Disclaimer: Nights does not belong to me nor do any of the others from the comic/game. Eve is mine
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The next morning she awoke rested and refreshed. She got up and dressed herself and left her chamber. She went across the hall and knocked on Reala's door to see if he would like to join her for breakfast. There was no reply, so she waited for a few minutes. It was clear he wasn't going to open up so she decided to go alone. She got lost a few times but eventually found her way there. When she reached the dinning hall she noticed it was very empty. Maybe it was because it was early. She didn't know. Eve went up and got some of the steaming food and sat down at an empty table. Jackle just sort of popped up out of nowhere. "Where'd you come from?" Eve asked.
"Oh just the Mystic Forest, I was a bit hungry and the food they make there is sooo nasty. It's gruel the most disgusting food there is, well you can't even call it food it doesn't even taste like food. Teleportation spells are quite handy." The mage went on and grabbed a few things to eat and joined her at the table. "So what's going on between you and Reala hmm?" She looked up at him a bit confused by the question.
"What do you mean? He's my instructor nothing more than that."
"Okay question two, what's so special about you that Wizeman would make you Nights' replacement?"
"Before I answer your question answer mine, who this Nights guy is first." Jackle looked at her oddly.
"You don't know who Nights is?" he asked in disbelief.
"If I knew why would I ask?" Jackle shrugged.
"Beats me."
"Tell me then."
"Okay okay sheesh." He took a few bites of his breakfast before he began. "It goes like this. Nights' used to work for Wizeman. But a Century ago when Wizeman was about to take over the Dream World and the Waking World, Nights stole the red Ideya Wizeman needed to do so. Nights tried to send them back to the waking world by pushing them through the sphere. Which only opens once every hundred years. One broke in half and part of it fused itself to Nights the other half and the whole one were thrown into the waking world. For his treachery Wizeman locked him and Reala (for failing to retrieve them) away in the place between the Dream World and the Waking World the Ideya palace. Until a 100 years later a couple of Dreamers released Nights and another Reala. Wizeman tried to have us steal their red Ideya, we didn't get them though. And When Nights came back to the Dream World he created the Rebellion. To keep Nightmare from taking over."
"That's a long time to be imprisoned." Eve said sympathetically.
"I'm just glad it wasn't me." Jackle ate the rest of his breakfast. "So Eve." puts a hand on her shoulder and pulls her closer. "If there isn't anything going on between you and Reala, you think maybe we could."
"Don't put your hopes too high." Eve took her hand and removed Jackles' gloved hand from her shoulder. Jackle felt utterly rejected but recovered quickly. He was used to it by now.
"Well I should get back to the camp before Reala knows I'm gone." He snickered to himself before chanting the Teleportation spell and vanished back to where ever he had been. So that's why Reala didn't answer his Chamber door. He was at a battle in the Mystic Forest. He probably left very early in the morning and wouldn't be back for a few days. The castle seemed empty; most of the Maren were off fighting. There were only a few females and young children that weren't old enough to fight. That was a Nightmare rule once a child reached a certain age they had to fight for Nightmare whether they liked it or not. It was up to their fathers to train them until that day came. The mothers only got time with the children when they were infants, or their fathers were away, or dead. Then it was up to the mother to train them properly or they would surely die in battle.
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The days flew by like clockwork and Reala and the troops returned. They went back to training together to work up her skills. By the end of six months Reala had taught her mostly every little trick and detail that he knew about fighting. She was a very good student. She had gained a reputation as a dueler. Male Maren were eager to see why Wizeman choose a female to be the second General of Nightmare. They found out the hard way. She didn't kill them just humiliated them in front of a crowd. She was much more lenient on them than what Reala would have been if someone wanted to challenge him. If he had fought them they would be dead or in the infirmary.
After she had her fun, she went to her chamber to rest for a while before she went to one of the few remaining training sessions with Reala. By now she knew her way around the castle pretty well. She approached her Chamber door and went in. It was kind of cold in the chamber she started a fire in the fireplace to warm things up a bit. Eve walked into the bedroom and a surprised awaited her there. There atop the blankets on the bed lay a silver sword. She picked up the sword and swung it around a couple times before examining it. The blade had symbols engraved in it. The hilt had two red gems on either side of it and on the bottom. It felt like it was made especially for her. She spotted a little note on the bed as well. She picked it up and read it. It said.
