Hollis was once again alone in his empty void of a mindspace. After the meet-up with the other Somnium came to an abrupt, unsatisfactory close, Hollis went straight back to his room. There was nothing in particular to do at this point and thus, he found it best to nap on the situation rather than wrack his brain for answers that would likely not be found.

What else could he do? The others seemed to have access to the internet even while in this dream world, but Hollis had no clue how they did it. All he would have been able to do is go from dreamer to dreamer and see what they knew. For too many reasons he hadn't had the will to do something like that.

While he lied on the floor of his void, he stared up at the seemingly eternal abyss around him. As he did this, his mind slowly went empty, but a sudden thought hit him.

Hm? I feel like I'm forgetting something. What could I forget though? He tried hard to remember. What all did they talk about? The Somnium Killer, Ambrose... what could I be...

Just then, he remembered the weapon he had stowed in his pocket. He had forgotten the knife!

Without sitting up, he reached his hand into his pocket. He felt around, but it became apparent that the knife was gone.

His face froze.

Sitting up, he felt around in his other pocket. Still no knife.

"What? Where... It has to be here..." He dug his hand as deep as it would go but still, there was no knife. "No way." It felt as if the blood had drained from his body in an instant.

Why is it gone? Did it fall from my pocket? Or...

Somebody stole it? But who?

Rising to his feet, he dug through his pockets one last time.

Still nothing.

Someone had to have taken it, there's no way I wouldn't have noticed it fall from my pockets...then again, I should have noticed if someone took it!

In the midst of his panic, he heard a sudden click, like a door went shut. He had a feeling he knew who this was. Turning to the sound, he saw Ambrose. Already? He thought, attempting to hide his shock. It wasn't that long since we spoke, was it?

"Well, look at that. Your tree is doing nice."

Confused, Hollis glanced back to the only item adorning the otherwise empty space. To his surprise, the tree had grown quite tremendously. It wasn't full grown, but it most certainly wasn't the little sapling he had last seen. He knew he dozed off for a second, was it really that long?

"I see you're surprised." Ambrose let out a low chuckle as he took casual strides towards Hollis. "I can understand. I was actually talking to Veri last night—the samurai boy—about this whole situation."

Hollis simply nodded. Looks like Ambrose had this conversation under his thumb already.

"Apparently, he seems to fall more in line with your ideas. So, that got me thinking..." He crossed his strong arms over his chest, puffing himself up. "I think we need to, uh...talk about this."

"What do you mean? Are you saying you're afraid I blame you for these attacks?"

"Well, yeah, kinda." The sandy-haired boy, who looked more like a brunette at this point, chuckled awkwardly. "I mean, I can't say I've really changed my stance on how I'm going about this, but you don't know me like the others."

"So? Why should my opinion matter to you if you feel that way?" Hollis exhaled, his previously stiff posture relaxing ever so slightly. "Someone with as miniscule a presence as mine, my opinion means nothing."

"No, not to me."

Hollis's ears perked, his eyes blinked once, then twice. Why?

"We're friends now, right?" It looked like he tried to hide it, but that cat-like smirk started to form. Hollis was almost positive Ambrose had fangs and that freaked him out a little.

Upon noticing the brunette's skeptical reaction, Ambrose laughed. "Well, I thought we were. But, as you know, I'm eager to expand my ranks after all."

"Alright, fine. If you want to talk or whatever it is, sure. Let's talk."

"Oh?" Not losing that troublesome smirk, he tilted his head. "You seem like you have something on your mind. What's that about?" He seemed legitimately curious at first, but his eyes went wide soon after, as if he knew right away what this was about. Relaxing his expression, he said, "Right. How about we start with that. But first." Without warning, he gripped Hollis's wrist, just like when they had first met, and pulled him back. "Let's go here." Without so much as turning around, Ambrose fell back into the dream that was passing behind them, Hollis still in his grasp.

The smaller boy landed in a crouch, saving his face from another rough smack. To his surprise, though, the ground here wasn't hard, not at all. It felt warm and plush. When his senses were fully returned, he was shocked to see he was standing on some sort of soft, brightly colored surface. It was like a giant quilt.

