I actually wrote this a couple weeks ago. Sorry I couldn't get it out sooner; been a very busy time. I've already started the next chapter. Looks like that one's going to be a long one. Only three or four chapters left!
Luz and Gus made their way down the rocky cliff that lay beside the Owl House. Hootie snaked alongside them as they stepped down the jagged rocks.
"SoOoO, WhAt ArE yOu TwO dOiN'?" Hootie asked with an irritating curiosity, not aware of how treacherous this was for the bipedal creatures.
"In my last dream," Gus replied, leaping to another cliff, "that trident guy said there was a node down here. It's someplace where we can use this key to enter the dreamlands from the waking world."
"I'm still…" Luz began before grunting and leaping over another slippery slope and having to regain her balance, "wondering who Mr Trident Guy is. Just all out of the blue last night, Aquaman just randomly shows up in our dreams."
"Aquaman?" Gus raised an eyebrow.
"It's a human comic book hero," Luz waved her hand, "But I'm wondering if he was trying to help us or if this is all some elaborate trap."
"Well, I think if he were hostile," Gus answered while jumping down the side of another cliff, "he would have already tried to kill us and not send us on this goose chase." Gus finally found himself in front of a massive cave that seemed untouched by the waves. It was hard to tell, though, how far back it reached. Luz landed next to him and looked deep into the yawning blackness beyond.
"OoOoOoO," Hootie chimed from over their shoulders, "It'S aLl DaRk An' SpOoKy In ThErE."
"Then let there be light," Luz smirked and took out a small slip of paper with a light glyph. She activated it and held it aloft a foot above her hand. The three proceeded onward into the cave, the once brown rocks now looking appearing more obsidian with how wet they were. The cave curved downward before evening out, leading the group far below the surface where they had been an hour earlier in the safety and comfort of the nice warm house. Luz was grateful her light spell had maintained itself this long.
"MhH!" Hootie jerked, "I dOn'T tHiNk I cAn StReTcH tHiS fAr!"
"It's okay, Hootie," Luz smiled at him, "Thanks for coming with us this far. We'll meet you up top when we're done."
"WeeeelLl, OkAAAaaay," Hootie rolled his head in a weird manner, "BuT mAyBe I cAn FiNd ThAt rArE bUg I sAw On ThE wAlL eArLiEr. He'Ll EiThEr Be My NeW fRiEnD oR a NeW mEaL! HOOT HOOT!" With that, he slithered back through the cave, carefully watching the walls as he did.
Luz and Gus proceeded down the wet, slimy slopes once more.
Eventually, they found themselves in a large chamber that seemed to terminate into a dead end. There were various runes and drawings painted along the walls. The artistry was not nearly as refined as the images found in the ancient texts and murals Luz had seen throughout the Boiling Isles, appearing more as the artistry of prehistoric man from her realm. It made her wonder how long ago this had been carved. Maybe these were from witch nomads when they were first making their settlements on the isles. Perhaps these were even made shortly after the titan had fallen and died.
She could have sworn, however, that some of the drawings looked like Egyptian hieroglyphs, one even looking roughly like an ankh.
In the center of the wall drawings that had wrapped themselves around the room was a huge two-layered wheel with various symbols on it. Luz and Gus studied the carvings which looked almost out of place by comparison. There were drawings that looked like a pine tree, a shooting star, a six fingered hand, a llama, and Luz could swear one looked like a bag of ice with the Latin alphabet characters that spelled out the same. Still, there appeared to be more drawings along the outer wheel with its own set of out of place drawings: an otter, what appeared to be a flowered hair clip, a horned owl, possibly a raven, a wolf skull, two twin stick figures, and what looked like a melting mud person, possibly an abomination from this world. The rest were illegible or faded.
In the center of the wheels, however, was a massive star whose points terminated upon reaching the inner wheel. In the center of the star was an eye, and within its iris was the carving of a burning flame. Between each star point was what appeared to be the carving of a small twig with various jutting limbs.