I thought you might need this. So I had it made for you. Hope you appreciate it. Reala
She smiled to herself. She did appreciate it a whole lot. In fact she loved it. It was the first gift anyone had given her and she found herself blushing. She quickly straightened up and replaced her blank expression. She found the holster sitting close by. It was beautiful hard leather. She holstered the sword and set it beside the bed and lay down to take a quick nap. Her sleep seemed short lived as a loud knock woke her from slumber. She got up from bed and flew to the door. She opened it slowly and jumped back when she saw who the visitor was. A human female dreamer with long sandy blonde hair green eyes. "Who are you?" Eve demanded. The girl said nothing but wandered in and closed the chamber door. She placed a finger in the middle of her forehead. Eve raised a brow, she didn't know what the girl was doing. Did she talk at all or did she choose not to? "What are you doing?" she patted the spot with her finger a few times hoping the Nightmaren would get a clue. Eve still had no idea what she was trying to get across to her.
The girl pointed to the mirror that was placed above the mantle of the fireplace. Eve looked and saw her reflection. She looked back at the girl she pointed to her forehead again. Eve looked back and realized what the girl meant. She meant the upside-down black crescent mark on her forehead. But what was so significant about it? She looked back at the human, she nodded as if saying to Eve that she was correct about the assumption of the crescent mark. The girl then turned her head to the chamber door. Eve looked at it and then. She was woken abruptly upon hearing three loud knocks on her door. She was floating there in the same spot she had been while the girl was there. She looked around for the girl but she was gone. Had that been a dream. No impossible, Nightmaren didn't have dreams, they lived in the dream world. But if it wasn't a dream was it some kind of vision. She heard three more knocks. They sounded more impatient this time. She flew to the door and opened it. On the other side was Reala.
"You're late." Eve eyes widened a bit. She must have over slept.
"I'm sorry. I took a nap I thought I would be awake before now." Reala watched her, this was one of the few occasions he had seen her with her hat off. He had never seen hair that split into two different colors. Eve went back to fetch her hat. She went back to the bedroom to grab it and remembered her new sword and strapped it around her waist. She came out with her hat in hand. Reala decided to ask.
"Why don't you not wear your hat today, you look nice without it." Eves' face turned a bit red. She had never received such a complement from Reala. In fact she was the first ever to receive a complement from him. She did wear her hat all the time. Not wearing it would be a nice change. So she set it down on a chair.
"Alright, why not. oh and thanks for the sword." Reala looked down at it.
"No problem, you needed one anyway." Eve smiled. They left toward the storage loft to do a bit of practicing. They were practicing blocking and maneuvering. After a few hours of this they sat up in the hayloft and rested. Reala looked over at her. She smiled warmly at him. She was content to just sit there with him. Many said he was a conniving jerk who only cared about number one. She didn't believe that though. She saw a side to him that no one else knew existed. She knew nothing of this cold-hearted killing machine. All she knew was the soft, gentle, and caring Reala. She loved to be with him. Reala gave her a sense of security.
Reala kept looking at her, he couldn't stop himself. There was something about her that made him want to be around her all the time. Reala had been with many females but none of them had affected him the way she did. Even though she was a tough Nightmare General she had a soft and innocent side which brought out the best in any grump she met. He couldn't hold himself back any longer. The gap between them was closing swiftly. In that moment everything between them changed. When their lips met Reala thought she would pull away in disgust or something. But she didn't, she welcomed the kiss. As the long buried feelings for him rushed out. A few seconds later the door to the storage loft opened and Jackle walked in.
"Hey Reala, Eve, are you guys in here?" their bliss ended upon hearing his voice. Reala was gonna kick Jackles' ass for interrupting them. He glided down to him.
"What do you want now?" he growled.
"Wizeman wanted to see you two sheesh." He then flew out the door. Eve flew down and looked at him for a moment.
"Guess we should go then..." They walked out together and off toward Wizemans' throne room. Wizeman was pacing waiting for them to come, when the large door to his throne room opened. Reala and Eve both glided in.