"Finally!" Ambrose exclaimed with joy. "I've been waiting to bring you to one of these weirdo types!" He jumped down from the surface he had been perched on and landed at Hollis's side. Now that they were in someone else's dream, Ambrose had switched his pajama to something more in line with the aesthetic of this world. As usual, his arms where mostly bare, but he wore a half cape over his left shoulder with an almost Christmas-type color palette of reds and greens.

"What kind of dream is this?" Hollis had made haste to sport a matching costume before asking this.

"Just one of those dreams. No need for explanations; whatever happens, happens." The taller boy pointed off in the distance. They could see a silhouette bouncing on a larger version of the quilt they stood upon, laughter and cheer clear as day. "We should go somewhere more private. If they see us here, we'll be in trouble!" With a soft snigger, Ambrose darted down the hill. Hollis hesitated but followed after.

They came across a large, golden beam that looked to be a part of the head of one's bed, but it was surrounded on all sides by the colorful quilts. "I think I'm with Terra on this," Hollis muttered as he walked along the beam, his balance only slightly effected by the round surface. "Wandering into other people's heads doesn't sit well with me."

"Some people are like that, yeah." Ambrose responded in a nonchalant fashion as he took casual strides over the shining surface. "Me? Well, you know I'm into this. I like to see what other people think of. Don't get me wrong, I know so many people find this inappropriate," there was a quick flash of malevolence in his smile before he switched back to simple mischief. "But I can't help but feed my curiosity." Once they reached the end of the beam, Ambrose jumped down, promptly followed by Hollis. They stood on a quilt reminiscent to a chunk of land by a body of quilt water. Such a sight left Hollis stunned. How could he ever explain seeing something as peculiar as this?

"So," Ambrose dropped down, his arms resting over his knees. The older boy followed. "I can't believe you followed me here like this." His head tilted ever so slightly, his eyes narrowing. "Aren't you worried?"

"I can't say. You're always a little freaky."

And I didn't have much choice...

Ambrose sputtered, his hand covering his face as he tried to muffle his laugh. "True, true." He leaned further back. "I like your attitude, guy. You've got a good head."

I don't think people usually end it like that. Ignoring the phrasing that made his stomach turn, Hollis simply cleared his throat as the outgoing youth continued. "Still, I can tell you've been disturbed by this whole thing."

"Even more so due to the fact you pulled me out here. Doesn't this guy usually attack...when you're in other's dreams? That's what it sounded like to me."

"Not necessarily. Yes, it's more likely that's when he could get you seeing as he's clearly a Somnium himself. Trying to get into another Somnium's mindscape would be more difficult unless he managed to bookmark it."

"'Bookmark it'?"

Ambrose nodded and proceeded to explain. "If he's seen the door to your mindscape, he'd be able to 'hook it' or 'bookmark it'. It really depends on how much he saw. It's how I'm able to get into yours anytime I want." He smirked, his gaze trailing the corner of the mountains at his left. "If someone lets you in, you can 'bookmark it' and come and go anytime you want. If someone sees it, they can access the entrance and try and break it, but that's some hacker-level stuff."

Hollis tried not to gulp, fearing it would be too loud to handle. Even if Ambrose wasn't the killer, which Hollis wanted to doubt was true, the killer saw his door, maybe even the inside when they were falling. He had a good chance to bookmark it. And if he had any hacker skills, which wasn't out of the question...

"I see," was all he could say.

"Don't worry so much, Hollis." Ambrose leaned forward again, his face filled to the brim with trouble and childish intentions. "You've got me here. I won't let this guy touch you."

"Are you trying to sound creepy?"

Ambrose shrugged, his expression not once changing. "Anyway, I think I carried this conversation enough. You want to get to know me personally, don't you?"

"I don't know about that..."

"Well, let me give you a taste." Falling back with ease, he crossed his legs and wrapped his arms around the back of his head. "I live down in Pennsylvania on an itty-bitty farm with tons of land. I had an older brother, but he died before I was born. His name was Hugo, believe it or not. Pretty old-fashioned, yeah?"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Hollis was reluctant, but he nodded. "I didn't think you'd get this personal."

