by J E Mueller
Our running made noise. We hadn’t thought that part through but the confusion of invisible noise had the monsters at a stand still for several moments before they carefully followed. I really wished we had done that thing again and made our steps not noticeable, but Ze was probably too tired for that. At least they weren’t full on running after us.
Still, they were slowly gaining on us and we had a few yards to go.
The closer we got to home, the closer they got to catching up to us. It was going to be a tight finish. Who would reach their goal first?
Then I remembered the door. We’d have to open the damn thing to get in. Why? Why couldn’t the barrier keeping the outside creatures from getting inside be sooner? Maybe it was. I prayed it was the patio, but I knew not to hold on to that hope. It wouldn’t do me any good. They’d catch up before we reached the door, and there was no way for us to kill them.
I summoned my bow. The other two couldn’t see me. They had no idea what my plan was. As terrible as it was, I needed them to get through that doorway. At least Ze had some flowers too. Thankfully they shouldn’t all be needed. One was probably more than necessary
Readying myself for my plan, I shot an arrow behind me hoping the noise would distract them.
It didn’t. My second idea was needed after all. Cringing, I watched how close we were getting to the back door and waited for the right moment.
We had just hit the patio. They weren’t stopping, and I needed to stop them.
I slowed my pace so I could take aim and shot my good buddy ‘idiot who just won’t die’ in the chest. He stopped and let out an ear-shattering screech. The other two faltered in their running as the spell dropped. I turned to see that Ze and Mare had made it to the door.
Giving it all I could, I ran to catch up. They had the door open, were just inside and looking back, terrified. That’s when I felt it. The pain was terrible. Unbearable heat shot through me and I looked down to see something had struck through me. Oh. I looked up at my friends. Their faces said it all. Right. This wasn’t good.
Something else struck me hard in the side. Whatever it was that was through me was all that was keeping me up. I couldn’t stand. My world was slowly going black. Why wouldn’t it fade quicker? I could taste iron as I coughed up something vile.
Oh. That’d be blood.
It very much looked like I was going to die. Another thing stabbed through me. It didn’t even seem like that should be necessary. I couldn’t really see much of anything. I guess there was some light, but it was mostly black dots.
Why wouldn’t this just end? I didn’t want to go, but there was no coming back from this.
Finally, it went black.
Chapter 10
A harsh, cold wind blew across my face, waking me. Slowly opening my eyes, I took in the fact I was once more waking up on the kitchen floor. Every fiber of my being hurt and I didn’t want to move, but I could. I could move, I could feel, and I was very much alive.
Bless that Dreamer status.
Carefully, I pushed myself up so I was sitting and took stock of my body. There were no visible injuries but I noted the bracelet was now gone. They did say it vanished when someone died, so we’d have to start that adventure over again and hope it was in a similar place.
Did that mean I couldn’t connect with that Creator anymore? Maybe it would be more difficult if they were further away. I waited, listening intensely for that voice. Nothing came. I wasn’t surprised, but really was hoping I didn’t lose that connection.
Closing my eyes, I tried to figure out the time. About three in the morning came to mind and I knew it would be best to find my way to the safe zone and see what was going on. I stood on shaky legs and was relieved I could hold myself upright. Summoning my bow took a bit more concentration, but I managed it, and started to shuffle my way back.
Several twists and wrong turns later, I found it. Stepping through the painting felt even more unpleasant than normal, the jelly-like substance pushed against every part that hurt in a way that felt like landing wrong when jumping into water.
As I entered, I saw a very tired Mare talking with Ze and Clove. Everyone turned as Mare gaped at me in surprise.
“You survived?” Mare screeched as she ran and hugged me.
I groaned in pain but didn’t push away. It had been several hours that I was gone. “I’m pretty sure I died. I just came back. Somehow.”
As Mare pulled away I saw Ze and Clove had come over to stand just behind her.
“It looks like the Dreamer thing is still going strong.” Clove nodded approvingly. “You got lucky. You shouldn’t just sacrifice yourself like that.”
I was taken aback by how upset she sounded. “It was either I chance it or we all would have died and they wouldn’t have come back.” I motioned to Ze and Mare.
Clove sighed tiredly. “Fine. That’s probably true, but you need to be more careful.”
“We’ll plan way better next time,” Mare agreed.
“Next time we adventure outside it’ll be with a bigger group too,” Ze agreed.
“The group size wasn’t the problem.” I shook my head at them. “We were up against something we didn’t know how to beat. We need more information. Isn’t there anything we can find to tell us how to kill those things?”
Clove looked hesitant as she glanced at Ze and Mare but shook it off when she looked back at me. “You don’t remember things from when you were dreaming when you were younger. There were plenty of books on how to slay things and find things. You knew exactly what all the artifacts were and even where the most common places to find them were. Past you said you read about it.”
I nodded slowly, “But present me doesn’t remember any of this.”
