"Aeris." The voice was deep and familiar, but the face was blurred. It was like I was standing in a thick fog and though this man was before me, I couldn't actually see him. But I knew him, I could feel it. It felt important, something here felt important. But I didn't know what it was.
"Don't be afraid," he said firmly and I felt a peace.
Suddenly, I was falling and all I could see was fire and explosions. I was back in the city and it was being overtaken by a Tsunami while everything else was burning to the ground. I screamed as waves began to carry me away and I felt myself slam against debris and slip beneath the waves. I flailed, trying with all my might to reach the surface.
Somehow I made it above and grabbed onto a plank of wood. I clutched it like my life depended on it and fixated my eyes on the shore. All I could see were flames and smoke but something appeared within them. A dark figure, like a man, but cloaked in shadow. He stood there and stared at me, like looking into my soul and I felt sheer terror.
I was screaming and trembling when my eyes finally shot open and I saw Xan leaning over me. His hand was pressed against my forehead while he was glowing a gentle shade of gold.
"What is causing you this terror?" He asked.
The shadowy figure appeared in my mind again and I felt the fear shake me once more.
Xan's eyes opened wide. "Who is that?" he asked like he had seen exactly what I had.
I slapped his hand away from me and quickly moved away from him. "Don't touch me," I breathed angrily.
Xan looked at me confused. "You need to calm down," he said.
The image flashed in my mind again and anger and fear washed over me once more. "I don't know you! Why should I trust you?"
Xan stepped towards me slowly. "Right now," he said calmly, "I am all you have."
His words silenced me. There was a ring of truth to them. He was the only thing preventing me from slipping into extinction. But those images kept flashing in my head. How did I know that shadowy creature wasn't him?
"I am not that creature from your nightmares," he said and I looked at him sharply.
He stepped towards me again. "I saw what you saw. That was not me. You are either having nightmares from the experience or remembering something you really did see."
He stepped toward me again and placed his hand on my forehead once more. "You may be the key to unlocking what happened to your planet," he said, now beginning to glow blue.
I placed my hand on his and drew it away, to his surprise.
"No," I said gently. "I can do it myself."
He nodded and I took a deep breath to calm my nerves.
"Well," he said, heading for the door. "I don't think you'll be getting any more rest right now."
I scoffed. "Probably not."
"Then I suppose it's time to answer some of your questions," he replied. "I'll be waiting for you in the control room." With that, he made his exit and I stood there alone.
He was ready to answer my questions, but a better question was whether I was ready for his answers.