“I don’t know, but we can’t just sit here and do nothing! Dammit, I saw that human first!” Falla yelled up at the nightmare.
“No you didn’t, these other girls did,” Luna pointed out.
“That’s beside the point! Whose side are you on anyway?” Falla barked out at her.
“I’m on yours, but we can’t fight that thing, it can’t die and we’re not fighters at all,” Luna said fearfully.
“Then what are we supposed to do? We have to try something!” Falla yelled out with frustration, looking up at the nightmare. Luna looked down at Alyssa and Triska then back to her sister.
“We can’t fight, but they can,” she reasoned quickly. Falla looked at her with a quick glance then down to the sleeping girls.
“Them? They did a piss poor job protecting Daniel from this thing in the first place. Besides, in case you’ve forgotten, they’re asleep!” she shouted out.
“We need to wake them up, we need help,” Luna urged desperately.
“We can’t wake them up, we already tried, remember? And even if we could wake them up then they’ll just keep Daniel from us too, we’re better off with them asleep,” Falla argued.
“They’re going to be dead soon, they won’t be sleeping then,” Luna said shaking her head.
“That’s still four less obstacles in our way of getting Daniel,” Falla snorted.
“If we don’t get their help there won’t be a Daniel left for us to get,” Luna shakily reasoned. Falla growled then looked up to the nightmare that was holding Daniel closely. Luna looked up at the monster for a moment then back to Falla.
“Sister, you can’t be this cruel,” she whimpered. Falla looked back to her as Luna was shaking her head slowly with saddened eyes.
“Please, don’t just walk away from helping them, they don’t deserve to die and you know it,” she pleaded.
“They’re not our problem, our only concern is finding a human to get pregnant with,” Falla argued. Luna looked up at the nightmare, then over to Triska as the human was suffering in her dream, and then back to her sister.
“You’re not like that monster above us, you can’t be so cold,” she said softly. Falla looked at her curiously as Luna gently held her hands.
“I want to have a daughter; I want to have as many as I can, just like you do. But please, don’t become a heartless monster like that nightmare to get that, you’re better than that,” she begged. Falla looked at her curiously then down to Alyssa and Triska. Luna sniffled and looked down to them as well.
“We may have tried tricking humans with your plans and lying to them, but we never hurt anybody doing it. We never used force or endangered them in the process. We’re not like that monster up there, we’re not cruel,” she said softly. Falla looked down for a moment then up at the nightmare, the monster letting out a ghostly howl as it hovered above the caravan. Luna looked up to it, then back to her sister with hopeful eyes.
“But…” Falla said quietly.
“Sister,” Luna said, getting her sister’s attention. She slowly shook her head with remorseful eyes as Falla looked at her worriedly.
“I don’t want to have blood on my hands while I hold my newborn daughter,” Luna said remorsefully. Falla looked at her with wonder then down to Triska. She looked over to Alyssa, then inside the cabin at Specca and Squeak.
“But… we can’t wake them up, they have to do it themselves, they’re alone in this,” she reasoned hesitantly. Luna shook her head then looked down to Alyssa, the witch’s silhouette showing a frightful expression as her arms and legs twitched, phasing through the girl’s body that remained motionless.
“No, they’re not alone, we’re here with them,” Luna declared, the girl then darting off of the caravan and running over to the witch. Falla looked over and watched as Luna quickly dropped down next to Alyssa, holding her around the shoulders.
“Wake up! You’re having a bad dream, wake up!” she screamed into the witch’s ear. Falla watched as Luna tried shouting again and again, desperately trying to reach the sleeping witch.
“She’s asleep, Luna, she can’t hear you,” Falla said shaking her head. Luna looked to her with frustration, her eyes forming tears.
“We have to try, we have to tell them to wake up; we need them to save Daniel!” she cried out. Falla looked at her with wonder then up at the nightmare, the monster watching them as it held Daniel close in its arms. Luna tried screaming again and again into Alyssa’s ear, franticly trying to wake the girl up. Falla looked over to her, then darted off the caravan and ran over. She knelt down next to Alyssa’s side and yelled into her other ear.
