Stealing Dreams

"I'm gonna be the best Dreamster ever," my best friend, Joe, informed me. Just like that. I didn't even know he had any interest.

I said, "You know they link into your brain, right?"

"Doesn't matter, Steve. I'll be rich and famous."

"You know they give you hallucinogens to enhance your dreams, right?"

"I know. For free! I can't wait until I'm 18. Have you seen the Jeremy Blue series? It's supposed to top Sylvia Red. Dreamster Escapes are epic!"

"No, I stopped watching a month ago. Something is off about that whole thing."

"You're just paranoid. I'm gonna be Joe Green. I just know it. I'm gonna be rich and famous. Everyone will be watching my dreams for decades. They're gonna be epic."

"Be careful what you wish for."

"You're just jealous, Steve. You don't have a creative synapse in your brain."

"Whatever. I just don't care to share my boring synapses involuntarily."

"You're not listening. It's voluntary, and I'm signing on my birthday."

"I hope it lives up to your expectations but leave me out of it."

"Fine. I won't invite you for the maiden voyage of my yacht. It's gonna be epic."

A couple of months later, Joe celebrated his birthday a day early so he could go to Dreamsters, Incorporated the next morning.

For his birthday, I gave him a ring with a mythical, winged Zaltar on it. His smile lit up his face. I shrugged, "It's to inspire your first dream."

"This is the most epic gift I've ever gotten. I'll wear it always."

That's what I was counting on.

A week later, curiosity got the best of me. I checked Dreamster's Escapes. Sure enough, there were three entries for Joe Green. Joe's dreams were literally becoming reality.

The first one showed him meeting a Zaltar. I have to admit I felt a twinge of pride for my part in that.

In his second, he was shown befriending and then learning to fly his Zaltar.

The third Escape was even more impressive. The Zaltar was a more vibrant purple. Joe was leading a group into battle against a rival force of Garzons. His Zaltar shot electric beams from its eyes, winning the day for Joe and his team.

I tried to contact Joe, but he wasn't answering his neural byway. I tried later, and yet again later. It was time to implement my plan. I would find out exactly where he was by using the tracking device I had imbedded into the ring I had given him.

I waited for early morning, hoping that the Dreamsters would have minimal security after they were done dreaming. As I neared his location, I parked and walked to the only building in sight. It looked like an old school. The back doors were locked, of course.

I made mental note of a bush by the front door. I took the biggest rock I could find and threw it at a window several paces from the door with full force. It shattered very loudly in the quiet of the early morning. I ran for the bush.

A man in a guard uniform came out the front and ran towards the window. I rushed up and snuck in before the door could close.

At the front desk, I could see a monitor showing hundreds of people sleeping on medical beds. The room looked like a gymnasium. I went down the hall and saw double doors on the left. Every person in that room was hooked up to multiple devices. I started up and down the rows, looking for Joe.

Just as I found him in the second to last row, bright, overhead lights blinded me.

A woman called out, "You know we won't let you disconnect him. You may even kill him trying."

"I want my friend, Joe, back. Unharmed."

"He's not in any danger. He volunteered for this."

"When will he get to go home?"

"As soon as his dreams are no longer entertaining. I should warn you that he will never be his old self. He will be well-cared-for, but no one has regained the ability to walk or speak."

"What? My God, you need to be arrested. None of them signed up for THIS." I gestured around me.

"He spoke highly of you, Steve." My eyes went wide. "Yes, I know who you are. If you go to any authorities, you will disappear into this room with no word to your family. They will think you ran away or got taken." She saw my angry expression and added, "The only way this ends well for you is if you walk away silently."

It's been two years now. I never watch Dreamster Escapes. Every once in a while, I hear teens talking excitedly about becoming a Dreamster.

Sometimes, walking away is painful.