John closed his eyes, and was soon lulled into a deep sleep by the rhythmic breathing of the young women on either side of him. Just as it did every other night, the featureless darkness of the void had gently embraced him, as his mind had slipped into a restful slumber. Before he could surrender completely to its siren call, this time a faint light appeared, growing brighter, and illuminating undefined shapes that lurked in his peripheral vision. With mounting dread, he realised he was experiencing another dream, and upon that realisation the dim half-light disappeared in a flash, as he lurched into the surreal reality of the dreamworld.
Defeated enemies lay broken and ruined around him; a hulking cyborg, an enormous four armed Drakkar, and a huge reptilian beast, all evidence of his might and prowess in combat. He felt a surging sense of pride, and gloated at his victory over his stricken adversaries, revelling in his growing power.
As he looked beyond the immediate destruction at his feet, he saw that he was on a vast plain, strewn with the corpses of the foes he had mercilessly slaughtered. Men, Kirrix, Drakkar, Kintark... all those who had foolishly attempted to challenge him, and had fallen to his fearsome wrath. Above that desolate expanse of butchery, the endless night sky yawned wide, the dozens of stars that flecked that blackness twinkling with a malevolent light.
He suddenly felt an itching in his mind, as though he was being watched by some predatory figure that lurked just out of sight. He looked to both his left and right, before becoming aware of a vast eldritch presence that was scrutinising his every move. It seemed to be taking an obscene delight in observing his reactions to the scene of carnage, and he could sense its gloating satisfaction as he relished his gory handiwork. With a shocking moment of clarity, he realised that the dozens of stars were malignant eyes, that were watching him like a man might observe the antics of a bug. His mind shrank back from the hideous immensity of the abyssal horror, desperately trying to shy away, as if instinctively comprehending that attempting to confront this titanic monstrosity would lead to madness and despair.
As unspeakable dread threatened to overwhelm him, a glowing nimbus of light began to pool at his feet, before swiftly surging upwards to encase him in a brightly glowing sphere. Fortified by the radiance, and with his terror banished, he looked about him once more. Instead of broken corpses, he saw the thousands of people that he had saved, all turned to face him on that vast plain. Huge crowds of men and women raised their voices in a wordless cheer of gratitude, while great numbers of Ashanath joined a psychic chorus of praise to his name.
His heart bolstered by the grateful admiration of the souls he had saved, he faced the Stygian abomination with steely determination. He could sense it's smug satisfaction turning to disgust and loathing, and with an incomprehensible roar of rage, the lurking presence lashed out at him from the impenetrable darkness. Colossal writhing tentacles, tipped with sickeningly sharp barbs, coiled and undulated as they surged towards him, seeking to rend him asunder. At the last possible moment, they were deflected away harmlessly by the glowing nimbus of light that swathed him, and they lashed in the air, thwarted from their lethal purpose. The sickening ethereal behemoth roared impotently, and the dreamworld collapsed in an instant, as he was dumped unceremoniously from the cloying grasp of the nightmare.
John was brought back to consciousness in an instant, and he stifled the urge to cry out, as he was suddenly and shockingly wide awake once more. He could feel his heart hammering away, as though desperate to escape the confines of his chest, and his eyes were wide as he stared up at the ceiling. He took a deep breath and then let it out slowly, desperate to calm himself, but knowing that achieving a state of focus couldn't be rushed. He closed his eyes to help him concentrate, and after a long moment, his breathing returned to normal, as he felt at peace once again.
He opened his eyes again, but calmly this time, and noticed movement on his right hand side. He turned his head slightly to look over Rachel's slumbering form, and saw that Alyssa had sat bolt upright, staring at him in shock, her eyes wide with terror.
*What the fuck was that?* she asked him, her voice fearful as it echoed around his mind.
*I've been having dreams. That wasn't the first,* he told her grimly.
*No telepathy, I want to hear your voice,* she told him, her telepathic voice sounding small and scared.
John carefully untangled himself from Jade and Rachel, leaving the girls cuddled up with Calara and Dana respectively. He quietly and carefully left the bed by the base, and held out his hand for Alyssa, who took it eagerly. She gripped his hand tightly, and her fingers felt cold and clammy in his, while she shivered slightly. They left the bedroom, and walked down the corridor hand in hand, with John leading her to the Officers' Lounge so that they could talk without disturbing the others. The blonde suddenly pulled him into Jade's room as they passed the entrance, closing the door behind them.
"Jade never sleeps in here, she won't mind," Alyssa said with a tremor in her voice, as she led him to the bed.
"Are you OK?" he asked her as she tugged gently on his hand to encourage him to join her.
"No, I'm scared," she said, as she shivered with fear. "We'll talk when you're inside me," she said firmly, lying back and pulling him with her, as she spread her toned thighs for him.
"I'm not feeling all that turned on right now," he said apologetically, still recovering from the nightmare himself.
Alyssa looked up at him with big eyes, her pupils having been dilated by fear. "I need you, my handsome hero. Help warm me up with your big hard cock, and tell me how you're going to protect me, and make everything better," she urged him gently.
Rising to the challenge both figuratively and literally, John was hard within a few moments, and when he pushed inside the beautiful blonde teenager, she clung to him fiercely. He could feel how cold she was, her body reacting to the stress, and he pressed himself down on her, so that she could leech his body-heat.
"Everything's going to be alright now," he murmured soothingly into her ear. "I'm here to keep you safe. Nothing bad is going to happen to you, my beautiful girl."
Eventually Alyssa stopped shivering as he warmed her up, and he cradled her head protectively in his hands as she looked up at him.
"That was the most terrifying thing I've ever experienced!" she exclaimed with a shudder. "What the hell was that?!"
"I've no idea," John admitted. "That's the third dream I've had like it."
"That wasn't a dream, that was some kind of horrible fucking nightmare!" Alyssa said vehemently. "Why didn't you tell me about them?"
"I told you about the first one, but I haven't had any for the last few weeks. The last time was just after we rescued Jade from those pirates," he said, thinking back to when he had previously experienced one of the nightmares. "I'd hoped they were just a temporary thing."
"I didn't realise they were that bad," she said apologetically.
"Yeah, I'm glad I've never dreamt before, if they're anything like this," John growled.
"That first nightmare was just after we'd got Sparks to join us, wasn't it?" she asked him curiously.
"That's right. We'd picked up Dana from the Karron asteroid, and were heading back to the Olympus Shipyard," he said, nodding in agreement.
Alyssa took a big breath, which brushed her pert breasts against his chest, and she looked up at him with a cute frown as she concentrated. As her mind wandered, turning over the events he had mentioned, she spotted a nascent bundle of emotions that swirled playfully in her mind. She smiled inwardly at the metaphysical representation of Rachel, and then allocated her a little compartment of her own. Her image slotted in next to those of the other girls, that were positioned around the image of John, which took centre stage.
With an abrupt, startled gasp, Alyssa suddenly realised what the trigger was. "You're experiencing these nightmares whenever we permanently add girls to the crew! They occur every time a new girl appears in my mind!"
"So you're saying I'm a commitment-phobe?" he joked playfully, trying to calm the perceptive blonde.
"This is serious," Alyssa replied with a frown. "I'm worried that these nightmares are some form of psychic attack."
