Nightmare: Chapter Three

By Harmony283

Disclaimer: I don't own ToL or any of it's characters. I do, however, own the two OC's that appear in this fanfic, that and the plot. So please don't steal them.

Authors Note: And here's chapter 3 of Nightmare! It's a bit late...but that's mostly because I had to rewrite the beginning a few times. -bows head- sorry and thank you fo rthose who waited patiently for this chapter to come out. Now then, in the last chapter it left off with Jay and Moses after a monster attacked them, and this chapter shows exactly what happened afterwards. Also, you finally figure out why the mysterious Ferines woman and the boy Feral are coming to the Legacy.

Warning: same as the last chapters

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With Moses & Jay, somewhere in the Secret Pathway:

Thunder could be heard echoing throughout the underground pathway even though possibly miles of rock stood between them. The pathway was dry, but it was unbelievably dark. And it smelt really bad.

Really, really bad, like something dying.

"Are ya sure we're goin' the right way Jay?" Moses asked, "I can't see nothin'…"

Jay let out a sigh, "Yes I'm sure we're going the right way. You should be lucky we're out of the rain and wind. Or are you afraid of the dark as well?"

"I-I ain't afraid of no dark! I'm just sayin' if a monster attacks or something we won't be able to see it."

Jay sighed again, "Then the most you can do is rely on your animal instincts."

"But I ain't no animal…"

"Well you certainly act like one." Jay stated with a huff.

"An' now yer just bein' mean."

"You honestly expect me to be nice? Even after--" he stopped his sentence midway through and, even though Moses couldn't see a foot in front of him, he could tell Jay was embarrassed.

"An' now yer actin' all embarrassed. What'd I do?"

"You should know, stupid bandit." Jay muttered, quickening his pace, "I think I see some light up ahead. We must be getting close to the old Oresoren village."

Moses blinked a few times, trying to adjust his eyes to the inky darkness of their surroundings, "But I don't see nuthin'." He muttered, "An' I think yer just embarrassed!"

Jay let out a long sigh, his footsteps quickening, "I am NOT embarrassed."

"Then why're ya tryin' so hard ta get away from me?"

Jay stopped and turned around. Surprisingly enough, Moses had somehow kept up with him.

How could he tell?

Because he bumped his head against the bandits chest and staggered backwards, "Stupid Bandit! Keep your distance!" he turned away, trying to force the blush on his cheeks to go away, but he was failing.

"Jay…"

The younger boy flinched, "What?"

Moses shook his head, "If what…if what happened didn't mean nuthin' to ya, then why're you so embarrassed?"

Jay started walking, "Because it—no, never mind. Let's hurry."

A thunder crash from outside the passageway made both boys flinch as the ground shook beneath their feet.

"Jay, somethin' tells me this ain't no usual thunderstorm."

"And that's why we need to get to Werites Beacon as fast as we can!" Jay turned back to face Moses, who had stopped in his tracks, "What don't you get about that?" he rolled his eyes, "You know this is the perfect time for the ducts not to be working."

Moses shook his head, "You're actin' like it's my fault."

"But it isn't. It's not your fault, and I'm not blaming you."

"Then stop actin' like bein' stuck with me is the worst thing in tha world. I may be a bandit but that don't mean I ain't got no feelin's."

Jay shook his head, 'Well I guess he is right about that. Not that talking about feelings will get us anywhere.' He let out a sigh and turned back around, continuing down the dark pathway.

A few minutes later and, just like Jay had said, they arrived at the entrance of the old Oresoren village.

"Here we are." Jay stated, a hint of relief in his voice, "Now it should only be a bit farther until we're out of here."

"But Jay…those cliffs are right outside o' here…an' what if a monster attacks us?" he tried hard not to make his voice shake, but Jay could clearly hear the nervousness it held.

"The paths are wide enough for us to travel down without worrying about falling off. But then again, I don't even want to know why monsters would be out in a storm like this. It's not normal."

"Well it could happen." "And you're just being overly cautious."

Moses shook his head, "Maybe we shoulda stayed in that cottage."

Jay snapped his head around, "What makes you think that that run down excuse for a home is still there? It was right on the edge of a cliff, you idiot! It was so unstable that if a strong gust of wind came it would most likely take the whole roof off."

Moses shook his head, shrugging his shoulders, "I was just sayin', ya don't have ta go and bite my head off."

