I drop down on the ground, back first, hitting the grass hard but I'm too exhausted to care. I let out a deep sigh and lay there just staring at the sky, then I hear it. The trees rustling like wind was ripping through it, loud thuds on the floor, so powerful or so many. I can almost feel the sensation of stomping feet on my back as I lay down, then finally screams. At that moment I saw a group of three people, two teens and one adult all dressed in robes of some kind which look like they were ripped from the ends. How long have they been here? Then I see what was making them run, two creatures are chasing these them, these creatures look like hyenas, they have grayish fur with specs of brown in there, two big teeth protruding from the top of their mouths with rows of smaller but sharp ones, drool running past them as they ran, a big puffy bush of hair on the top of their necks and bloodlust in their eyes. They're hungry from the looks of it, and they just found their food. I remember Gizmo saying I can speak telepathically with him. I hope this works, I close my eyes and focus my thoughts on the image of Gizmo. Feeling something in my mind click I call out, ("Gizmo? Can you hear me?")
("How may I be of service?") he answers
HA! Holy shit it actually works, ("Magic, how do I use magic? There were mages among the skeletons so surely there's magic") I ask him
("Magic exists yes, but to use it you must use your imagination, imagination is what shapes the magic, how big it is how small it is, how fast it goes or how slow it goes, the stronger your imagination and will power the more versatile you make your magic, the strength of it is determined by the amount of mana you can pour into the spell.")
("So, all I have to do is imagine the spell and force it out?") i ask
("Exactly, I'd recommend a more basic spell for starters, something like fireball, I shall come out and examine you.") The conversation wasn't long at all, but it seemed even shorter than in real time. I think our telepathic conversation went by in less than a second.
The portals I saw earlier came back right next to me, one at least, large enough to support the height of Gizmo but not enough so he has to duck down a little as he comes through. I start to do as he said, I imagine a fireball forming in my hand. I have to make it fast so it can reach the creatures before they can reach the three people. As the fireball forms it takes the shape of an arrow, a flat flame long and wide but thin, with the end of it the shape of an arrow, flames running up and down this snake like fire in my hand. Releasing it from my hand towards one of the creatures It zooms past so fast I could barely keep track; the creature was maybe a few hundred feet ahead of me and the fireball reaches it in a matter of seconds, it hit and penetrated the creature. Nothing happening, the creature looks frozen though, it's not moving at all, then it huffs out smoke, then that smoke turns into flames and the creature's body is engulfed in flames. The flames sprouted from the wound on its side and started eating the creature from head to toe, desperate cries and screams of pain is all I hear as my mind blanks. I stare at it as it burns until the fire whittles away leaving nothing but the charred corpse of the hyena-like creature and a bald spot in the grass where the flames had eaten its prey. The other hyena creature Cries out and charges towards me, moving at incredible speeds clearly angered at the death of its partner.
The air around me whistles, then a loud audible THUD fills the silence. The hyena cries out in pain as it falls to its side clawing at the arrow stuck in its stomach. Whines like that of a dog, then another whistle as an arrow caught the poor creature in the throat, then silence.. I look around hoping to find where the arrows came from, finding it was Nima. He opened a portal on my right side opposite of the hyena and shot it down, then as fast as the hyena fell, he disappeared, as did gizmo. I hear the screams coming from the three people from afar calling to me running towards my direction.
"HEY! HEY, YOU ALRIGHT?!?!"
The man runs up to me, and I start to get a clearer picture of his face, he's one of the kids. He has dirt scattered on his robes and tiny specks of dirt sprinkled on his face like he'd slept in dirt, from the looks of it he had a tanner skin tone. His face looks sunken, like he'd been starved, his blue eyes look like they were losing color. Bags under his eyes and brown hair, whether his hair was that prominent color of brown or it's caked in dirt I don't know. I had to look up to him seeing as he was much taller than me, but if I'm being honest, I think everyone might be, I made myself quite short, but I'm fine with it.
"Hey, are you alright, man you saved us, but you put yourself at heavy risk." the man said.
"I'm fine thanks for asking, just glad I could actually use the spell" I say, looking down at my hands.
"Yeah, about that, how'd you, do it? We knew magic existed because Juno used it before, but he does it unintentionally. We have no idea how to do it. Also, I'm Nico, nice to meet you."
"I'm Merulina and I'll explain later for now I have questions to ask you"
"We should get somewhere safe first being out in the open isn't exactly safe" he said, looking around, watching for any potential danger
"Seems like the woods didn't help you either" I say sarcastically,
"Well, we weren't hiding we were exploring" Nico says
"Whatever the case lets go'' I finally get a good look at the two other people, the adult is probably around his early thirties, he has short black hair, a buzzcut if anything, green eyes with bags underneath, dark skin and his robes were much more worn than the others, he's pretty muscular so I guess he was a fighter of sorts probably staying in the front while the other two took pot shots from the sides. The other kid is a young girl probably around eighteen, she has long blonde hair that goes down to her waist, strands of hair sticking to her head from sweat, her black eyes look blank, and her face spells tired and exhausted. I have to ask, "How long have you guys been out here?"
