Chapter 31: The Sleeping Giant
There I was, engulfed in darkness. My heart beating gently as I continued to sleep. Even though I couldn't see her, I knew Amina was with me. Her warm body pressed tenderly against my own as she breathed softly into my ear. To me, this was luxury. Paradise even. But then….I felt something. A cold breeze. A gentle gust of wind blowing over me. But why though? I thought the window was shut (no idea!) And why do I smell grass? Scratch that, why am I lying on grass? Then I felt a drop of water hit my face. Then another. And another! Is it fracking raining in here!?
I opened my eye and scrambled to my feet when I realized I was no longer in my bed. I was in a forest. The trees were covered in leaves of red, yellow, orange and brown. The grass felt cold and damp beneath my bare feet. And above me, the skies were covered in dark clouds. I couldn't really see much else because there was a thick blanket of fog, rising more than a metre off the ground. The air had a wonderful chill to it. That cold, damp, autumn breeze that made me feel clean and refreshed.
"Is this a dream?" I whispered to myself. It was only then that I looked down and realised I was completely naked (I sure hope so!) This place didn't seem too bad really. But something felt off. Really off. I cautiously walked over to one of the trees to have a look at it. It was strange. The trunk was covered in rough, grey coloured bark. But there were no saplings sprouting out of its sides. There was no moss growing off it either. No tree sap, no holes, no indentations. Not a single scratch!
I then got down on all fours so I could take a peek under the fog. There was grass….that's it, just grass! Not a twig, nor stone (amateurs!) This was not right! Not right at all! If this were a dream, my subconsciousness would have created a far more convincing scenery! Someone was screwing with me. I stood up and threw my arms into the air. "Alright! Fun times over!" I shouted. "I'm not in the mood for games! So how about you let me go right now, and I'll let you off with a warning!?"
There was no response. Only the wind and rain could be heard as I stood there rather awkwardly. "So, that's how it's going to be, is it?" I muttered. "Fine. I'll just wait here then." I sat myself down underneath one of the trees. Curled up my legs, and waited. I was no fool. This bozo was hoping I would run blindly through the trees trying to find them, or a way out. Exhaustion, frustration, and confusion would begin to take its toll on me. Eventually, I would have reached my limit. Only then, in my weakened state, would my foe make their move. I didn't know who they were or what they wanted. But I wasn't going to make it easy for them.
Only a few minuets went by before I got a response. In the distance, I could hear a woman laughing. Her voice echoing ominously through the trees. But I didn't move. Not even a little. This was going to be a waiting game, and I planned to win (this could take a while….) More time went by. Minuets….hours perhaps. A little difficult to know without a time piece.
In fact, would the laws of time even apply here? Could an hour here be mere minuets in the real world? And Would someone be able to pull me out of here from the real world? These things crossed my mind as my captor continued to try and lure me away with a large selection of noises.
The laughter subsided and was replaced with the sounds of footsteps. Then came wolf howls. Breaking branches. Ghostly moans. And when all these things failed, a storm was whipped up! Everything around me turned dark and ominous. The fog disappeared as the wind turned into a howling gale. Rain bucketed down from the skies, and there was so much thunder and lighting, it could have awoken a stone dragon!
And yet, I refused to move. I was cold, wet, and even a little frightened. But I was not going anywhere. "Is this it!?" I screamed over the noise. "Is this the best you can do!?" The storm intensified. I had to cling to the tree trunk to prevent myself from being blown away from the powerful winds and the rain turned into hail as it battered me from every direction. It was horrible!
But then I realized something. This wasn't real. This was an illusion. So, that means, I can't get killed….right? (be fucked if I know!) I didn't really have much choice. It was better than staying here anyways. I closed my eye. Took a deep breath. And let go of the tree. And just like that, it was all over.
Everything went dead silent. All the bruises I had received earlier quickly faded away. And my body temperature rose to a comfortable level as I seemingly floated in a massive expanse of darkness. "Is it over?" I whispered to myself. "Am I finally free?" "No." Came a woman's voice. "I'm afraid not." I looked around, trying to pinpoint her location. But like before, her voice seemed to echo all around me. "Where are you?" I whispered darkly. A few tense moments passed by before she answered. "I am everywhere." I gave a chuckle. "Of course you are." I responded sarcastically. "Could you at least tell me your name without speaking in riddle? I'm not a dragon." (if only….)
"My….name?" She asked nervously. "Yes, your name, please." There was another long pause. And I was starting to get annoyed. "Do you even have a name!?" I shouted angrily to the darkness. "I did have a name." She responded sombrely. "A long time ago." My anger was quickly replaced with curiosity. It didn't sound like she was trying to play coy with me. "Are you a ghost?" I said more softly. "That is correct. I have been dead for hundreds of years." "Hundreds!?" I exclaimed. "You were around when the country was under the control of the order!?" "Correct again." She answered. "This mansion, now a motel, was built by my father. We fell….during the civil war."
Time for a history lesson(….hooray!) Long ago, this land belonged to the order. A massive empire that strived to create a safe, and law-abiding world, in the aftermath of the rising of the demon lord (the Succubus one, that is.) But eventually, they had spread themselves to thin. Uprisings occurred. Plagues ravaged the lands. And many nations were abandoned as a result.
It was here, two hundred years ago, that a particularly long, and costly conflict broke out between the order and an invading army of monster girls from the east. Thousands of soldiers were killed. And in the chaos, countless civilians were either murdered or captured by the invaders. Cities were burned to the ground. Native tribes were completely wiped out. And there were no victors in end either. When the invaders finally gave up, the order no longer had the numbers to maintain….well….order in such a large expanse of land. And so, reluctantly, they abandoned us to our fate.
