I Get A Visitor In My Dreams

When I opened my eyes, I had no arms, no legs, and no air in my lungs. I was floating in the air, unable to make a sound or breathe. The only thing that kept me from freaking out was the numbness in my brain. A warm blanket had been put onto my brain, and all my physical and emotional functions felt dampened.

My vision was messy: colours mixed together like wet paint, light stretched in straight lines across my sight, the separation between items and the environment blurring out. The lighting of the room I found myself in was dark, shadows lingering in the corners of the room. A large desk stood in the middle of the opposite wall, a few granite pillars supporting the roof above. Maps and bookshelves decorated the walls, along with various old jewelry, rusty tools and dusty parchments.

Despite being half blind, I recognised the place almost immediately. The room was still tidy, none of the drawings I'd seen were visible yet. I guess this is before he disappeared.

"I left the relics here," I heard a blurred-out voice speak.

Bjorn!

I didn't clearly see him or Sam as they entered the room, but I knew instinctively it was them. The figure I thought was Sam leaned over and into a crate, pulling out a piece of glass obsidian. I didn't see that back when I barged in. He whistled.

"Wow, the castle really was made out of glass! Ugh… How did you manage to bring this back, it's so heavy!"

Bjorn took the rock, putting it down onto the table with a loud CLANG, the wood shaking.

"It wasn't as heavy when we were on the mountain. It gained weight the further we went away."

"Like it belonged there," whispered Sam.

Bjorn nodded and hummed in agreement. I felt a shiver coming down my spine and turned around, staring into the dark corridor that led into the room. Something's out there, my imaginary hands twisted in nervousness, my empty chest squeezing tight. I turned back to the men, yelling silently in the void.

"Leave! Now, you fools!"

It made no difference. The door smashed shut, turning off the lights in the room. I couldn't see anything, but the sound of a brawl echoed around me, yells resonating in my ears. Please!

I prayed to all the gods I knew, hoping Sam made it out.

The lights turned back on, the whole room flipped over, Bjorn lying on the ground like I'd found him. Everything was the same as I’d remembered, except for a dark-haired man who stood by the broken desk, cackling as he drew a screaming, eyeless face again and again on every surface he could. I stepped closer. The man stopped drawing, and turned towards me, deep purple eyes shining in the dimly lit room.

Damien, I gasped, floating backwards. He'd grown taller, pieces of armor already mounted onto his body, a spike helmet covering his forehead.

"One down," he smirked, his voice raspy and multi-layered, "How many of your loved ones will I get to kill before you break, Storm Cleaver?"

I got up, my body aching all over as I rose from the dead with a jump, sweat covering my skin. Where the hell am I?

I was in an open cave, red rocks surrounding me, thunder roaring in the distance, rain pouring on the coloured ground outside. This looks like the desert still…

I tried to put together my thoughts and memories feeling like scrambled eggs. Memories of the fight came back like a whip to my head, my anger and frustration boiling up in my blood until I pulled on my hair, screaming in my lap. Stupid, stupid old man! I scratched my legs vigorously. I can’t believe you did that! And why did the spear not do anything to the creature?!

I picked up a rock and smashed it again and again against the wall, ignoring how much the movement hurt, feeling like letting loose. You took my dad, I grunted in my mind as I exploded rock after rock, you better watch your back, I will rip your spine out!

It took me several minutes to calm down, and by the time I had no energy left to spend on my anger, Yumii ran in the cave, drenched head to toe in water, battling red crabs in a fillet.

“Would you stop giggling around for a minute?” She mumbled at the animals. “I am trying to cook you, here.”

“I don’t think telling them that will make them behave,”

The faery jumped 3 feet in the air with a squeal.

“Zoe! You’re awake!” She dropped the crabs to the floor and ran at me, jumping into my arms.

“HUMPH!”

The faery held me tight, as if she was afraid I’d disappear from her arms. I patted her on the head.

“I’m okay… I owe you so much, you know? You saved my life more times than I can count.”

“Nonsense,” she sniffled from my chest, “We are yet to find your husband. I still owe you.”

Foolish girl, I snickered with a smile, warmth spreading throughout my body. If only Atos was still around…

“How did you get us out?”

“I made the biggest, brightest star that has ever existed and blew the whole place out of existence before I dragged us into that exit.”

She stated her exploit like it was a simple thing to do, her tone unusually calm.

“I see… Thank you,” I smiled with teary eyes.

Yumii just nodded in my chest, staying quiet. My heart began bleeding in my chest so much I stopped my thoughts and elected to ignore my feelings. My stomach rumbled. Yumii chuckled, getting back up, discreetly wiping her tears.

“Come! I’ve caught us dinner!”

