Book 2 / 19 - Battle Royale 13

Ring - 3rd
Realm - OREAHEIM


An entity stood staring into the distance. The realm was a blend of colors. Too many colors it was like a sick splash of an artist's paint. From one side of the realm to the next the pain shivered and changed. Reformed and scattered. Like the brush of an unsure painter who was yet to figure out the starting color or yet to determine the curve of a delicate brow.

Mountain tops vanished. Streams shifted, reflections distorted. Plains warped and forests became something else. The Dream Realm was no land of peril but it brought the world change to a whole new meaning. Society was inexistent. Life is a daily journey and unending movement. It was hard to build cities or towns like the other realms in this place.

It was a useless effort. Even the use of binding magic learned from the Architects had been ineffective. 'Well, it did work. But it had a timer. A cool down. It thought. A four-fingered palm rose to scratch its colored body. Bits of mists scraped off the scratched point. 'What did the ancients say? Ah, it was impossible to hold down the work of the Madi'.

It felt pointless. We had no home. Atleast not a permanent one. We had no objection. Atleast not one we found enjoyable. 'All because of them'. He gave a hateful and yet inquisitive glare at the ethereal form standing in the line field with him. It had wings, a beak, and beautiful eyes. Feathers of colors adorned its form as it stood there.

He turned away from the being to watch a Butterfly flap past his face and to the ground perching on one of the Lucid Blooms that raised its head to the sky. It clamped down sucking on the nectar.

'Too late'. He turned back to the being and just as he thought the environment, ground, air, and even the temperature changed. It was like a ripple. Spreading out in a circle. The butterfly flapped hurriedly to get away from the Lucid Bloom. The ripple hit and crossed both it and him. His eyes were shut as the energy rippled around him and out into the distance.

'Again'. He opened his gaze to see a waterfall. The being stood in a creek filled with other beings. He tilted his head knowing these ones were fake. Creations of the first. He took a step forward, his curiosity rising again. 'No!'. He clamped down on it. 'Not now. Hopefully not ever!'.

So was the way of the ones called Mortals. Their dreams were a scourge and bane to their realm. Sometimes his people did not know what to feel for them. Hate, interest, or pity. Hate for keeping them on their toes. Interest in being such a good specimen on the power of the subconscious. Pity for being the only one of the 9 realms to be locked out.

The ancients once told them how even when the Pillars still worked several Aeuses ago, the mortals had been locked out even then. Yet they popped up here. Their connections were nothing but an accidental and uncontrolled event that ended quickly. He shook his head. Even as he desired to step into this mortal's dream pocket, to see its life and take on its facets, his attention was returned to the reason he had strayed from the tribe.

'The Pillars'. The tribe had not seen it. It had come when most had been asleep. Five of them. Some close and others far apart. He had told the ancients and they had scoffed. Reminded him the pillars had been locked. He was there now, traveling in the direction of the one he'd seen clearly. The one he'd kept in his mind's eye.

He turned back to the mortal. 'Maybe a bit of a peek. Just a bit'. He could see some things he could take. 'Besides, it's been too long in this form'. Nodding he gave the distance one more look and stepped into the mortal's world. His world fadad. He became the mortal. He watched the mortal interact and understood its culture. Read its emotions, and saw the weakness of its power. He understood how to flap his wings, how to cry out the Skyshriek. He learned legends and felt emotions that weren't his own.

Then the dream ended with a snap and he was standing in the creek alone. His gaze hardened taking in the sight before him. "As expected". This was the consequence of their connection. The land never reversed back to the previous when the mortal was gone. Only another could change it back and if it did change on its own it was always uncontrolled.

"Atleast I got that one. Now let's see". He shut his eyes drawing on the sensations he had felt. His colors warped, and his body once muscular and flexible, with a tail, pointed ears, and claws became a state of good. Then it stretched out. Colored wings stretched out his back, a beak from his head, eyes that retained the splash of colors, and muscular torso. He was a gray, red, and brown feathered mortal now.

"Interesting. My journey should be faster now". He shrieked into the air. It wasn't hard to reuse the knowledge he had learned from the mortal. He was soaring, climbing high and high up to the colored expanse of their realm. The only part of the entire realm that was unchanging. Unaffected by the mechanism of the realm.

To the far west, he could see purple rain clouds. To the east were shiny silver clouds and a green sky. 'The mortal realm rises'. To the north and south were green skies and blue clouds. He looked up taking a moment to also admire the magenta sky that was their night.

