The dream was lit by a soft white light, and the feeling of being watched grew stronger. He realized the dream was progressing in stages.
There was no longer any need to look for comparisons. As the dream's brightness gradually increased, so did the time he remained in it, and the moment he woke kept getting pushed later and later. Sleep was irresistible. Ever since the "White Light" appeared, The Author hadn't managed to eat breakfast once.
He applied every bit of knowledge he had to explain what was happening, but got nowhere. From Humoral Theory to the new treatise he was writing, he'd checked himself repeatedly and asked colleagues to examine him as well. In the end, he had no choice but to admit that there truly were illnesses in this world beyond their understanding.
According to the recorded trend, in about two months—possibly sooner—waking and falling asleep would overlap, trapping him in a dream from which he would never wake. Once he lost control of his own consciousness, even with his body carefully tended, all manner of problems would arise in time, and he would die.
The blow to his will was severe, and several dates went unrecorded.
But eventually he returned, determined to document this rare illness as someone experiencing it firsthand while he still had time, and to finish the book with a trusted friend before then—a work that might have a tremendous impact on their entire field.
When the treatise came up, Kraft could sense that The Author felt more pride in it than he did fear of death.
The humiliating part was that when death threatened, people would try anything, even The Church, which he had always scorned. After a friend with ties to The Church had a Priest perform an exorcism to no