"Hey, it's no bother to me at all." He shrugged. "Wanna know anything else?"

The older boy's mouth fell lopsided, his misty-blue eyes avoided Ambrose's own. "Well, what about your name? Your real name."

"Oh?" There was very real surprise in his tone. "I figured you'd assume this was my real name."

"You said everyone uses their screen names. I figured you were talking about yours too. So, it's not your real name, right?"

Ambrose smirked. "It's not. I do like it better than my real one, though." He stretched and let out a groan of satisfaction. "Everything's better in dreams!" Rolling onto his side, his head propped up with his hand, he asked, "Don't you want to be immortal? Stay here forever? It doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility for you. After all, in this day and age they've managed to keep deathly ill people alive through similar methods. I bet your Somnium abilities are doing that very thing! If they do turn off life support, I'll bet your consciousness can stay here forever!" His smirk softened. "Noodle had a good point when he said that some of the greatest joys are nonexistent things."

Hollis had to think about this, because he couldn't help but agree on some level. It was a nice thought, but more than anything he was actually terrified of the idea. If something like that could really happen, and wasn't just some myth people made up to shun the fear of death...

"If that could actually happen though, I'd rather die."

"Hm?" Ambrose's eyes widened and his brow perked.

"I'm only starting to get back the pieces of my life that came before this, and thinking about the people I had in my life...and the people I have now, I don't think I could get myself to stay alive long enough to see them all perish behind me. To live long enough to meet more people and then see them all perish too. That's not the kind of existence I'd want, even if I could live in dreams and never have to deal with the stress of reality."

Ambrose was stunned. He figured Hollis might still be averse to the idea, but he hadn't realized it was for such a deep reason. The thought of losing the people you care about had never once crossed his mind.

"So, you're a sweetheart deep down, huh? That's cute."

"Shut it. Anyone would think the same thing. Wouldn't you?"

Ambrose seemed to fade into thought momentarily before his smile returned. "Yeah. I guess so. My friends mean the world to me. I wouldn't want anything to happen to any of them. You too, guy."

Hollis scoffed. He still wasn't totally sure how to feel about this guy, but the more he grew accustomed to him, the more he felt the need to hide that fact. He didn't want this kid to think he was winning.

"Nice to know you're a sweetheart too." As soon as the words left his mouth his stomach turned. He'd never used the word sweetheart and now he regretted it beyond comprehension.

"Nice, nice! Thank you!" Ambrose nodded his head over and over, a look of pure pleasure plastered across his face. Little did Hollis know, there was no beating this guy.

"Oh, that's right!" Ambrose nodded, seemingly to himself. "I've got a proposition for you. You've already got some drive to get out of here, right? Here's something else. Once all of this is said and done, I'll tell you my real name."

"I don't really need to know it that bad."

"Aww, c'mon. Are you sure? You're really not that interested?"

Hollis could say he wasn't all he wanted. In truth, he was curious. He wanted to know what this guy was really like, and who he really was. "Fine, alright. It's a deal, I guess."

"Good, good." His smile softened; a pleasant warmth came to Ambrose's cheeks before being hastily replaced with an impish fervor. "Now that that's out of the way, wasn't there something you wanted to talk about?"

"Ah? R-right."

This guy, he thought to himself. He's way too perceptive!

"Ah, well..." With one last reach into his pocket, he further confirmed the disappearance of the knife. He knew that if someone took it, it had to have been someone at the meet-up. That means any one of them knew he had taken the knife from the killer and thus, they were likely the killer or involved with the killer. Ambrose included.

After taking a moment to hold a back and forth with himself, he opted to explain, assuming that if he didn't say anything Ambrose would simply figure it out himself.

"I...I had his knife, the Somnium Killer's." Ambrose simply blinked hearing this, so Hollis continued, "I had it but...it's gone now. I think someone took it."

"When did you lose it? Actually, when did you last have it?"