“Wake up! You’re dreaming, wake up!” she screamed. The sisters tried again and again, both of them watching the witch’s outline staring ahead with fright. They continued shouting as loud as they could, hoping their words would reach the witch inside her dream.
“WAKE UP!”
*****
“NO!” Alyssa screamed, running franticly through a darkened hallway. It was nearly pitch dark, with only small beams of moonlight being seen through the wall’s boards. She ran while looking back with fright, hearing the sound of claws scraping along the wooden floor while snarls and howls echoed out.
“Daniel! Daniel!” she cried out, looking ahead with fearful eyes. She ran down the endless hallway, never seeming to find the end as she desperately tried to outrun what was behind her. Howls and roars were heard in the darkness that crept along behind at her feet, the witch stumbling and balancing herself as quickly as she could while running without her staff. She couldn’t remember how she got here, only that she was somehow here and obviously not alone.
“What’s happening, where is everybody? Daniel? Triska? Anyone, where are you?” she screamed as she ran down the hallway, her breathing heavy as she searched around franticly for any way out.
*****
“Wake up! You have to wake up right now!” Luna cried out, shaking Alyssa by the shoulders as Falla watched with worry. She looked along the girl’s body at seeing the image of the soul, the spectral shade seeming to be slowly running in place while the facial expression was of fright.
“If she dies by her worst fear in her dream, she’ll die for real,” Falla said softly. Luna looked at her with fearful eyes then down to Alyssa.
*****
Alyssa ran through the endless hallway, stumbling every now and then as she whimpered and looked around quickly. The small cracks in the walls allowed moonlight to shine in through both sides of the corridor, just enough to illuminate the pathway.
“Get me out of here! Get me out!” she screamed as tears were forming in her eyes.
After running for what seemed to be forever she barged through a wooden door, coming to a quick halt as she looked around with shock. She was standing inside her home; with her living room just as she left it while outside it was night with the forest being dead and decaying. The fireplace was dark and lifeless while moonlight from outside illuminated the home with a soft bloom. Alyssa looked back then quickly shut the door, which was the way into her storeroom. She quickly backed away as the door banged and rattled around, with the sounds of claws scraping against it along with howls being heard from the other side.
“Why is this happening? How did I get here, what’s going on?” she cried out. The door cracked and creaked as it was clawed at from the other side, the sounds of vicious snarls and howls echoing out as Alyssa backed up frightfully.
“No… go away… leave me alone!” she shouted out, holding her hands to her ears while shutting her eyes tight. She couldn’t block out the howls, she couldn’t calm her breathing down, and she felt the feeling in her chest worsen to a cold chill inside her heart. Slowly she staggered over towards the fireplace, trying to block out the sounds while whimpering in fear.
“This can’t be real, it can’t be… wake up… wake up, Alyssa… wake up!” she screamed as she arched back.
Suddenly the door blasted apart, with Alyssa looking back over
with wide eyes. She gasped as she backed up against the stone bricks of the fireplace, staring with horror as a large black wolf walked into the home. The animal’s cold blue eyes glared at her while its fangs were bared, the beast snarling as its tail swayed behind it. Alyssa felt her body freeze up as she stared with terror at the monster, her mouth quivering as she slowly slumped down against the wall.
*****
Falla and Luna watched as Alyssa’s spectral image showed absolute terror while staring ahead with unblinking eyes, the mouth quivering as she slowly shook her head.
“It’s not real… it’s not real,” Luna whimpered as she tried shaking the witch. Falla looked up at the nightmare in the sky, then back to the witch. She shook her head then held the witch closely on the ground, her mouth next to the girl’s ear.
“WAKE UP!”
*****
“Wake… up…” a faint voice echoed in Alyssa’s head. She stared at the wolf before her, unable to move or make a sound. Her body was frozen in fear while her breathing was short and quiet. After a pause she heard another voice, a girl’s that seemed to be shouting at her from far away.
