Delphi, the Time Thief, and the Dream World: The Dream World Trilogy, #1

By Michael A. Susko

Delphi takes a Time Expansion workshop and discovers he has a gift for traveling in his dream body. A defector, Detinna, becomes his dream partner, and together they face powerful forces who oppress the world. Dangers include prolonged dissociation separating you from your body, and Time Thieves who can steal years from your life. Read this story to imagine how novel psychic warfare can arise, and how you can become a force for change in the world.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: AllrOneofUs Publishing
• Release date: Aug 5, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201462215

Michael A. Susko

The author, having degrees in philosophy and psychology, has taught a variety of classes, from dream interpretation to Indigenous studies. He has also helped to found and taught in a progressive charter school that used arts integration, in which two disciplines were intertwined. In his own research, he has embraced and published in a variety of topics. In this biographic series he hopes to share his life through sayings that has helped to guide his life. 

Book preview

CHAPTER I

The Watchers

Delphi decided not to fight the flow, but to go with it and see where it took him. He saw a quick image of himself, but it dissolved before he could tell if there was any change in his features. Then floating images of people appeared—Dr. Burgess and the lady whose name he didn’t know.

Next, Delphi felt his body flying with the ground quickly passing underneath. He sensed he was going to a predetermined destination.

Delphi sensed the structure before anything came into view. He was hovering like a spy, above an ice-swept land. Underneath the sheets of ice lay a secret underground facility. He had no fear. How can I be hurt if only my dream body is present? I’m the perfect spy. Unseen, Delphi went past locked doors and sentries and into a descending tunnel. No alarms were set off.

A few moments later, his dream body arrived at a nerve center, filled with gridded monitors, complex electronics, and multiple feeds from satellites. Here, computers analyzed the data on everything and everyone. Zillions of streams of raw data collection were parsed by complex programs to find patterns and detect oddities. Somehow, he entered a top-secret State facility.

A worker below talked as he examined moving projections on a series of colored graphs. We have three high-risk anomalies in Sector 408. Report to Action.

One of them could be a teacher from the new school that opened in the Sector.

Good. We’ll see if the people on the ground can identify the person and have him removed.

The center had detected too many anomalies, which meant that statistically, a risk could be posed at a later date. People were being weeded out at earlier and earlier stages. But why was he here? What was he to do?

Suddenly, blue lights flashed, and an alarm sounded.

Low energy intrusion detected, announced a speaker. Shut down all confidential systems until the area is scanned.

Somehow, he had been detected. It was time to leave, but as Delphi tried, bluish beams blocked his path. When one glanced him, pain jagged his consciousness and jerked him back. They came in increasing frequency until there were several surrounding him. He was being caged.

Uniformed men appeared below him with drawn weapons. A high-level officer ordered. Lower your weapons. They’re useless against this type.

A technical-looking person asked, Any more information on what kind of low-energy presence? Emanation, dream-body, or recently deceased?

Unknown at present.

What is the threat assessment?

Depends.... If recently deceased, it will fade as long as we contain it. If it’s an emanation, it’s too weak to do us any harm, but it will probably slip through our defenses. If it’s a dream-body, the intruder may have discovered something. I recommend we leave the invader pinned and unable to return to its physical body.

Is there a way to immediately kill it?

We can keep narrowing the space until it’s unable to avoid contact with the beam. Then, the pain will exhaust it quicker. But that increases the chances that the agent will ignore the pain and slip through. It’s safer to contain it and see if it’s a threat.

How long will that interfere with operations in this sector?

You will be back up in 24 hours. If it’s a dream body, we can trace it back to the body within a day and kill the source. Then, of course, the dream body will dissipate.

Assume the worst, that it’s an active agent, the officer in charge directed. Do we know anything more?

Only that the invader wasn’t well trained. The presence entered, lingered, and didn’t keep moving to avoid the sensors.

It may be an accidental traveler. A pity. You dream the wrong dream and you die.

Although he was contained by the blue lines, Delphi observed all. He had felt panic at first. His body seemed far away and growing colder. He sensed he must return to his body soon or he would die. But the blue beams which crossed his path caused intense pain. He could try to go through them, but he didn’t know if he could survive the pain. And if his dream body died, wouldn’t he die? Wouldn’t his body left behind grow colder and colder? He would never wake up. What would be the cause of death?

The room below had begun to empty out. The monitors were being shut down. Two guards remained, checking the sensors on the wall. Were they waiting for him to weaken? Would they try to kill him the first chance they got? Delphi resolved to do something before he became too weak to fight.

Moments later, a non-uniformed man, most likely an intelligence officer, came in and spoke into the empty space. We know you’re here and that you can hear us. Unauthorized entry into a high-level security facility in any fashion is illegal. We have the authority to indefinitely detain you. Of course, you are only partly here, so it’s highly risky for you to be detained for very long. We are willing to offer you a deal. We will release you after putting a tracer on you. It appears you’re a novice and perhaps an unwitting accomplice for others. We want to know who they are.

The man paused, as if listening for a response, then continued. "You may be wondering how we put a tracer on you. It’s not on you. Rather, we place another dreamer in the room, who will attach to you before you are freed. You needn’t do anything. She will report back to us.

You can think about it for an hour. Meanwhile, we will assume that your answer is yes. The dreamer will be placed in here. Remember, she is your only transport home. Otherwise, you will be detained until your body dies.

With that, the man left.

Although Delphi was relieved to have a way out, it didn’t look good. Would he have to sell out those at the Safe House? If Dr. Burgess and the unnamed lady were Time Thieves and enemies, that wouldn’t be so bad. But he wasn’t sure who they really were. One thing he knew, however; he was well over his head. He didn’t really know what was going on here, or what the rules were. He wasn’t even sure who the people who ran this facility were, although he imagined only a government actor would have the necessary resources.

Delphi glanced his hand against a blue beam. The pain was jarringly intense. I have little choice except to make a deal. My body is back in the Safe House, dying . . .

CHAPTER II

The Time Expansion Center

Three days earlier , Delphi found the ad under the phrase Time Expansion Techniques: Workshops Offered. That’s impossible, he immediately thought. As if to answer his doubts, the next sentence read: Time expansion is attested by scientific study and reviews of satisfied customers.

Time Expansion constitutes a spiritual technique, the ad went on. "Why hasten to old age and not fully live? Learn to command the fullness of time. Gain three to four times the variety and richness of time-factored experiences."

Delphi wondered if there was a downside. There always was. If you were able to step outside the normal flow of time, wouldn’t people sense you were out of touch and not with it?

"We help you escape