The First Hellhound

“-What bothers you, Sweetheart? -The familiar voice calls out to me. I open my eyes to see my Moonberry, gravid with our children, looking down with a worry painted all over her face. I sit up, lay a hand on her belly and force myself to smile; I cannot shake off the feeling that something isn’t right – but I don’t want to worry my wife further.

-It’s nothing, my dear Pola -I say with fake bravado. -How are you doing, now that you are in the last month? And please, sit down -I try to change the topic to not stress her out and offer her my place on… our… …sofa? Something’s uncanny here.

-It’s so nice of you! -The Lisitha exclaims and sits down next to me; then she starts cuddling with me. It’s a very pleasant, familiar experience; maybe… Maybe everything’s all right and I’m just freaking out? I do have nightmares sometimes… -It’s so kind that you think about me first! But -her smile sours. -I shouldn’t be that surprised, considering what happened the last time. -I freeze.

-The last time? -I ask with growing dread. The Foxwoman looks at me with a shock; then the shock morphs into a sad compassion.

-Gods. You… You’ve forgotten? Did the trauma affect you so much? -she sighs and mutters, queiter. -Should I tell you?

-Tell me what? -I say, startling her; then something occurs to me and I glare at her suspiciously; something does’t add up. -Wait… why are you so late into the pregnancy already? Hadn’t we just finished having sex earlier tonight?

-Gods… -she covers her mouth. -To think that the loss of our little ones, to the miscarriages, congenial diseases and monsters, made you suffer such an amnesia… -she continues to say things, but I do not listen to her further; I’ve heard enough. I look around instead, noticing more and more details.

-What is it? -I point at the thing to my side. Pola looks at me with confusion.

-That’s our TV? -She flinches when I grab her shoulders.

-Exactly! There are no things like this on Yavea! That means it is all a dream! Well, a nightmare -I correct myself instantly. -That’s beside the point; what’s important is that’s it’s all fake! It’s all unreal! -The imitation of my lover tries to protest, but I do not listen to this apparition. -So… BEGONE, FOUL THOUGHT! -I shout at the thing that had the audacity to steal a form of my Moonberry; it struggles, but my shout makes it malt a little… then, with a loud crack, the space around my fingers breaks and distorts; it all travels throughout the surroundings, dismantling and dissipating them in a matter of seconds.

The last thing to disappear is the uncannily realistic eye of my lover, filled with shock and terror.”

I pant, heavily. I’m still shaken and I can feel how fast my heart beats; I try taking a few deep breaths to calm myself, but the air feels… weird. I open my eyes, but all I can see is all-encompassing, viscous darkness. It scares me; I feel I should not be here! I close my eyes again, count to ten while thinking about the greenest plains I can imagine and open them again. To my surprise it works – I stand on a pristine field of grass and flowers; there’s even a sea breeze coming from the side, as well as a city with walls made from pristine, white stone. Then I hear someone clapping.

“Bravo! To break into the Dream so easily and without training? Ha! I knew you are special in more than one way, lass!” The voice belongs to a man who finishes his statement with a familiar laugh; I cannot remember who it belongs to… until I turn and see my interlocutor – and I recognise him at last. It’s honestly difficult to forget his cobalt blue skin, his crystalline horns with hair stylized around them, his four arms – and especially his unsettling, uncanny facial features. “Azrag… Leader of the Taborites!” The Troll’s already wide smile widens even more.

“Ho! It seems you heard about me – even though we have yet to properly introduce ourselves to each other; we need to remedy it” he then curtsies in a bizarre way. “I am called Azrag lo’Hagha vi’Orahg, Pathfinder of Zholzargha Caravan, slayer of Black Boar of Brizek and the Last Dreamkeeper of Tah Borhoz!”

“That doesn’t really tell me much” I say exasperated; then something occurs to me. “Wait – a Dreamkeeper? Is that why we can meet in here?!” I narrow my eyes and clench my fists. “Was it you who sent me that nightmare?!” I flex my Aura and bloodlust at him – and it only makes his smile wider.

“See? It told you something” the Troll counters with a chuckle while I gasp in irritation.

“Don’t catch me by my words – just fucking answer!” I shout at him, my Flame seeping into my words. “Did you mess with my sleep and gave me a nightmare or not?!”

“No” he says simply, with a spark in his eye.

“Then why did I know from the get-go that something was off? It has never happened before!” I roar in fury and confusion; the Taborite bursts into laughter.

“You are truly special, Kora of the Wilds!” He says when he calms down a bit. “So it wasn’t the first time you’ve broken into the Dream, huh? And the Oak wasn’t the only one, am I right?” I blink, then frown.