It didn't take him long to cross the expanse with his wings. Time was irrelevant. A destination would come no matter its distance. 'Would be easier to Dream walk'. He thought. He knew why he did not do it though. Keeping an eye on the location of the pillar landing was a good thing. Dram walk while it wouldn't disorient him anymore would still put him in the angle the dreamer was facing. He could leave that dream not knowing which way to go and unable to find a familiar landmark.

He ignored the thought and brought up other things. His face crumpled in a frown as he remembered what he'd been thinking of when he saw the pillars. 'Mirror damned Weavers'. It wasn't hard to be annoyed with the scum of the dream realm. 'OREAHEIM would be better off without them'.

He thought of the creatures that just like them could take any form, but even worse didn't need mortal dreams to do it. They could just pop into whatever they imagined and create whatever they imagined. It made catching and finding them hard. Their latest crime against him was his beautiful Ward.

'Those Reflected Damned!'. He cursed again. It was hard to make one. The ward had been special for that reason. The ancients usually borrowed it to have their meetings. The last thing one wanted was to be talking and then find yourself wading in a pool because nature said it was time or a mortal decided to dream close to you. The Ward prevented that. Rather than trying to stop nature it simply absorbed a bit of the essence and formed a little part of reality that kept you normal.

Sometimes it was okay to not use it. Sometimes you realize it was something like a fire. OR maybe a mortal was dreaming of a thunderstorm. He shook his head. "Lucid Blooms are not even a problem. But where do I find Whispering Willows. I can search out those ferns and the leaves are everywhere there is grass or tree but not the Willow".

Complaining didn't change anything and he knew it so he stopped his tantrum and focused ahead. His mind drifted to nothing as he flew. Soon he'd gone far enough that realizing himself gave him relief knowing he'd gotten way past the half mark. 'Atleast the Pillars didn't hit that far off'.

His eyes scanned the land below. The mortal realm was slowly lighting up the day. It told him just how long he'd been flying. 'This had better be worth it'. He knew it would be tough. Just no one would come with a pillar.

"Oh. Sentinels". The still statues of crystalized essence stood on different mountains or hills. Some were usually seen in forests or deserts. When it remained that way. They were few in numbers but no one messed with them. "I still find it unbelievable that only they can sniff out a mortal's dream. Why not go around snuffing out dreams?". Even as he asked the question he realized his annoyance was not making sense.

"Fine. Maybe some dreams". As much as he and his people were frustrated by the dreams and nature's change they had to admit that the dreams gave them options for different times.

He was flying over what he knew as the Giklor woodlands bordering a mountain when he saw it. "What is that?". His sharp eyesight, a boon from this mortal form he now had gave him a good look below. "I've never seen that before". Curious he dipped low.

His wings beat at intervals to keep him gliding down. The weird thing he'd seen vanished into the woodlands and he frowned. He banked to the right hoping to spit it from the mountain. He could see a bizarre shape rushing through the woods. From this far, he could still make out what he was seeing yet the disbelief just had him draw closer.

Soon he couldn't hold himself back anymore so he took off for the woods. The creature he was seeing had not spotted him. It allowed him to shoot through two narrow trees and begin the dangerous attempt of flying in the forest. He could feel from the instincts and dream memories of the mortal he'd gazed into that flight in places like this were for the skilled.

He flapped to avoid a tree as his prey darted past a tall patch of grass. Flapping faster he hurried. Shooting past the patch he found the creature looking up at him.

'It saw me'. It was both unbelievable and strange. His mind ignored it as he spun and folded his feathered wings into his back dropping like a stone. Halfway to the ground he unfurled them back with a whoosh of air and flapped them harshly to catch his descent. His feet hit the ground and once more he folded his wings.

His eyes accessed the creature before him. "Bizarre". It was the one word that he could apply to it. "Nothing as I've ever seen seen". He took a few measured steps to the creature. It was tall, very much more than him. Black scales on its limbs, dotting its wrists and wrapping around its chest and vanishing into the silver garments it wore.

'Garments. Like mortals. Is this a dream?'. He questioned as he took another step closer. He was closer. He reached out a hand. Something confused him, but his mind could not understand what. He focused on the specimen before him. He couldn't help but wonder what he could gain from this dream.

He was just close enough when he realized something. "Why couldn't I see your features before?". He paused. Even as he got so close he wondered why the head was a blurred darkness that he had to peer harder through. 'Why does it feel like I ask the wrong question?'.

He was just a limb away from the thing when he finally saw the darkness. His eyes didn't pierce it. The darkness simply became bright. A pulse of magenta from two orbs ignited the very air. A pale face housing mortal features with a smile regarded him with the calmest stare.

