4, p.1
4, page 1
This one is for Sam. Sam, if you annoy me … —JP.
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Dedication
Our Battle Continues
Previously
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
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26
27
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31
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41
Collage
Copyright
PREVIOUSLY
Sam is once again rescued by Arianna and they flee from the fire engulfing the Hypnos’ dream-stealing facility. Sam is amazed at the chance they get to steal back the Gears from his sinister captor, Hans.
Sam’s next nightmare reveals Issey, a pro-gamer from Japan, as the next of the last 13. Sam wakes from his dream more disturbed than ever, not only by visions of Solaris, but monstrous flesh-eating beasts.
Struggling with feelings of helplessness, Eva’s thoughts turn to the upcoming Dreamer Doors Competition–the best chance the Academy has to find where Solaris has hidden his Gears.
Alex and Shiva remain captive in a New York apartment, fitted with explosive wristbands to prevent escape. They eventually manage to deactivate the bombs with seconds to spare, in the process uncovering Matrix’s plot to hijack the Dreamer Doors.
Tobias and Sam realise their attempt to secretly travel to Japan was unsuccessful when they learn that Stella and her Agents have also arrived in Tokyo. They go to meet Issey as planned, but must run from the horrific scene at the stadium to the safehouse belonging to Issey’s wise Dreamer grandfather, Kaga.
Eva is surprised to find herself selected on the team for the Dreamer Doors with Zara and Xavier, and becomes preoccupied by Jedi’s discovery that she too will very likely be one of the last 13.
Sam wakes to the shocking realisation that Solaris is inside Kaga’s house. At Kaga’s urging, Sam and Issey escape out the window to fulfil their combined destiny, leaving the old man to fight Solaris alone.
Shaken by their decision to leave Kaga, Issey and Sam travel with Issey’s Enterprise surrogates and Tobias to the mysterious Ghost Island to find Issey’s Gear. There they are stalked by shadowy beasts, Stella’s Agents and Solaris himself. In a shocking display of evil, Solaris turns on his own followers to take the Gear, destroying all in his path and leaving Sam for dead in the stormy sea.
01
SAM’S NIGHTMARE
The bright orange sunlight shines off the tops of ancient stone buildings. Birds sing as they dart by me. Green jungle stretches below me, a vast blanket of trees swaying with the breeze, interrupted only by waterways and relics. This is paradise. And it feels like I’m floating over it, flying—seeing everything all at once.
‘Sam!’
I’m on the ground now, standing in an elevated clearing in front of one of the immense temple palaces that surround me. I turn around to look for the voice, but I’m alone.
‘Sam!’ the voice says again. I spin around, scanning full circle.
Suddenly, I see a tiny figure emerge from the trees below.
Eva.
She starts running towards me. I look around again, panicked that some threat is waiting—like I am—but there is no-one else. My panic makes the beautiful sculptures in the ornately carved stone tower feel somehow dark and menacing.
I watch Eva as she nears. She breaks into a smile, and then she is laughing.
Eva’s not afraid, she’s—happy.
‘Sam,’ Eva says, ‘come down!’
I clamber down the rough stone stairs and Eva crashes into me.
‘Hey, you’re crushing me!’ I say, laughing, and Eva releases me from her hug.
‘What are you doing here?’ I ask.
‘I’m with them,’ Eva says, looking back over her shoulder to the trees where she’s just come from.
I watch as a group of people appear in the distance. They run towards us too.
‘Is that . . ?’
‘Yes,’ Eva replies.
‘And …’
‘Yes,’ Eva says. ‘We’re all here.’
I smile as the rest of the last 13 rush towards us. They all look happy.
First comes Alex, waving like crazy.
It feels like forever since I’ve seen him.
Gabriella, the Italian pop star, follows him with Xavier. Next comes the French art student, Zara, with Rapha from Brazil. Right behind them are Maria from Cuba, Cody from the States and Arianna, the feisty Russian gymnast. Issey, the pro-gamer from Japan, is at the back. And then I notice someone else.
‘Who’s that?’ I ask Eva.
‘That’s Poh,’ Eva says.
‘Poh … the next Dreamer?’
Eva nods.
‘But it can’t be, can it? I’m meant to find him,’ I say.
Eva shrugs and stays silent.
‘I’m meant to be the one who finds the last 13,’ I repeat, my panic returning. ‘And if I’m dreaming of the next Dreamer now, then who else can see …’
No answer.
‘Eva?’
I turn to Eva, but she’s gone. I look back towards the group, but they’re gone too.
The tall grass that stretches away from where I stand seems to whisper in the breeze. The lush jungle trees sway in unison. The ancient building to my back is casting a longer shadow over the rock-paved court. The sun is going down. But fast—too fast. Like I’m watching a time-delay sequence. I know he will be here. I know he is coming.
I close my eyes.
Wake up, wake up, wake up …
I open my eyes to a new scene.
