Eris stood before us, her shadowy form shifting with the wind, as though the very air bent to her will. "Did you really think you could spend your life dodging nightmares, Mykel?" she teased, her voice dripping with condescension. "Dreams are powerful, but without chaos, they're just empty fantasies."
Percy edged closer to me, his expression grim. "Whatever you're planning, it's not going to work," he said, his voice strong but wary. "We've dealt with worse than you."
"Oh, have you now?" Eris raised an eyebrow, feigning interest. "And yet, here you are, outnumbered by a few harpies and barely keeping up. Impressive."
I tightened my grip on my spear. My heart was pounding in my chest, not from the harpy fight, but from the heavy feeling that Eris wasn't bluffing. She wasn't like the other threats we faced before. This was different.
"What's your game, Eris?" I demanded. "Why now?"
She smiled, the kind of smile that makes your stomach churn. "Because, my dear boy, the balance is shifting. The gods are complacent, too reliant on their predictable little pawns. It's time for something... fresh. And who better to stir things up than the son of Morpheus, the god of dreams? So much potential, so much chaos to unleash."
I glanced at Percy. His usual bravado was still there, but I could see the worry in his eyes. We were on the same page—Eris wasn't messing around.
The wind picked up, and the harpies regrouped, their screeches cutting through the air like nails on a chalkboard. They circled us faster and faster, a chaotic blur of feathers and claws.
"We need a plan," Percy muttered, his hand tight on Riptide's hilt. "She's trying to bait you, Myke. Don't let her get into your head."
"I'm trying not to," I said, though it was harder than I wanted to admit. The whole time I could feel Eris's gaze, like she was looking straight through me, poking at my insecurities, my doubts.
"You know what they say about dreams, right?" she purred, her voice a sickly sweet whisper in my mind. "They unravel so easily."
I shook my head, trying to block her out, but the shadows around her seemed to pulse, like they were alive, feeding off her words. It was like she was reaching into my mind, twisting everything I thought I knew.
Suddenly, Percy lunged at the nearest harpy, slicing through its wing with a clean swipe. "Stay focused, Myke!" he yelled, snapping me back to the moment. "We've got this!"
I blinked, gripping my spear tighter, and joined the fray. The harpies darted in and out, but now it was more than just them. Eris's presence weighed on me, making every move feel slower, heavier. The more we fought, the more it felt like she was feeding off the chaos, growing stronger.
In the middle of all this, a strange sensation washed over me, like a ripple in reality. For a split second, everything froze—the harpies, the wind, even Percy—and I was plunged into a dream-like state. The world around me twisted, transforming into an abstract blur of colors and shapes. My mind was yanked into a place between consciousness and dreams, where nothing made sense, but everything felt real.
"Ah, there it is," Eris's voice echoed in my mind. "Your potential, Mykel. The power to reshape reality. Don't you see? You're more than just a dreamer. You can turn this world upside down."
I gasped as visions flashed before me: the world collapsing into chaos, cities torn apart by nightmares, and me at the center of it all, wielding the kind of power that could unmake everything.
"No!" I shouted, struggling to pull myself out of the vision. "I won't let you use me!"
With sheer force of will, I snapped back to reality, just as Percy swung his sword at the last harpy, sending it crumbling into dust.
Eris stood where she had been the whole time, watching with amusement. "Interesting," she mused. "You resisted… for now."
I staggered back, my head still spinning. "I won't let you control me."
Eris's smile faded, replaced by something darker. "Oh, sweet boy. You think you have a choice? Chaos is inevitable. Whether you embrace it or not is irrelevant. But when you're ready to see things my way, I'll be waiting."
With that, she turned and vanished into the swirling shadows, leaving behind nothing but the eerie stillness of Central Park.
Percy sheathed Riptide and looked at me, his expression unreadable. "You okay?"
"Yeah," I muttered, though I wasn't sure if I believed it. "But something tells me this isn't over."
Percy nodded. "Eris isn't the type to just walk away. She'll be back."
I looked up at the sky, the clouds still swirling ominously. The storm of chaos had begun, and deep down, I knew Eris was right about one thing: I was the key to it all. The only question now was whether I could stop it before it consumed me.
As we left the park, the weight of the situation hung over me like a dark cloud. The nightmares weren't just in my head anymore—they were spilling into reality. And I had a feeling this was just the beginning.