"You wanted to see us..." Wizeman turned to the two of them.
"My spies tell me that Rebels are gathering in Spring Valley. I want to you take the troops there and attack them." Reala nodded. "Oh and be sure to take Eve with you. It's about time she experienced a battle. I expect her training is completed?" Reala nodded.
"When do we leave?" Reala asked.
"As soon as possible..." They nodded and bowed, then left the throne room. They glided down the hall.
"Don't worry I'll watch over you." Eve smiled, he seemed to be able to sense her nervousness. Reala stopped in front of a chamber door down the hall from theirs and pounded on it hard. Jackle opened his door up to see Reala standing on the other side.
"What now? Can't you see I'm busy." He said annoyed with a spell book in his hand. He didn't have his hat on this time. Eve had never seen him with it off before. His face resembled that of a normal Maren. His hair was blonde and had many lengths in it. It wasn't very long just about as long as her hair but only came just below his shoulders.
"Shut up and summon the troops, and then get your ass outside." Jackle grumbled something about not being everybody's messenger boy and went back into his chamber. Reala went to his Chamber to get his jester hat. Eve did the same since her chamber was right next to his. Reala strapped his sword holster around his waist. He came out and waited for Eve to emerge from her chamber. When she did they went to the castle gate where the troops were gathering. Once they were all gathered Reala told them where they were going and what they were going to do. Then they flew away from the castle toward their destination. When they entered Spring Valley he sent scouts ahead to make sure they weren't going to be ambushed. The rebels always loved to get the drop on them. This time, if they did they would be in for a lot more then they bargained for. Now they would have to deal with him and Eve. He knew she was going to do a fine job when the fight began.
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Eve had never seen such a beautiful place before. It was all green and full of life. There were windmills flouting up in the air on small chunks of earth. It was breathtaking. To bad soon a battle would take place here. Blood and bodies would soon be littered all over the ground. Spring Valley had seen it many times before. It cried when each battle began. This time would be no different. Dark rain clouds began to gather up in the sky. Then she spotted one of Reala's scouts' approach them. The scout whispered something to Reala and then flew off again. Reala grinned evilly, a grin Eve had never seen him wear before. "It won't be long now. Their camp is only a little ways from here." And sure enough a little ways further they spotted it. The rebels had been trying to take control of Spring Valley. Then they heard the rebels had spotted them coming.
Reala could hear the panic in their cries. Nights obviously wasn't there this time. "Attack!" Reala yelled at the top of his lungs as he drew his sword and lunged forward. Eve drew her sword and followed after him. Then the horde of Nightmare flew forward after them at high speeds straight at the enemy. The rebels prepared themselves to defend their camp and hopefully take control of Spring Valley. Both sides crashed into one another becoming a bloody mob. The rain began to fall hard onto them. Eve slashed, stabbed, punched, and kicked rebels left and right. Any one who approached her got a hard or fatal blow. In only a matter of hours the battle was over. And Nightmare stood triumphant for the first time ever as the few remaining rebels that were alive and that could still walk ran away expeditiously. Reala had the soldier's turn the rebels' camp into a place to put their wounded. After they got the wounded soldiers patched up the headed back to the castle and burned the small camp.
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Wizeman was quite pleased upon their return. At first he had thought they had been defeated again. But when word got to him saying they won. He was more than ecstatic about it. After everything got a little quieter, everyone got to return to get much deserved rest. Reala couldn't sleep though. All he could think about was Eve. He pictured she was in his arms. When he looked into Eve's eyes, he knew the reason why he was alive. And for the first time ever he truly loved someone. He got out of bed and put on his pants and went to his door. When he opened it he was surprised to find Eve on the other side of it. She was just about to knock on the door. He smiled at her and she smiled back. "I couldn't sleep," she said sheepishly.
"I couldn't either. Want to come in?" she nodded. And Reala stepped aside for her to enter.
"I couldn't stop thinking about you. Or about before we left for the battle."
"Yeah?"
"I just need to know, did you mean it? Do you really love me Reala? Or were you leading me on?" Reala was surprised that she asked so bluntly. He glided up to her and caressed her cheek.