“Exactly.” Clove sighed. “I have tried to search several times for these things, but I don’t even know where to begin. I don’t know the titles, which library they are from, or even if they were in a library. If a Creator had hold of them, they are gone now.”
Something in my gut told me they weren’t just gone. “They are probably just really well hidden. Maybe not even in an actual library.”
Clove gave a slow nod. “There are hundreds of rooms around here. Some do have books.” After a moment of consideration she shook her head. “I don’t want you running all over looking, though. You aren’t strong enough to fight everything, and you’ll probably be a weakened mess for a few days.”
I gave a small laugh. “I’m glad you care, but honestly, I bet I’ll be fine after a good night’s sleep. I want to help, so let me or I will venture out on my own.” It was true, not that they could actually keep me in the safe zone forever. Eventually, it would just teleport me out itself.
Clove shared a look with Mare and sighed. “Fine. Then you stay with a group if you’re going anywhere aside from the first floor. You need to learn all the creatures and how to kill them on your own. Even with a group you never know what will happen.”
Perfect. “Gladly. Now, as great as this has been, I really do feel as bad as I probably look and would like some sleep.”
“Yeah, you need it.” Mare snickered. “Go on.” She motioned for me to head off and followed close behind.
I glanced over my shoulder at her as soon as I hit the room I had been using. “Are you following me for a reason?”
Mare gave me a huge hug again. “Plenty of reasons.” She pulled away and stared at me for a long moment before sighing. “We thought you were gone for good. Dead dead. I’m glad you’ve survived, but please don’t do that again.”
I sat down on my bed and shook my head. “I make no promises. Even if there is a chance I’ll die for real, I won’t sacrifice everyone. There’s a lot we need to accomplish now, and I think I have a clear goal of what I want to do next.”
Mare stared at me, surprised. “Okay, what do you want to do next then?”
“We need to find the Creators and bring them back,” I stated simply.
Mare raised an eyebrow. “And how do
you propose we do that?”
I hesitated. “I actually have an idea, but I can’t have you telling everyone. Or even anyone. It’s on that level with the bracelet, which is of course missing again.”
Mare glanced down at my wrists before meeting my eyes. “Okay, I don’t doubt what you’re saying, but why?”
“I think Benz and Clove know more than they’re letting on, but can’t actually tell us.”
Mare stared at me for another long moment before nodding slowly. “There are things neither side are physically capable of telling. I can believe you on this.”
“Exactly what I’m saying. Good. Where do you stand as far as things with the Creators go?” I knew if there was any way of getting back home, I needed the Creators back here. With them here things would also be stabilized for the people stuck here. It would be a win-win.
There was something about that fog too… something sinister that they could likely help with. I didn’t like that the fog could just find where my home was. Where my sister was lying wearily, trying to recover.
Mare shook her head and paced the room a bit. “Overall, I liked them. I got along with most of them well enough. Though I don’t really agree this is the best solution for wandering souls.”
“That’s fair. I’m not too sure about that last part either.” Having souls trapped in murder world to try and help them accomplish things so they would cross over seemed a bit extreme. I wondered if things all started that way or just grew into this mess.
“You know something, don’t you?” Mare asked curiously.
I heard Clove and Ze talking as they came down the hallway. “We can talk about it later. That bracelet was a bit more than we were expecting it to be.”
Mare tilted her head at me but heard the sound from down the hall as well. “Until later then.” With a nod, she headed out, leaving me to finally get the sleep I needed.
Instead of weird fog dreams, I only heard a series of voices declaring I was taking too long. They declared motivation would be coming. That she would have to come. This strange occurrence was registered as just another dream to me. At least I didn’t have to see the fog.
When I finally awoke it was just after eight in the morning. I pulled myself up and found Clove sitting in a corner of the sparsely filled common room. She had a pad of papers in hand and seemed to be slowly flipping through them.
“What’s going on?” I asked casually as I sat down across from her.
Her eyes met mine for a moment before looking back at the papers. “I’m not sure how to explain it, but Cane believes she has figured out a pattern to where things disappear to, such as the artifacts.”
I nodded slowly. “Things all seem to have a set schedule or pattern here. That would make sense.”
“Indeed,” Clove agreed as she looked over at me for a moment. “The pattern isn’t very favorable though.”
“Does it involve going outside again?” I asked, almost dreading the answer.
“And the basement.” Clove nodded. “It takes a certain hardiness to get through any basement exploration. Outside you already know is a battle royale of the odd, the ugly, and the invincible.”
“Okay, what’s in the basement?” It seemed people said it with more dread than the outside.
“Not a whole lot, actually.” Clove set the papers aside. “It’s just the most common nightmare fuel. Giant spiders with different abilities, and two types of bat-like creatures. Of course, since no one really wants to deal with oversized spiders, they tend to have larger numbers.”
Of course. I gave a tired nod in understanding. “I heard something about the Watch. If they’re outside wouldn’t they know how to slaughter the outdoor creatures?”
