The evening of the Solstice was calmer than in past years. Many Sleepers had sought and gained transport to the Dream Realm and thereby awakened early. Thanks to the initiative of the Academy's leader, Provost Alden, the process had been expedited this year with great effectiveness.
So even though more people were being infected by the Nightmare Spell, the campus grounds were emptier than they had been before the great migration began.
However, that didn't mean that things were happy. For those who had not managed to get assistance in time, this day felt like a failure before it began. Even the Legacies, who had chosen this path, were confronted with the uncertainty of what the night would bring. Unlike when they entered their First Nightmare, there was no way to hasten the events that would come by simply falling asleep.
They would have to wait until dark. As Noble often noted, waiting was much harder to bear than active struggle. In the quiet, the mind was prone to wander to the countless what-ifs, leaving the warrior more fatigued than any physical exertion could match.
For this reason, many of the Sleepers tried to keep themselves busy in the hours leading up to the twilight. They practiced with their weapons, ate endlessly in the cafeteria, or wrote notes to loved ones saying all the things they never dared to speak aloud.
Noble felt all their emotions keenly, and she offered comfort across the campus to anyone who desired to accept it. Some clung to the emotion like a liferaft in a tumultuous sea, while others wholeheartedly rejected any change in their mood.
'Both reactions are valid,' Noble reminded herself. There was no perfect way to feel at a time like this, and the students were coping as they saw fit.
"Thank you, Professor Noble."
"You're very welcome." The teacher watched her student reluctantly leave her classroom. The Sleeper was the last one who would be gracing her office that day—likely for the rest of the year.
After this evening, the school would be on break for a couple of weeks to allow the staff to recuperate and catch up on things that were ignored during the busy time.
"Your schedule is clear for the next week," Bee Two commented, pulling Noble from her reverie.
"Yes, I will split that time being at home with my family and looking for any Sleepers lucky enough to be dropped close to Ravenheart." Noble had heard that a few of the government Saints had already committed themselves to the search, and she hoped that she could help.
"What would you like me to do in your absence?" The Android asked as Noble packed up the things on her desk.
"You can recharge."
"Or!" Bee Two held up an alloy finger. "I can get a head start on your research for you, so there will be less to do when you get back."
"And have you publish more papers under my name? Ha! I don't think so." Noble rubbed her forehead. "You need the rest. You've been running almost nonstop since I returned and covered my classroom while I was gone. We will hit the ground running with our research papers after my break. The downtime will help your circuits self-repair." Noble had run the diagnostics recently.
Bee Two was in decent shape, but many of the parts were suffering from fatigue. With the assistant running all the time, the natural regeneration features were unable to keep up with wear and tear.
The android whirred softly. "Initiating a week-long hibernation. Protocols updated. I will see you in a week, Professor."
"See you in a week," Noble watched her assistant travel to the alcove. The nook wrapped around her, and then the room went silent.
'Rest well, Bee Two.'
Heading out the door, Noble kissed her fingers and then touched the top of the door frame, silently blessing all who had come through her classroom both today and in this winter season.
All too soon, those Sleeper's eyes would shut, and they would need every bit of help they could get.
Already, the groups were gathering at their staging areas located around the Academy. With fewer students this year, some of the staff had been given the option not to have a group, but Noble wasn't about to shirk this responsibility. If anyone could help the students in their final moments before they surrendered to sleep, it was the emotion-wielding Saint.
Noble could feel the presence of those inside before ever entering the room. Tamar, Ray, and Fleur were among those in her group. That wasn't a surprise. She had hand-selected those three to travel with her to their sleeping pods. A small part of her worried that some misfortune might yet befall the young legacy, and Noble needed to close the pod herself to confirm that it wouldn't occur.
Gisel and Beric were also among her group, though thankfully the latter seemed in no mood to be argumentative.
'Let's get on with it.'
The conversation quieted as the professor entered the room. Smoothing her hair, Noble took her place in front of the group.
"Whether by choice or by circumstance, you all have come to this moment. Nothing can change that now. I remember the exhaustion you are feeling all too well. There is no fighting it. In an hour, you will be in another place. You will enter the Dream Realm. Take heart. It is not the wild land that it once was. Many people live there who want to help you. If you cannot find them, find a citadel or gateway, no matter what. Be filled with hope. Together, you are humanity's future." Noble shut her eyes.
She flooded the room with comfort. Noble needed it as much as they did. A moment of silence passed. It was all the time they had.
With nothing more to be said, the professor led her group across the compound.
The cold, filtered air of the NQSC felt like daggers in their lungs. They rushed along, both hoping to get out of the weather and hating to leave the comfort of a known place behind.
Soon, they were at the medical facility.
'Here we go again.' Noble had been treated here when she exited her second Nightmare. The quality of care that they would get was second to none, but that didn't ease the knot in the pit of Noble's stomach.
A familiar healer led the way to a set of rooms containing the specially designed pods. She explained to the Dreamers that she and the healers would be monitoring and maintaining the health of their bodies. The students listened without comment.
Thankfully, the instructions were brief, and Noble could move forward with the most difficult part of the evening.
Pulling out her datapad, Noble brought up the list of participants in the upcoming trial. Her finger stopped on the first name on the list.
"Beric."
"Here, Ma'am," the young man said politely. He really did seem to be a different person without the outside influence of people he wanted to impress.
For that, Noble felt a small amount of pity.
"You are first. Are you ready?"
"I am," he replied, separating himself from the rest of the group.
"Follow me." Noble checked her datapad and then the room number.
Beric would be the first of her group to leave the waking world this evening, but he wouldn't be the last. Opening the door, the professor sighed. The moment had come.
It was time to say goodbye.