'It's...smiling'. He looked up past those eyes that bothered him and to the skull. Two black curved horns pointing backward sat on the head.

"You're so pretty". He jumped stunned as the creature spoke. He knew it was it that spoke as its mouth moved. He was farther from it now. Much further. Or he should have been.

He blinked twice only to find the thing right in front of him its right hand holding his hand as well. "Please forgive my manners but I smell one of my babies". The words were sweet to his ears like sugar and yet they brought dread into this form's heart.

The creature raised its hand. 'Her hand'. It was a female of the mortals he had seen. Not similar to most whose dreams he had gone through but similar to others. The moment her hands touched his face, the soft skin blocking his nostrils and part of his eyes he found the thought that had been eluding him.

CAAAAWWWW!!

A Skyshriek tore through his beak. An instinctive reaction of this form he had taken. The female staggered back hands going to her ears. "Oww. So loud". He jumped back uncaring of the pained facial expression curved on her cheeks.

"What are you?". He couldn't hold back the fear and panic in his tone. His eyes roamed her body, searching and seeking what it was that had been making his senses blare. The very senses that somehow had been muted by the female. The female shook her head and looked up.

His kind did not feel temperature. Heat or Cold. The seas came, and the weather did. Reality changes brought some effects but they did nothing to affect their true form. 'Why is this form like this?'. So he blamed the chill that crept up his spin3 on the form he bore now.

The female has a beautiful smile on her face. It wasn't cold, it was devilish and it bore no evil intent. Which made it all the more frightening when she looked at him.

"Sorry. Sorry. Acted out of hand there. Just wanted to see if you one of those seeds".

'What seeds?'. He screamed in his head. "Who...what are you?". He asked taking another step back. Magenta eyes flicked to his legs and then back to his face.

"Am I scary?". She muttered to herself looking down. "Would explain my perk". She shrugged and looked back at him. "I won't harm you." She raised both hands and took a step closer. 'Yeah. TStsrt eith that Sumia. He'll be less frightened '. It didn't matter though as the humanoid was only focused on the things he was sensing and the smile that never once changed.

The moment he saw her feet take the first step he turned and jumped into the air. His wings flapped hard and weaved to avoid a tree and take to the sky. He shot for the canopy. 'If I can breach I can change form and hide. I must get...'.

He didn't sense it this time. He felt it. Not an energy or a scent. Its touch was like a searing burn on his feet. A shriek escaped his beak again and a force dragged him. down. He fought. Oh, he fought. Terror clawed its way into his heart even as he knew he should fight the fear, his wings beat fast and hard. It was useless. Against it. He knew. Only he could do nothing.

He met the leaf-padded ground of the woodlands with a thump. Soft fall or not, terror and shock sent him tumbling right into the oblivion of darkness.

____

He could never forget that day. It was one of the days his people warned off. Taught their young of. The day a mortal's dreams changed.

The dream pocket just like any had been formed. The terrain changed. The Who's Peak Remained Calm was the first to step into this pocket. It was a sight he would never forget. While it became one he got used to the first was more daunting. The terrain changed. It wasn't rare for a terrain to change when dreams were ongoing. But it was rare for the ancients to panic.

He knew not what it was that troubled them until he saw it too. To see a dream was to be in it. Beyond it was only a lack of understanding. The mortal whose dream pocket caused such vanished, leaving the consequences for them to handle. Like the dream pockets, the new reality did not fade. But it was much worse. He watched the reality collapse on itself. It was unlike anything he had ever seen. He had not seen much.

The tribe panicked. The ancients gathered. He and the others were dragged behind. The collapsed pocket like a stone cracked. From it crawled something Eldritch. What followed was chaos and death. The tribe scattered and yet stayed together.

___


He opened his eyes. It was a bright new day. New days were slow to come by but they always did. He stretched, his mind going to the Pillars he had to find today. His body refused to budge. He could feel a pressure and a weight on his form. Slowly he opened his eyes.

The magenta eyes staring at him so close sent a jolt through his body. He jumped, or atleast he tried. He couldn't move. A sharp glance down showed him something heart-chilling. A black thick cord of dark matter held him bound tightly. His eyes wanted to follow the cord, his skin itching and burning begged differently. He knew what it was. He needed no eye to know.

He must have made some sound as the eyes looked down to the cord and then she spoke. "Let up on him Pebbles". The pressure around his torso relaxed. The itch faded and yet his mind went to one thing. 'She commands it'. Various scenes of his people fighting, dying, winning at times, or needing help at other times flashed through his mind.

"And you command it". He spoke. He looked into those orbs his curiosity and shock drowning his fear. "What are you?".