"I would never lead you on. Ever since I met you Eve, my life seems to have a meaning to it now. I know the reason why I am alive. And it will always be to love and protect you." He wasn't used to being so sappy but he didn't care right now. All that mattered was letting her know how he felt about her, how he would always feel about her. Eve wrapped her arms around him.
"I love you Reala." She rested her head on his muscular chest. He put his arms around her and held her close to him, just like he had pictured in his mind.
"I love you too Eve." He kissed her gently and she kissed back. They unconsciously glided to his bedroom where their kiss became more intense. Their clothing was pulled off and discarded wherever it was thrown. And the once neat bed was now a mess with their bodies entwined with one another. After a few hours of love making they laid together under the covers of his bed. Eve was now asleep beside him. Reala looked down at her. He couldn't remember a time when he felt more at peace. He knew that Wizeman would forbid their love, say it would be ridiculous for the generals of the Nightmare army to be involved with one another. They would just have to keep quiet about being lovers, but he knew someone would surely see their fondness for one another. But they would take care of that when it occurred. Until then they would act as if nothing was going on.
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The days went on and the battles kept coming. Eve became quite good with her sword. She gained the name "Black Rose" from the Nightmare flower of death. It grew in the Mystic Forest and Nightmaren rarely picked them. Unlike roses from the Waking world the black roses' thorns were filled with deadly poison. If pricked by one you would die only minutes later. The petals of the black rose were used to make an exquisite wine. But only those who knew what they were doing would dare to harvest the flowers. So the name fit her well, Beautiful. yet deadly. She became known quite well among the rebels in just a short amount of time. Then they were told that some of their scouts in Stick Canyon were facing some rebel resistance and needed backup. Usually situations like this led to the bigger battles that lasted twice as long as the normal ones. Once they had enough soldiers they left for Stick Canyon.
The battle in Stick Canyon was fierce. The brutality was unspeakably bloody. It started out small and then grew large and out of control. Neither side knew who was winning. Reala kept a close eye on Eve even when he was fighting off his brother. This was her first big battle, and there were many top notch Rebel fighters here. He would have to postpone his fight with Nights if she got into anything she couldn't handle. Nights noticed him glance away from time to time. That wasn't like Reala to look away when fighting him. His eyes were normally locked onto his opponent in a deadly glare.
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Eve swung left and right slashing and cutting any rebel that came to close. She fought off rebel after rebel, wounding and killing them. Her next opponent she would find to be a lot harder than any other Maren she had faced yet. His name was Ebony; he was one of Nights' top fighters. He dressed in a black suit, with a black vest, black boots, and a black hat. He had thick auburn eyebrows, and silver eyes. He attacked first making her defend herself. She was doing well deflecting his blows. He would find an opening; he just had to be patient. She couldn't keep this up forever. She kept deflecting his blows and then began to meet them head on. She tried to drive him back but he would not be pushed back.
Everything seemed to be going fine until Ebony put more force into his swing. When he hit, Eve was caught off guard and her sword was knocked from her hands and fell into the canyon below landing blade first on a small ledge. Ebony grinned at her and Eve narrowed her eyes at him. She didn't need a sword to fight. He lunged at her and she flew back to dodge it. She continued doing this so she could find an opening to attack. He wasn't letting her find one very easily. She had to be very careful one wrong move and he would hit his target. Eve continued avoiding his attacks flying deeper into the canyon. The sword was getting closer to her and if need be she would grab it up. His next swing came a little to close and nicked her face. A tear of blood ran down her cheek. Ebony grinned even more. "It seems that the Black Rose isn't as deadly as they say." amusement poured from his voice.
"Just you wait." Eve found her opening and lunged at him while he had his laugh. She pushed Ebony back and he was slammed into the canyon wall. He recovered quickly as if he hadn't hit the wall at all. He balled his hands together and hit her in the middle of her back. She let go of him and fell hard onto a ledge. Ebony flew down ready to finish her off but Eve rolled aside in time to avoid his blade. She then flew at him a second time while his back was turned. She tackled him against the wall once again but this time harder and made him loose grip of his sword. Eve let go immediately to avoid being punched in the back again. Instead she got punched in the face. She hit the other side of the canyon wall, knocking her breath out of her. He was swift and nothing she did to him seemed to faze him at all.
