"Okay, Ren, here’s where you will be training," Zemaku’s dad said, pointing to a door with a worn sign that read Lucid Room.

"What’s a Lucid Room?" Ren asked. "Isn’t that the room the military used 5,000 years ago to train?"

"The Lucid Room is a room based on dreams," Zemaku’s dad explained. "It puts you in a dream-like state. It’s a room that can give a lifetime’s worth of training, as once you enter it, you fall into a sleep-like state. It isn’t just for getting a year’s worth of training but can also help with one’s mental state and battling one’s demons."

"I thought the Lucid Room was just a legend!"

"No," said Commander Bill. "I discovered it in our base by accident," Bill said. "I even tried it. It’s just like the legends—and it helped me get over my wife’s death. My son, Zemaku, refuses to use it, as he doesn’t want to move on from Brian and Serena’s deaths. He thinks it would dishonor their memories," Bill said.

"Then I’ll go. I’m not afraid to fight my demons. The legends say you have no choice in how the room chooses to train you and that every time it’s different. Is that how it actually works?" Ren asked.

"Yes," Commander Bill responded. "Now get in," Bill demanded.

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Neon War Chapter 6: The Lucid Room's Dream Song

"What’s going on?" Ren asked himself. Then, suddenly, he could only speak in rhymes:

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"The Lucid Room? A dream-like state?

A place where time bends—my fate to create?

It sounds unreal, a myth from the past,

Can training like this really happen so fast?"

Then, suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a small fry—a girl on standby. She laughed and laughed, almost as if giving an autograph, but this was the girl who had made him laugh his last laugh.

"Grrr, nooo!" Ren screamed. "Enough! I do not sing!" Ren demanded of the room. "Just help me with my training!"

Suddenly, a strange voice he had never heard before responded. A feminine voice said, "Okay, sorry! Just having fun," before removing Ren’s singing from the dream.

"Ren," another female voice said. This time, it was one Ren knew all too well—it was his ex-girlfriend.

"How does it feel to have no life? How does it feel to always be running?" the voice said, laughing. "You know that Zemaku will betray you. I can make that all happen with ease. People believe women more than men—no one will ever believe you."

"Enough, Lala!" Ren screamed. "I will not be tormented by you. Just leave me alone!"

"But why, Ren?" Lala taunted. "I bet you don’t even know what you’re fighting for. You don’t even know why you’re screaming at me," she laughed.

Suddenly, the black nothingness around him began to morph into something—the house Ren and Lala used to live in.

"No," Ren thought to himself. "I never wanted to go here again, but Lala is right. Why do I fight? Why am I supposed to scream? What do I have to get mad at? How’d I even let Thumb trick me and use me? And how should I go about defeating Thumb? How do I help Zemaku?"

Ren lamented these thoughts for a moment, then said, "Okay, I guess I’ll just continue the training."

Chapter 6 End