I pleaded with my body to jump; the Day Dreamer exerted decent effort through his legs to help liftoff. I needed to leave. I needed to wake up. This was too crazy. Most importantly, I needed to tell everyone about my discovery of the nest of nightmares. The Day Dreamer threw his enormous black feathered wings open, leaving me momentarily weightless. More nightmares of various sizes creeped into the edge of my peripheral vision at the edges of trees and from behind rocks. With only two hard flaps, I felt my body pulling him by the arm. It didn't seem to phase him. He felt so strong despite his appearance at that moment. I looked quickly around the ground and felt my stomach drop realizing how high we'd gotten in such a short time. I grasped at my arm linked with his, desperate to not fall. He smirked and I lifted my eyes from the ground growing further and further away. His hair was tugged by the wind, whipping against my face and neck. His expression was pure delight, a crooked smile crossed his lips. With a seemingly effortless motion, he pulled my arm above his head and placed my arm around the back of his neck. I swung my other arm to fully encircle him. He let go momentarily and placed his arm around my back, under my arm. My legs trailed off to his side but I came chest to chest with him, struggling against the wind.
"Where would you like to go?" he asked, echoing in my head. "They seem to be coming in from everywhere". This would be practical, as I wouldn't be able to hear him this high in the sky anyways.
I struggled so hard to orient myself, looking over his shoulder and under his arm. I turned my head over my own shoulder, searching. A mixture of my white hair entangled with his blond, clouding my vision in ribbons. When I saw that familiar flower field behind the tower, my panic subsided a little. This seems like so many realms in one… too many. What the fuck was going on? "There!", I exclaimed internally, exasperated.
He tucked one wing and banked left, descending slowly. My arms screamed and I almost felt like letting go just to get any relief. My shoulders and biceps began to shake. I felt a second arm snake under my other arm and relieved some of my weight. His sword? Did he let go? If it's this hard for me, I can't imagine carrying another person. A few nightmares crawled and wound across the ground, wetting everything in trails of black.
I saw his sword plummet, eventually sticking straight into the ground. It lost its glow moments after vertically submerging inches into the ground. He opened his wings fully, catching air and slowing us down. The ground slowly met our feet. I let go quickly, staggering a few steps back. I wasn't sure if I had to barf or pee. Can I even do those things in the dream realm? My stomach finally settled like leaving a rollercoaster.
I struggled to catch my breath, finding myself still lightheaded. What do we do now? In mere seconds, we'll be overrun. "Time to show me what you got. I know you're the right pick, you didn't die when I implanted you with half of my stone. Show me what you're capable of", I heard in my head. "Excuse me?" I retorted. "I'm not going to repeat myself", he said bluntly. I wheeled around, finding him leaning up against a tree… looking at his nails. "You're joking…", I reeled, trying to take it all in. "Absolutely not, not in my nature". He went from inspecting his nails to raking his fingers through his blond hair, pulling a small section and looking at it for split ends which he promptly found and began splitting apart. I was absolutely dumbfounded. He's joking. "Again, I'm really not. I'd start getting a plan ready, tick tock", he said in my mind, jerking his chin towards my left without looking up from his hair. I turned slowly. Just over the hill, I could see at a minimum four nightmares and only assumed more were coming and I didn't have the advantage of seeing from the sky as I did earlier. Being in a small valley has its perks and disadvantages right now.
Fuck. "Maybe later, if I'm not too tired", his voice not playful in the slightest. I turned back to look at him, unsure if I heard him correctly. His arms were now crossed in front of his chest. A small smile began to caress the corner of his mouth. Before I could come up with something snarky to say, the first nightmare came within distance. He's obviously not going to help. "Correct!", he said emphatically, with a tinge of bitterness.
I started to rub my hands together, remembering the stance I took against Romeo. Legs apart, back lowered at the hips, no open chest, shoulders forward. It's now or never. "Correct", he said again.
I felt so stupid and unprepared. How Chase and Gray took my safety as seriously as they had before begun to make sense. The nightmare came within thirty feet of me. I felt fire welling up in my hands. It tickled the tips of my fingers, dancing with anticipation. My gaze fell upon its imposing figure. It was way bigger than what it seemed, coming up along the edge of the field. It paused, assessing me the while I watched it. A low, guttural snarl escaped its indiscernible lips. Fuck, I can't give away where my powers are at. If I can't kill it, it will turn around and report back to… wherever it came from. "Also, correct", he chimed in again. As badly as I wanted to turn around and tell him to knock it off, I couldn't right now. "Use your head", he said. Use my head? What the hell does that mean? "It means, use your head. Scan. Observe." My head was on a pivot. The second of God knows how many nightmares were crossing the top of the hill now. A slight glint caught my attention to my right.
Duh. The sword! I exclaimed. I made a quick lunge for it, straining to get it out of the ground. It made no signs of moving no matter how hard I pulled. The nightmare charged towards me, a second pair of arms now protruding from its torso. I wasn't able to lift it, so I moved myself out of the direct line and braced myself behind it. The nightmare ran right into the sharp edge of the blade, momentarily deflecting it. I squeezed the hilt harder in an attempt to lift it. Stuck, and good. God damn it. I squeezed harder. My fire enveloped the sword, traveling down the blade. I didn't have to do anything special, the sword absorbed my power like a dry sponge. The nightmare shrieked, having cut itself, backing away. I watched its arm melt away and quickly grow back again. Fatal blows only. Got it.