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The next morning she awoke rested and refreshed. She got up and dressed herself and left her chamber. She went across the hall and knocked on Reala's door to see if he would like to join her for breakfast. There was no reply, so she waited for a few minutes. It was clear he wasn't going to open up so she decided to go alone. She got lost a few times but eventually found her way there. When she reached the dinning hall she noticed it was very empty. Maybe it was because it was early. She didn't know. Eve went up and got some of the steaming food and sat down at an empty table. Jackle just sort of popped up out of nowhere. "Where'd you come from?" Eve asked.
"Oh just the Mystic Forest, I was a bit hungry and the food they make there is sooo nasty. It's gruel the most disgusting food there is, well you can't even call it food it doesn't even taste like food. Teleportation spells are quite handy." The mage went on and grabbed a few things to eat and joined her at the table. "So what's going on between you and Reala hmm?" She looked up at him a bit confused by the question.
"What do you mean? He's my instructor nothing more than that."
"Okay question two, what's so special about you that Wizeman would make you Nights' replacement?"
"Before I answer your question answer mine, who this Nights guy is first." Jackle looked at her oddly.
"You don't know who Nights is?" he asked in disbelief.
"If I knew why would I ask?" Jackle shrugged.
"Beats me."
"Tell me then."
"Okay okay sheesh." He took a few bites of his breakfast before he began. "It goes like this. Nights' used to work for Wizeman. But a Century ago when Wizeman was about to take over the Dream World and the Waking World, Nights stole the red Ideya Wizeman needed to do so. Nights tried to send them back to the waking world by pushing them through the sphere. Which only opens once every hundred years. One broke in half and part of it fused itself to Nights the other half and the whole one were thrown into the waking world. For his treachery Wizeman locked him and Reala (for failing to retrieve them) away in the place between the Dream World and the Waking World the Ideya palace. Until a 100 years later a couple of Dreamers released Nights and another Reala. Wizeman tried to have us steal their red Ideya, we didn't get them though. And When Nights came back to the Dream World he created the Rebellion. To keep Nightmare from taking over."
"That's a long time to be imprisoned." Eve said sympathetically.
"I'm just glad it wasn't me." Jackle ate the rest of his breakfast. "So Eve." puts a hand on her shoulder and pulls her closer. "If there isn't anything going on between you and Reala, you think maybe we could."
"Don't put your hopes too high." Eve took her hand and removed Jackles' gloved hand from her shoulder. Jackle felt utterly rejected but recovered quickly. He was used to it by now.
"Well I should get back to the camp before Reala knows I'm gone." He snickered to himself before chanting the Teleportation spell and vanished back to where ever he had been. So that's why Reala didn't answer his Chamber door. He was at a battle in the Mystic Forest. He probably left very early in the morning and wouldn't be back for a few days. The castle seemed empty; most of the Maren were off fighting. There were only a few females and young children that weren't old enough to fight. That was a Nightmare rule once a child reached a certain age they had to fight for Nightmare whether they liked it or not. It was up to their fathers to train them until that day came. The mothers only got time with the children when they were infants, or their fathers were away, or dead. Then it was up to the mother to train them properly or they would surely die in battle.
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The days flew by like clockwork and Reala and the troops returned. They went back to training together to work up her skills. By the end of six months Reala had taught her mostly every little trick and detail that he knew about fighting. She was a very good student. She had gained a reputation as a dueler. Male Maren were eager to see why Wizeman choose a female to be the second General of Nightmare. They found out the hard way. She didn't kill them just humiliated them in front of a crowd. She was much more lenient on them than what Reala would have been if someone wanted to challenge him. If he had fought them they would be dead or in the infirmary.
After she had her fun, she went to her chamber to rest for a while before she went to one of the few remaining training sessions with Reala. By now she knew her way around the castle pretty well. She approached her Chamber door and went in. It was kind of cold in the chamber she started a fire in the fireplace to warm things up a bit. Eve walked into the bedroom and a surprised awaited her there. There atop the blankets on the bed lay a silver sword. She picked up the sword and swung it around a couple times before examining it. The blade had symbols engraved in it. The hilt had two red gems on either side of it and on the bottom. It felt like it was made especially for her. She spotted a little note on the bed as well. She picked it up and read it. It said.