Nico spoke up "About two days, we're not from this world, are you?" We were walking towards what looks like a cave.
"I got here only minutes ago and I'm not from here either, it might look like it though since I'm clearly not human, but it turned out this way when I was spat into this world." so people came here before others, I would have thought that we'd be spit out at the same time. Guess people were dropped in at different times, but what's the longest?
"Have you guys met anyone else?" I ask
Juno spoke up, "You're the only one so far, the three of us woke up next to each other and decided it was best to stick together."
"Juno decided that and convinced us, he's a good leader and he's kept us alive for this long, we owe him'' Surprisingly the girl spoke, she seems shy and quiet, but she decided to speak. "I'm Frey by the way, nice to meet you" she extends her hand towards me for a handshake
"Likewise" I shake her hand, "I'm tired"
"We all are but we can never get a good enough rest out of fear" Frey said. Hmm maybe I could help, I close my eyes and think about Gizmo again, ("Hey gizmo")
("Yes?")
("Do the dream skeletons need sleep and or rest?") i'm thinking of having them stand guard
("They do not, they also can't die, if they are defeated, they are transported back to the dream realm to recover. Dream skeletons' souls are tied to the dream realm so long as the dream realm lives, we live")
("So could you guys stand watch for us while we rest?") I'm technically like their master I think so I think they'll listen to me
("We can if you order us to do so, however you don't need sleep, as a dreamon your energy comes from the dream realm, so you don't need sleep, food or water, you live off the never-ending energy of the dream realm")
("Even if I don't the feeling of it is still wanted") I don't know if my sanity can handle staying up for months on just yet, but that is very handy
("There's a problem with that but you'll have to experience it later since it's hard to really explain") he says
("That's fine") I cut the connection with Gizmo and try to summon some skeletons. It's like giving my mind an order, and just like that four of each type of skeleton came out, however seven fighter skeletons came out including Cain. Three of them, one being Cain, fused together becoming a taller skeleton, a normal sized skeleton like the average human height, it looks just like a human skeleton actually. One of each type of skeleton stuck to a person, one fighter, one healer, one mage and one archer per person watching over them as they try to sleep. The others get startled and pull out their weapons ready to fight but start to relax once I explain everything. Cain, which is what I'm calling the fused version sense Cain is probably in control, was patrolling around the entrance of the cave keeping watch, and just like that, we drift off to sleep.
I open my eyes, seeing a sky filled with black and stars floating around slowly, like the bubbles of freshly carbonated soda. Is it a dream? No, I can still feel my body. So where am I then?
"Hello mistress" This voice is familiar. It's gizmo! I stand up but to my surprise I have no trouble lifting myself up, like I weigh nothing, I look at my hands and can just barely see through them. Did I become a spirit?
"I told you it was a bit confusing, apologies mistress, if you don't mind, I'd be happy to explain it to the best of my ability" Gizmo says, giving me a gentle smile
"Oh, uh go ahead"
"Thank you, ahem, so I suppose the best way to explain it is by saying your very being is what holds the dream realm, without you the dream realm would not exist. Your soul is directly connected to the dream realm allowing it to exist. So, in saying that this will make a lot more sense, you can enter and exit the dream realm whenever you wish. Even in your sleep you are able to go in and out but when it is in your sleep you take on a spiritual form and are kind of always forced into the dream realm when you sleep"
"Interesting, if I'm always forced to go in when I sleep, I honestly just might not sleep." I sit crisscross floating in the air continuing to listen as Gizmo continues, he sure knows a lot.
"The dream realm is your own personal home; you can do whatever you want to it by thinking about it. Go ahead try it, the dream realm is an infinite space so you can make what you want" Make what I want? Thinking about my old home, a building slowly rises from the ground, a small home, tiny porch, cross windows, and small enough roof to where if you were tall enough, you'd touch it. White walls and an orange roof. It's completely identical to my old home, I hate that place; I'll never enter it again. Clenching my fists, it collapses
Gizmo turns to me "Are you alright my lady?" concern in his voice
"Yea.. yea I'm fine sorry, anyway I had a question.. oh, you're waiting sorry, am I able to store stuff in here?"
"Yes, if you want to store items or other things you find I'd suggest creating a storage place of some sort that would be best to hold whatever it is you're keeping. If you assign some skeletons to it, they will be more than happy to help, there are billions of skeletons all around the dream realm ready to aid you anyway possible so give them a job if you can. They're all ready and waiting" it sounds like he's trying to sell me something again
"Alright I'll remember that thanks, for now though I think I'd like to go back to sleep if it's possible" I'll at least sleep one night, I'll see how the other nights go
"Yes, you can rip your consciousness away from the dream realm and go back to sleep" Gizmo says, so I do just that, somehow, it was weird like ripping off a band aid. I'll get back to the dream realm another time and use its many advantages when I need them.