"When we, the three of us were standing in your mindspace inside the palace."

"Terra and us?"

"Yeah."

Ambrose didn't give much of a reaction. His expression was unreadable. "When the three of us were talking, you know for a fact that you had it?"

"Yeah. I shoved my hand into my pocket and felt it. It was there, I know it."

"And you didn't check at all after that? When did you realize it was gone?"

Hollis was surprised by how seriously Ambrose was treating this. He felt very professional in his mannerisms, in his speech. It almost felt like he'd done this before. Hollis finished explaining all the details he could, even running back and explaining how he got a hold of it for what seemed like good measure. Ambrose nodded along, his entire form seemed to be wholly devoted to hearing the older boy out. By the time Hollis was done, Ambrose had only one thing to say.

"So, it was one of us that took it."

"It had to be."

"So, you know what that means." Ambrose wore a small smile. "One of us really is the killer." Before anything else could be said, Ambrose's eyes flew open and he froze. Hollis didn't say anything and decided it best to wait and see what happened. After a moment, the sandy-haired youth blinked and his smile returned. "Terra sent me a message. She must need something." He stood up, stretching briefly before continuing. "Even if she doesn't need something, I think we should pay her a visit after hearing about this."

"'We'?"

"Of course. This guy is interested in you, right? He let you escape, so there has to be some meaning in that. Whoever it is that's behind this, bringing you along to talk with them would work better than keeping you hidden, I'd say."

"So you want me to be bait?"

"Yep!"

It didn't take long for Hollis to give in and the two of them traveled over to Terra's mindspace. Before they jumped through the door to enter, Ambrose chuckled. "Just so you know beforehand, Terra has a fondness for England that is nearly unmatched."

"Do I want to know what that means?"

"We'd be better off not mentioning it beyond this point."

Simply sighing, Hollis held back any further questions.

When they arrived in the mindspace, the atmosphere was bright and cheery. Sunlight trickled through the leaves of the trees that sprouted up from the street corners, and these streets were adorned with neat brickwork. Unlit street lamps sat at nearly every corner and before them presided a large, Victorian manor with ivy spreading up the walls and bright flowers budding here and there.

Everyone seems far more creative than me...

"Well, we better not keep her waiting, right?" Ambrose laughed as he moved on ahead, his colorful pajama having been swapped out for his usual attire. Hollis quickly switched his out and followed after.

Upon entering the building and wandering the halls, they immediately spotted the young woman. The room was a pleasant mix of pale, sunny yellows and whites with a plethora of classical decorations adorning every corner from the walls to the windows. She sat at a small table with plated sweets and was holding a dainty teacup. Not only that, but she was dressed in a puffy, Victorian gown to top it off.

"Oh! Ammy! You brought...Hollis as well? Hello!" In her usual fashion, she gave them a bright, glittery smile.

Wow, she's really playing into the part, Hollis thought, unsure what exactly he was supposed to think of this extreme dedication.

Ambrose made only a slight movement, and within seconds, he had swapped out his pajama once more, now fitting more properly into the Victorian setting. "How's this, dear Terra?" He threw on a phony accent as he tilted the top hat he now donned in her direction. She clapped playfully, her cheeks flushing with pleasure. "Marvelous, Ammy! You look...spectacular!"

Oh geez. I'm not doing this... This time, Hollis stood his ground and left his clothes as they were. I've played enough dress up today.

Twirling his new cane, Ambrose shifted his weight as he asked, his tone playful, "What was the message you sent, my lady? I didn't feel like getting up to look at it and I wanted to give Hollis a good look at some other mindspaces."

Hollis held his breath. He was relieved that Ambrose wasn't mentioning the knife, but it made him wonder what exactly he was planning on doing. He clearly wanted to know which of the members took it just as much as Hollis, if not more.

"Oh, good thinking," Terra started as she set her cup down and came to a slow stand. After a moment, she snapped her fingers and, in a flurry of lights, her clothing changed to her usual attire, her pink tube top and shirts. With the clinking of her gold and white bracelets, she clasped her hands together as she stretched.