I thought you might need this. So I had it made for you. Hope you appreciate it. Reala
She smiled to herself. She did appreciate it a whole lot. In fact she loved it. It was the first gift anyone had given her and she found herself blushing. She quickly straightened up and replaced her blank expression. She found the holster sitting close by. It was beautiful hard leather. She holstered the sword and set it beside the bed and lay down to take a quick nap. Her sleep seemed short lived as a loud knock woke her from slumber. She got up from bed and flew to the door. She opened it slowly and jumped back when she saw who the visitor was. A human female dreamer with long sandy blonde hair green eyes. "Who are you?" Eve demanded. The girl said nothing but wandered in and closed the chamber door. She placed a finger in the middle of her forehead. Eve raised a brow, she didn't know what the girl was doing. Did she talk at all or did she choose not to? "What are you doing?" she patted the spot with her finger a few times hoping the Nightmaren would get a clue. Eve still had no idea what she was trying to get across to her.
The girl pointed to the mirror that was placed above the mantle of the fireplace. Eve looked and saw her reflection. She looked back at the girl she pointed to her forehead again. Eve looked back and realized what the girl meant. She meant the upside-down black crescent mark on her forehead. But what was so significant about it? She looked back at the human, she nodded as if saying to Eve that she was correct about the assumption of the crescent mark. The girl then turned her head to the chamber door. Eve looked at it and then. She was woken abruptly upon hearing three loud knocks on her door. She was floating there in the same spot she had been while the girl was there. She looked around for the girl but she was gone. Had that been a dream. No impossible, Nightmaren didn't have dreams, they lived in the dream world. But if it wasn't a dream was it some kind of vision. She heard three more knocks. They sounded more impatient this time. She flew to the door and opened it. On the other side was Reala.
"You're late." Eve eyes widened a bit. She must have over slept.
"I'm sorry. I took a nap I thought I would be awake before now." Reala watched her, this was one of the few occasions he had seen her with her hat off. He had never seen hair that split into two different colors. Eve went back to fetch her hat. She went back to the bedroom to grab it and remembered her new sword and strapped it around her waist. She came out with her hat in hand. Reala decided to ask.
"Why don't you not wear your hat today, you look nice without it." Eves' face turned a bit red. She had never received such a complement from Reala. In fact she was the first ever to receive a complement from him. She did wear her hat all the time. Not wearing it would be a nice change. So she set it down on a chair.
"Alright, why not. oh and thanks for the sword." Reala looked down at it.
"No problem, you needed one anyway." Eve smiled. They left toward the storage loft to do a bit of practicing. They were practicing blocking and maneuvering. After a few hours of this they sat up in the hayloft and rested. Reala looked over at her. She smiled warmly at him. She was content to just sit there with him. Many said he was a conniving jerk who only cared about number one. She didn't believe that though. She saw a side to him that no one else knew existed. She knew nothing of this cold-hearted killing machine. All she knew was the soft, gentle, and caring Reala. She loved to be with him. Reala gave her a sense of security.
Reala kept looking at her, he couldn't stop himself. There was something about her that made him want to be around her all the time. Reala had been with many females but none of them had affected him the way she did. Even though she was a tough Nightmare General she had a soft and innocent side which brought out the best in any grump she met. He couldn't hold himself back any longer. The gap between them was closing swiftly. In that moment everything between them changed. When their lips met Reala thought she would pull away in disgust or something. But she didn't, she welcomed the kiss. As the long buried feelings for him rushed out. A few seconds later the door to the storage loft opened and Jackle walked in.
"Hey Reala, Eve, are you guys in here?" their bliss ended upon hearing his voice. Reala was gonna kick Jackles' ass for interrupting them. He glided down to him.
"What do you want now?" he growled.
"Wizeman wanted to see you two sheesh." He then flew out the door. Eve flew down and looked at him for a moment.
"Guess we should go then..." They walked out together and off toward Wizemans' throne room. Wizeman was pacing waiting for them to come, when the large door to his throne room opened. Reala and Eve both glided in.
"You wanted to see us..." Wizeman turned to the two of them.