“If you don’t… Daniel…”
Alyssa blinked then slowly looked up.
“…Daniel?” she breathed out. The wolf snarled loudly, gaining Alyssa’s full attention again. She blinked then shut her eyes tightly.
‘Daniel...’
“He’ll die!”
Alyssa snapped up with a gasp, staring at the wolf with surprise as it slowly approached her.
“Daniel? Daniel!” Alyssa cried out, looking up at the ceiling. The wolf roared at her, the girl looking back to it with fear as it got ready to pounce on her. She slowly clenched her fists as she showed a frustrated and strained expression.
“No…” she said quietly.
The fireplace behind her started to smoke slightly.
“No…” Alyssa forced out through bared teeth, her eyes forming into a glare at the wolf.
A small flame ignited in the fireplace, the fire seeming to grow as Alyssa slowly stood up.
“You won’t… take him… from me…” she growled, her body trembling as she forced every ounce of courage she had forth. The wolf scared her to death, she felt her body shaking and struggling to stand, and she couldn’t calm her breathing. But something else was more prominent in her mind, something that was fueling her willpower.
“You won’t take him from me… you’ll never take Daniel away from me!” Alyssa shouted out.
The fire behind her blasted into a powerful blaze, the flames flaring around the edge of the opening as the wolf snarled at the witch. Alyssa looked around at seeing her home illuminated by the fire’s light, her eyes then looking back to the wolf, sheer anger and rage seen in them as she glared at the animal before her.
“This is my dream… this is my mind… you won’t scare me in here!” she yelled out. The wolf roared at her, the witch standing tall as the fire behind her turned a deep crimson. The flames blasted out and up around behind the witch, searing the walls and igniting the wood and bookshelf as the ceiling caught fire. The wolf looked around at the blaze then towards Alyssa, the witch glaring at it with purple glowing eyes. She screamed loudly, but not out of fear. Her yell was filled with anger and power, the call causing the fires behind her to flare around wildly.
“Go to HELL!” she roared, the flames blasting past her in a torrent. The wolf howled as the fire washed over it in a wave, the animal crying out as it was incinerated in the inferno. The fire crashed into the other side of the home and flared around the dwelling wildly, the window shattering from the heat as Alyssa slowly walked towards the center of the room. Her eyes were locked into a glare as she felt her fear melting away along with her surroundings. The remains of the wolf turned to black ash and smoke, a hoarse howl being heard before being consumed by the blaze. Alyssa growled loudly as the fires swirled around her, incinerating everything into a hellish blur. Looking up with a cold glare her eyes gave off a purplish glow, the girl baring her teeth as the fires consumed everything around her in an unstoppable torrent. She breathed heavily then arched back with a furious yell.
“DANIEL!” she screamed out, shooting up from her dream with her arms flailing around her. She looked ahead while breathing heavily and saw a veil of fog lingering around old trees and tall grass, then over to see Falla and Luna staring with surprise while sitting on either side of her.
“You’re awake, you’re awake!” Luna cheered with relief.
“Wha… Luna? Falla? What are you doing here?” Alyssa asked scrambling back to her feet.
“We’ve been trying to wake you up, we were worried you were going to die,” Luna said worriedly. Alyssa looked at them with confusion.
“What? Die? What’s going on, where’s…” she started as she looked over to the side, the witch then seeing Triska lying on the grass as her spectral image was shaking her head with agony.
“Triska? Triska!” Alyssa cried out running over to her. Luna and Falla quickly ran over as well and looked down while the teen lay motionless on the grass, her spectral image trembling and crying.
“What… what the hell is this? What happened?” Alyssa demanded looking over to the butterfly sisters. Falla pointed up, with Alyssa then looking up and gasping as she saw Daniel in the arms of a monster above the caravan.
“Daniel!” Alyssa screamed out.
“That’s what happened to you all, a nightmare,” Falla said as the sisters looked up as well. Alyssa stared at the airborne monster with shock then glared at it as she held out her hand, her staff flying over into her grip as she growled loudly.