"I am not biting anyone's head off." Jay snapped back before walking to the exit of the town. He paused and took a deep breath, 'No…maybe I am. Maybe Moses is right, I am snapping at him for no apparent reason.' He glanced back over his shoulder at the redhead, who just cocked his head to the side.

'No, I should be mad at him. He…he tried to kiss me after all. The only other person who would do that would be So—no," Jay shook his head, raising one of his hands to press against his forehead, "I can't think about that."

"Can't think about what?"

Jay jumped, "N-nothing. It's nothing. Let's get going."

Moses crossed his arms over his chest, watching as Jay quickly headed off down the tunnel, "He don't sound like it's just nothin'." He let out a sigh and followed the younger boy down the dark tunnel towards the exit.

What felt like an eternity later, the two were standing at the exit of the tunnel, staring out into nearly blinding rain. Without hesitation Jay headed out into it, getting soaked within minutes, a down the jagged walkway. He turned breifly around when he noticed Moses wasn't following, a scowl on his face.

"Well?"

"I ain't goin' out in the rain if it's this bad."

Jay rolled his eyes, "Fine then, stay there. Don't blame me when a monster comes here to seek shelter and you get eaten." He smirked at Moses' distraught expression before hurrying off down the path once more.

"W-wait Jay!" the bandit cried out, running after him, and slipping in the mud. He slid down the slightly slanted ground until he stopped. He rubbed his forehead and looked down at his body, which was now covered in mud, "Ugh."

"You are an idiot." Jay stated bitterly, looking down at him as he walked up to stand next to him. He turned to look at the edge of the cliff. He walked over to it and looked down at the ground below, "Be thankful you hadn't slid any further. Or else you would have been a stupid unconscious bandit…and then I really would have to leave you here."

Moses scowled, "Stop callin' me stupid. Especially when I ain't."

Jay turned back to face him, a smirk on his face, "Oh really? And what makes you think you're smart?"

Moses shook his head, "It ain't all about smarts y'know. It's--"

Suddenly a high pitched screech pierced through the air, making both teens flinch. They looked around frantically for the source of the noise, when suddenly, and rather abruptly, a gust of wind buffeted them back…

Or at least it did for Moses, who fell backwards back into the mud. Jay, because of his size, got pushed back even more…and unfortunately that was over the cliff. He staggered, trying to regain his balance on the short ledge that he was standing on, but it wasn't good enough. He fell backwards, strands of his hair sticking to the sides of his face while other waved carelessly in the wind.

He didn't even get a chance to scream before his hand grabbed onto something firm, but not altogether solid. He blinked a few times, trying to focus what had happened, and realized that during his fall he had grabbed onto the remnants of a small tree--more like tree branch--that was sticking out from the rocky surface.

"Jay! You okay?!" Moses called out from somewhere above him. But when he tried to look up, all he saw was rain and mud, both of which sprinkled down on his face and blurred his vision.

"M-Moses…?"

"Don't you worry Jay!" the redhead called, though he sounded panicked, "I'll be right there!"

The ex-ninja heard the faint sound of squishing dirt and knew that Moses had gotten up. At first he thought that Moses would actually jump over the ledge. But a loud howl proved that he was taking the actual pathway down.

'Now all I have to do is wait for him to get below me.' Jay let out a sigh, 'but it's still a long fall…even assuming the branch doesn't break.'

About a split second after he had that thought another gust of wind battered him around similarly to that of a balloon, or other easily floating object. He felt his hand loosening on its grip around the tree branch and flinched.

'Looks like I'm going to be falling a lot sooner than I thought.'

He felt the familiar sinking of his stomach as his grip finally gave out and he fell through the air, continuing his descent towards the ground. He didn't think Moses would make it. And in all honesty, Moses had a less likely chance of making it to him than the raven-haired boy would have liked.

But somehow, instead of hitting the hard ground, he felt slick arms catch him…and then there was a loud 'thud'.

"Wha…?"

"Urgh…jeez…you sure ain't light when yer fallin' from that high up."

"M-Moses…?" relief flooded through Jay's veins and, if he had had any less amount of pride, or will power, than he did, he would have thrown his arms around the older teen and hugged him.

