Free The Dream Sanctum: Beyond The End by Kay Solo Page A

heavy and almost frightening. Kai knew that they were
well-prepared, but the idea of being lost forever out in an endless ocean in
your dreams, unable to escape, was not an idea that comforted him.
    “None of you need to worry though!” Alastor said cheerfully, reading the
anxious expressions on their faces. “We’ve got a number of tools. We’ve got our
map, we’ve got the overlay that shows us where we are, Kwin here knows how to
read the stars, and let’s face is, we’re a bit brighter than most dreamers. I’m
assuming that most of the people who went out to explore were like our dear
captain, confident to the point of exploding but with hardly enough brains to
steer their ships in the right direction.”
    Lindsay looked immensely relieved, and despite the fact that Kai already
knew all of that, it helped to hear someone else say it out loud.
    “Wait, you can read stars, Kwin?” Lindsay asked.
    “Yes. Not as well as I would like, but enough to help us find our way if
we are in need. It is a shame that more people do not care to learn it. Many
who are lost could find their way simply by entering the Sanctum during the
night and following the sky back home.”
    “You’re hardly an average person though,” Kai laughed. “What might be
second nature to you would be confusing to just about everyone else.”
    “Like who?”
    “Like me,” Kai grinned. “I tried taking Astrology classes, but they just
confused me. The world is confusing enough by itself, and we’re just a speck in
the universe.”
    “Oh, that reminds me! Are the stars in the Sanctum the same as the ones
we see from Earth?” Lindsay asked.
    “No. There are no similarities as far as I’ve been able to tell, and I’ve
studied both universes extensively. I will say that the Sanctum’s stars are
more beautiful than our own, but that is subjective, of course.”
    Kai tuned out as the conversation continued. Thinking about the stars had
gotten him thinking about just how far the world extended. What if there was more
to the Sanctum than just what was on the map everyone knew? They were already
going to explore across the ocean, but what if there was even more out there in
the stars? The possibilities seemed endless. He wondered if there were other
people on the other planets out there, and if the Sanctum’s connection
stretched farther than just to those on Earth.
    “Ah, there’s some light,” Kwin said eventually, glancing up at the
windows. A pink tinge had begun to color the sky. As they sailed on, it
gradually grew brighter and brighter until the new sunlight shone directly into
the cabin.
    “I’m going to darken the windows so we don’t blind ourselves,” Alastor
said. He got up from the table and flipped one of the switches by the door, and
the windows around the room instantly darkened.
    Now that the waters around them were visible, everyone got up from the
table and headed outside. A cool breeze met them, and the ocean was smooth and
clear. Kai walked to the upper deck to get a better view, and Alastor followed
to check the ship’s instruments. It was soon pleasantly bright and warm
outside, and though Kai had never actually been sailing before, Kai thought he
could get used to it.
    “There is a distinct lack of Hercules on this ship that I find immensely
comforting,” Kwin commented lazily, and the others laughed.
    “It looks like we’re right on track and everything just looks dandy,”
Alastor announced. “No storms, no obstacles, nothing.”
    “I actually must disagree,” Kwin said from his side. “There is an island
not far from us. It also appears to be gaining on us.”
    “It… what? Oh!” Alastor exclaimed as he looked around. The others
followed his gaze, and Lindsay gasped.
    “It’s going to hit us!”
    “No, it probably just wants to see what we are first,” Alastor replied
easily.
    Kai didn’t know what to think. What he saw on the horizon was clearly an
island, and a large one at that. However, it