That dress did look uncomfortable, Hollis thought with dread.

"I was going to ask about the killer some more, actually...if that's alright."

"Well, to be honest, we were just discussing that." The tall youth's expression never changed, but there was something about his face that seemed to become gloomier. "What were you hoping to talk about?"

"Well...it was about the picture." She seemed to hesitate saying this, but regardless of her inner concerns she went on. "I was thinking...that it couldn't possibly be you." Whether he meant to or not, Ambrose nodded along. "Everybody seems to change their looks here...no matter how big or small. Could someone possibly...imitate someone else's appearance? Especially down to such small details? You two looked one-hundred percent identical."

"That's a very good point, Terra." Ambrose spoke in a jovial way, as if this wasn't as serious a matter as it seemed. This appeared to relax the young woman. "So, if it's true that the killer looks that similar to me, that would mean that this person has to see me so often that they can pinpoint all of those details down into that appearance."

"So...you're saying the killer has to be...someone in the forum?"

Holding up a single finger, he said in a cold voice, "Exactly."

Hearing this word, Terra went pale. Ambrose spoke again, attempting to reassure her. "Don't think about it like that, Terra. This killer is clearly Somnium himself. If you think about it, there was really little other option. Basically, it was staring us in the face from the beginning."

"...I suppose you're right. It should have been obvious. I don't know why...it got to me like that." She looked like she wanted to laugh it off, but she didn't.

Hollis watched with clenched fists as the exchange came to a crawl. He felt bad for her, she seemed to be a genuinely good person. This whole thing seemed to be a wreck to her nerves. There's no way this girl did it. It's just not possible.

When everyone started to grow uncomfortable with the atmosphere, Terra attempted to change the subject, suggesting the boys try some tea. Ambrose gladly accepted and Hollis followed suit. They chatted for some while more before eventually parting ways. Leaving through the front door, Ambrose grabbed Hollis's wrist once again, as if it had become a habit.

"C'mon. Let's take a look around. It's pretty impressive really."

"I gotta ask, would she have gladly joined the redcoats?"

Ambrose simply stifled a chuckle and led the smaller boy throughout the streets of the mindscape. With that dreadful discussion long gone, they enjoyed the interesting sites of the world. Gardens abounded at street corners and smaller buildings dotted the faux cityscape. People in Victorian clothing wandered about minding their own business, whether they really had anything to do or not. To Hollis, this seemed far livelier than the mindscape Ambrose had. Glancing up to the sky, Hollis admired the bright sunlight shining over this fictional world and the beautiful fluffy clouds that spread out above.

"I don't think it was ever this bright in Victorian England..."

"Oh? Ever read Sherlock Holmes?"

"No."

"Ah. Dommage pour mon joli petit compagnon." With a seemingly sarcastic sigh, Ambrose continued on. Though Hollis didn't know French, he did recognize the word 'petit', but chose to ignore this.

In reality, though Hollis was quite a bit shorter than Ambrose, he was around five foot eight. Ambrose, on the other hand, was well over six feet in height. By comparison he made Hollis look much smaller than he truly was. Again, he chose to ignore this.

Once their tour of Terra's world was done, they decided to part.

"It honestly pains me to say this, but I do have to get going eventually."

"What? You think I can't handle myself?"

"Exactly."

Hollis hadn't really expected him to say that. In a way, he was joking when he said it, he didn't really think he could take the killer on again if he put all his effort into it. He had been so much stronger than him, he clearly had the strength of Ambrose. There was no way he could fight that off. Even though he knew this, it still struck him a little hearing Ambrose agree.

"I wish there was some way you could contact me if you were ever in trouble..."

"Why you? And... Look, it doesn't matter. I escaped once, I might be able to do it again."

"Might isn't a particularly convincing word, guy. Don't try slipping that past me, alright?" With a tilt of his head, his sneer came back. Hollis felt even more beat down.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Ambrose let out a long breath. "Just...whatever you do, watch yourself. Be careful. That's all I can say."

"And that's all I can do. Got it."