Jacob walked down the hill towards the forest he could see from the top of the mound. It was the only thing of interest besides the wild flowers. When he got to the woods, the temperature dropped tremendously. Jacob frowned. Why would a forest in his own dream be so cold?
Jacob continued through the dense canopy of trees. There was no path. He had to weave through the tree's while brushing the bushes and overgrown plants away from him. Everything felt real. The smell, sights, sounds. All of it was vivid, as if he was truly there.
Hours seemed to flow quickly. Day turned to night and Jacob was tired. How can I feel tiredness within a dream? I haven't felt thirst or hunger yet, so I don't understand why I feel the way I do.
A soft baritone voice sang through the trees. Jacob started to move towards the sound. He didn't really have a better plan and he figured he would wake up if there was danger. Within fifteen minutes, he saw a boulder with a young looking man on top singing away without a care in the world.
Jacob leaned against a tree and studied the man. The gentleman was dark skinned and he was wearing dark green clothes that seemed to be high quality linens. The embroidery was well done in black. What really bothered Jacob was that he could see this man clearly despite the dark sky. He couldn't help but wonder about the weirdness of his dream.
The man stopped singing and grinned at Jacob.
" Hello young friend. Welcome to my territory within the realm of dreamers."
" Your territory?", Jacob asked in confusion. Wasn't this his dream?
The man grinned wider. His face seemed to go feral, like a wild beast. Instead of answering Jacob's question, he jumped off the boulder. Landing smoothly on his legs and suddenly there was a dagger in his hand. He rushed at Jacob while snarling.
Jacob had no time to react and felt the steel blade hit his left shoulder. Pain and blood flowed through Jacob's limb, while shock and fear ran through his mind. What in heaven's name was happening right now?
The man laughed, yanked the blade upward and caused Jacobs shoulder to completely tear away from his neck. Jacob fell to the ground, screaming in agony. Instinctively, he covered his left side with his right hand. Meanwhile, his brain screamed at him to run.
The madman in front of him didn't pause his attacks. The dagger flew elegantly towards Jacobs neck. Jacob barely dodged. The dagger struck the tree behind him, while Jacob forced himself up and ran with all he had. Maniacal laughter followed behind his stumbling, awkward self.
Jacob woke up with a start. His heart was beating billions of times per second and his breathing was erratic. He could not feel anything in his left arm at all, however he wasn't concerned about that at the moment. He frantically looked around the room. Searching for the man who had endlessly chased him. He didn't dare to let down his guard.
Normally he would go and start his morning exercises with Aiden, however he wasn't sure if this world he was currently in was real. The man chasing him would somehow change the environment around them with a thought. This made Jacob caution new places even if they looked like places he had been to before.
After an hour of exercises, Aiden began to get worried. It was unlike Jacob to be late. So he started asking everyone if they had seen his friend. Within minutes he found out that Jacob was still in his bed and was looking extremely pale. Aiden chewed on his bottom lip while he made his way over to Jacob's bed.
" Hey pal, you alright?"
Aiden watched Jacob jump in freight before turning towards him. Something was very wrong. Aiden could smell blood and fear coming from his friend. Aidens eyes narrowed as he looked around the room. There was no signs of a fight, nor of an attack within the area. How did Jacob end up in such a condition? Why did nobody around him notice?
" Aiden??"
" That's me, buddy."
" You haven't seen any strangers about, wielding a dagger like a mad man right?"
Aiden frowned and studied Jacob a minute.
" No." He said firmly.
Jacob visibly relaxed and sighed with relief, while holding his left shoulder.
" I think I need to take you to the healer, my friend."
Jacob nodded and slowly got himself out of the bed. Only then did Aiden see the extent of the wounds on his friend. There were small cuts everywhere on Jacob and the major wound on his shoulder. It was amazing that he hadn't bled out while Aiden was looking for him. Of course Aiden had no idea that Jacob had only been awake for a minute and the wounds inflicted in his dream did not appear until Jacob opened his eyes.
Aiden carefully helped his friend get to the healers quickly. He was terrified that Jabob would bleed to death in front of him. The healers were shocked at Jacobs condition and moved him in for emergency treatment. Aiden waited outside the room. Sometimes he would pace, other times he was busy explaining how he found Jacob in his own bed bleeding. He couldn't tell anyone what happened since he didn't see the attack.
Meanwhile Jacob fell unconscious while the healers worked to save his life. Watching in a far away mirror, the female mage cursed at what she saw. Her sweet nephew was attacked by a dream demon and she could do nothing to stop it. She quickly contacted the lord of the fire sparrows and explained what they would need to do to protect their people, especially the young, from the dream demon. The question that really bothered her was why did the beast attack Jacob first? She had a servant call the king and queen to her and explained the situation as clearly as she could without crying about her failure to protect Jacob. She also informed them about counter measures for their own people.