Dark Dreamer

Chapter 5: Evasive

"Yesterday is but a vision, and tomorrow is only a dream. But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, and every tomorrow a dream of hope."

___

I close my eyes and visualize the Hall as I know it to be. Opening my eyes, I sigh as I let my Instincts take over, my Sights sharpening in on what really is.

There is no glamorous glass hall. The sunlight streaming through is imaginary. The greenery is... well, the potted plants indoors are... fakes. How can plants survive without real sunlight? Maybe they can. I don't know. We aren't botanists or any other plant specialists.

"We are of the Unconscious division." I chant along with my level. "We pledge to impose onto humankind as their dreams and visionaries, creating pleasantries, spreading Insights and building up fantasies." We speak as a whole, the Unconscious division united, bound by our pledge.

"We also serve the rights to bring upon full justice, make peace and act as a liaison between reality and fantasy." My eyes cloud over. Do we really have to announce to the whole Institution about our identity? At least this is a tradition the other divisions have to go through too.

"We, the Subconscious, pledge to bring upon humankind, the pleasantries of illusions, fantasy, and we create serve as the border between the genuine and the deception, as in the human's subconscious state of mind, may they see only what they are subjected to, bound by facts and restricted mindsets."

Woah, that's always a mouthful. But then there comes the worse...

"As Conscious, we pledge to bring upon humankind, every need, every satisfaction, every fulfillment of their conscious senses. Let there be truth, awareness, realization and openness to their constricted minds, their physical needs, their emotional awareness, their sights and their Instincts, to react and respond, wholly-conscious, to daily stimuli and general activities."

If I had to memorize that, I'd probably faint in response, then I'd have to be taken to Unconscious. I'd really be unconscious.

I gaze around the hall, trying to locate Macy. I spot a tiny red blur among the Subconscious crowd and smiled. That is one girl with true spirit in her.

A group of adults in important suits are gathered up front. A lady in a deep magenta dress is arguing with a man in red. She's the Unconscious representative, Heather. He's from Conscious. A woman in a pale blue blouse and dark blue skirt frowns at them, as she whispers with the adult I bumped into previously.

Normally, the whole Institution don't gather in the Hall unless there's a critical meeting. Today, all the adults are gathered, talking, whispering among themselves. Everyone is now mingling among Levels, engaging in discussions. Even though no one announced it, after the regular Pledges, we are allowed to separate.

Only us children do not. We watch the grown-ups walking about, some impatient, some tired-looking, as if, like Lauren, they don't have a regular sleep schedule in their busy timetable.

Speaking of Lauren, I'm still trying to figure out what she meant about Alex. I scan the hall, but I don't see him anywhere. Weird. Maybe he's gone off to carry out whatever task Lauren had reminded him of earlier on. Instead, I look for my other friends.

I locate Ari in the sea of people and walk over to her. She may be overenthusiastic sometimes, but her spirit makes her admirably outstanding where her job is concerned.

"Ari---" I call out. She doesn't seem to hear me above the ear-popping level of noise. I'm about to call her again but this time, someone calls my name.

"Leanne, wait!" Only two people call me that...

"Alex...?" I spin around and almost collided into Alex, who'd been running towards me.