Caledon opened his eyes to a familiar sight before him.

  The nightmare, it was just like Icey had said… That’s right, I’m a Fearshaper now. No more blissful uninterrupted sleep free of terrifying dreams.

  Caledon took in his surroundings, realising that he was in Brimstone Manor. In the living hall, before a familiar hearth that warmed him with its gentle flame.

  His attention was drawn to a figure standing across the room. Caledon watched, as his father, Berevan Brimstone softly exchanged words with Silas. As his eyes perceptively traced his butler’s impassive expression, he began to see the beginnings of cracks emerge as his father’s expression progressively grew more devious.

  The butler threatened to crack with every second that went by. Caledon snorted.

  No doubt, father is at it again with his outrageous comments. Silas, don’t break.

  "Hiya, take that!"

  Viveria’s voice punctuated the air. Glancing to his left, Caledon watched his sister perform sword forms while perched precariously on her chair. She wielded the rapier elegantly, filling her invisible foe with innumerable holes.

  Caledon winced as he watched her blade glance off the dining table, sure to leave a mark.

  Settling back into his chair, Caledon’s lips turned into a soft smile. A nightmare? This was a welcome reprieve from the chaos that had surrounded him ever since he had begun his mission. He let out a sigh, as the heat of the hearth sunk further into him.

  Then, he frowned in confusion as he noticed a strange sensation.

  Why… is my heart throbbing?

  Caledon grew alert, but all he saw before him was the familiar, comforting scene of his family, enjoying the peace of one another’s presence. Treasuring the smallest things, carried the greatest value.

  Strange. It’s just like any other day.

  As for his Fear?

  It was nowhere to be seen.

  Caledon surrendered himself to a pleasant dream of warmth and comfort.

  ---

  Vale roused to her mother’s voice, staring at a familiar ceiling. She blinked as she took in the slight crenulations in the stone above her, a feature of the roof she had spent many an evening pouring over as a young girl.

  "Vale! Time to wake up! We have a big day ahead of us today."

  With dread welling in her gut, Vale turned to take in the room around her. It was her old home. Her mother’s words were just as she remembered, on the day that everything had changed.

  She felt nausea begin to well in her gut, having replayed the events of the day in her mind countless times, desperately wishing to reach back through time…

  And to run.

  "Ah Vale, your very first delve into the nightmare."

  Vale yelped as she spotted a wishbone standing vertically on her bed beside her. Fear filled her as she came to grips with the same realisation as Caledon.

  This is a nightmare. I’m a Fearshaper now.

  She gripped her temples, which had started throbbing. The sound of her mother’s humming made her want to burst out of her room and envelop her in a hug, in spite of all of her shortcomings.

  This isn’t real.

  "Hello, Lord Quietus."

  The little wishbone addressed her in a solemn voice, hopping to her side.

  "Vale, I know how terrible this must seem to you. That pesky ice cube didn’t let me get a word in! Nevermind that, a Fearshaper’s very first nightmare is centered around the very event that triggered their Fear. To descend from Anhedonia, you will need to truly acknowledge, confront and embrace your Fear."

  Vale desperately attempted to focus on the situation before her. She heard little feet pattering outside, drawing closer to her door. Her mind went blank.

  Dawn.

  Ignoring Quietus, she bolted towards the door. She swung it open to find her younger sister beaming before her. Tears fled from her eyes as she enveloped her sister in a hug.

  "Gud morning skelebumf."

  Her sister struggled to get the words out as Vale pressed her tightly into the crook of her arm. Vale swiped at her tears, before holding her sister at arm’s length. She stared at Dawn’s face, raking in her every feature, and committing each detail to memory.

  She took in her little pigtails that were lopsided and asymmetrical. Her sister had never quite gotten the style down like Blaze had. Dawn’s eyebrows were slightly thicker than her own, and they shaded large, dark lavender eyes. Even though all three of their siblings had shared the trait, Vale always thought they had suited Dawn the best.

  Dawn stuck her tongue out at her, who responded in kind, pushing her gently out of the room before her sister noticed tears welling into her eyes once more.