"You've asked me that a lot. How about you tell me what you are and why you chased me and then ran". He blinked. He looked down at the cord still around his torso and up at her.

"You control a nightmare?". She blinked at him.

"I guess they're not so unpopular". She grumbled with a drop of her head." Come down here Pebbles". He looked up and froze, his fear and shock returning. Uncurling itself from the Whispering Willows Tree was the largest creature he'd ever seen. 'This is a Nightmare?'. It was unlike any of the ones his tribe had banished.

He and the female watched it drop to the ground and then slide into her waiting arms. He watched stunned at her gleeful expression as she petted the creature. He took in its long form vanishing behind him. Its tales of black were similar to those he'd known before, a forked tongue slipped out of its maw and he caught its eyes. 'Magenta. Like...'. he looked up at the female who was cooing and kissing the thing's head having seemingly forgotten him. '...her'.

"How?".

Her eyes locked on him. Her smile didn't fade and he sensed no animosity in her gaze. "I just can". She shrugged focusing back on Pebbles and cocking her head. "You sure?". She muttered. He frowned as she spoke to the thing. "I'll see". She looked up at him and he froze once more.

"Sorry. I don't know if this will hurt". Pebbles slid off her lap and the girl came even closer. He tried pressing himself back but the length around him held tight.

"What are you doing?". He didn't miss the fear in his voice.

"Pebbles said you have a power seed in your mind. I'll just help you with it". Before he could protest or say a word she grabbed his beak with both hands and tugged it open. A shriek wailed out and she shivered. "Stop that". She complained.

He shook his head as hard as he could but the hands held him firm. Then he loosened his form. It was fast and instant. One minute she had his beak and the next she had nothing. Her words though sent a shiver down his spine.

"Oh!. You should have said you had this form. Would have been easier. You do have to tell me all about you later". Her right hand punched his face. He screamed from. the pain he felt in his mind. Something was in his head, poking and feeling around.

"Not there. Not here". he could hear the whistles of the Glade birds from her. "Not you". A hiss from Pebbles grabbed her attention. Looking at the bird with her hand still stuck inside his head she had a conversation.

"That should work?". She turned back and her magenta eyes glowed brighter. He squirmed as he felt a force in his mind. "Ahah". A cackle was all he heard as pain lashed onto his mind. The female tugged her hand.his left eye, the elbow-deep limb coming out with an Eldritch thing in her grip.

"Talk about the window to the soul". She grinned fiercely as the thing screeched. A sound that was like nails on a board. Birds and life around dropped wherever they were. Some were paralyzed and the weaker dying. "Shush. You'll be good as new soon. Still don't know what to make of you though".

Looking back at the large serpentine creature she gave a puppy face. "Will you carry Timbles here for me?. Pwease". The serpent hissed. A smile broke out on her cheeks. "Oh, you're the best Pebbles". Turning back she appraised the Eldritch thing looking like a fusion between squid and worm.

"You heard your big brother, it's fine. Come on out". She dragged harder the single tendril holding it into his eye stretching. Then it popped out and the thing stopped moving. He was too busy fighting the pain in his mind to see the thing shrink down into the side of an egg.

"You already have your name Timbles. Come on out". The egg cracked and black liquid flowed out pouring to the ground. She took a step back giving it space. The liquid pooled on the ground rose and formed a large humanoid shape that was similar to the being she drew it from.

When it stopped forming its body it turned to her. " Beautiful". It was just a humanoid shape of black matter with no eyes or features. She must have seen something though as she turned to the being still trying to breathe through the pain in his head. " You house a Nihilith. Man you must have it hard".

Timbles and Pebbles weighed themselves up before nodding in acceptance. While the horned female noticed it she didn't understand what it meant. They spent the time watching the humanoid go through the pain before finally relaxing when the day brightened.

"No sun in the sky. The sky is just bright". She didn't understand it but she didn't care. Her focus was on the entity she'd taken Timbles from. He'd stopped shaking some time ago and now rested or slept if his kind slept. Wasting time was easy as she took the time to create skills. It was hard, like programming. Finding the key ideas and boundaries to her three racial abilities. She found anything was doable as long as she stayed within the parameters of those abilities or her perk.


"W... What... are you?". He was no more in pain, his eyes, a blend of blues and purples with flickering hints of white and silver stared at her.

"I guess I owe you that. I fell to Vaustaris first, and from there, beams of light dropped me here. Do you know about the records?". Her eyes went to her nightmares and returned. He stiffened under the gaze of the magenta orbs but nodded.

