The Pyramid Chronicles: Fortuna Guard (#2) [MOVING JUNE 30]

Chapter Eight: Dreamvoid

The Dreamvoid wasn't all nightmares. With a clear mind, Malcolm could venture into it without trouble, though he never stayed long.

He was determined to understand it. He could transport someone's consciousness into it. Why couldn't he control it? How long had it existed before he'd gained his abilities?

He hadn't made much progress in his investigation of the Dreamvoid, but besides that, he'd been using his time on the Fortuna well. The Newmans and their assorted altered were smart, but they didn't fully comprehend what they were up against. They were so concerned with keeping Malcolm far enough away that he couldn't put them to sleep. They didn't know just how far his powers reached.

He couldn't put anyone on the ship to sleep. He couldn't force them into the Dreamvoid. But he could walk around in their dreams.

It was the perfect way to obtain information.

Malcolm had read the Delta Labs files. He'd observed Scorpion's fighters. But it wasn't enough to know if the altered could help him. Here on the Fortuna, he was in the perfect position to determine their true potential. Plus, they had their pyramid fragment somewhere on the ship. That was something Malcolm wanted to keep close.

Even without his intervention, many of the altered were having nightmares. It wasn't surprising, considering what they'd been through, but Malcolm wasn't interested in watching them relive the loss of their home. What he really cared about were their plans.

He tried to lurk only at the edges of their dreams and observe, but the temptation to ask them questions about training and their powers and their fights with Scorpion often lured him forward. He had to be careful—there was always a chance they'd remember speaking to him when they woke up.

So far, though, it was paying off. Malcolm had learned that the Fortuna Guard—as they were apparently calling themselves—were finally putting together a plan to attack Scorpion. Honestly, he thought they had a decent chance at success. But they had no idea what would come after Scorpion's fall.

Learning the truth would hopefully be enough to make them accept his help. Together, they could bring down their common enemy.

But in the meantime, Malcolm was trapped in a cell.

He certainly wasn't trapped in his own mind, though. The moment Malcolm's eyes closed tonight, he entered the Dreamvoid.

He didn't completely understand how it worked as a physical space. All he knew was that it manifested itself based on memories and dreams. When he entered it, he was in his old room at Andrew Hale's house.

Malcolm despised his old boss, but the room came with a nostalgia that wasn't entirely awful. Training here had served him well. He slid off the bed he'd awoken in and crossed the room to his desk. Opened the top drawer. Touched the USB drive that sat alone in the middle of the drawer.

In the real world, the cell on the Fortuna, his eyes opened. His hand tightened around the USB that had appeared in his palm.

He'd figured out the Dreamvoid could be used to store objects by accident, after leaving behind a pen and finding it was still there the next time he returned. Experimentation revealed that anything much bigger didn't like to come through. And, if Malcolm had too much in his pockets, he found that most of it wouldn't follow him, either.

Malcolm took the USB back into the Dreamvoid, feeling smug at how easily he could move back and forth, now. He returned the USB to the drawer. He had no use for it at the moment, and the computers in Andrew's Dreamvoid house didn't actually function. They were nothing more than props.

After closing the drawer, Malcolm moved to the window and stared out into the darkness. Was anyone else in the Dreamvoid right now? Did anyone else have his power, the ability to come here? To bring others here?