Short Nightmares

“He’s down there waiting for me, isn’t he?” Adria looks down from the mountain into the village below. The sun is beginning to set, casting beautiful purples and golds across the evening sky.

“He is. I can sense him.” Dara approaches the edge of the mountain. “It’s now or never.” She reaches out and takes Adria’s hand. The warmth brings both comfort. Dara closes her eyes and begins a chant. Goosebumps rise, a tingle as the hairs on the back of the neck stand. The two vanish from the mountain top and reappear in the village below.

“Can you find him?” Adria is trying to shake the teleportation dizziness. Dara closes her eyes and concentrates.

“This way.” Her eyes snap open and she leads forward. Adria follows close behind. The town seems normal. People eye them as they pass by… small towns, new arrivals.

“Here.” Dara stops in front of a small run down cottage. The broken windows stare down at them. Adria raises her eyebrow suspiciously. “Don’t look at me. It’s what the magic says.”

“I suppose I'll have to trust it.” Adria removes her blades. She nods at Dara. The door to the house blasts open as Dara casts a magic spell. They enter, poised and ready for combat. Suddenly, a heavy metal door appears on the hinges and slams shut. Adria tries to open it, but it won’t budge.

“I told you he was expecting us.”

“Poor you. Trapped inside a box.” A voice echoes across the room.

“I don’t see him.” Adria replies. Putting her back against Dara’s and scanning the environment, blades ready to strike. “What’s your magic saying?”

“Nothing. I had to break the spell when I blasted the door.”

"Cast it again."

"It would take too much time."

“You two are so fun and easy to trick.” The voice booms. “It is quite a shame that our time together has to end, but I’m afraid it must.” The house begins to twist and contort. The windows turn black. The wood begins to crack as the house shifts and grows. The fireplace ignites and shoots flames. Adria and Dara dodge to safety.

“Uhh, Dara? Do you see that?”

“I think I do.” The fireplace has become the mouth of a nightmarish creature. The windows above have transformed into soulless eyes that glare down at Adria and Dara.

“Trapped with nowhere to go. What a simple end for the grandeur of a hero.” The fireplace spits embers at the two.

“How do we kill this thing?” Adria asks, sheathing her daggers and arming her short bow.

“Not sure.” Dara shouts as she casts magic at the fireplace. The house mocks them with insane laughter. “He must be casting a spell from somewhere. If we can break his concentration- The floorboards erupt into splinters as monsters begin to crawl through the rotted wood. Adria quickly lets an arrow fly, penetrating one in the head. She scans the room and notices a doorway in the far back corner.

“There.” Adria motions with her bow before letting another arrow loose on an approaching beast.

“It’s our best bet.” Dara says as she rushes for the door, blasting monsters out of the way. The two reach the threshold and slam the door closed behind them. Everything is quiet. A long dark hallway stretches out before them, disappearing into a pitch black abyss.

“Why don’t you face us and stop these games?” Adria calls out. Her voice reverberates.

“Why would I?” The voice echoes back from deep within the darkness. “You’ve already shown me you're physically stronger together, but mentally… against me, you don’t stand a chance.”

“I guess we'll see.” Dara blasts the darkness with a blazing beam of light. The light and dark battle for a moment before an opening begins to form. Dara lets out a cry of pain as the darkness bites back. “I don’t think I can- before she can finish Adria rushes forward and dives through the opening. She lands lightly, gracefully rolling to her feet. Clapping. A smug chuckle. Adria meets Malik’s gaze as he sits in the center of the room.

“Well done. Here you are.” He rises from his seated position and removes his weapon. "Just as I'd hoped it'd be. You and I. Alone."

“I’ve already beaten you once.”

“With help from your friend, yes. Never by yourself.” He casts an illusion spell. Adria is now staring at a corrupted version of herself.

“Your mind tricks won’t work on me here, Malik. It’s just the two of us. For the last time.” He grins with malice. Adria removes her daggers. A brief standoff before they rush forward to engage. As the metal clashes…

...I wake up. Atleast, I think I do. My eyes feel open but darkness surrounds me. I reach out and immediately meet resistance. I try to turn over but my shoulder bumps into something. I try to sit up and cannot move. I realize quickly that I am inside of a casket. I scream for help. I scream until my throat aches. Nobody comes to help. All I could do was lay in the darkness. A night so deep, no sign of light or life existed. What had happened? How did I get here? The last thing I remember is falling asleep. I had fallen off a horse earlier that day but the doctors said nothing was injured. I cried and screamed until I tasted blood. I pounded on the casket trying to fight my way out. I felt my fingernails rip away as I clawed at the wood. This had to be Malik. I remembered the darkness in the hallway. It was exactly the same. The abyss. Yes, it was him. With what little voice was left I began to cry out for Dara, hoping she would somehow hear me and come to my rescue. Deep down I knew it would take a miracle to save me but all I had left was to believe it could happen. Eventually the casket broke and the dirt covered my body. Lucky for me I had run out of oxygen long before. Convincing myself that it was one of Malik’s mind tricks and Dara would arrive any moment to save me, is what helped me pass away peacefully. As I laid sipping my last breaths of air, I closed my eyes and told myself it wasn’t real over and over again. Eventually the true abyss rose to take me and there was nothing I could do to resist its infinite slumber.