“It’s true, I’ve met my Creator at some point recently – but I was summoned, so I’m not sure it counts… and what do you mean by breaking into the Dream?” I tilt my head, confused. Azrag just laughs some more.

“Have you met in your Dream? Or only after yours ended?” I look back to my last interaction with Alchemist… and blush out of embarrassment! “Hoho… it seems something spicy happened back then1”

“Wha…!?” I am aghast; to suggest that? The audacity! “Nothing of the sort happened!” I am screaming and my Flame is flaring up. “Nothing of that sort could have happened! If anything, I would be repulsed by that creep… but” I need a pause – a second wave of embarrassment has just arrived. “The dream I’ve had before that… that was why… ermm…” I cannot look the man in the eye; not when he quietly waits for me to confess the most striking detail. “Umm… my both lovers were there” the silence is deafening; it feels as if my all of my blood rushed to my face. “Um… they were – in the dream – they were, umm… my parents.”

“Your parents?! That must have been a fascinating one!” The roaring, jolly laughter of the Troll – and even his words – somehow rubs off on me, lightening my mood. “It’s said that dreams can show us what bothers us” he says after a while. “I’ve heard you remember your past life in detail – and you mentioned your creator… dare to explain?” He says playfully and I nearly get caught up in his jolly mood… then I remember his words.

“Wait. You said I’ve broken into a dream, but you did not explain how I did that or what you meant by it. How does” I wave my hand around. “…all of this work? What is this place – and that city? Explain – and no glossing over this time” I pause. “Please?”

The Troll seems to be pleased. “A sharp Mind, an unbound Soul and a perfect Body, huh. Very well!” the way he praises me – especially the last part – stirs something in me; alas, I am unable to react as Azrag flicks his fingers, conjuring two rugs and a bonfire between us. “Let us sit by the fire and share our knowledge; we have time, after all – the night is still young” He sits cross-legged opposite of me and gestures towards the other rug – and I take it. I take my time to position myself comfortably – all the while my… host? While my host is watching carefully.

“I still think that you should tell me your story first, so I will be brief for now” the Faekin scion says and rises his hand before I can protest. “There are indeed some basic things that I need to explain to you first; however, if I know more about your nature – especially around the time of your reincarnation and about your Creator – I will be able to give you some insight on your abilities that is not a mere speculation. And remember – we have limited time. The night doesn’t last forever, Dreamwalker.”

“I see your point, but… what did you call me?” I ask with a raised brow.

“A Dreamwalker… someone who can move through the Dream – a part of our world that Kolokolans call Snevsiet” the blue man explains. “Generally speaking, most beings you can meet here are either Souls, waiting to be reborn, or Sleepers, oblivious and unaware; but those are not our concern, as they appear here naturally. It’s those who seek to be here that are more interesting. Some – like the Witches – can traverse it with the help of their potions. Some – like me – don’t need outside help, but can only seek and influence a very small, specific fragment; those are what we call Dreamkeepers. Finally, the Dreamwalkers – such as you – can traverse through the Snevsiet more or less freely. I will admit, I’m not that familiar with how it works exactly, but… maybe you can help me, by telling me how did you move from your own Dream to this one?”

“I’m not so sure myself” I answer, surprised by his question. “I had a terrible nightmare, and I wanted to escape it… so I tore it apart. But it didn’t help – I ended up in a terrible… void

” I feel creeps at the mere memory of it. “I wanted to escape it… escape to the cosiest, greenest… most idyllic place I could imagine”

“I see… it looks like it works quite similarly similarly” I tilt my head questioningly at his words. “It seems that while you still need to be aware of your Dream, you don’t need to be as precise with your destination as others; fascinating” there’s a tinge of envy in his voice, but he also seems genuinely excited. “Now you see why I press you to tell me your life’s story. It allows me to limit the possibilities and not drown you in the sea of endless speculation. And one thing about you stands out to me” he raises his finger pointedly. “You’ve mentioned your Creator; it means what those younglings told us about you is not fully true… which is understandable, considering the circumstances of your birth.”

“It’s not like I want to hide anything” I chime in. “But… there have been misunderstandings – even with my friends” I remember how fervently Pola believes me to be a demigoddess. Then I look at the Troll more carefully “But you… you seem to have some ideas.”

“Yes – but they are vastly different and contradictory” he nods. “That’s why I would like you to focus on the circumstances of your creation” there’s a spark of fascination in his eye. “I believe it holds a key to understanding many aspects of you!”

Seeing Azrag’s enthusiasm I cave in. “Very well. But you have answer all my questions later!”