“Yes, they do. All the ones I know how to kill are because of them,” Clove agreed, “but – ”
“Of course there’s a but.”
Clove smirked before continuing, “The easiest way to get to the Watch is through the tunnel at the end of the basement. We don’t interact with them often.”
I nodded and glanced around, seeing the room hadn’t filled up much more. Lowering my voice I asked, “So, what do you remember from when we used to know each other? If something can unlock my memories, maybe I can be of more help.”
Clove seemed to freeze for a moment. At first, I wasn’t sure if she could reply or even wanted to if she could. “It was some time ago. We used to love to battle and fight the creatures, saving who we could from the nightmare land… You always seemed to be off on your own things. While you would join us, you’d disappear and somehow come back with random artifacts, or knowledge that this person or that would just tell you. It was always strange, but useful at the time.”
“And it probably feels even stranger that I can’t remember a thing.”
“It does,” Clove agreed. “I have no idea what information would help, but honestly, it’s not something you can run into here on your own. Just wandering around might set something off better than me relaying a random memory of slaying a Hedgeish.”
Honestly, she was right. Randomly moving around more and just having normal conversations was bringing up things better.
“Fair enough. What is this pattern you were mentioning, anyway?”
Clove shrugged. “Nothing confirmed yet. It seems to be if one of us dies with it it’ll end up on the next level up. So, if something was found in the basement and I died with it, the artifact would be on the first floor. Or so that’s the theory. Now if a Dreamer died with it, it’ll either go one down or two up. So, taking the bracelet you did have, for example, it’s either in the basement or on the second floor.”
I nodded slowly. “So it presumably goes basement, first floor, second floor, third floor, fourth floor, outside? I thought there was an attic.”
Clove shrugged. “There is, but there has never been an artifact in the attic. We’ve looked a stupid amount of times over the years. By now, we would have found one.”
After years of exploring and four years of Clove actually being trapped here, I believed her. I did wonder if that was the case, what was it about the attic that made things not appear up there. “What is normally in the attic?”
“A creature of darkness that can kill you by attacking your shadow. It’s a hard one to fight against. Aside from that, it’s just old tomes, none of which have been particularly interesting, and just junk. Cane hates being dragged up there. There’s never anything.”
“Is she our only artifact finder?” I couldn’t remember if they said so or not.
“No, but she might as well be. Lance joined the Watch a while back and we haven’t seen him since. Sans and Kaden haven’t declared anyone else here has those gifts, so Cane is it.”
I gave a slow nod. “How did I find them so easily?” I wondered aloud more than asked.
“If I remember correctly, I think you just asked the Creators and they would give you a location. Nothing terribly specific, but still more than enough, but things like second floor, west hall, and off you’d go.”
“That would be a really useful gift about now.” I sighed, sinking back into my seat.
“Wouldn’t it?” Clove agreed as she stood up and stretched. “Speaking of that, I promised I’d go help Sans, Lo, and Cane with another quest. They think something is on the third floor again, and with how big it is, that’s likely enough.”
I wanted to go with, but the bracelet wasn’t going to be right back on the floor it started. “Best of luck. I think I’ll see if the first floor helps me remember anything.”
Clove nodded and started to walk away but paused for a moment before turning back around. “Please, just have someone accompany you for a while on the first floor. I’m sure it’s not terribly dangerous for you, but we would rather not have another death incident any time soon.”
While her words came out more harsh than not, I could tell she cared, so I nodded. “I can do that.” I really could. I wasn’t sure if I was going to do just that, but I could at least try and not worry
every last person.
With that, Clove turned and headed toward the hall just as Cane was walking in. They stopped and talked by the painting together.
For a moment I wondered what I would do with my time and stared at the pile of papers Clove had just left sitting out. Were they important? Did they have any useful information for me? As I picked them up I saw they really weren’t that interesting, just old recipes. Why not. Maybe she enjoyed cooking in her free time.
As I set them down I looked at it again. The top parts were recipes, but as it got into details it changed into messages.
red wine (to marinate beef)
2 lbs. beef sirloin roast
2 medium onions
2 cups beef broth
2 cups red wine
1 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
Marinate meat in wine overnight. Put broth, spices and 2 cups wine into a pot with meat. Boil until cooked we are running out of time and supplies. Place beef in a roasting pan we need you to send more. Trick whoever you must. The time is now. The deed needs to be done. (or until excess juices have drained from meat, and meat is slightly browned)
I stared at the stack in my hand and considered setting it back down. I glanced around and saw Clove was still talking with Cane. Sans and Lo had just joined the group and no one was paying attention to me. Carefully, I folded the papers and pocketed them away.
Something was going on here, there was no doubt of that, but what? It was so obviously in plain sight. Clove likely had been doing this for a while if she didn’t mind leaving the pages unattended. Everyone like me must have only given them a glance.
I felt the need to run away, but if I acted strangely now who knew what would happen? Luckily, Mare walked into the common room and I waved her over.
