A Nightmare

by Moterius

Peace

They – they were all the nightmares that helped before! All those that didn't hide!

The quick nightmare smiled, then slipped through a crack with others. Alone, the wise and the strong nightmare would not win, but together, they would.

After all, the presence was one being. And from dreams, the nightmare knew that numbers were the deciding factor.

It flew around the presence. Others tied down its movement, binding the legs of the form it had chosen. The quick nightmare realized that the presence was not perfect. It was strong, very strong, and it was abstract – but it was NOT perfect.

Otherwise, it would just turn into mist.

The quick nightmare lashed out at the Presence while the others held it. Hundreds of strikes were delivered, and eventually, the presence became weaker.

As soon as it only faltered a little, every single nightmare clung to her, sealing her movement, except for the strong one that fought her before. It seeped into it, into the hated presence.

The others felt that it was not strong enough to beat the presence fully, so it did something genius as well. It turned itself into a single, precise strike at the Presence, and it hit it perfectly. A shockwave flowed through the dream world, showing how deeply the intruder had rooted itself, and then vanished from it.

The nightmares looked at each other, dumbfounded, while the wise nightmare was slowly pulling back the fake dream.

They… they had won?

Slowly, one by one, the nightmares realized that they had won. The presence was gone!

But the wise nightmare reminded them of two facts. One, the presence could return next dream cycle, as many, many creatures did. There were even nightmares that could reappear after being killed, by just waiting a dream cycle.

This sent chills down the necks of the nightmares. If the Presence was the same as them, or the same as the dreamers, it was not defeated. Not at all.

Waiting. They had to wait, to make sure the Presence was finally gone from their realm. Then, and only then they could traverse the dream realm safely again.

Carefully, they started absorbing the energy from nearby bad dreams they had not caused, careful, and ready to flee at any moment were the presence to return, ready for war.

But alas, it did not.

And after a few hundred, nearly a thousand dream cycles, the presence still did not return.

And for a dream circle, the nightmares decided to help the dreamers for once. Not to show them how to overcome their fears, that would have been stupid, but by giving them good, nice dreams.

Their biggest enemy was gone, and they would not have to hunt so much anymore, to make up for those that died every night. Some would still vanish into oblivion, because dreamers overcame them, or because they forgot to feed, or because they got tired of their existence, but now, for the nightmares, life was peaceful.

A few more thousand cycles of dreams passed, and eventually, the wise nightmare visited the quick nightmare.

No longer required to enter dreams that often and having always enough energy with them to save themselves, no nightmare had died in a long time. But for some reason, the wise nightmare was carrying that exact amount of energy to the quick nightmare.

By now, it was carrying messages, and paid in energy for that, so it wondered what the wise nightmare could want. The wise nightmare led it to a strange dreamer. The dreamer could control its dream, and emitting energy available for the nightmares, while not having a bad dream at all.

The quick nightmare wondered why it was here, and the wise nightmare explained that it would soon become part of the dreamers. Confused, the quick one asked what that meant, and the wise explained that after two to four hundred thousand dream circles, a nightmare would vanish, and return a few hundred to thousand cycles later as a dreamer, without memory, but as one, nonetheless.

They were destined for greatness, and their dreams always gave off a small amount of energy available for nightmares but would nearly never have a bad dream.

It was the last nightmare alive to know about this and told the quick nightmare that with the defeat of the presence, many more nightmares would eventually become dreamers, giving the nightmares more and more sustenance. Maybe, it mused, one day they could collect enough energy to visit the world of the dreamers, but it was content to know it led the nightmares to their most important victory yet.

Before the quick nightmare could say anything, the wise told it that it would inform the others of this soon and pointed back at the dream in front of it.

There was a flicker in the energy. The wise nightmare explained that this dreamer was not once a nightmare, but instead born a dreamer, and as the overall strongest nightmare, the quick nightmare would be the one to meet with the dreamer, as the dreamer was seemingly interested in speaking with a nightmare.

The quick nightmare was worried at first, but then realized it could survive long enough to escape with the energy it was given. In fact, it could do so twice.

And with a big smile, the wise nightmare explained how they could collect nearly twice as much energy as usual, not having to fear the presence, and not having to fear death anymore.

Amazed by this, the quick nightmare turned around again, carefully touching the dream. It got nearly sucked in but managed to stay in the space between dreamers.

In it, it could see a furred, thin dreamer. There were dreamers in many different forms, but they usually had a big and a small variant, with the small one being slightly shorter, thinner, and weaker, but also quicker than the bigger variant.

And after receiving another nod from the wise nightmare, it entered the dream.

Comments

[Pete100]

As soon as it only faltered a little, every single nightmare clung to her, sealing her movement, except for the strong one that fought her before. It seeped into it , into the hated presence.

What do they mean seeped in?

The others felt that it was not strong enough to beat the presence fully, so it did something genius as well. It turned itself into a single, precise strike at the Presence, and it hit it perfectly. A shockwave flowed through the dream world, showing how deeply the intruder had rooted itself, and then vanished from it.

There are a lot of it’s so I don’t know what “it” is.

But the wise nightmare reminded them of two facts. One, the presence could return next dream cycle, as many, many creatures did. There were even nightmares that could reappear after being killed, by just waiting a dream cycle.

What other creatures can return? Also, if the nightmares could come back, what are they so mad about?

And for a dream circle, the nightmares decided to help the dreamers for once. Not to show them how to overcome their fears, that would have been stupid, but by giving them good, nice dreams.

Is it because they felt bad?

Their biggest enemy was gone, and they would not have to hunt so much anymore, to make up for those that died every night. Some would still vanish into oblivion, because dreamers overcame them, or because they forgot to feed, or because they got tired of their existence, but now, for the nightmares, life was peaceful.

But, they can comeback, right?

No longer required to enter dreams that often and having always enough energy with them to save themselves, no nightmare had died in a long time. But for some reason, the wise nightmare was carrying that exact amount of energy to the quick nightmare.

Will the reason be revealed?

By now, it was carrying messages, and paid in energy for that, so it wondered what the wise nightmare could want. The wise nightmare led it to a strange dreamer. The dreamer could control its dream, and emitting energy available for the nightmares, while not having a bad dream at all.

When it says “pay” does it mean currency or punishment?