Inside the burnt-out cinema hall, the 'dream thief' in the black robe suddenly disappeared. Only a shadow remained on the wall - and a door that wasn't there before.
The man (who was once Ayan Chowdhury) entered the door.
As soon as he entered, he reached a round room - thousands of dreams were floating around, some humming, some screaming, and some crying silently. In the middle was a machine - made of a mixture of wood, glass, and metal, looking a lot like a harmonium. Its name was "the sleep-returning machine."
But to turn on the machine, three things were needed -
1. A living dream
2. The shadow of a dream thief
3. The tears of a sleepless man
The man took out his glass jar - the first condition was met.
But what about the other two?
Just then, a light shone in a corner of the room. Standing there was the teenager - Syan, who was once his own dream.
Syan said, "I have come to help you. I have caught the shadow of the dream thief."
Behind him was a strange mirror - where only shadows could be seen. From that mirror emerged a shadow, dressed in black, faceless, silent.
The shadow came forward and sat down on one side of the machine.
In the end, the man's tears were needed.
But sleepless people don't cry.
Then Syan handed him the glass jar and said, "This contains your last memory - when your mother said goodbye to you, when you entered Nishupur for the first time. Remember."
As soon as the man opened the jar, a sudden jolt of memory came. His mother's voice, the last touch, the childhood home, and the face lost in that dark night.
A drop of water fell from his eyes.
The machine began to make noise - a strange melody rang out. That melody reached Nishupur, the river roared, and the sleeping people suddenly opened their eyes to look.
The sleeping faces scattered across the world slowly woke up. Some smiled, some shouted, some said - "I dreamed again!"
---
But as sleep returned, some evil things also woke up - the most dangerous dream of the future:
The plan to make Nishupur the capital of the world.
---
Next chapter: "The Politics of Dreams"
Where it will come up, how the leader chooses dreams, how the army creates rivers, and Ayan faces a final question:
"When dreams return, what does reality lose?"
Are you ready for the next chapter?