The soft glow of a desk lamp cast long shadows across Danny's room. The journal lay open on the bed between him and April, the pages filled with his messy scrawl of dreams. They'd stayed up late, talking and laughing about the strange worlds Danny had imagined. But as the night stretched on, their energy waned, and the conversation slowed.
Before either of them realized it, April's head had rested on Danny's shoulder, her breath soft and steady. He glanced down at her, feeling a small warmth spread through his chest, but soon his exhaustion caught up with him. His head tipped back, and sleep claimed them both.
The journal stirred.
Without warning, its pages began to glow faintly, then flicker, as if a silent wind were rifling through them. The symbols on the cover pulsed with a faint, eerie light. One by one, the words inside began to shine, illuminating the room in a kaleidoscope of shifting colors.
The scenery around them dissolved.
A dark tower loomed high above a jagged mountain range, its spires clawing at a starless sky. Inside, a cold, shadowy chamber was dimly lit by a few torches that burned with unnatural, greenish flames. At the center of the room, seated on a black throne adorned with spikes and coiled serpents, was a figure cloaked in shadow.
The figure's voice rumbled, low and menacing, as he spoke to a group of armored soldiers kneeling before him.
"A disturbance," he said, his tone cold and deliberate. "I felt it. A shift in the balance of this world."
The soldiers remained silent, waiting.
"Someone—something—has entered our realm. Find them," the figure commanded, rising to his feet. His form towered over the soldiers, though his features remained obscured. "Take an army. Do not return until you know who—or what—dares disturb my dominion."
The soldiers pounded their fists to their chests in unison and rose, their heavy boots echoing off the stone floor as they marched out.
The shadowed figure turned toward a narrow window, gazing out over the desolate landscape below. "Whoever you are," he murmured, "you will regret stepping into my world."
Danny's eyes snapped open.
He was lying on his back, staring up at a swirling sky of golds and purples. The air was warm and carried a faint, sweet scent, like flowers in bloom. He sat up quickly, his mind racing. Beside him, April stirred, groaning as she rubbed her eyes.
"Where... are we?" she asked groggily.
Danny looked around, his heart skipping a beat. The landscape was eerily familiar—the endless fields of golden grass, the rolling hills, the vibrant, dreamlike sky. It was the meadow from his journal.
"I think..." he began, but before he could finish, the sound of distant shouting cut him off.
He turned, his stomach dropping as a group of soldiers emerged over a hill, their armor gleaming darkly, their weapons sharp and menacing. They moved with precision, their numbers too great to count at a glance.
"Run!" Danny grabbed April's hand, and the two bolted through the grass. The golden blades whipped at their legs as they sprinted, but the soldiers were fast, gaining ground with every second.
April stumbled, and Danny caught her arm, pulling her back up. "We're not gonna make it!" she panted.
Just as the soldiers were closing in, a piercing whistle cut through the air.
Danny and April froze as a sleek figure appeared in front of them, almost out of nowhere. It was Dave, his humanoid dolphin form shimmering faintly under the strange light of the sky.
"Well, this looks bad," Dave said, his toothy grin somehow both reassuring and unnerving. "Guess I'll have to clean up this mess."
Before Danny could respond, Dave launched himself at the soldiers. He morphed mid-air, his body stretching and shifting like liquid as he landed among them. His arm elongated into a blade, sweeping through the ranks with precision. The soldiers fought back, but Dave was too fast, dodging their strikes and retaliating with brutal efficiency.
Danny grabbed April's arm. "We need to move!"
But as they turned to flee, one of the soldiers broke away from the fight and grabbed April, hauling her off her feet. She screamed, kicking and struggling, but the soldier's grip was ironclad.
"April!" Danny shouted, panic gripping him as the soldier began to retreat, dragging her toward the others.
"What are you waiting for?" Dave yelled between blows, his form morphing into a larger, more monstrous version of himself to fend off the soldiers.
Danny's mind raced. He couldn't just stand there. Desperately, he patted his pockets, searching for anything, and his fingers closed around something smooth and familiar—a pen.
He pulled it out, and a voice echoed faintly in his mind.
Draw.
Without thinking, Danny knelt in the grass and began sketching in the air. His hand moved faster than it ever had before, lines and curves taking shape as the pen left glowing marks in the space before him.
A griffin emerged from the glowing lines, its massive wings stretching wide as it burst into life. It let out a powerful screech, its golden feathers shimmering like the grass below.
The griffin took flight, soaring over the battlefield. It swooped down, talons extended, tearing through the soldiers with ease. Its sheer size and ferocity sent the remaining soldiers into a frenzy, and they began to retreat.
The soldier holding April dropped her as he fled, and she scrambled to her feet, running back to Danny.
The griffin let out another cry, scattering the last of the soldiers before landing gracefully beside Danny and April. For a moment, it stood there, regal and proud, its golden eyes meeting Danny's. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it dissolved into hundreds of tiny pieces of paper that floated gently to the ground.
Danny stared at the papers, his chest heaving. "Did... did I just do that?"
April grabbed his arm, her voice shaking. "I don't know, but we need to get out of here before they come back."
Dave sauntered over, reverting to his usual humanoid form. "Not bad, kid," he said, patting Danny on the back. "You might actually survive here."
"Survive where?" Danny asked, still in shock.
Dave grinned, baring his sharp teeth. "Welcome to your dreams, genius."
Danny exchanged a wide-eyed glance with April. Whatever was happening, it was just the beginning.