"It tells me I am an Elder Psion. Whatever that means. I mean I do get what it means but seriously the description is just poor. Do you know what it means?". He shook. his head eyes never leaving her. "Figured. I do have this quest. I need to gain my domains. That fairy didn't say how either. Useless!". She hissed with an eye roll.

"You...you can control the nightmares. How?". She sighed.

"I don't like Q&As?". He frowned at the word but just stared. "I just control them. The records call it my perk or something like that". She shrugged. " Okay. It's been nice talking to you but I have to go. There's a destination in mind and domains to find". With her never-fading smile, she rose.

He watched her walk to her nightmares. The serpent hissed and curled around her while the other humanoid one with no features just like him shrunk itself. He watched her mount the serpent and grab onto the two horns that poked from its head.

The pain in his mind was a faint throbbing sensation now, nothing like the biting pain he'd endured. Pushing to his feet he watched as the serpent curled and began floating into the air. He was curious, so curious. He wanted to know, to understand.

"Oh, if possible would you know how to use this?".A shard appeared in her palm. The girl looked unsure of the thing but he almost stumbled back.

Shardoways were only gotten when you killed something of a greater power. The ancients had explained it as the universe's way of stopping them from stagnating. Not that it mattered to most. Fighting something of greater power was almost impossible. He was a second from asking how but reminded himself of the nightmare she now reared. A single gulp was all it needed to swallow him. His eyes fixed on the shard as his mind went through so many questions.

"I guess you don't know. Very well". The nightmare turned and its long form coiled like a spring. He watched the black scales twist and stretch. He wanted to know. He really wanted to know.

"Wait!".His mouth betrayed him. His form twisted and soon he was standing in his feathered form. The nightmare halted, the head-turning to regard him. It was quite the mental strength to face four magenta orbs but he did it.

"I'll show you how to use it but you'll let me come with you".

The serpent or maybe its maker looked interested now. The creature glided through the air and around him. "Why do you wish to come with me?".

"You've not answered my questions". A groan escaped the female.

"That's not it". The nightmare stopped in front of him and she leaned closer. Her annoying smile had never once vanished. He wanted to think of the face as a muscle. He knew this mortal form had those. "Tell me".

'Does her cheeks not tire?'. He wondered staying silent. She sighed.

"Very well. I am curious to know though". The serpent went forward and stopped. Looking at the back and then to the female he found her appraising him. "I don't want to be late".

Grabbing onto the scales was frightening. This was a creature he'd seen and fought at times to banish. And here he was climbing its back. Several double spikes were running down the back. There were enough spaces between individual spikes to plop down. It was where the female sat. He followed.

"Answer me this one question. What do I call you?". He blinked at the question. It wasn't strange but it also wasn't something he could answer.

"My people do not use names". It was hard not to look away but he did.

"Huh". She faced forward and the nightmare rose. Around her neck grabbing onto her tight with four limbs was the nightmare she made from him. The serpent curled and shot through the trees going forward.

"A race that does not name, exciting. Still..." She glanced back with her right eye. "... it'd be important to have something to call you since you're my new teacher. Don't you think so?". She giggled.

He didn't respond and she didn't seem to mind. "So what would I call you?. Hmm". She peered at him again before facing forward. "Your eyes remained constant even when you shifted from. this form to that black shape. Was that your true form?. It looks pretty. Hmmh. You can change everything but your eyes. Say what...". She rambled on and on.

He stared at her back confused, excited, and yet relieved. In a way, she was just like the others of this realm. His eyes left her back to peer around. They had left the woods and were shooting straight forward. Below then the landscape tore past at a breathtaking speed. 'Irs even faster than my flight'.

"Ah ha I got it. Your eyes reminded me of a little fire. Flickering and dancing in the wind. I'll call you Falen". It wasn't a question and He didn't care either way. He was still thinking trying to convince himself he'd made a bad decision.

But he knew. He just had much curiosity to quell. His eyes locked on the nightmare clutching onto the female. A nightmare taken from him and controlled. One that wasn't going on a rampage. He needed to know more. His eyes drifted up to the black hair he'd been too unfocused to note. A long black hair that barely rustled from the wind blasting around them.

"Oh Falen. You've not told me what you are. I mean I've told you I'm an Elder Psion. What are you?". He stared.

"Oneiro". Her eyes widened at the answer.

"Damn. I didn't expect that. Dream Gazers. Figures since this is like the dream realm". She turned forward again musing. He looked around trying to think again when he saw it.

'A Whispering Willows...wait'. His mind reminded him of the tree he'd been held under. Sighing he shook his head. It was no longer important. Atleast not as important as what was before him.

'I need to know how to tame nightmares'.