Poor Owl! This made me sad just writing it. How lonely he must've been. . .
The characters present/mentioned in this story are Owl, NiGHTS, Wizeass, and a Visitor!
Owl mourns over the loss of NiGHTS from Wizeman's death.
I swear it's only sad in the beginning.
The Dream Gate had always been a breathtaking sight to any onlookers. A small clearing set in stone sat comfortably, surrounded by enormous trees that seemed to reach up to the Heavens itself. The thick web of branches intertwined into spectacular designs, overlapping and stealing the light from the world below.
Bound in the center was a water fountain, affectionately called the "Dream Drip Fountain" by the old being that lived there. Carvings layered the outer edges, lined in silver that enclosed the blue-tinted liquids. Against the soft light provided by elegantly structured lamps, it looked absolutely divine. Small statues of various creatures laid in the water, tainted ever-so-slightly with moss from age.
Yet, even the serene beauty of the Dream Gate could not distract Owl from the gnawing loneliness that sat in the pit of his stomach. The old bird let out a sigh, leveling himself as his dull talons dug into his wooden perch. "Oh, NiGHTS," he cooed out, sadness lingering in his worn down voice, "it's just not the same without you here."
It was true. Although the defeat of Wizeman rid the dreamscape of nightmares, it appeared as though the violet jester had their own effect on the world itself. Less Visitors had started to show, and even when they did, they didn't find what their heart desired. Many awoke facing the same problems and consequences they had originally, as if Nightopia had made no impact on them. They left without managing to recover their Ideya, never breaking out of their outer-shells. No improvement was made on their mental states, just the same glum, depressing, gloomy feelings as before.
It's not as if the old bird hadn't tried helping, he still played his part as a mentor and guide. He greeted the Visitors with the same monologue, with a few added tips as NiGHTS wasn't there to aide in the explanation. All about their Ideya, what to do and what not to do, about the Dark Ocean, and so on. Many regarded him with disinterest and left to explore their Nightopias, which even then, the Visitors hadn't been intrigued by the beauty of their Paradise. There was no sense of danger or excitement, no nightmares. While it was a good thing, as no Visitors would be harmed, it did become boring after a while. Owl hadn't once managed to get the shine in their eyes or the wide-smiles they cracked when the dream jester was there. The little fairy-like inhabitants hadn't even managed to make the Dreamers happy.
'At this rate', Owl thought to himself, 'Nightopia may fall apart, without the help of Wizeman'. It was a sad thought, but alas, everything had to come to an end eventually. The dimension, without it's precious Visitors, would self-implode. Dreaming was no longer an act of leisure, Visitors weren't regaining their Ideya, the damage was starting to occur. Many forgot their experience here, but now it's happening more frequently than ever. Lacking NiGHTS left Nightopia in peril.
The old bird hooted sadly. It had been months since he had last seen that rascal, when they were whisked away by Wizeman himself. However, he was certain that they had successfully defeated the God. No more nightmarens had appeared since then. Or, perhaps, they hadn't truly died. Perhaps, they had stopped stealing Ideya once their Master had fallen.
Owl shook off that thought, that would be impossible. Even if they were given a choice, he was certain they'd still ravage the Dream World for the orbs. They all had to have died with Wizeman, what else could explain NiGHTS' disappearance? Not only that, but over the past few months, the Dream Gate had been slowly breaking apart, pieces crumbling into the swirling vortex of water below. Owl would have to find a new place to reside, once it was all consumed by the Dark Ocean. It was upsetting to leave such a nostalgic place, but there was no other option.
"Hoo! A Visitor!" Owl straightened himself up, preparing to welcome the Dreamer. The old bird eagerly flew over, glad to have at least someone to talk to. The Visitor seemed to look a tad older than those who normally show. 'What were they called again? Ah, teenagers.' The barn owl thought to himself, as they stared at him with curiosity brimming in their gray eyes. "Welcome, welcome!" He said warmly, "is this your first time here?"
The Visitor shrugged, looking around the serene scenery. "I think so? I don't really know where 'here' is." Owl just chuckled, landing on the rock below him. His talons lightly scratched the surface, as he balanced himself out. "Allow me to explain. You are now standing at the entrance to what your people would call the World of Dreams. Now, I don't mean to imply this world doesn't exist. It's simply a place you can only visit. . ." The Visitor seemed to space out, not paying attention to the old bird's ramblings. He trailed off, seeing the hazy expression plastered on their face. This seemed to happen nearly every time. "My name is Owl, Visitor. What is yours, hoo?"
"Oh, I'm. . . I'm Al." They mumbled, zoning back into the conversation. He could tell they were getting impatient and internally sighed. As always, he nearly bored these children to death. It seems they'd prefer to explore and have fun than think about what exactly this world was. It was a naive escape from their problems, but the old timer couldn't blame them. These Visitors were still so young. . . Perhaps that's why they always favored NiGHTS. Between these children and Owl, the generation gap was too large.
"I can see you still haven't changed, old timer! Still squawking on and on to this poor Visitor." A familiar voice rang out from above, taking both of the duo's attention.
Impossible.
There was simply no way. . .
Sitting comfortably in the sky, NiGHTS was grinning down at the old bird and the Visitor.
Owl forgot how to breath. He stared up in shock, mouth agape, at the floating jester. There was no way. How can they still be alive? Does this mean the other nightmaren are alive? He never thought he'd see their friendly face again.
"It's been a while, Owl." They smiled, floating down to the two's line of vision. A trickle of worry ran through them as the gatekeeper didn't reply, and a deathly silence enveloped the Dream Gate. Owl gawked at them, starting to tremble and lose his feathers. They turned their attention towards the adolescent Visitor, "hey there." NiGHTS leaned back, until they reclined comfortably in the air. "You seem like an interesting one. My name's NiGHTS, what's yours?"
It took only a moment for them to reply, mumbling out their name. NiGHTS tested out saying it, chuckling lightly. "Al. . . Owl. . . They sound pretty similar! But you're not a bore like him, are you?" It was a small joke, but it managed to get Al to lips to curl into a grin. They shook their head in denial. "What exactly. . . are you? I've seen owls, one's that can't talk, but nothing like. . ."
After a moment of pondering how to respond, and for Owl to recover from the shock, the jester responded with a smile. "I'm a friend."
"And quite the troublemaker, too! You gave me such a worry, disappearing on me like that." Owl responded, ruffling his feathers. The circular gem that rested on his shirt shook slightly. NiGHTS only offered a smile to the old bird, before holding out their hand towards Al. "How would you like to dualize with me? Flying is a speciality of mine."
It seemed that things were going back to normal. When the confused Dreamer gave them a look of confusion, Owl chimed in with his usual monologue. It had been so long since he got to explain what dualizing was, he nearly jumped for joy. It seems Nightopia will be just fine, now that his old friend is back.
I kind of half-assed the ending. I started writing out the beginning, but I wasn't really sure where to go with this. None of it was planned out.
Haha, I also used the name of someone special to me 3 [ Pfft, I wonder if they'll read this. ]
I had nothing else, oops.
Maybe I'll go back and continue something off of this, but for now, enjoy!