In a large apartment, Cain was doing push-ups on a mat. Sitting on top of him was Evette, eating candy.
"Faster! Faster! Imagine you have the strength of a bear if you have to!"
'Damn it, this sucks!'
Cain was being trained in the 'headquarters' of his hunting group. There wasn't a name for people who hunted Nightmares, so anything went as a title for them.
From what Rex told Cain, their group consisted of 8 people. Right now, Rex and Evette were the only people home; the rest were doing their own things.
Typically, hunting groups went out once a month to hunt Nightmares. They then returned after a long hunt and got paid. There were many different hunting groups; some stuck to lower-level Nightmares, while others fought more powerful ones.
Because this profession was so dangerous, the Dream Lord and his men paid handsomely for the Hunters' service, yet not many survived to accept such benefits.
Taking a break from the workout, Cain slumped up against a torn-up couch, exhausted.
"Why do you guys have such a bad couch? Wouldn't it be better if you imagined a new one?"
Evette answered while she was trying to reach for a cookie jar, "I don't know; it's been here since I've been. I think the Captain likes it."
Scrutinizing the couch, Cain got up and sat on it.
'This is not comfy at all...'
Trying not to slip through the holes, Cain maneuvered his body in a way that made his butt barely touch the old fabric, sitting awkwardly.
"So...when will we go fight Nightmares? What even is a Nightmare?"
Plopping a cookie in her mouth, Evette sat down on the counter, "You're not ready yet, plus we did a hunt a week ago."
She rubbed a cookie against her head thinking, "Nightmares...are hard to describe. I would say... they're lost? Or jealous? But they can really be anything, like recently we had to fight a Corrupt Nightmare, and it was this sketchy song."
"How'd you kill a song?"
"Music... imagining a song opposite to it. It had to be a damn good one though; it took 43 tries, I think."
Getting hungry himself, Cain got up and walked over to Evette, stealing a cookie from the jar.
"Hey!"
"The cookies are for everyone, are they not? Anyway, do you get anything else from fighting Nightmares? Other than the pills, of course."
A glum half-smirk covered her face, "Not really; most of us just do it to do it. The pills don't really matter either... I guess... I guess we just want to feel alive."
"Feel alive?"
She looked up to Cain; even sitting on the counter, he was about the same size as her.
"You have to understand, that although this place is great, over time, it becomes dull. Imagine, living for so long; everything you do becomes worthless, everything feels like a chore, and nothing seems to have any purpose. Can you imagine that? Can you imagine living so long that everything loses meaning?"
"So what do you do?"
She sighed while bringing her knees to her chest, "Some of us accept it and continue, fearing the end of this Dream. But others, they look for meaning again, and for many, that's fighting with your life on the line."
"So you're all just thrill-seekers?"
"Yup, and you're one of us now, for better or worse." Evette choked on her words as if saddened by some great pressure or fear.
Oblivious, Cain scoffed, "I'm not you guys; I just need a few Dream Pills, and then I'm off to hunt someone."
"Hunt someone? What did he do?"
Frowning, he responded, "It's not what he did; it's what he is, and I imagine he's doing something in line with his disgusting nature right now."
...
Kicking in the door of a bar, a young man took a seat next to a gentleman who looked to be in his thirties. He had a red half-moon on his forehead.
"Quite the entrance, boy; for what do I owe the pleasure?"
Cain took out three pink pills and laid them down on the table, "Before we begin, I want to make it clear that yes, I can only ask three questions, but I want to be able to ask questions related to said questions. In the event your responses don't satisfy me."
Orlin gave a hearty laugh while slowly reaching for the pills, "Sure, boy, but... how did you get these?"
"Well, of course, helping out down below, what else?"
"You went down below? Did they give you the proper equipment to explore down there?"
"Why does that matter? Can't I just imagine my own?"
Pausing, Orlin's eyes grew wide, "Boy... did you go down there without the protective equipment? Only those certified can create the intricate design required to purify the air down there. Without that equipment, there's a high chance to get infected."
Cain leaned back, "Infected, you say? Is that some sort of disease? I'll have you know I'm quite the doctor myself. Now stop asking questions and let me ask my own."
"Ok, ok. Just make sure to get checked out; it's not rare to see people have a bad end."
A piece of food appeared before Cain; it was a dish from Netherane, consisting of wheat foods like bread and pasta, topped with a sauce and scone to the side.
"Looks good; seems you have a healthy imagination." Orlin imagined his own dish; it was different from the one from before but smelled good nonetheless.
"Now, give your three questions. I gathered much knowledge in my long life and have learned even more here."
"I'll be the judge of that."
Cain took a bite of bread and started his questions while chewing.
"First question, what exactly is the difference between the energy made from cores and the one all around us?"
"Hahaha! Who knew you were so knowledgeable!" Orlin put down his fork and patted his face with a napkin, "I wasn't ready for such a good question!"
"Just answer it."
"Haah, no fun."
Orlin repositioned his seat, closer to Cain.
"I do not know the origin of the energy. It exists in every place I've traveled, even here in a different Realm; it seems to be what ties everything together. Unlike Rulers who use their territory's energy, we Gatherers use the pure energy around us, allowing us to fuel all our different powers, which should've required their specific energy."
"So why the difference at all?"
"Who knows, power, efficiency. I do know that the pure energy all around is easily affected by outside influence; it can be affected by things like anger, and intent to kill. It's why people have auras."
'Is that why people always think that I will attack them when I plan to kill them? They can feel it through the pure energy that creates aura? Interesting.'
"Is that the only difference?"
Orlin scratched his beard, "No, it's just that the most obvious; there are many other smaller details between the two. But from what is known, territory energy is only meant for the cores that produce them, giving the Ruler in the territory absolute power. It's why we Gatherers are so weak against them."
"Well, old man, that leads to my second question. What is the 'Freedom' Gatherers seek, and why do Rulers not have it?"
Stopping for a moment, Orlin stared at Cain in a daze before speaking in a low whisper, "To answer that question... how much about the world do you know?"