"It's okay lil' bro I got ya." Moses cooed, only to find that Jay had passed out in his arms. He smiled and gently brushed back a few strands of the boy's hair, both from his forehead, and from his neck. Though, to his complete horror, there on the side Jay's neck, was a bruise about the size of his fist.

"Wha--?"

The screeching of a monster rang out through the air, causing Moses to flinch, "Aww hell, I can't stay here any longer." He took one last look at the unconscious boy in his arms before shifting him to piggyback style, and running off through the rain towards Werites Beacon.

He nearly cried out in joy when the city came into view. That led to him nearly tripping and falling into the mud, but thankfully he didn't. He looked down at the still unconscious boy in his arms, his eyes serious.

'Why'd he pass out? He ain't afraid of heights. Or maybe he's just tired. Yeah that's gotta be it.' He paused, pulling aside some of the ex-ninjas raven locks, staring once more at the bruise there, "But that…that didn't come from just anythin'. I wonder if he got anymore bruises on 'im that he's hidin'." His grip tightened on the boy, "Dammit Jay, why don't ya ever say nuthin?"

Of course he knew that he wouldn't answer so he sighed and shifted so that Jay was now riding piggyback style on his back. Thankfully he got his hands to latch onto each other around his neck so that he wouldn't fall off. With that done he ran towards the blinking lights of the town.

Before he realized it he was in front of the hospital. He took a deep breath, hearing muffled voices inside, before kicking the door open and walking through.

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Meanwhile on the Boat headed towards the Legacy:

"agh! Watch out!" Feral cried out, gripping at the railing in front of him tightly, watching in horror as the waves rose and fell rapidly, crashing into the sides of the ship and causing it to sway.

"Y-Yes I believe I should…go back to the cabin now." The cloaked woman stated, turning her back to the young knight and walking down deck, still holding protectively onto the railing.

"Miss! Ah, Miss wait for me!" Feral cried out once more, only to trip and fall flat on his face, sliding as the boat swayed.

The woman stopped and smiled, "You don't have to be so formal."

"But…" the silver haired boy sat up, rubbing his nose, "Ghh, that hurt…"

"Here, let me help you, and you can call me by my name." The woman reached down holding out a hand for the boy to hold. Feral took the hand, turning away in embarrassment.

"Yes ma'am…" he muttered, a flush of red tinting his cheeks as he tried to keep his gaze out to the turmoil of the ocean.

"That's not my name."

"Err," Feral paused, bowing his head, "I'm sorry…Jasmine."

The woman smiled, "Good, that's better."

The two then walked off the deck and towards their shared room. When they reached it, Feral held open the door and Jasmine passed through it. With the door shut Feral went and sat on the far side bed watching as the older woman sat on hers.

"Miss, ah, I mean Jasmine, um…do you…do you really believe you'll find the person you're looking for?" The question was blunt and Feral flinched, expecting a cold answer in return.

But that's not what he got. Instead he heard Jasmine let out a heavy sigh. He turned to face her and watched as she undid the clasp that held her cloak together, letting it fall from her shoulders. He watched as she untied the ribbon from her hair, letting it fall from its makeshift bun down to her mid back. She placed the ribbon casually on the desk that separated her bed from Ferals.

Finally she shook her head and spoke, "I can only hope. But this is the only place I haven't checked."

Feral nodded his head, leaning against the wall, looking up at the ceiling, "Yeah but how are you going to find the right person? I mean, yeah the Legacy is a ship but it's a big ship. And, well, you have your other job to do first, don't you?" he looked over at her, his silver gaze curious.

Jasmine sighed once more, "Yes I know. As ferines and because my mother was who she was, I have to meet with the merines and…" she ran her fingers through her hair, taking a strand and twisting it around her finger, "discuss why the ferines on the mainland are so displeased."

Feral nodded his head, "But I'm sure that when you meet the Merines, that she will understand. I'm sure she's had to go through much of that as it is." He sighed, "But it's sad, being ostracized….shunned…by your own people."

Jasmine nodded her head, "Yes. That's why I have to find him." She turned and opened one of the draws of the desk, "because he may be going through the same things as we are." She pulled out a single faded photograph that looked a little over fifteen years old. She smiled sadly at it, her blue eyes studying each person present. There was herself, standing in the front with a smile on her face. Then there was her mother with her long flowing blonde hair standing right behind her. She would have been touching her shoulder, or displaying some other form of affection, but her arms were full with a bundle of blankets wrapped tightly around a sleeping baby.

