Chapter 14: Project REM1

Third Person's POV

"I didn't see his face," Astra murmured, her voice tinged with uncertainty. She waited in silence, hoping for some reassurance from Aunt Morph, but none came.

"Do you know anything?" Her question hung in the air, heavy with unspoken fears. Astra sensed Aunt Morph's reluctance to answer. With a heavy heart, she broke down, the weight of her silence finally too much to bear.

"I'm sorry," Aunt Morph's voice cracked with emotion, tears welling up in her eyes as she struggled to contain her feelings. With a heavy heart, she retreated into her sorrow, leaving Astra to grapple with the weight of her unanswered questions.

"Aunty?" Astra called out, her voice tinged with concern. As her aunt remained silent and abruptly got up, Astra felt puzzled by her actions. She wanted to ask what was going on but didn't know how to start the conversation.

"I'll tell you something later, but right now, let's eat first," Aunt Morph's words, though gentle, did little to dispel Astra's unease. As they sat down for dinner, Astra's mind buzzed with curiosity, her attempts to broach the subject met with Aunt Morph's evasive responses.

After dinner, Aunt Morph instructed Astra to clean the table while she attended to something else. "Wait for me here," she said softly, planting a kiss on Astra's forehead before disappearing into her room.

Alone at the table, Astra's anticipation mingled with apprehension as she awaited Aunt Morph's return, her mind racing with thoughts of what secrets her aunt might reveal.

***

A few minutes later, Aunt Morph returned, her arms laden with a thick, blue ring binder. Astra could see her aunt struggling to carry it, so she moved closer to offer assistance. Though her face was filled with questions, Astra remained silent, allowing her aunt to speak.

Seated beside Astra once more, Aunt Morph spoke solemnly, "This is probably the right time for you to know the truth. Let me tell you myself." Astra felt a lump form in her throat at her aunt's words, her nerves getting the best of her.

As Aunt Morph prepared to share, Astra couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. She glanced around the room but found no one there. Shaking off the sensation, she refocused her attention on her aunt.

Taking a deep breath, Aunt Morph began, "Three days before your birthday, I awoke to the sound of your mommy's cries. Rushing to her room, I found her sitting on her bed, tears streaming down her face."

-Flashback-

(The night where Taaliyah is dreaming about her daughter and husband.)

**

Morph was jolted awake by the commotion emanating from the adjoining bedroom where her sister, Taaliyah, slept.

"PLEASE, PLEASE!" The desperate cry spurred Morph into action. Disregarding her disheveled appearance, she hurried to her sister's side.

Entering the room, Morph found Taaliyah in a state of distress, her sweaty and trembling form betraying the intensity of her nightmare. Concerned, Morph embraced her sister, offering words of comfort.

"It's ok. Everything will be ok. Shhhhh. Don't cry," Morph reassured her.

After a few minutes, Taaliyah appeared to calm down, but her demeanor suddenly shifted to confusion and alarm. Morph watched her sister closely, her concern mounting at Taaliyah's bewildered questions.

"Are you ok?" Morph inquired, but Taaliyah's response only deepened her confusion.

"Why are you here? Why am I crying? What's going on?" Taaliyah's sudden disorientation left Morph unsettled, especially considering her expertise in studying dreams and brain activity.

"I heard you shouting 'please' in your sleep, so I came to check on you," Morph explained. Taaliyah glanced at her hands and then at the space beside her, prompting Morph to follow her gaze. They both scanned the room, a sense of unease settling over them as if something crucial was missing, but they couldn't quite pinpoint what it was.

"Am I?" Taaliyah questioned, seeking clarification. Morph simply nodded in response.

"It's probably just a nightmare," Taaliyah mumbled, her gaze shifting back to Morph. "I'm fine, really. Sorry if I woke you up. You can go back to sleep."

"No need to apologize. You've been busy preparing for Astra's birthday, so it's understandable that you're exhausted. I'll leave you to rest now," Morph replied.

Taaliyah nodded and offered a faint smile before expressing her intention to check on Astra. Although Morph harbored concerns, she agreed, deciding to broach the subject with Taaliyah the following day.

As Taaliyah left the room, Morph couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss, resolving to address it when the timing was more appropriate.

-End of Flashback-

"That night, she came to you in your bedroom and slept there. The next day, when I asked her about what had happened that night, she said she couldn't remember anything. She mentioned having a dream, but she couldn't recall its details," Aunt Morph continued, her voice steady as she recounted the events.

"Before your mother passed away, she mentioned that after that night, she always dreamed of something different but couldn't remember upon waking up. It bothered her enough to consult with me. Initially, we dismissed it as normal, but as time went on, we realized something was amiss, especially in our memories. We gathered as much information as we could, but unfortunately, she passed away before we could complete our personal research. In the days following, I decided to continue the research on my own. To this day, I'm still searching for information connected to everyone." She paused, opening the binder to reveal its contents.

Taking a deep breath, she continued, "So far, these are the things I've gathered." Aware and fully attentive, Astra composed herself, preparing to absorb the information.

Glancing at the binder, she noticed a wealth of data, neatly organized from the first entry to the latest update. Despite its professional appearance, it bore the mark of its owner with scribbles, annotations, and occasional stickers scattered throughout the pages.

"Project REM1 was the initial classified project assigned to us, with the primary objective of uncovering what occurs within our brains during sleep. We discovered that REM, or Rapid Eye Movement, is a sleep stage associated with dreaming and memory consolidation, occurring when our subconscious mind is active during sleep."

It amazed Astra. Furthermore, it was new to her to learn that dreams could be deep like this, but her head hurt from the amount of information she was receiving now.

"But why do I need to know this?" she asked. The connection of that information to her dad confused her. 'Why?' she thought.

"Because of this," Aunt Morph replied and opened the last two pages of the binder. It was a picture of a man wearing a black overcoat and a hat, similar to what Astra had seen before in the store and in her dreams earlier.

"That's him! But who is he?" Astra replied in a rush out of her excitement and curiosity.

"He is an Armann," Aunt Morph replied.

That word didn't even ring a bell for Astra, but her feelings were swirling. Despite her head hurting, she chose to listen to Aunt Morph for more information.

~ To be Continued ~