Noble spent the afternoon going over possible plans moving forward. She imagined every scenario based on the information that she had. Thankfully, Counsel and Kosi had patiently left her to her silent thoughts. Some things were best done without another's input.
By the time she joined Emira for dinner, Noble felt more confident in her desire to end the war.
'It needs to be done.'
It was at the core of the Nightmare. Noble could feel it in her bones.
After all, every nightmare had a major conflict. Resolving that problem was the key to escaping the nightmare and returning to the waking world.
And that is what Noble desired. She wanted to go home.
'This is nothing like my last conflict…'
Noble's first nightmare had revolved around a nomadic tribe trying to travel overland to find a new life. The endpoint was clear. She needed to make it safely to her destination.
While it sounded simple, it was anything but an ordinary trip.
The group they were with was shunned by dozens of small villages, so food and water quickly became scarce. Some of the villages were actively hostile, throwing stones or worse to keep the travelers away.
But people and resources were not the only problems. It was the Dream Realm after all.
Fire beasts hunted the nomads down and attacked many times. No matter what young Noble did, the massive creatures were unwilling to be repelled by her levitation.
The teen hadn't mastered her skills at that point, and it was only when she was burned beyond recognition that she realized that her levitation ability could be used on herself to escape the flames. It had been one of the hardest lessons she had ever had to learn.
For not only did Noble lose one of her eyes and most of her skin in the attack, but she also lost everyone around her during her travel.
Noble was just too weak against a far superior foe. The entire tribe was destined to die. So was she.
But in the end, Noble survived—barely.
Burned and broken, she had wandered into the city of promise and collapsed. After learning of her journey, the leader placed a garland on her head and called her a "child of promise."
Hearing those words, Noble wept. It was only then that the nightmare ended to give her a final evaluation and return her to her own body.
The first trial had not only been physically demanding, but mentally forced her to face her inner demons. Had the Spell known about her trauma of leaving America and tried to exploit it?
It had felt like the Spell was out to get her. Maybe it was, and yet she prevailed.
In fact, the Spell had twice lured her into a Nightmare against her will. While the [Portcullis Key] had technically been responsible for her unconventional entry into the second nightmare, it was the Spell that had gifted Catphine the Memory, and given her the strange aspect that had told her that the key needed to belong to Noble.
The Spell had also chosen the exact moment to form a Gate where she was. The nerve!
It was like some kind of long-con to force Noble to become stronger…or to finish what the Spell had started the first time around.
'I don't like feeling manipulated like this…'
But it was futile to fight it. She turned her mind to more useful thoughts. What other Nightmares did she know?
The Saint who had conquered Ender's Deep had once told her of the story of the citadel. He had done so in front of a group of people, so Noble was unsure of how much he had embellished the tale. But the core facts were most likely true.
Noble pulled as much of the information to the front of her mind as she could.
In the Transcendent's Nightmare, he was placed in the body of Ender, a great leader of men, just after the kingdom had been devastated beyond repair.
Smoke, fire, and broken stone were the only remnants of the proud kingdom above the surface.
Something had ripped the ground in two, taking most of the population of the kingdom with it.
The situation had seemed hopeless and without a clear directive. Yet with determination, the aspiring Transcendent had persevered.
The Saint took leadership of the people and helped them to make a home underground in the massive tunnel system.
Just when he thought that he had accomplished his task, a mass of darkness crept up from the deep to devour them. One by one, insidious whispers brought the townspeople to leap into the abyss. It was only when the Saint found a way to dispel the darkness and save the people that the Nightmare ended.
The Saint had admitted that the whispers had almost claimed his life. They were nearly irresistible.
Even now in Ender's Deep, an occasional whisper seems to come up from the canyon. But it remained far from the city's streets and ladders, contained by some unseen force.
The original people must have found a way to imprison it as well, for they lived on for many years and made a thriving society. 'At least if the wall drawings are to be believed...'
Unfortunately, Noble couldn't immediately recall any Second Nightmares that she had heard. She only knew a few Master's peripherally. And talking about a Nightmare was not exactly talked about unless the person felt like opening up.
Few did.
But the concept of any level of Nightmare would be the same. It would have a problem that needed to be solved.
And what conflict could be greater than a Tyrant attacking a city for as long as the kingdom could remember?
All Noble needed to do was find the best way to kill the Creature without dying in the process.
'Sounds simple enough,' Noble hid her smirk around a bite of food. 'What could be so hard about killing something that hasn't been successfully brought down in centuries?'
A soft laugh escaped Noble's lips. Emira arched her brow and set down her spoon. The temperature in the room increased by many degrees.
"What is so funny?"
Noble nearly choked on her soup. "Funny?" 'Oh no, she thinks I am laughing at her!'
"It was nothing, really. Just a silly joke in my head."
"Tell me." The Queen tapped her fingers lightly on the table. small burn marks showed on the lacquered wood.
"I would rather not. It wasn't funny." Noble squirmed in her seat.
Emira clicked her tongue. "Very well. Is there something else you want to tell me? Something important?"
Noble felt the heat of the woman's gaze and started to sweat.
There was, in fact, something she wanted to tell the Queen...but perhaps this wasn't the best time...