Nighttime is when to get lost inside the mind.
Dreams come to everyone in various forms, and some feel more real than others.
For Fishy, he was sleeping on the first proper night since The Long Night ended.
Their first day of light ended and it was back to the familiarity of night, but whilst the city slept peacefully and freed from what felt like a curse, Fishy struggled.
His body was asleep, paralysed so he wouldn't roll around too much, but his mind was wide awake.
He was stuck inside the darkness of his head, an emerald tint to his darkness, but still dark enough to not be able to see anything.
He was able to swim about inside his mind with great struggle. It felt as if he was stuck inside a thick glue that was stopping him from moving, whilst the greenish tint started to speak to him.
"Well, it's about time…" A strange deep voice emitted from what seemed like everywhere in the darkness.
"Who?" Fishy replied, unsurprised at his current situation, as this wasn't the first time he had strange dreams. "Are you a Celestial?"
"A Celestial?" The voice sounded disgusted, "Don't compare me to those people…"
"Sorry… then what are you?"
"I'm the anger inside you."
"Anger?" Fishy's body naturally spun around in the strange void he was sitting in. "You don't seem angry,"
The voice was stunned, almost as if flustered.
"HA!" The voice scoffed, "Well, aren't you a bit arrogant? You know fully well about the anger inside you. The anger of being amputated by a vampire's puppet, and the rage of being unable to save those who you care for. Even now I can feel it. The doubt inside you. You're worried. The old man's death got to you. You've involved the city in your selfish wish."
"I know all this," Fishy replied, "You can say it out loud but I know all this fully well. I picked a fight in Va and paid the price."
"But, that's a fight you can win…"
Fishy's ears opened as he continued to listen.
"With my rage and anger, our powers combined, we can beat Gabriel."
"Gabriel?" This was Fishy's first time hearing the name, but he knew full well who the voice was speaking about, the powerful image was implanted into his head.
"That's right, that bastard from the church. We can beat him together."
"No thanks." Fishy replied, "I've seen things like this before. The voice inside the head always wants to control the host. And besides, I've decided never to let my rage control me again."
"You're a fool, Fintan. You possess unbelievable power, both of us combined, we are truly a monster."
"Hmmm…" Fishy inspected the words he was hearing, curious as to one thing, "What exactly is my power, how much of it is mine and how much of it is yours?"
"My ability, Plagiarism, plus your mana capacity. Your genius-level IQ, plus whatever magic skill you're hiding."
"I'm not hiding anything…"
"Oh, but maybe you are, everyone is hiding something. For instance, that vampire in your shadow, she's been hiding some things from you."
Fishy could feel a snake-like tongue around his neck, as the words of the voice suddenly intrigued him.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, for starters why don't you ask her about the Celestial dream, or where she comes from? Why was she being attacked that day, who was that vampire? I'm sure she knows all the answers."
Fishy closed his eyes in the infinite space as he thought carefully. He knew little about Lilith and knew that taking her in would cause harm eventually. But, the times Lilith had helped him were unforgettable. She had saved his life on multiple occasions, and that was all Fishy needed.
"I'm curious about the dream, but her past doesn't matter to me. She can do what she wants."
"Very mature…" The voice seemed disappointed, a strange voice that was filled with emotion.
"Say," Fishy spoke, "You're from that crystal right? The emerald?"
"Oh? How did you know?" The voice responded.
"It made sense that the crystal gave me my powers. Plus, the anger you spoke about was the opposite of mine. Never in my life have I ever been so angry. I thought I was changing but then I questioned why I would. Why would I want to create such anger when I love it here."
"..." The voice was silent, almost amazed at Fishy's answer. The once scheming voice went silent as if it seemed to have given up. "You're really interesting…"
"You think?"
"But, I must say I am a little upset. I had hoped that I would be implanted into someone I could corrupt, but it seems that I don't have a chance… that is unless Gabriel brings you back into that state…" The malicious intent reappeared in its voice, but Fishy just laughed and said…
"No, I won't get angry like that again. Next time I encounter him, I'll be prepared. Not for my sake, but for the cities."
"But, you still doubt…"
"Of course," Said Fishy, "I'm worried about protecting the city… But, I'm not someone to do so without a plan."
"I'm well aware, I've been watching, after all… And I'll keep watching. I wish you luck, Fintan."
"Thanks, I hope we can speak again."
The strange dream came to an abrupt ending. Fishy woke up like a lightning bolt had struck his house. A large beam of light flickered in as his open window moved around the curtain that shielded him. The sound of children playing in the middle of the street seeped through as birds started singing.
The sun was a strange sight to see. He was used to his alarm or Zui waking him up, but this time, it was the organic gas ball in the sky. But as he woke up on the warm refreshing day, he couldn't help but think of the voice's words.
"Hey, Lilith…" He spoke to the vampire living in his shadow. "That dream… the one about the Celestial… what was it…"
"It's complicated…" She said, "At that time, you were absorbed by anger and rage. I needed to calm you down. I created an image in your head, one based on our memories."
"Our memories? How would we dream about the celestials?"
Lilith hesitated as she spoke.
"I have met the Celestials once before. A long time ago… My dad took me to see them…"
Lilith had never once mentioned her own past, especially not her parents.
"But the dream was weird." She said, "I used my mana to create the images of the Celestials, but what they spoke about had nothing to do with me…"
Fishy knew who that outsider was, as he had just been speaking with him. Fishy had many various connections to the Celestials, many he didn't understand.
But little did he know, his confusion was about to grow.