Dream Journal Ultimate
Date: 3/12/2020
By ItsABlackCat
(March 12 2020 and March 17 2020) I had a dream which was somehow continued the next night... like I had one half of this story in one dream and ig I was thinking about it a lot cause a few nights later I basically just continued the dream. It was wack. And apparently my brain is now obsessed with the dream idea of video games somehow merging with real life because I had ANOTHER dream about it. NIGHT 1: This time, it started off like any other adventuring video game- like Zelda or something else classic. I went around on my first and main quest looking for rare items, which I was supposed to bring back to my mentor, an old dude with a violently pink mustache and whose few wisps of hair that were left were dyed blindingly purple. He had a hard face but friendly eyes and must’ve been an NPC because he literally said the same things whenever I tried to talk to him. Anyways, I brought all these rare artifacts to him and he’d either say, “this is one of the artifacts we need to resurrect the hero!” or “this artifact can’t resurrect the hero, BUT” and then describe the object and its uses / what it is in detail. I ended up finding several useful things right off the bat: most memorably, a small, beautifully decorated knife with an iridescent blade and a handle carved from gold was laying in the center of the field where the dream started, tangled in the tall grasses and grains. When I grabbed it I felt a searing pain along my hand, like it was on fire; I instinctively tried let go of the knife, but my fingers seemed glued to the handle, I couldn’t peel my fingers away from the intricate designs along the shimmering sides. I ran over to the old mentor guy, who was at his little wooden cabin by the edge of the field, and showed it to him, like, “???help?” In response he went on one of his rants. “This is one of the artifacts we need to resurrect the hero!” he says and I start shaking my hand at him as if to say “you dumb idiot, get this off my hand!”, but he continues so I listen. “Called the First Blade, this was the first ever weapon forged for a hero at the Star Forge. Made of Brightsteel and containing a piece of the core of a star, this blade has many special properties: to check the properties of the blade, go to your journal.” From there he took the blade from my hand, which slid out of my grip with ease (I watched angrily as he put it away in a pack without having to even pull it off of his hand) and then I checked my journal, which now had a new page labeled with curly script and showing a sketched and hand-colored picture of the blade. Apparently, it could be thrown an infinite amount of distance and never lose its momentum, it could curve in midair or basically track down a target (as long as the target remains in sight of the thrower), and it had an ability which allowed the user to keep the knife on hand even after they die, ensuring it can’t be stolen, lost, dropped or even bartered away. Another item I found right off the bat was what looked, at first, like a small pearly egg. I had been searching in the forest next to the clearing and had spotted a huge oak tree, gnarled roots crawling out like snakes, branches reaching so far into the sky I couldn’t see them all from directly below the tree. I climbed all over it and in one of the nooks made by two branches overlapping, I found the egg. It wasn’t hard to spot; it was glowing a bright, unearthly yellow, flickering the way a candle does, and it cast little rays of what could only be described as golden sunlight all over the tree in strange, indecipherable patterns. When I touched the egg it was warm, almost hot, and I knew at once that it was an artifact. I ended up exploring the tree a bit more, not because I thought there might be artifacts but because it was nice. The breeze was gentle and ruffled my hair in a way that made me happy, for an indescribable reason, and the (real) sunlight was warm on my skin, which was mostly bare except for my matching boxers and sports bra, and a little leather jerkin overtop of which I had a small leather pack. There was nobody around except for the old man, who was outside of his cabin across the field, and the sweet melodies of the birdsong mixed with the soothing sounds of the swaying trees and leaves in the perfect air made me want to stay there forever. It even smelled good; like pine and flowers and fresh grass and even a little bit of honeysuckle, all of it mixing to create a smell so wonderful I just want to go there, now, and breathe that air. Eventually I remembered the whole quest I had, so begrudgingly I climbed back down the tree, away from the comfy crook in the branches where I had been resting, and made my way through the scratchy grasses to the cabin where the old man was waiting. The egg was glowing through the pockets of my jerkin, warming my stomach through the supple leather like some sort of strange personal heater. When I took it out to show the old man, I got a better look at it, and I noticed that the surface was slightly iridescent, like the knife’s metal surface was. Also, there were fine lines across the top and bottom, and as I inspect it closer I realize that what looked like scratches at first were actually intricate carvings, similar to those on the knife’s handle. I run my thumb over the surface but it feels smooth and unblemished. I give the egg to the old man, missing it’s warmth as my side cools, and he says his same line. “This is one of the artifacts we need to resurrect the hero! Called the Stone of Dawn, this is an incredible healing device created by the third hero, Ruby. Made of pure magic, quartz, the core of a star and the bones of the first hero, this stone has many healing properties as well as other magical abilities: to check the properties of the stone, go to your journal.” I listen to his banter as normal and watch, somewhat wistfully, as he tucks the stone away. I open my journal and find a new entry, with a colored drawing and description of the Stone of Dawn. I find out that the stone has the ability to heal virtually any wound by simply pressing it to the injury and whispering “Of dawn and of dusk, of bone and of rust, of stars and trees and of birds and bees, bring your lighter curse, heal what has been hurt.” The stone can also be used to see in darkness by simply having it on your person; carrying it will not only grant you night vision but you will feel more energized, you will not need to sleep nor to eat or drink, and you will feel refreshed wherever you go, enough so that all of your physical abilities are boosted. Its light attracted rare creatures and if brought within the vicinity of other rare items, it will cause the other item to glow. I curse, wishing I had the stone. It was probably my best bet at finding all of