It raised on its back legs, all four arms flailing. It lifted its head, shrieking at the sky. A tail slowly began protruding from the lower half of its body. Great, it's increasing its reach. To outmaneuver the sword. They actively learn. That's terrifying. "I'd pick that up, if I were you", the Day Dreamer said. I bit my lip, pushing the sword the opposite way I pulled earlier. It slowly gave mild inches but didn't come free. Shit.
I dodged just in time, hiding behind the sword again. The nightmare's tail curled around my backside; I was unprotected. My mind raced, and I saw it coming in slow motion. The nightmare crashed chest-first into the sword, ripping a seam in its chest. Inky smoke erupted. Its jaws snapped continuously, seemingly in pain. The impact forced the sword mostly free. In my last desperate attempt to free it, I leaned back, landing square on the nightmares tail. The sword finally came free of the ground. Thank God.
I felt pain along my back, popping like ice evaporating in a hot pan. Black smoke rose from under me. I couldn't see the nightmare anymore. If I was holding its tail hostage, it couldn't have gone far. Not good. The sword rested between my legs. It was incredibly heavy. I had to use both hands to lift it up. "Brace the hilt into the ground", he interjected. I planted the hilt to my right, blade facing up to the sky. The nightmare's terrifying face popped through the smoke. I shrieked as it plunged straight for my face. I kept my eyes open, as much as I wanted to close them. I angled the tip of the blade straight for where the neck met the chest, leaning the opposite way. The nightmare committed to its movement; running itself through and coming to a rest over my torso, smothering me. It missed my face by inches. Black smoke erupted and I was only pinned by its weight for seconds before it turned fully into ash.
The sword fell limp across my stomach on its broad side. I lifted the hilt and stuck the tip in the ground. I pushed it upright again, using it to get myself to my feet. As I stood, covered in ash and muck, I lifted the sword with two hands. My arms shook at the weight. The smoke was beginning to dissipate, showing me the second nightmare closing in, now less than ten feet away. I barely got a good look at it before I raised the sword, fully enveloped in my fire. My heart throbbed from beating so hard in my chest. A lump grew in my throat as the inky form aimed for my legs. I twisted the blade point down, and as the nightmare was inches from my leg, plunged downwards. Another shriek and ash. The Day Dreamer flapped his wings, clearing the smoke from immediately in front of me. It stung my eyes even after it was gone. It smelled like rot. Putrid rot. I wondered if different strengths of nightmares made them smell different, or maybe my soul 'settling' made me more perceptive to their true smell.
My eyes stinging, I scanned the perimeter of the field. Gotcha. I locked in on three more nightmares, standing watch. I braced myself, anticipating them to rush us. Their white, dead eyes looked between the Day Dreamer and me. They turned to each other, growling. Communicating. After only a few seconds, they turned and barreled away. Huh? I was expecting them to put up more of a fight…
"Well, now, that could have gone worse. You're a natural", he said, out loud. His voice didn't match his face. He uncrossed his arms and walked towards me. He looked so… young. He took the sword from my hand, replacing it in its sheath on his hip. I concentrated as hard as I could, pulling myself out of my second vision. His black skin turned golden. His eyes glowed amber, almost yellow. His hair remained blond. No wings. The only thing he was wearing were loose fitting pants, white. Not a lick of dirt on them. A large, golden belt held his sword and many smaller knives and potions. I looked him head to foot and back up to meet his eyes. He seemed so young. Too young for the stories I'd heard.
"I am young", he said, pushing his hair over his shoulders, cascading down his back. "You're my second vessel. You were… the backup plan". Anger welled within me. The backup plans?! "I mean, I had to ensure one of us survived, I never realized we both would, honestly", he followed. My anger died down. I suppose that makes sense… "That just makes us that much more formidable", he smiled. I suppose that made sense too. If his power is split in two, that doubles our chances. What if I hadn't lasted through the 'implant' though? "I chose carefully, don't worry", he said. He knew I had no contact with my family, no real friends to speak of. "Before you ask, no, I didn't steal your phone. That came from their side of the family", he gestured with his chin back to where the nightmares had run off to.
"What do we do now…?" I probed. My head was spinning. I couldn't tell if it was the adrenaline wearing off, or the events of tonight. I didn't even know his name.
"Titus, is my given name". Titus. Titus? I grasped for words.
"You can thank me later." He spoke. He came straight to me. He stood beside me, pulling my hand to the crease of his elbow. "We'll have plenty of time to talk and acquaint ourselves better." We walked across the field. I felt like I had to be pulled along, my legs wanted to collapse. He lifted his hand, and the big ornate gold door appeared; gauzy red fabric clung to it in the wind. Matilda's. I looked to meet his eyes. He was already searching my face. I was almost eye level with him. He put his hand on the door and pushed.