I stare, confused, before realising—
I’ve not woken up.
This is not a new scene. I’m in the same place, but seeing it from a far different viewpoint.
I’m up high now, above the trees. I’m standing at the very top of the temple spire. Somehow I know now where I am.
Cambodia.
At the temple of Angkor Wat, to be precise.
On top of the highest tower.
I look out over the sprawling complex and can see for the first time the majesty of the place—the trees, the grass lawns, the surrounding moat.
I know I’m in a dream, that this may be where I have to go next. I sit and wait—listening, watching.
But nothing happens. Time does not seem to pass. Birds fly, clouds move, leaves rustle, but it feels like everything is on a repetitive loop—nothing is going forward.
Eventually, I close my eyes.
When I open them, things will change.
Bill is standing there. My best friend from my old high school. My best friend, who died in the house fire. We are at the temple forecourt.
‘Hi,’ I say. ‘Are you OK?’
‘Of course,’ he replies.
‘Why are you here? How are you here?’
‘I’m in your dream, Sam.’
‘Right …’
‘You’re making this happen,’ Bill says.
‘I am?’
‘Yes, because you know something is not right. You’re in trouble. You should wake up.’
‘I guess, but I don’t feel worried anymore.’ I look around at the scenery—the birds still flying, uniform clouds are inching across the horizon, the trees swaying in the same unchanging rhythm.
The loop continues.
‘Wake up, Sam.’
‘But I need information. Poh was here.’
‘Not now—later.’
‘But what about you?’
The birds freeze mid-flight.
I feel a shiver run through me. The shudder ripples down my spine like an electrical spark as a dark shadow is cast over me.
Bill turns to me. ‘It’s too late, Sam. You couldn’t save me then, and you can’t save me now.’
What? No!
Bill laughs, distorting his face into an ugly grimace. ‘You’re always going to be too late, boy.’
Boy?
Is this Solaris?
‘You’re not Bill!’ I jump to my feet and push him away.
‘But Sam, please, help me!’ Bill suddenly looks like himself again, now scared and reaching for me.
What do I do?
But there is nothing I can do. It is too late. The flames are already surrounding us as Bill grabs my hand, frantically looking for an escape, but there is none.
I close my eyes as I hang onto him. Knowing it’s coming does not lessen the horror as the huge fireball erupts and I hear Bill’s screams mingling with mine as we—
Burn.
02
SAM
Sam floated on his back in a dark, angry sea. When he opened his eyes, staring upwardly in a daze, he could see a black sky, empty of stars. Rain fell. All he could hear was the white noise of water in the storm.
How long have I been here, floating like this?
Dreaming.
The memory of his nightmare brought Sam back to life and he sputtered out water as a small wave crashed over hi m. He didn’t fight the rise and fall of the sea, instead trying to relax, going with it, like a tiny cork bobbing in the middle of the ocean. His back ached from lying on the piece of debris, his arms trailing in the water.
Where am I?
In the darkness, there was a soft glow over the waves, red and orange, reminding him again of the inferno of his dream. He forced himself upright and the plank was pulled away on the waves.
Great.
He began to tread water, looking around, searching—
His world was suddenly illuminated, a blinding, pure white light washing over him, as if all the lights of the world had been turned on in the blink of an eye. He could not see anything through the whiteness and found it impossible to locate its source. Instead he tried to swim in what he thought was the direction of the glow. Then, just as quickly, he was plunged into darkness again.
‘Argh!’
A large piece of timber hit him in the shoulder, gliding over a breaking wave like a surfboard. It was ablaze at one end. Sam clung to it, exhausted, letting it carry his weight.
The timber plank looked like it was a side panel from a boat.
A boat?
I’m in Japan—Solaris attacked us. Issey … Tobias …
‘Tobias!’ Sam called into the night. He began screaming Tobias’ name, over and over again until he was hoarse. It was useless. His voice was drowned out in the noise of the raging storm and the sea.
It’s useless … useless …
Sam turned the word over in his head as he floated for a while, resigned, clinging to the plank of wood from the wrecked fishing boat. With no other point of reference, he kicked off once again in the direction of the faint orange glow he now assumed was the wreck of the boat, still alight.
Something big bumped into him, the impact forcing his makeshift timber life raft from his grasp.
Sam splashed in the water trying to regain his balance. There was movement around him. A black shape was moving towards him in the darkness of the night. It was fast, glimmering like a huge fish, or dolphin, or … shark.
Sam turned and swam back in the other direction as fast as his tired arms would propel him through the water.
He felt something grab onto him.
‘ARGH!’ Sam yelled out as he tried to kick away.
A light hit him, brilliant white as before, from above. This time, it was constant, burning brightly down on him.
A new noise could be heard. A familiar, mechanical churning, growing louder.
A helicopter!
Its searchlight was fixed on Sam, and in the bright channel of light he could see a silhouette—a figure, wearing goggles and scuba gear.
