Level 3: Light

Sarum had mostly recovered from the tree's attack by dusk. He raised the little ball of fire to dance around them for light as they began their evening hike, until finally they had come to a stop on the side of a small pond. Mosquitoes, Tobias thought sourly. They would just be living buffets for the little demons. It was this distracting thought that had kept him awake, leaned up against a tree trunk. He could tell from Sarum's spell that the man was very nearly asleep. It had grown weaker and weaker, and even as he watched it sputtered and died. But Tobias wouldn't sleep. He slapped at his arms any time he thought he felt the tell-tale tickle of an insect landing on his skin, and just as quickly wiped the offending slime onto the grass next to him.

But the mosquitoes seemed to know that Tobias would have to sleep at some point. The little tiny paranoia attacks came less and less often, as if the army waiting for him to sleep was less and less willing to incur more causalities. After a while, Tobias' eyes felt heavy. He allowed his head to droop down onto his chest. He would still feel any bloodsuckers landing on his body...

The sounds of the nighttime forest began to drift away. A city seemed to replace them. Tobias' weary mind accepted this as fact. He was headed to Payon, wasn't he? It was about time that he got there.

The cool green shade of the city provided excellent respite from the heat of the summer day. Hadn't it just been autumn, though...? No, of course not. It was summer now, so it must have been summer before as well. A mosquito landed on his arm in the dark, and he twitched a hand at it to kill it. His hand felt very heavy, though. He dropped it to his side again and forgot all about it. He wouldn't be using his hand for a while anyway.

Cicadas sounded around him. They lived in the trees of Payon, didn't they? The inhabitants found them soothing, if they even noticed them all, but to Tobias they were only obnoxious. Insistent, shrill creatures... somewhat like Sarum. But Sarum wasn't here... who was he, again?

Tobias focused on the scene around him. There was a merchant and his shop here and there, but for the most part the area was full of people. They talked in small groups, in twos and threes, and sometimes in parties as large as 20. Going to hunt some powerful creature, no doubt. Tobias only smiled at them all. 'Powerful' was a relative term. What, to them, might seem strong enough to warrant a 20-man adventure, would be barely cause for alarm to him. He was confident in his abilities.

A little girl approached the stump on which he sat. Her high voice rang out in a question, and he lazily answered it. It was right that people should come to him with questions. He was not only powerful, but intelligent. His guild was renowned for their knowledge. Some thought them arrogant about it, but was it really arrogance if what they prided themselves on was prided for a reason? It was a matter still up to dispute.

But that didn't matter to Tobias. He surveyed his domain with a king's eye. He was unquestioned here. People knew him and respected him here. It was comfortable.

The scene shifted. It was darker now. Twilight? No... no, darker than that. Nighttime. But he wasn't worried about mosquitoes, because there wouldn't be any down here. He was deep beneath Payon; he didn't have to be able to see his surroundings to know that. He just was. There were old and discarded buildings around him. There had been a city here at one point... why it was gone, not even his guild knew. Some things were lost to time.

The place was now haunted, but he wasn't afraid of ghosts. He and his friends weren't afraid of anything down here. They were cocky. Arrogant.

Arrogance. There it was again. But you're not arrogant if you really are strong, or wise, or talented, right?

But there were some things that they could not have predicted. They could not have prepared for them; never have been armed properly.

The darkness was pressing in on him now. It was

suffocating

extinguishing

He felt desperation, not only for himself but for those with him. They were in trouble. Dying? (Some of them are already dead?) The darkness was even nearer. It was so close, like a coat around his mouth and nose. He couldn't breathe. (Keep casting. Keep working your magic.) That was the only way to get out.

But there were so many things going on, he couldn't concentrate. His spells were

interrupted

almost even before he could start them.

And the darkness. The darkness. It had teeth, he was sure of it. They clutched at his ankles and he couldn't run. He watched as a priest next to him fell. (Body limp like a bloody rag doll's.) He took a deep breath to fill his lungs, but he breathed in only darkness. The teeth. The darkness had teeth. Terrible, ripping, shredding teeth. They would grab hold of him and tear him into so many pieces...

"Hey!"

Tobias' eyes snapped open. Light flooded in around him. He immediately squinted and reached a hand up to ward off some of the brightness. "Huh...?"

"You were groaning or something." It was Sarum's face in front of him, and Tobias dazedly focused on it. The wizard's face was in a wide grin. "Dreaming about some pretty lady?"

"What? No..." Tobias frowned on principle. What had he been dreaming about? He couldn't quite remember. It was on the edge of his mind, but he couldn't quite reach it... probably not a pretty lady though. He took a deep breath and was somewhat surprised to find himself gasping for air.

Sarum didn't notice though. He had already turned away to pack up his scattered belongings. He rambled on about Payon and the various attractions and things to do there. Tobias shook his head to clear out the eerie feeling the dream had left behind. He had never been quite so glad to see the morning so bright.