"Stop her!" Crimson shouted, his voice ringing through the empty air. Miles was already on the move, his feet pounding the ground as he gave chase, but Lilith didn't look back. She dashed into the labyrinthine corridors of the library, her every step echoing in the vast, mysterious space.
Crimson's body froze mid-step, a sudden rigidity overtaking him as if he were a puppet whose strings had been abruptly severed. Ahead, Miles continued forward. Crimson's breath came in ragged gasps, the Dream Walker's relentless grip tightening around his consciousness, weaving illusions that clawed at his sense of reality.
Deep down, a faint voice—his true self—struggled to break through the illusion. Something was undeniably wrong, but the Dream Walker fought to drown out his doubts with the promise of a perfect reality.
Meanwhile, Crimson's illusion continued to twist and warp his surroundings. Familiar faces gathered around him, their voices distant yet piercing, like echoes bouncing off unseen walls.
"Hey, Crimson!" Gale's voice cut through the haze, sharp and sardonic. "Are you daydreaming, or what?" He folded his arms, his smirk as grating as ever. "I told you guys—he's not fit to lead us. Can't even keep his head straight."
Crimson's hand shot up instinctively, cutting off Gale before he could continue. His eyes darted around the room, his breath shallow as fragments of clarity pierced through the illusion. "Sorry, I don't know... I just... This feels—" His voice trailed off, a memory stirring within. He furrowed his brow, the words struggling to form. "This is just like something that's happened before, but this time, it's un—"
Before Crimson could finish his thought, Lilith's voice broke through, her tone urgent and commanding. "How are we going to find a brilliant inventor for Sebastian to morph into?"
Her question sliced through the swirling doubt in Crimson's mind, dragging him back to the here and now—or at least, to the version of reality the Dream Walker wanted him to see. He blinked, the room sharpening into focus, but the lingering sense of wrongness refused to fade.
The Dream Walker makes Crimson's doubts fade away he starts to move again. And follows Miles.
Lilith sprinted through the corridors of the library, her boots echoing against the stone floor. Towering shelves loomed on either side, crammed with books. "This place is ridiculously huge," she muttered under her breath, glancing back nervously. Her pulse thundered in her ears as she turned a sharp corner, her breaths coming in quick, shallow gasps.
Suddenly, a faint shift in the air made her instincts scream. She ducked just in time as a blur of a sheathed sword swept through the space where her head had been moments before. A loud whoosh cut through the silence, and Lilith tumbled to the floor, her eyes snapping up.
It was Miles.
He stood poised, his dragon breath sword still sheathed. His expression was blank, distant as if the Miles she knew had been locked away somewhere deep within.
"Miles!" she called out, her voice shaking. "Do you really want to do this? Snap out of it!"
For a moment, he didn't respond. Then, slowly, deliberately, he drew the sword from it's sheathe. The blade gleamed menacingly, and Lilith's breath hitched. He shifted into a stance, holding the sword in his right hand and the sheathe in his left, the movements fluid and precise, like a dance rehearsed countless times.
Lilith backed away, her mind racing as she raised her hands defensively. "I don't want to fight you!" she exclaimed, her voice edged with desperation. But the Miles before her wasn't listening—his body was a puppet, and the strings were being pulled by the dream Walker.
Crimson, still trapped within the intricate illusion crafted by the Dream Walker, paced the room with a determined glint in his eyes. "Sebastian needs a sample of blood to morph into someone," he began, his voice steady, as if explaining a meticulously thought-out plan. "We're going after El, the creator of the floating train in Alpha Dawn. He goes on an expedition every year, and tonight, he's due to return. That's when we capture him."
He paused, letting the weight of his words settle over the group. "Once we have him, we sneak into Alpha Dawn with Sebastian transformed into El's body. It's our best shot."
Lilith was the first to break the silence, her eyes lighting up with enthusiasm. "That's... actually a good idea," she exclaimed, raising her hand to cast her vote in favour. Nox and Gale exchanged glances before nodding, each raising their hands in agreement.
All eyes turned to Sebastian. The shifter leaned back, his arms crossed, an amused smirk tugging at his lips. "Hey, I already said I'd do it," Sebastian replied, his tone laced with mock exasperation. "No need to pressure me."
The group let out a collective breath, the tension easing slightly. But as they finalized their plans, Crimson's gaze lingered on the others, a flicker of doubt crossing his features. Deep down, the threads of the Dream Walker's illusion wavered. Something about this plan, about this moment, felt eerily familiar—as though he'd lived it before, and it had ended differently.
Crimson froze as a wave of clarity crashed over him, unravelling the threads of the Dream Walker's illusion. No. The thought echoed in his mind, growing louder and more insistent. I remember this moment clearly. His heart twisted as memories flooded back.
The ambush on El's expedition team. Their capture. His comrades' faces filled with despair as they were dragged away, their cries for help ringing in his ears. And his promise—I'll come back for you. I swear.
But he never did.
The weight of his failure pressed down on him like a crushing tide. Crimson's breath hitched, and his vision blurred with unshed tears. He wiped them away roughly, his jaw tightening. "You can't change the past," he whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "All you can do is focus on the future."
A crack split through the illusion, the once-seamless reality shattering like fragile glass. The world dissolved around him, and Crimson was thrown back into the present.
His eyes snapped open, and his breath caught in his throat. Miles stood before him, sword raised, poised to strike down Lilith. Crimson's body moved on instinct, his muscles tensing as he prepared to shout—but before he could utter a word, a sharp pain ripped through his chest.
He doubled over, clutching his stomach, and retched violently. A grotesque, worm-like creature spilt from his mouth, writhing on the ground. Crimson gasped, his entire body trembling as the creature twitched and dissolved into nothingness.
Miles turned to him, his blade lowering. A grin flickered across his face, sharp and cold. "It seems like you're still as strong as you used to be," Miles said, his voice edged with something dark and unfamiliar.