  "Hey! That was rude skelebum!"

  "You’re rude! Wait until I’m ready silly."

  "But you’re already awake!"

  "Shoo, go help mother. And you need to fix your pigtails."

  Vale pressed her back against the door as she took a deep shuddering breath. Her mother interjected from the kitchen.

  "Oh Dawn, you know what a big day it is today, you girls will finally be meeting your father, isn’t that exciting!"

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  Her eyes hardened, and she wiped away the tears that traced their way down her cheeks. She gently opened the door, leaving a small gap. She heard Dawn call out to their mother.

  "But mother! I don’t want to leave our home. Can’t I just stay here with you? I don’t want to stay at Soulmaven."

  "It’s “Soulhaven” dear."

  "Brone and Cathy say the Revenants are scary. I don’t want to go to the skeleton castle, ma."

  Today was the day Highlord Vetrian Revenant had come to retrieve his bastard children. Their lives had never been the same since. Vale recalled how na?ve she had been, craving the thrill of becoming a noble. Which little girl born in a small village didn’t want to be called to the nobility? To be surrounded with powerful and beautiful people, in grand castles, having secret exchanges in luscious gardens.

  Her sister on the other hand, hadn’t wanted to leave.

  "Triol! Are you ready darling? Today is a big day for all of us, but you especially."

  Vale struggled to keep the nausea from welling up at the sound of her brother’s name. Yet the expression that he gave her as he passed her door was not one of anger, disgust or annoyance. It was just the innocent excitement of a boy who longed to reunite with his father. The same excitement they had all shared, that day.

  "Yes mother."

  Triol was dressed smartly, his wavy blonde hair neatly styled. The sight would have sent many of the village girls sprawling.

  Vale blinked, and the scene around her changed abruptly. Her breath caught.

  She now stood outside her house, watching a regal carriage approach, drawn by two immense black steeds.

  "Vale, be alert, in the nightmare, your sense of time may be distorted. I know it may be challenging, but you must face your Fear, acknowledge it. Otherwise, your nightmare will continue, repeating interminably, with no end. Fear not, my young charge, for you could not have bonded with a better guide to help you seize the object of your Fear, and turn it to your will!"

  Vale’s face twitched into a smile as she was quickly reminded of Lord Quietus’ unshakeable confidence. But she struggled to concentrate as the events began to unfold.

  "Lord Quietus… will I be able to… change what happens in the nightmare?"

  Her whispers didn’t seem to draw her family’s attention. The little wishbone let out a soft sigh. It inclined itself towards her.

  "Oh young Vale, you should know that it wouldn’t matter, even if you could."

  Lord Quietus hesitated, eventually relenting.

  "You may experience deviations in your nightmares. You may even notice things that previously escaped your attention. But any attempt to stray from your nightmare might terminate it. Never forget, this is not your reality, what has happened has already come to pass. Muster your determination to influence your future!"

  The carriage door opened, and she saw her mother smile nervously.

  Asale Revenant’s lips were painted a dark burgundy, and she sported an elegant black dress. Dawn and Vale were similarly garbed in black gowns, and their mother had rigorously tamed their flowing blonde hair and dressed them in the finest cloth she could get her hands on.

  Triol stood straight, his back overly rigid and chest puffed out, eager to make an impression. Poorly schooled excitement and nervousness was on clear display. Shamefully similarly to her own on that fateful day.

  A young woman from the villages who had met a Lord on a fateful night, who finally returned to claim his progeny after years of absence. It was like a line from a story, a wistful wish of village ladies that sought an escape from the horrific mundanity of their lives.

  Only, it had came true, for their mother Asale. Lords and ladies often had dalliances with commoners, but most of them were forgotten. Their partners and children abandoned.

  Your father’s different. Trust me Vale, you’ll see.

  How na?ve you were mother.

  How she wished she could go back to this moment in the past, grab her family and run for the hills, as far away as possible. But even if she had, she doubted such a scarce effort could escape the clutches of the Deathbringer.

