Read torg 03- The Nightmare Dream for Free Online Page A

half, from its torso to its legs, was still in the natural world. Its head and arms were with Djil in the Dream Time. The aborigine still held its arm.
    "I have changed my mind, dead thing," Djil said I irmly. "I do not want to take you with me. You can stay
    here."
    So saying, Djil released his hold on the monster. Unable to enter the Dream Time on its own, it found itself stuck within solid rock. Whatever magic held its unnatural form together could not operate in such confines, and the pile of dead insects came apart.
    Djil stepped out of the rock, careful to avoid crushing any of the tiny carcasses that littered the ground around him. He turned to the rock and sang a few more verses, thanking the spirit ancestors for granting him access to the Dream Time.
    "I shall come back for a longer visit," he promised. "But first I must try to find the preacher and the dwarf." He turned, pushing his way into the jungle. He looked down the incline into the valley, but saw no sign of Bryce or Toolpin. He shrugged, and started his walk down.
    10
    The Earthers had an annoying tendency to debate every topic, Kurst reflected, including war. As if the process of debate would hold back the denizens of the invading realms or sap the High Lords of their powers. He despaired at times like these of Earth's chances.
    "We haven't got the manpower or the material to launch a strike across the storm front," Major Covent argued. "The enemy would pick us off as we crossed, like they did the last time that we tried. Or worse, our own equipment would fail when we needed it most, leaving us defenseless. Or our troops would succumb to their wildest urges and join the invaders. We've seen all of these scenarios happen before. W ha t makes you think this time will be any different?"
    "You're giving these creatures too much credit, Major Covent," Colonel Matthews shot back, pointedly ignoring the edeinos that sat at the table with them. Tal Tu raised his head at the statement but said nothing.
    "They may not be sophisticated in tactics, but they've got a nation's worth of army behind that storm," Eddie Paragon added.
    Colonel Matthews, rabidly doctrinaire, was having none of it. "Not from what we've observed by recon, they don't. Spotters a long the front haven't reported any activity in over forty-eight hours. We drove them back last time they advanced, now we have to go in there and mop them up before they can regather their forces."
    "We've tried that," Decker said, exasperated. "We need to hold them where they are, keep them from crossing the storm front. Once we contain them and stop the Dead Ring from advancing, then we can figure out a way to drive them back."
    "Boy, I've fought in wars you weren't born for, and I know how to run a campaign," the colonel said. "You stick to politics and leave the fighting to those of us who know how to do it."
    Kurst let the conversation go on around him as he stood and walked to the edge of the command tent. He could barely make out the swirling wall of storm through the trees beyond the camp. He had a feeling, and he had learned over the years to trust his feelings.
    Major Julie Boot walked over to stand beside him. She was a nurse, and it was through her ministrations that Decker eventually overcame the Gaunt Man's control. She was still frightened of the hunter, but not nearly as badly as she had been when he first appeared at
    Twenty nine Palms with Decker's comatose body after the incident in the Grand Canyon. He had recently returned to save Decker from Scythak, and to Julie's mind that counted as an indication of positive intentions, But Kurst was still a shapeshifter from another reality. He was able to shift from human to werewolf to werebear, and that was not an ability she thought of as normal. And since it was not normal, it made her nervous.
    "Is the conversation boring you, Kurst?" Julie asked, trying to be friendly.
    He continued to stare at the storm, but he answered her just the same. "Debate that