The tree screamed out, a cry that started a stampede. Hordes of nightmare creatures came running, surrounding the tree—they were completely surrounded.
"Damnation..."
Sunny was practically out of essence. He couldn't make a bridge of shadows to walk over them or anything of the sort. If Nephis was awake, she could most likely propel them with her flames... no, she would be out of essence also.
They were completely stuck.
Still, they couldn't die here—no, they simply couldn't. Resting Cassie and Nephis against a tree, he summoned a memory: the simple knight sword.
Looking out from above, he could get a gist of how many nightmare creatures were around... ten... twenty... one hundred... three hundred.
They all varied in size, looks, and the ways they could attack. Luckily, none of them seemed able to fly. Still, it was looking bleak. He tried to think of anything—anything at all.
Dismissing the sword, he summoned another memory: a skull full of tree sap and oil. Grabbing branches from inside the tree, he quickly made a fire. He gathered the crimson leaves, mixing them with some of the leftover sap so they'd stick together before putting them around a branch. As he put it into the fire, it set ablaze.
The fire couldn't do any damage to the nightmare creatures, but it could do damage to something else. Dropping the makeshift torch down, it reached the tree's base. As the bark began to burn, it then set on fire. It was almost instant—the fire spread all across. This trapped Sunny, Nephis, and Cassie inside of it, though that was no bother. He just had to hope Nephis could heal him after.
Grabbing Nephis and Cassie, he wrapped them up in the cloak they once put him in, and he charged out of the tree.
Instantly the fire burned and charred his skin. He also couldn't afford to close his eyes, causing his very retinas to burn. It didn't help that he was carrying two people at once, leaving him to take more damage than he would usually have to. He wasted no time zooming through the horde of nightmare creatures. They were all busy trying to put out the tree—it seemed that, just like them, they were under some sort of mind hex.
Some of them did follow the three, though. With a person on his back and another in his arms, the nightmare creatures were catching up at an alarming pace. He dashed into a forest, gritting his teeth through the pain as he tried to get as far away from the tree as he could. Eventually, his body couldn't take the toll and he collapsed in the middle of the forest.
The nightmare creatures never stopped, though—they were right on their tail.
With huffs and foggy eyes, he stood up, summoning the sword memory once more, staring down the dozen or so nightmare creatures.
"Come at me... any of you, all of you... I won't even use my Aspect."
---
Her eyes fluttered open. Sadly, it didn't really matter, as she couldn't see anyway. She heard hoarse breaths coming from in front of her. Now that she was paying attention, it was obvious she was being dragged by her foot. Though there were no signs, she already knew who it was.
"Sunny, what's the situation?"
She couldn't see his condition, but she could hear it—and it was obviously bad. Through huffs, he spoke:
"Can... huff... you... walk..."
Cassie tensed her muscles a little to check.
"Yes, I should be able to."
They had no time to waste with long conversations; that much was obvious.
He let go of her leg, letting her go free. Standing up, she tried to feel around for him.
"Stop."
His voice was weak, but with that word alone she knew something was gravely wrong.
"To... your left is Nephis... carry her and follow..."
She followed his instructions, following the sounds of his breath before eventually they heard the sounds of the ocean.
"Man... I can... huff... really never catch a break... can I?"
She heard a thud. She dropped Nephis and ran over without a second thought. She once again tried to reach down for him, but a wet and oddly textured hand reached up and stopped her.
"Boat... quick..."
In this moment, she was truly helpless.
She had no idea of Sunny's condition, what had happened before, and had no idea how to find materials to make a boat—or even how to make one.
This was all due to her weakness. But still...
That day she saw that vision, she promised herself she would be weak no longer. She crawled around, feeling for big enough and flat enough pieces of wood to use. She took apart the waterskins they made during the second week and used the thinned-out intestines they'd replaced with string as a binder for the planks. She didn't know how much time had passed since she started, but about thirty minutes ago she heard roars from the distance only growing closer.
Suddenly a thud came. Nephis must have been thrown onto the makeshift raft, as she could not only hear Sunny on it but it sank too far for it to be only Sunny.
"I'm leaving the rest to you... Cass."
She heard another thud—presumably Sunny collapsing.
She wasted no time, beginning to push out the raft into the ocean. Once they got off the shore, she saw it: a horde of nightmare creatures made their way to the shore.
She heard groans coming from a foot or two away. A shift in air was apparent to her as Nephis swung her body up.
"W-What's..."
Suddenly she stopped. Another slight shift in air came as she swung her head down, presumably at Sunny.
Cassie didn't know what Nephis saw, but she could hear her reaction.
For the first time since they met, Nephis had lost her composure.
Curses spilled out from her mouth as she instantly sent her flames out to heal him. Cassie heard the sound of gritting teeth. Resting her hand on Nephis's, she could feel it shaking uncontrollably.
They had gotten far too comfortable.
They had forgotten one key thing.
This was the Dream Realm.
And in this realm, death is a fate some may even hope for.