I wake to a ray of sunlight flashing me in my eyes, a burning warmth I accept but it hurts my eyes. Almost as if feeling my discomfort one of the mage skeletons blocked the sunlight with a wall of earth. I smile at the little skeleton, and I swear it blushed.
"Good morning" I'm greeted by Frey who seems to be the only one awake.
"Are the others still asleep?" I ask
"Yea, and don't worry about being loud, after these few nights they won't be waking up anytime soon" she laughed
"I would've imagined the same for you" I'm honestly surprised she's not still sleeping
"For a bit I was peacefully sleeping, but it's hard. I have a little brother out there somewhere and thinking about him on his own scares me. There's nothing I can do right now except hope and pray I can find him one day." she said, tears filling her eyes
"I don't think praying's going to get you far. Whatever god you believed in has definitely abandoned you. I'm sorry today, I think we might be on our own here" I never believed in gods anyway
"Be that as it may, I would love to stick to my beliefs. It's the only thing I have that ties me back to home" I can see her face darken a little. Maybe I should stay away from religion. Never liked it anyway.
"Sorry 'bout that Frey" I feel bad
"Don't be, you did nothing wrong. But if you do want to apologize.. care to answer a few questions?" the last word of her sentence was followed with an expecting, *hmmm*,
"Sure, hit me" and so she does, bombarding me with all kinds of questions. Mostly about the skeletons and what kind of power I hold, I tell her what I have the answers to. Finally, Juno and Nico wake up, rubbing the sleep from their eyes. Then their questions followed, questions about how I use magic and even more questions about the skeletons. I should be careful when I summon these guys. I answer them, again, with the knowledge I have. After about an hour of getting ourselves together we packed what we had, well what they had, I'm virtually empty handed, one of the fighters tried to give me a sword but it was tiny almost like a very small dagger, even for my small hands, so for now it looks like I'm going barehanded. If I do get into a fight or something I still have my magic to defend myself with. Maybe I can make an ax or spear or something, that'd be cool. We moved on from the cave and started following a river, seeing as there was no path to follow, nothing but nature for miles.
We were walking for what seemed like a couple of hours, silence, until finally Nico spoke, "Hey, you guys hear that?"
Frey responds, "Hear what? It's completely silent"
I sit there trying to hear what he hears.. nothing just the rustle of the trees and the whistle of the winds. What is he hearing?
"Nico you alright?" I said, turning my head to the side to show confusion.
"I know what I'm hearing, it sounds like.. fighting. Come on follow me" we don't move we just stare at him for a second, "just" he hesitated, like he was trying to find the right words. "Just trust me please, what else can we do?" he has a point, we've been walking aimlessly for hours, what harm would this do? I say nothing but I start to walk towards Nico, then the other two follow and we go from walking to running as we follow Nico. Finally, I start to hear what Nico had heard. Swords, clashing and clinging, the scrape of metal dragging on a shield, the screams of agony and rage. Finally we push through the trees and bushes and what we see, something you'd never see in our day and age. A battlefield, two sides fighting hand to hand metal on metal, humans and people who don't look human with swords, axs and weird shaped daggers, curved edges and twists and turns on the blade, they look like daggers used in sacrifices. There are humanoid creatures fighting the humans and nonhumans, green colored creatures, ragged cloths around their waists the only covering they had, rusted and dirtied daggers, thick and fat, might as well be a blunt weapon, I can barely see the sharpened edges.
They had small pointy ears and were tiny, kinda like the baby skeletons, they have tiny skinny legs and short skinny arms. These creatures were hideous, green slimy blood leaking from cuts, fat pointy noses, pitch black eyes strained from stress and desperation, veins coloring the black, and grime covering their bodies.
"Holy shit, what the fuck are those things" I heard him gag most likely from disgust as Nico said that. He's not wrong in doing so, their skin could barely be called skin, it looked like a wrinkled carpet. That's when karma took action, I felt a sharp pain in my left cheek, a knife flew by slashing my cheek, blood slowly flowing out of the cut.
"We have to fight," Juno said, drawing his sword, the other two following.
"What do I do, I don't have a weapon" I said, looking around frantically for a weapon
"Use your magic or take one these daggers" Juno said
"I'm not touching those things" I refuse to grab one of their daggers
"Fair enough, I don't know you'll have to figure it out yourself" and just like that I was left alone, Wow, fuck. What do I do? I can call on the skeletons but that'd draw too much attention, besides I can't keep relying on them. I know they want to help, but they'll have to wait a little longer. I can feel the desperation leaking from the Dream Realm. These guys really want to help, they can't leave without my permission though, I wonder how Nima got through that time. Looking back at the fight, the goblins are losing. In a few minutes the fight will be over. There's no need to call on the skeletons, even if it's just to protect myself. I need to learn how to fight anyway. As I say that, as if the universe was listening to me, three of these goblin creatures hobbled in front of me with daggers in hand and a hungry look on their faces. Damnit.