"This, I gotta say," Luz finally managed to utter, "is giving me the creeps. And I guess that's saying something considering I've been on the Boiling Isles for awhile."
"Seems pretty fascinating to me," Gus said, "And I imagine Amity and Lilith would spend all day studying this place if they had a chance."
"Just gives me a bad vibe is all," Luz responded, "I should have expected to find something like this down here, though. That's how all the uncharted caves turn out after all, with some creepy drawings and a disorienting sense of unease."
"Either way," Gus lifted the key, "Let me try something." He brought it up to the center near the burning eye. There was a flash of light, and the key seemed to be penetrating the sliver of light therein, as if there was a small sliver of energy that acted as a lock. He turned the key, and the massive circular pattern turned into a large sky blue swirling portal. "This is it. This is the Gate of Dreams. You should be able to enter the Dreamlands from here, but Luz…" He paused. "…Please come back to us in one piece. You've been a great friend to all of us, and I know you need to go and rescue Amity, but if you die in the Dreamlands by entering them from the physical plane, there's no waking up."
"I figured as much," Luz sighed before walking over to Gus, hugging him and giving him a kiss on the forehead, "Gus, you and Willow have both been great friends, and I know you're as concerned for me as I am of you. But trust me, I'll be okay."
"I trust you," Gus breathed heavily, "Well, I'm going to make my way back up and make sure the Owl House is okay. Hopefully Hootie isn't making too much of a mess." He then handed Luz the silver key.
"I'll be back," Luz smiled, "I promise." With that, she stepped through the portal.
Gus made his way back up the rocky slope to the Owl House, intaking the smell of the brine as the waves crashed against the jagged onyx spires. He eventually found himself on the main land again and in front of the Owl House. Hootie was not there to greet him, though, having snaked off into the woods to watch the butterflies (fighting the temptation to eat them, no doubt).
Eda and Willow still lay on the wood floor asleep. Gus hoped with every fiber of himself that this was just a temporary residual effect from whatever psychic shockwave the creature that took Amity had created and that it wasn't some lasting curse. He picked up Eda, the weight of carrying a grown woman causing him to strain, and propped her up on the couch. He likewise did the same with Willow and sat next to her, to stand guard and be sure they were okay.
Willow shifted from her position and fell over onto Gus, her head landing on his shoulder. He felt himself blush, but he wasn't sure why. Still, he didn't move, just let her lie there next to him.
Willow herself was actually partially awake, drifting in and out of sleep, whatever effect on her gradually wearing off. She was seeing what she thought were hallucinations, various creatures of indescribable dimensions and shapes roaming around Eda's living room, but she paid them no mind. It was as if that was the most normal thing in the world. She blinked slowly and looked up to see that she was lying next to Gus and that her head was resting on his shoulder. She closed her eyes again, choosing not to move, and gave a warm smile before going back into the deep blackness of REM sleep.
*.*.*
Luz found herself falling through space, drifting past stars and distant planets, cool air rushing past her ears, and the smell of some unseen lilacs and gooseberries arising to her nostrils. She thought she recognized some, Ursa Major, Alpha Centauri, Betelgeuse. At length, she found herself drifting towards some vast planet, and though the fall was dizzying, she was surprised she wasn't burning up in its atmosphere. When she breached the surface of the air, she found that she could see across the continents from this height, and the lands were just as varied and strange as she'd expected. Her eyes eventually met an icy land mass far far to the north. It was a massive plateau of desolate cold waste, and Luz couldn't help but feel an evil presence coming from it, something vast and deep and terrible.
She knew this was where she needed to go, but it was both fortunately and unfortunately that she did not land there. Instead, she found herself heading towards a high mountain cliffside overlooking a vast forest. Thankfully, her center of balance adjusted and she landed gently and gracefully, her feet gingerly touching the ground like that of a feather landing.
"Well, here I am," Luz said to herself, "What do I do now?"
"Greetings, dreamer," she heard a voice from behind her say, "Perhaps we can assist and give you guidance over the lands of this world."