“Let him go!” she yelled as she aimed her staff up towards Daniel. The nightmare held onto Daniel tightly as it let out a low howl at the girls, with a rippling effect surrounding it from the witch’s magic.
“Dammit, I can’t even budge it. What the hell is that thing anyway?” Alyssa asked with frustration.
“It’s a nightmare, a spirit monster,” Falla explained while glaring at the ethereal monster.
“It was going to take all of your souls, you were all going to die in your dreams,” Luna added with a worried expression. Alyssa looked at her with surprise.
“My dream… wait, that was you I heard?” she asked. Luna nodded as Falla glanced away with annoyance.
“Yes, it was about to take your soul away. If you die by your worst fear, you die for real,” Luna explained. Alyssa looked at them with surprise then down to Triska. Falla glanced down to her then to the caravan.
“You were all cursed by that monster, we just managed to reach you before it took your soul,” she commented.
“Oh my god, Triska!” Alyssa cried out kneeling down and budging the girl. She looked to the caravan then to the sisters, with Luna nodding with a worried expression while Falla was looking back up at the nightmare.
“Your friends inside the caravan are also suffering from the curse, they’re about to die in their sleep as well,” Luna said nervously.
“Daniel doesn’t appear to be suffering yet, there’s still time to save him,” Falla said while watching Daniel closely, observing that no spectral image was forming around him just yet. Alyssa looked up to Daniel then back down to Triska, the witch then running over and hopping up onto the front of the caravan. She looked inside to seeing Specca and Squeak on the floor, both asleep with spectral images of themselves wavering around above them.
“We were all cursed, that’s why the nightmares never ended. I don’t even remember falling asleep,” Alyssa said shaking her head.
“That nightmare’s going to kill Daniel, we need to do something!” Falla called out. Alyssa looked up at the monster holding Daniel then down to seeing Luna shaking Triska franticly.
“But they’re going to die any minute now; we have to save them first!” Luna cried out. Alyssa looked down to Triska then up at Daniel, then down to Triska again before back up to Daniel. She growled with frustration and looked down to Triska, then hop
ped off the caravan and landed down next to her.
“You two get inside and wake up Specca and Squeak, hurry!” she called out as she tried shaking Triska again. Luna nodded and dashed into the caravan as fast as she could while Falla just looked down at Triska. Alyssa glanced to her with a growl.
“Get going, wake them up like you did with me, hurry!” she yelled out. Falla looked at her with frustration and narrowed her eyes.
“You’re just going to keep Daniel away from me again, aren’t you?” she accused sharply. Alyssa looked to her with a glare as Falla crossed her arms before her.
“If I help save your friends then I want you to promise that I’ll get my seed from Daniel,” she demanded. Alyssa growled loudly, her eyes glowing purple while glaring with rage. Falla watched her nervously as Alyssa’s hair flowed around her ears as she pointed to her.
“Either you wake up my friends from this, or I’ll show you what a real nightmare is,” she threatened. Falla stared at her with frustration and fear as Alyssa glared at her. After a pause Alyssa held out her hand towards her, with Falla then being lifted up into the air as a magical force surrounded her body.
“Wake. Them. Up. Now,” Alyssa ordered with a cold glare, her words echoing inside of Falla’s head. Falla trembled and nodded shakily, then was slowly put back down as the magical force around her vanished. Alyssa looked back to Triska with worried eyes, shaking her franticly in an effort to wake her up. Falla hesitated for a moment then flew back up to the front of the caravan, looking inside to seeing her sister shaking Specca while screaming into her ear for her to wake up.
“Wake up; you’re in a very very very bad dream! Wake up!” she cried out. Falla ran into the cabin and tried to uncurl Squeak, grunting with frustration as it was incredibly difficult to even budge the ant girl.
“I hope you’re happy, Luna, now that witch is going to keep us from getting pregnant,” she muttered while looking down at the sleeping ant girl with frustration. Luna glanced over to her then resumed shouting into Specca’s ear while shaking her franticly.
chronicles of eden - act I Page 77