"My spies tell me that Rebels are gathering in Spring Valley. I want to you take the troops there and attack them." Reala nodded. "Oh and be sure to take Eve with you. It's about time she experienced a battle. I expect her training is completed?" Reala nodded.
"When do we leave?" Reala asked.
"As soon as possible..." They nodded and bowed, then left the throne room. They glided down the hall.
"Don't worry I'll watch over you." Eve smiled, he seemed to be able to sense her nervousness. Reala stopped in front of a chamber door down the hall from theirs and pounded on it hard. Jackle opened his door up to see Reala standing on the other side.
"What now? Can't you see I'm busy." He said annoyed with a spell book in his hand. He didn't have his hat on this time. Eve had never seen him with it off before. His face resembled that of a normal Maren. His hair was blonde and had many lengths in it. It wasn't very long just about as long as her hair but only came just below his shoulders.
"Shut up and summon the troops, and then get your ass outside." Jackle grumbled something about not being everybody's messenger boy and went back into his chamber. Reala went to his Chamber to get his jester hat. Eve did the same since her chamber was right next to his. Reala strapped his sword holster around his waist. He came out and waited for Eve to emerge from her chamber. When she did they went to the castle gate where the troops were gathering. Once they were all gathered Reala told them where they were going and what they were going to do. Then they flew away from the castle toward their destination. When they entered Spring Valley he sent scouts ahead to make sure they weren't going to be ambushed. The rebels always loved to get the drop on them. This time, if they did they would be in for a lot more then they bargained for. Now they would have to deal with him and Eve. He knew she was going to do a fine job when the fight began.
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Eve had never seen such a beautiful place before. It was all green and full of life. There were windmills flouting up in the air on small chunks of earth. It was breathtaking. To bad soon a battle would take place here. Blood and bodies would soon be littered all over the ground. Spring Valley had seen it many times before. It cried when each battle began. This time would be no different. Dark rain clouds began to gather up in the sky. Then she spotted one of Reala's scouts' approach them. The scout whispered something to Reala and then flew off again. Reala grinned evilly, a grin Eve had never seen him wear before. "It won't be long now. Their camp is only a little ways from here." And sure enough a little ways further they spotted it. The rebels had been trying to take control of Spring Valley. Then they heard the rebels had spotted them coming.
Reala could hear the panic in their cries. Nights obviously wasn't there this time. "Attack!" Reala yelled at the top of his lungs as he drew his sword and lunged forward. Eve drew her sword and followed after him. Then the horde of Nightmare flew forward after them at high speeds straight at the enemy. The rebels prepared themselves to defend their camp and hopefully take control of Spring Valley. Both sides crashed into one another becoming a bloody mob. The rain began to fall hard onto them. Eve slashed, stabbed, punched, and kicked rebels left and right. Any one who approached her got a hard or fatal blow. In only a matter of hours the battle was over. And Nightmare stood triumphant for the first time ever as the few remaining rebels that were alive and that could still walk ran away expeditiously. Reala had the soldier's turn the rebels' camp into a place to put their wounded. After they got the wounded soldiers patched up the headed back to the castle and burned the small camp.
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Wizeman was quite pleased upon their return. At first he had thought they had been defeated again. But when word got to him saying they won. He was more than ecstatic about it. After everything got a little quieter, everyone got to return to get much deserved rest. Reala couldn't sleep though. All he could think about was Eve. He pictured she was in his arms. When he looked into Eve's eyes, he knew the reason why he was alive. And for the first time ever he truly loved someone. He got out of bed and put on his pants and went to his door. When he opened it he was surprised to find Eve on the other side of it. She was just about to knock on the door. He smiled at her and she smiled back. "I couldn't sleep," she said sheepishly.
"I couldn't either. Want to come in?" she nodded. And Reala stepped aside for her to enter.
"I couldn't stop thinking about you. Or about before we left for the battle."
"Yeah?"
"I just need to know, did you mean it? Do you really love me Reala? Or were you leading me on?" Reala was surprised that she asked so bluntly. He glided up to her and caressed her cheek.