  The door to the carriage opened, and a face emerged. Wiry dark black hair that fell to his shoulders. His cloak sported voluminous black fur which sprouted from the shoulders in waves. It had the effect of broadening her father’s frame, and granting him an unnecessary gravitas.

  Unnecessary, because his presence was felt in every other conceivable way. Dull black, lifeless eyes devoid of emotion accompanied his empty smile. His aura of death touched the grass on which he walked, sapping them of all life. Flowers wilted in a moment, accompanied by the corpses of the bees and butterflies that flitted between them. Falling to their final rest, cold.

  Dead.

  No, I can’t do this. I’m sorry. I need to leave, GET ME OUT OF HE-

  ---

  Vale shot up from her bed with a scream. Her chest heaved, sweat coating her face. Caledon yawned and rose groggily from his position.

  Shiver was awake in her bed, a pensive expression on her face. Then, her gaze found Vale, and she greeted her with a smile. This one, less crazed than her usual grins, Vale didn’t think it possible.

  "So, how was your very first nightmare. The joys of being a Fearshaper, huh?"

  Vale avoided her eyes and clutched anxiously at her hands. They shook no matter how hard she tried to still them, betraying her Fear.

  "I, I couldn’t do it. My nightmare ended before I could get any further then the very beginning. How many times am I going to have to play over the same nightmares before I manage acknowledgement."

  Vale sighed, her shoulders slumping. Tearing apart the wounds of the past was not something one did on a whim, even if it was the road to the power she needed to kill her father. To her surprise, Shiver nodded with silent understanding. Then Vale yelped as the girl roughly ruffled her hair.

  "H-hey! Cut it out, crazy orphan."

  "In my very first nightmare, ice shades tried to murder me. I got caught up fighting with them, and I didn’t progress further into my dream. I had it when I was knocked out, as we rode from Brimstone."

  Vale let out a small laugh, the tension broken. Reassured by Shiver’s moment of vulnerability.

  "I… I saw my family. The day my father came to take us to Soulhaven. But I didn’t have it in me to continue progressing."

  Shiver sat next to her, with understanding in her eyes.

  Caledon rose with a yawn and strode towards them. He hesitated, as if reluctant to share his experience.

  "I also dreamt of my family. But there didn’t appear to be anything amiss? I just had a pleasant dream in Brimstone Manor."

  Shiver smiled sweetly at him, and watched in satisfaction as Caledon blanched.

  "Is that so, Lord Brimstone? Not haunted by nightmares of the innocents your family is responsible for murdering? What a Feardamned shame. Say the word, and I'll remind you whenever you would like."

  Caledon gulped. Vale lightly slapped Shiver’s hand.

  "Oh hush you. Caledon, that is curious. Icey, Lord Quietus, any thoughts?"

  The two guides sat silently.

  "Unfortunately not, young Fearshaper. It may be a form of a repressed Fear – the most challenging of Fears to acknowledge. Not everyone’s path through Anhedonia is of equal difficulty. Did your guide reveal itself to you?"

  Caledon shook his head with another yawn.

  "Perhaps it has good taste. I wouldn’t associate with murderers either."

  Caledon’s eyebrow twitched at the irony of Shiver’s words.

  "Coming from the one who drove a dagger into-"

  "Enough! You two!"

  Vale’s sudden exclamation made the pair pause. She looked pleadingly at Caledon, shaking her head ever so slightly, dissuading him from provoking Shiver. Caledon’s eyes glided down to Shiver’s hands, finally noticing the gleaming daggers of ice that matched the girl’s cold smile.

  "In any case… perhaps this academy will hold the answers to your questions. What do you say we do some exploring. We’ve dallied long enough!"

  The trio and their guides turned their heads to Pevir, who had donned his bucket hat once again, revitalised and brimming with energy. His eyes were alight with his passion for discovery, matching the sheen of sweat on his forehead. His enthusiasm began to infect each of them.

  Vale nodded in relief, shooting a stern look at Shiver. The girl begrudgingly released her daggers, and they disappeared into motes of ice.

  They had an academy of Fear to explore.