Imposter System

Although her mental strength wasn't as strong as Matt's and she didn't have abilities directly related to dream manipulation, Alexis had the advantage of being in her own dream. She was able to quickly manifest a set of clothes that fit her style. Her dress disappeared and was instead replaced with black breeches and flat boots that reach just below the knee. On her torso was a white poet blouse neatly tucked into her pants and a modified red naval officer coat over her shoulders.

Unknown to Matt, she was a big fan of pirate fantasies as a child. She was particularly reminded of the greatest tale of pirates, strange fruits, and a legendary treasure. After looking at herself in the mirror, she nodded in satisfaction. On her belt, she manifested a cutlass and two flintlock pistols. Once she exited her quarters, Matt was already nearby sitting on a barrel waiting for her.

When Matt saw her new outfit, he gave her a thumbs up. "Nice aesthetic." Matt's voice contained a hint of sarcasm since her idea of pirates seemed to be idealized. However, Alexis was too excited and didn't catch it, so she took it as a direct compliment.

"Captain, the merchant vessel has spotted us and are flying a white flag." The chubby boatswain said.

"What are they, French in disguise!?" One of the pirates on deck said, causing the group to laugh.

"Surrender? What about no quarter did you not understand! Send a volley of grapeshot and prepare for boarding!" Alexis shouted.

The crew was inspired by her aggression and they shouted out in agreement. Below decks, the cannon crewmen were loading cylindrical wooden devices with several iron balls held together with cloth and twine around a wooden peg. The gunpowder would destroy the wooden base and the cloth would tear apart from the force causing the iron balls to spread out. It did little against objects, but was very deadly to the sailors.

The merchant vessel noticed that the pirate ship wasn't standing down and they began to flee. However, it was already too late as the full load of goods in the ship were weighing them down too much. They could not outpace the pirate vessel. Once the cannons were in range, Alexis shouted 'Fire!' and a symphony of cannon fire began to play.

The pirates grabbed onto the ropes tied to the riggings and swung over to the other boat. Others threw grappling hooks and pulled the ships closer together. Some brought long planks to create a path onto the other ship. Alexis and Matt ran across the planks once they were situated and the first volley of gunfire was exchanged between the crews. Most only had a single shot so they quickly switched to sword combat.

The pirates and sailors fought in a rhythmic pattern that almost seemed as if they were dancing. He unconsciously began to play Waltz No. 2 in the dream world matching up to the battles. Even Alexis and Matt began to dance around each other as they cut down sailor after sailor. It was a bloody scene juxtaposed with classical music in the background. Alexis was thoroughly enjoying the slaughter.

Once the fighting ended, the song too ceased to play. Matt looked over to Alexis and saw she was fine. Her red coat had many blood spots on it but it was hard to tell due to the similar color. There was also blood on her face and saber. However, she made no effort to clean it up. Several surviving sailors were brought to their knees and were tied up.

"P-please spare me! I-I am a carpenter!" One of the sailors shouted while begging. Carpenters were very important to pirate vessels so they were often spared and included into the crew. However, seeing all the red around her, Alexis became addicted to the violence. She walked up to the sailors and slit their throats one by one. Watching their blood squirt out and writhe on the floor.

Once the last person was executed, all of the pirates were frightened by her apathy. Those who had thoughts of mutiny quickly snuffed that idea. There was a stifling silence onboard the merchant vessel when a young pirate broke the tension.

"Cap'n, Cap'n, the ship is hauling forty crates of red wine! We've struck gold!" Everyone looked at him with daggers in their eyes and he yelped at the sudden aggression. The pirates were worried that the captain would turn her bloodlust onto them, but instead, she ordered for a table, two stools, and a crate be brought up to her.

The frightened pirates immediately made a move to fulfill her request while she stood reveling at her masterpiece. Although she was frightened of herself in reality, no one could hurt her in this dream while she was with Matt. Her full trust in him had subconsciously released her inhibitions and she was able to display her recent violent tendencies. This whole time, Matt simply observed and let her vent her frustrations.

Once the table, stools, and drinks arrived, Alexis invited Matt for a drink and popped open a bottle. Alexis directly drank the dark red wine until she was satisfied and then set it down in front of Matt. They drank for a long time while the other pirates were fixing up the ship and preparing to continue their voyage. Alexis gave them permission to use one crate for the crew and they drank until they dropped. Although they preferred rum, they wouldn't say no to any alcohol to quench their thirst.

Once they were mostly passed out, Matt brought Alexis to the captain's quarters and laid her down on the large bed. She started mumbling something and pulled Matt into her embrace. He complied and laid with her for a while. He decided now would be a good time to talk with her. Although, Matt had already figured out the most likely reason for her recent mood.

"What happened during the event?" Matt asked her. She remained silent for a while before shifting a little and propped her chin up on her palm. It had already dawned on her that this was Matt intention. She didn't want to hide it anymore, especially since he went to such lengths to release her frustrations and anxieties.

"I… ate someone's blood. It was different than the food prepared by the captain. I felt a desire like I've never experienced before. I lost control of my body and… I was so scared. I kept asking myself if I was becoming a monster that only knew to kill and feed on people."

Matt chuckled and rubbed her head. "How do you feel now after the battle?"

"Relieved, excited, and powerful!" She said with glee, but it quickly spiraled down into guilt.

"Then it's fine. There isn't anything wrong with you. The truth is, I've already drank human blood too. In order to survive, it is the way we have to live. Actually, this is originally my fault. If I was upfront about it, you wouldn't have felt so much stress." Matt sighed and held his forehead.

Although she was glad to hear Matt's words, in reality, she had already gotten over her mental block after slaughtering the sailors. Something inside her had flipped and she no longer thought of herself as a human first, alien second. This was due to the subtle influence from her connection with Matt. Since she accepted herself, Alexis's bloodlust improved considerably and she was unlikely to lose control in the future.

"So… want to do it?" Alexis was still speaking in an English accent and Matt wouldn't lie and say he wasn't intrigued by the pirate costume play. He raised his eyebrow and looked at her in a teasing manner.

"Even now you're such a horn dog."

"Does that mean no?" Alexis said with an equally teasing tone.

"Obviously… not!" Matt declared and Alexis yelped when he flipped her onto her back.

As the dream came to a close, it was already morning. Matt woke up incredibly refreshed. The side effects of Sundering Strike were completely gone and his mind even felt nourished. This was the effect of Dream Eating. Alexis woke up and stretched her arms and legs. With the stress gone, her fatigue had washed away completely and she managed to get a full rest in.

Today was their wedding day, so Alexis was even more motivated. She sent Matt out to retrieve breakfast while she began preparing. She had spent a lot of time researching historical documents in order to recreate the wedding from their first shared dream. It was a lot of effort, but she successfully managed to insert extensions that she 'borrowed' from a friend and also fix her hair in a waterfall braid.

Meanwhile, Matt made a trip to check on Martha in the lab, only to find Alexandria passed out half-naked on the floor. He would have left except for the fact that the living metal infection was covering almost half of her torso.

"What the hell happened…?"