"I would never lead you on. Ever since I met you Eve, my life seems to have a meaning to it now. I know the reason why I am alive. And it will always be to love and protect you." He wasn't used to being so sappy but he didn't care right now. All that mattered was letting her know how he felt about her, how he would always feel about her. Eve wrapped her arms around him.
"I love you Reala." She rested her head on his muscular chest. He put his arms around her and held her close to him, just like he had pictured in his mind.
"I love you too Eve." He kissed her gently and she kissed back. They unconsciously glided to his bedroom where their kiss became more intense. Their clothing was pulled off and discarded wherever it was thrown. And the once neat bed was now a mess with their bodies entwined with one another. After a few hours of love making they laid together under the covers of his bed. Eve was now asleep beside him. Reala looked down at her. He couldn't remember a time when he felt more at peace. He knew that Wizeman would forbid their love, say it would be ridiculous for the generals of the Nightmare army to be involved with one another. They would just have to keep quiet about being lovers, but he knew someone would surely see their fondness for one another. But they would take care of that when it occurred. Until then they would act as if nothing was going on.
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The days went on and the battles kept coming. Eve became quite good with her sword. She gained the name "Black Rose" from the Nightmare flower of death. It grew in the Mystic Forest and Nightmaren rarely picked them. Unlike roses from the Waking world the black roses' thorns were filled with deadly poison. If pricked by one you would die only minutes later. The petals of the black rose were used to make an exquisite wine. But only those who knew what they were doing would dare to harvest the flowers. So the name fit her well, Beautiful. yet deadly. She became known quite well among the rebels in just a short amount of time. Then they were told that some of their scouts in Stick Canyon were facing some rebel resistance and needed backup. Usually situations like this led to the bigger battles that lasted twice as long as the normal ones. Once they had enough soldiers they left for Stick Canyon.
The battle in Stick Canyon was fierce. The brutality was unspeakably bloody. It started out small and then grew large and out of control. Neither side knew who was winning. Reala kept a close eye on Eve even when he was fighting off his brother. This was her first big battle, and there were many top notch Rebel fighters here. He would have to postpone his fight with Nights if she got into anything she couldn't handle. Nights noticed him glance away from time to time. That wasn't like Reala to look away when fighting him. His eyes were normally locked onto his opponent in a deadly glare.
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Eve swung left and right slashing and cutting any rebel that came to close. She fought off rebel after rebel, wounding and killing them. Her next opponent she would find to be a lot harder than any other Maren she had faced yet. His name was Ebony; he was one of Nights' top fighters. He dressed in a black suit, with a black vest, black boots, and a black hat. He had thick auburn eyebrows, and silver eyes. He attacked first making her defend herself. She was doing well deflecting his blows. He would find an opening; he just had to be patient. She couldn't keep this up forever. She kept deflecting his blows and then began to meet them head on. She tried to drive him back but he would not be pushed back.
Everything seemed to be going fine until Ebony put more force into his swing. When he hit, Eve was caught off guard and her sword was knocked from her hands and fell into the canyon below landing blade first on a small ledge. Ebony grinned at her and Eve narrowed her eyes at him. She didn't need a sword to fight. He lunged at her and she flew back to dodge it. She continued doing this so she could find an opening to attack. He wasn't letting her find one very easily. She had to be very careful one wrong move and he would hit his target. Eve continued avoiding his attacks flying deeper into the canyon. The sword was getting closer to her and if need be she would grab it up. His next swing came a little to close and nicked her face. A tear of blood ran down her cheek. Ebony grinned even more. "It seems that the Black Rose isn't as deadly as they say." amusement poured from his voice.
"Just you wait." Eve found her opening and lunged at him while he had his laugh. She pushed Ebony back and he was slammed into the canyon wall. He recovered quickly as if he hadn't hit the wall at all. He balled his hands together and hit her in the middle of her back. She let go of him and fell hard onto a ledge. Ebony flew down ready to finish her off but Eve rolled aside in time to avoid his blade. She then flew at him a second time while his back was turned. She tackled him against the wall once again but this time harder and made him loose grip of his sword. Eve let go immediately to avoid being punched in the back again. Instead she got punched in the face. She hit the other side of the canyon wall, knocking her breath out of her. He was swift and nothing she did to him seemed to faze him at all.