There was a man standing next to them, clad in a regular tunic with britches as boots. He was wearing a kind of helmet, which hid his head almost entirely, hiding his hair while shading his eyes. He was smiling and looking at the child in the womans arms.

Jasmine sighed once more, tracing her fingers lightly over the photograph, "I have to find them for their sakes. Because of everything they worked for."

"You know," Feral stood up, walking across the sort distance between their beds and sitting down next to her, "I wasn't just talking about just the Merines either. I was talking about you as well." he touched her arm, "And your family." His eyes were gentle and Jasmine couldn't help but smile.

"Yes…out of everyone, my parents--my mother--had it the worst. All because she married an Orerines.

Feral just nodded his head, "Yeah and he…" he looked down at the picture, a sad look in his eyes.

"I just hope he found someone to take care of him." She paused, now taking in a shaky breath, "That…that nothing bad happened to him."

Feral shook his head, "I doubt anything bad happened to him. But who knows." He looked back up at the ceiling his expression emotionless, "this world is getting crueler. All because of change."

Jasmine nodded her head, "Yes…I wish there was another way."

Feral looked back at her, "Well you know as they say sacrifices must be made to make a change. People will die no matter what. Those who oppose this new rule of living together," he shook his head, "As sick as it sounds things do have to get worse before they get better."

"I understand what you mean, but I really wish violence wasn't the answer." She placed a hand on Feral's shoulder, "surely they tell you that during your training?"

Feral sank away from her touch, a sad smile on his face, "Well yes they do. But they also tell you that killing those who oppose you is necessary for bringing about what you want, or what's good for the majority."

Jasmine blinked a few times, slightly shocked, "What…?"

"You have to learn to kill if you want to become a knight." Feral stated bluntly, "But I don't like it at all. I mean, I can understand if we do it to protect people but to bring about what we want is a bit selfish. And to be honest how can one think about the majority? How can one know what the majority wants?"

Jasmine nodded her head, "I-I see."

"It's the same with this whole living together thing for the Ferines." Feral leaned back and waved his hand in the air casually, "The best thing for you would be to try and live in harmony with the Orerines. That's your best chance of survival. But the majority wants to stay as far away from the 'filthy Orerines' as they can. They hate them so much that they're willing to outcast their leader even though she's proven that Orerines aren't as bad as they think." He let out an annoyed sigh, "They're listening but they aren't exactly seeing. They don't think it can work and yet they see that it can."

'I understand everything he's saying.' Jasmine thought, 'But he's--'

"And yeah the Orerines need to change. We're just as bad as the Ferines. Except we're techincally more of the majority than anything else. I'm pretty sure it'll take a while for us to get used to it…but a leader of one of the empires agreed to try. And everyone from there is trying to listen to her."

"I understand." Jasmine stated with a nod.

"You may understand, and yes you're proof that Orerines and Ferines can get along…" Feral let out a long sigh, "I'm sorry."

Jasmine blinked, "What?"

"I'm sorry. I went on a rant…sort of. And I'm sorry."

Jasmine shook her head, "No, no…it's fine. Your views and remarks are very tactful, you really have done research on it."

Feral grinned, "Well when our trainer assigned me this job one of the things he told me to do was do research on you, and I did." He was practically beaming, "and I learned a lot."

Jasmine nodded her head, "That's good. You're a quick learner." She look down at her lap, "But that still makes me wonder…what will the Merines be like? I'm nervous, but from what some people have said--and what was written in Maurite's letter, she's an extremely sweet person."

"Then you have nothing to worry about." Feral stated, his grin widening, "Besides it'll be fun to get to be on the Legacy."

Jasmine looked over at him, "Yes…fun…"

'Then why do I feel so worried? Like something bad is going to happen?

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…Well that definitely didn't go as planned. First I had to rewrite the beginning (everything with Moses and Jay) because of he weird place I cut off at during the last chapter. And now that I put it together with everything else it's out of order. Ah, well, at least the little page break things are working now. I know it was confusing for the last 2 chapters since for some reason it doesn't work for those...-cough-well anyway, thank you so much for those who reviewed, and R&R! More reviews equal a faster update. and hopefully I won't have to rewrite the beginning of chapters anymore (it takes a lot longer than I originally thought).