She formed a flat pile of rocks and rubbed her hands quickly together, blowing on them as she did. The red stone ignited, pink flames rising quickly. I watched in awe as Yumii grabbed the fillet of crabs and spun it round and round until it turned into a thin steel bucket that she put on top of the fire, pouring sand on top of the crabs and turning it into water like she had with my canteen before. The translucent liquid splashed on the agitated creatures, and the faery grabbed a rock, beginning to stretch it and thin it with her hands until it became a red disk, placing it on top of the pot.

“I really don’t understand how this works.”

“It’s all just energy,” she shrugged, “I just chose the shape, intensity and power.”

“I mean,” I waved my hand around, imitating her awkwardly, “What’s the cost to this for you? Humans reduce their lifespan, what about you?”

Yumii stared down at her feet, frowning in silence. Maybe I've hit a sensitive spot. I bit my lip.

“You know what, nevermind!” I clapped my hands, making her look back up at me as if she’d forgotten about the question I’d just asked. “Please, I don’t get how this energy, does… well you know, stuff?”

Yumii smiled bright, and repeatedly attempted to explain to me how arcane worked while we ate until she eventually admitted her defeat to my stupidity. See Sam? You’re not the only one cursed with me.

“There’s something I need to talk to you about,” I swallowed my food hard, sweat covering my palms just at the thought of what I was about to say. “... I couldn’t bring myself to tell you, before… About Elyah. You deserve to know all about what happened, and-and I will tell you everything, some day, I just don’t think I could handle these memories right now…”

I readjusted myself, staring blankly into the faery’s eyes, who stared right back, her full attention set onto me. I took a deep breath.

“To be short, I was trained as a Mercenary on the Cerberus Islands, where you were being taken to when we met.”

“And where you saved my life,”

I nodded.

“Right. Well, I disagreed strongly with how things were run over there, and ended up leading a revolution. Which failed…”

“Sorry to hear that.” The woman grabbed my hands, “That must’ve been awful!”

I winced. You have no idea.

“It was. But that’s not the point. When I was there, when I made that revolution, I was helped by friends, all of whom are dead now… And… El-Elyah was one of them.

I stumbled on my words, struggling to push through the emotions choking me up as I anxiously waited for the faery’s judgment.

“Who?” She leaned her head to the side.

I froze. Uh, what?

“Elyah,” I squeezed her hand, “Your friend?”

“I don’t have a friend called Elyah.” She shook her head. “But it’s good that you do! It’s a pretty name, based on a-”

“Star, yes,” I nodded, a frown taking over my face.

“Did I upset you..? I’m sorry.”

Yumii pulled her hands back, playing with her thumbs and staring at the ground, looking like a beat dog.

“Of course not!” I gently grabbed her shoulder. “Are you sure, you don’t remember a faery, called Elyah, tall, green eyes? The reason you were out exploring?”

“Nope!”

She smiled at me, her eyes empty of all the worries of the world.

“What the hell”, I whispered, holding my head. Am I going crazy?!... No, it’s definitely her this time.

"It's okay," Yumii comforted me, petting my head before looking down at her feet, face turning grim.

"... I'm sorry for your dad. It’s my fault. If I hadn’t tripped-"

“Don’t blame yourself.”

I hugged her tightly as she sobbed, pushing down the uncontrollable cries that wanted to come out. “It’s my fault for spacing out and getting in trouble in the first place.”

“Let’s just call it even then,” chuckled Yumii while crying on my shoulder still.

“Let’s do that,” I smiled, a tear running down my cheek. Come on Zoe, pull yourself together!

"Up we go," I pulled Yumii along as I got back up. "It's alright. Let’s take the time to grieve later, and find my husband first, okay?"

I walked to the cave's entrance, staring longingly at the canyon that drew itself in front of me. The long stretch of ravine reached down to a strong river, its riff crawling with red crabs, all walking on top of one another, some even as big as stone boulders. Falling down there certainly means a very painful death. I shivered. The serpentine path ran along the massive cliffs that reached the sky, dried tree roots hanging from the walls. Up there, the rocks had turned brown and muddy. I remembered an old kids' tales I was told. They say a God bled to death here, and painted the valley red. These tales weren't really for kids, now that I think about it.

“How are we going to get out of the Blood Valley?”

“Let's catch a ride!”

Yumii pointed to towering pillars that stood even higher than the surrounding cliffs.

I was unable to see the top. I did, however, see the majestic Saries that soared above the sky. The giant steel wings hawks caught the lightning in the air and redirected it to their prey below, diving at the speed of sound to catch their smoked seafood and climb back up before the other crabs could react.

“We're gonna climb that?” I pointed up, staring at the crazy green-haired woman next to me. “In this weather?! Are you mad?”

“Aren't we all?”

Yumii smirked, stepping down the cave entrance and onto the goat trail that followed the ravine all the way to the pillars. Gods, give me the strength. I stepped forward on the path, clenching my fists as my thoughts returned to my lost father. You won’t get away with this, Hollow.