Sam gave a relieved smile.
No shark attacks for me today.
The diver put a harness over Sam’s head and under his arms. He flashed Sam a quick thumbs up and Sam replied with the same. Together they were winched up into the sky.
As they boarded the helicopter, Sam saw the Japanese crewman who had manned the searchlight. He helped Sam out of the harness.
I guess the Professor got the Japanese government to help.
‘Thanks!’ Sam shouted out to him and the diver over the roar of the engine and the sea below. He looked out the open side door, down to the flaming wreck of what was left of the boat.
Solaris did that …
The last Dreamer, Issey, and his parents had been on the boat with him, Tobias too.
‘Did you already pick up the others?’ Sam asked.
None of the crew answered him.
Instead of searching for more survivors, Sam could feel the helicopter dip its nose, turning, before it started to pick up speed through the air. The crewman slid the side door shut against the storm.
‘We can’t leave!’ Sam pleaded with them. ‘My friends are somewhere down there, you can’t leave them behind!’
The men said nothing in response. The diver took off his scuba gear and began to look over Sam, breaking out a first-aid pack.
Sam collapsed to the floor, too exhausted to protest. ‘We have to go back,’ he said in a quiet voice to the diver, who was wrapping a tight bandage around Sam’s leg, crimson blood oozing from a cut. ‘We have to go back …’
03
ALEX
Alex looked out over the Pacific Ocean and swallowed hard at the sight. They were off the south coast of Hawaii. In one way, Alex was enjoying his first time at sea. But beneath the feeling of adventure and usefulness, the voyage also had all the hallmarks of a dream gone wrong.
It’s not that I hate water. It’s just the thought of going under …
His hands became clammy with sweat and his breathing got faster as he imagined himself sinking into the vast, bottomless water.
‘Beautiful, isn’t it?’ Hans said in his sharp German accent.
Alex didn’t answer. He gripped the handrail tighter while instinctively leaning his body as far back as he could. Shock therapy. He swallowed again at rising bile.
You’re just seasick. Control your fear or it will control you.
‘Did you read what I prepared for you?’ Hans asked.
Alex nodded. He had. He’d read the reports on the flight from New York—lots of them. The reports made it clear that someone had been watching Alex for a while now. There were photos of him with Phoebe at the Enterprise headquarters, and running back and forth with Shiva working on the Tesla Dream Coils in New York. Hans had somehow been able to get his hands on a lot of data from both the Academy and the Enterprise. It surprised him just how much information Hans had gained access to and how much he really knew.
S’pose money really can buy you everything …
There were reports on the last 13 Dreamers found so far and some false leads—photos of other teenagers, red crosses drawn through the pictures. And Alex rifled through pages of data on Sam, some going back to before they were even picked up by the Enterprise.
One report that Alex had eagerly read, which had the original source blacked out at the top, speculated about Alex’s own dreams. It expanded on what the Director and Professor had told him earlier—that his dreamwaves shared unique patterns with the other known last 13 Dreamers and concluded that he was likely to be one of the last 13.
Alex couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement pulse through his body when he read that particular report.
But when will I dream of my Gear? And why didn’t the Enterprise show me all this information before?
Alex thought back over how he came to be here. Despite the way Hans had appeared, looking set to take Alex hostage, Alex had agreed to go along with Hans and his crew—it seemed like as logical a next step as any. How else could they find out what was going on in the mind of one of their enemies? And the fact that Hans had also been holding da Vinci’s journal, which must have come from someone at the Academy, made up Alex’s mind in an instant.
Man, Mum must be totally freaking out … and I’m pretty sure Shiva’s going to be mad being left like that in New York.
Hans had continued to sell his side of the story to Alex from that first moment—‘Alex, what we’ve seen of you over the last weeks is extraordinary. You are a gifted Dreamer, and I have the means to allow you to reach your full potential,’ he had said to him, and Alex had been curious. And now, after listening to all that Hans had to say, and reading through the reports, Alex was convinced.
I’m going to be one of the last 13. Maybe even the last Dreamer … the one at the very end.
Hans broke into Alex’s daydream as he said, ‘Did you notice anything special about this ship after we left the docks in Hawaii?’
‘Ah …’ Alex looked about, ‘not really.’
‘How about now?’ Hans said, touching his watch.
‘Um, no, you’ve lost me,’ Alex said, glancing around. The ship seemed just like any other.
OK, not that I’ve been on many billionaires’ boats …
‘You may be familiar with this Stealth technology,’ Hans said. ‘The Academy jet had the same capabilities, I believe.’
Alex stiffened but said nothing.
‘It’s always good to have,’ Hans continued, undeterred, ‘in case we have to hide. And this little beauty can disappear altogether at the touch of a button.’ Hans beamed with pride.
‘Are you expecting we’ll have to hide?’ Alex asked, trying to act coolly in response to this information.
Hans shrugged. ‘It always pays to be prepared, Alex.’
