together seemingly with no end.

Wren turned to leave but I had a million questions, so I started to call out for her, but before I could, she turned and vehemently spoke, "I don’t know whether to believe you or not. You seem to be telling the truth but that could be an act. However, it is not my place or the healers, much as they disagree, to determine your validity. I will inform Jupiter and let him decide. For now, you will remain in this room until he is ready. Fair warning, if we don’t like what you have to say, you will die.”

Her expression softened a little when I visibility flinch at the hostility in her voice.

“That cord around your hands will not come undone unless I deem it and it will prevent you from using all magic. No harm will come to you unless you try something foolish. Food and drink will be brought to you, and you will be taken to the bathroom when needed but other than that you may not leave for any reason. Four guards will be posted outside your door so do not even think of trying anything." She let the threat hang between us before she quickly departed, closing the door behind her.

Before it was fully closed, I caught a glimpse of something in her left hand; it was the vial from earlier. Weary of what it could be I continued to lay there, unable to move, my hands bound before me.

After she had been gone for a few minutes, the pressure holding me in place lessened and eventually vanished.

Finally, able to move, I sat up on my cot and pulled my legs up to my chest and hugged them. It was difficult thanks to the cuffs, but I managed.

Two things kept blotting out all other thoughts. The first being that magic was real. It was the only explanation for what she had done. For some reason, this was the most profound thing to happen since I had woken up including the fact that I couldn’t remember anything.

Well maybe except for meeting Wren. She was the other thing that kept pushing all other thoughts from my mind. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen! Although that wasn’t saying much since I couldn’t remember meeting many other women. I couldn’t help but chuckle.

I sat there for another hour lost in thought before some food was brought in to me by one of my four guards. I had hoped Lena would have made something for me; instead, I received broth and a piece of bread with a small glass of water.

I guess I could understand their disbelief.

Even though I knew what I was saying was the truth, the fact remained that it didn't make sense.

I held my glass of water up to the light and tried to use the reflective surface to view my eyes. I didn’t know what she was talking about. I didn’t have different colored eyes.

I finished my meager meal, then sat and pondered, trying to remember my past. Nothing came to me no matter how hard I tried.

After realizing I was getting nowhere, I grew bored and curious. I decided to examine the room, so I threw my legs over the side of the cot and leaned against the bedside table, proceeding to stand. It was shaky at first. I had to sit back down multiple times and regroup. After the third time of repeating this cycle, I took a second to recover and noticed the table I had been using to help me stand had a drawer. I reached over, hands still bound, and opened it, curious as to what it might contain.

The only item in the drawer was a picture that was face down.

Lifting it, I turned it over and found it contained three people posing. The first two were standing upright behind the third who was sitting at a table. The seated man was beaming at the camera from behind a massive cake covered in lit candles. I immediately recognized one of the two people standing.

It was Wren who was a little younger than she was now but just as beautiful. The other person next to her was a young man who looked exactly like Wren; same black hair with brown and purple eyes. He stood a foot taller than her with one arm wrapped around her shoulder. The man sitting down was attempting to blow out the candles as Wren and her male copy encouraged him. I felt like I was intruding on something private, and guilt started to creep in, so I quickly put the picture back in the draw.

Now, even more, curious about the room I was staying in I attempted to stand again.

This time I was able to remain upright. I wobbled for a second but thankfully did not topple back over. The only other thing in the room other than the small table and my cot was the workbench. I shambled over to it.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed things that I couldn’t see from the cot. More beakers, tubes, and such, but also a lot more substances in vials and dishes. It looked like a super-advanced at-home chemistry set. I didn’t know enough about the contents to even begin guessing as to what they may contain.

Satisfied that I had seen all of the small room’s secrets, I had nothing else to do but return to my cot. However, I wasn’t ready to lay back down so I spent the next few hours pacing around my room, trying to regain a semblance of strength, all the while deep in thought, trying to remember a life that alluded me.

Every so often Wren’s threat popped into my mind, and I knew that if I wasn’t careful, today could very well be my last.

Fair warning, if we don’t like what you have to say, you will die.

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