Most of the survivors packed their things and went in search of a new home. Others chose to stay behind. Living in small, scattered settlements, across the vast and uncivilised lands we simply call 'The Unclaimed Territories.' Here, humans are few in number. And they rarely trust anyone other than their own kin. A grim reality for me and my family. My Father knew a few decent people. But they rarely ever saw each other. And I never really had the chance to make any friends myself. Until recently, I had lived a rather lonely life on the farm.
Thinking about such things made me feel a little sad. And I understood that this woman and her family had met a rather unfortunate end. But I quickly shook these thoughts away. Remembering that this woman had basically abducted me(time to waggle some fingers!) "Alright then." I continued. "So why am I here? What were you trying to do?"
There was no response. Instead, Gravity began to return. I shifted my position as I began to float down and I landed softly on my feet. It was then that everything around me began to twist and contort. Various shapes and colours began to appear and in a matter of moments, I was back in the forest. Still dark and cloudy. But it was no longer raining. And there was no wind either. And then, from behind a tree, she finally showed herself.
Her ghostly white skin was the only thing that would have hinted to her condition. Aside from that, she looked quite normal (by human standards.) She was a little taller than me. But beneath her transparent nightwear, I could see she had a very sickly and gaunt build. Long black hair swept down to her waist. And there were bags under her large, violet eyes. She was basically a ghost.
I watched her closely as she drew near. She looked tired and sad. It was as if she had been bed ridden for days with some horrible illness. I thought back to the time that Sahuagin (can't remember her name) tried to take me for herself. She was sad, lonely, and desperate. I was unable to cope with that. Unable to fight back my empathy for her. She took advantage of that. And my folly almost got Amina killed. But this time, I was on my own. If things went wrong, it would be up to me to get myself out of this mess. Failure was not an option.
"You have not answered my question." I stated firmly. Trying my best look calm and in control (when I was actually pissing myself!) The ghost lowered her head and sighed. "For many years, I have looked for someone." She began fiddling with her hands nervously. Seemingly unable to even look at me in the eye. "Someone to stay with me. To love me. And comfort me."
I didn't say anything to that. I decided it would be best to let her speak before turning her down gently (since when are you gentle at anything!?) "I have met many men in my time. But they….they never stayed for too long." Looking more closely at her, I realized a few tears were pouring down her face. Falling to the ground as she continued her feeble plea.
"I know you are just a child. But I do not care if I have to wait until you are old enough to touch me." It was then that she stepped forward and grabbed a hold of my hands. She did not do so in a way that seemed forceful or threatening. But I could sense it. That fear. That desperation. She drew closer to me. Our eyes now connected as she smiled adoringly at me like some love-sick puppy. "I beg of you." She said gently. "Love me. And we can be together forever. Just you, and me"
It was only when I tore my eyes away from her that I had realized we were no longer in the forest. We were inside what appeared to have been a small cottage made from wood and stone. There was a roaring fire nearby. In front of it was a bear skin rug, lying neatly on the cold stone floor.
Pulling away from her, I noticed we were both wearing very comfortable clothing made from animal furs. Then I smelt something. Turning around I saw a small wooden table had been laden with food and drinks. All of my favourite meals were there! Slow cooked lamb shanks. Fried sausages with mashed potato. And freshly baked bread with a large slab of butter.
Above us were a few windchimes. The cold breeze coming in from a few holes in the walls made them dance and gleam as they made a soft, gentle melody that made me feel happy and relaxed. This girl was terrible at making forests. But she really knew how to make me feel at home. This….was true paradise.
"Do you understand now?" She continued. I turned around and saw she was making her way towards me again. An endearing smile on her face. "Stay with me. And I will give you…." She didn't finish. When she was just one step away, a strange thing happened. A massive pulse of energy had seemingly erupted from my body. The impact threw the poor girl away from me and into one of the walls. She fell to the floor, moaning as I stood there, too stunned to speak.
Was that me? Did I do that? Those were my first thoughts. But then I became a little concerned for the ghost. It looked as though she had been hurt pretty bad. But if that were the case, wouldn't the area around us have shattered, or dematerialised? My suspicion quickly turned to anger as I began to glare at her. "What are you playing at?" She looked up at me. Looking dazed and confused. "What?" She asked me weakly. It was then that I suddenly lost my temper.
I began to advance on her. "I said, what the fuck are you playing at!?" The hatred and rage in my voice frightened me a little. But I was not going to stop now. This little game had been going for far too long! "You think you can fool me!?" I screamed furiously as my captor cowered at my feet. Looking shocked and confused at the sudden turn of events.
"You think you can win me over with your disgusting lies!? With these pathetic illusions, and cheap magic trips!?" "But I…." "SHUT UP YOU LYING BITCH!" I slammed a fist into the ground. The impact made everything shake like we were struck by an earthquake. And the cottage began to crumble and fall apart as I felt a cold, but exhilarating surge of energy pulsate through my body.
I ignored the terrified pleading and screams of my captor turned captive. I ignored the ominous presence that appeared to be cloaking our surroundings like a dark shroud. And I ignored the unnatural change in my choice as I continued to mock and chastise this disgusting woman! This foul monster!
"I will not bow down to such a lowly, and pathetic little creature! Nor will I succumb to the allure of the demon lord and her army of whores! I will find my brother! And I will bring him back home! For my name is Bain Kolf-Skot! And I promise doom to any who stand in my way!
There was an explosion. A horrible scream. And then….nothing.