the artifacts, but like an idiot I gave it to the old man. I end up finding an old book half-buried in the dirt near the forest, which contains old melodies said to provide small stat improvements (not an artifact that’ll help the hero), a smooth, red crystal orb hidden in a berry bush which can show more details of the past, things you may not have seen (also won’t help the hero), and a knight helm which is made of the core of a star and provides advanced sight when worn (not helpful either). I give them all to the old man, who stores them inside of his cabin, where he tells me I can choose up to three of all of my collected artifacts. I’m kinda mad cause that’s pretty unfair, seeing as they’re all literally mine- I found them -so then why would I only get to keep three? But I don’t complain because the old man doesn’t have any voice lines unless I bring him an artifact so he’d just stare blankly at me while I seethed. Anyways, from there I started to venture out more. I went out past the cabin and my adventure finally started. I trekked through the forest for a while until it got dark and the trees thickened; it went from young, willowy oaks and birch trees to thick, towering pines and ancient willows, crawling menacingly into the sky and blocking out most of the sun. The air felt chilled the closer I got to the center of the forest, and started smelling sharper, like winter air. Along the way I found a few artifacts but nothings important-looking; one was this odd purplish stone that shined different colors randomly; one was a long stick that was 100% a staff, with a knobbly end that had a magical looking gemstone set into the worn wood, which I used as a weapon/walking stick; and another was literally just a light blue shimmering necklace that, when I put it on, let me run super fast without feeling exhausted. But then I reached the center of the forest. It was obviously the center because sitting in somewhat of a clearing was the biggest tree I had ever seen. It was massive; the trunk disappeared into the clouds and branches sprouted off below, each the size of what would in other circumstances be a big tree. The bark was deep gray, speckled with whites and blacks, and slightly bluish. Its roots were big and curled up and down into the ground around the tree, forming bridges and archways big enough for a two or three cars to drive across, side-by-side. I walked up to the tree and when I put my hand on the wood it felt alive; it vibrated slightly and was warm to the touch. I went all around the tree and managed to find a spot which had a lower sort of slope to it; using my staff and the necklace’s powers combined I managed to climb up to a lower branch, by running up the side of it and kicking off to grab the hanging vines, which were bluish green and thick as ropes. I scrambled up the vine onto the branch and climbed farther and farther up the tree in a similar fashion, swinging from limb to limb on vines and kicking off of the massive trunk to give myself a good boost onto some of the higher branches. Eventually I was high enough that, when I looked down, I could see for miles, like when you’re in an airplane. I could spot the field and cabin where I started far off in the distance, and in the opposite direction I saw what seemed to be either an ocean or a large lake. I climbed even higher, being extra careful now, using the end of my staff to catch vines instead of just kicking off of the trunk to reach them, and always double checking branches before putting my full weight on them. Then, finally, I reached the branches which went into the clouds; I kicked up onto them and emerged into another world. Literally. All around me were white, fluffy clouds, looking solid enough to walk on. The sky was all sorts of reds and oranges and yellows, staining some of the clouds like watercolors, and the sun was sinking below the horizon like a giant, fiery hill. In front of me was a floating island. The bottom of it sloped downwards, forming a peak at the bottom, with little dirt pieces floating around it as if they had been crumbling and someone had frozen them in midair. On the top of it there was a thick layer of grass, surrounded by a few trees and, in the center, a mysterious-looking castle. There was also a small pond surrounded by sand off to the right, and it waterfalled down into a smaller island below it, which was just a small pond and a single tree. I knew immediately that I had to go over there, so I went into my journal and looked for something to get me over there. Then I found something- or rather, I remembered something. Magic. I had tried to keep myself from using spells until then, mostly because magic tended to attract other magic- aka using spells would make literally every evil creature within a hundred miles attract to you like a magnet- but I decided now was probably one of those times when an exception was needed. Luckily, I was a pretty good magician- after all, whenever I’m playing a game, that’s the class I always choose -and I had a magic staff to boot, so it wouldn’t be very hard. I closed my eyes and held tightly onto the staff, searching for energy and for the words. It was like I switched my eyes out for different ones, ones that could see things normal eyes couldn’t. As soon as my eyes closed and I focused, the darkness changed. I saw the world around me through magic; instead of seeing the tree like normal, I saw the vague shape of it, saw the teal light flowing through it like water. Instead of seeing my own body I saw hundreds of colors glowing, pulsing throughout me like a second set of blood and veins. Instead of the staff, I saw a brightly colored green ball of glowing magic, right smack in the middle of the darkness, where the gemstone would’ve been if my eyes were open. And where the island was, I saw a strange glowing, light gray and swirling dangerously. Then, I thought of what I wanted to do- thought of the words and the magic; “Currents of air, lift my body to the given path;” and I saw, in my mind, a blue current, mostly transparent, flow out of my body and curve over to a spot in the darkness that was far away, where I knew the island was. The transparent energy pulsed and squirmed like a snake, flowing out of me, and suddenly the words of my thoughts turned into words on my tongue, except the language wasn’t my own. It was the language of magic. As I murmured the spell, eyes still closed, I ‘saw’ (if you can call it seeing) the blue light brighten; it was no longer transparent; and streams of teal, of green, and of purple all burst from where my heart would be, flowing towards the island. My staff’s energy brightened and the magic from the staff flowed into my body, resupplying me with magic, and at the same time I felt a strong current blow around my body, felt my body start to move, lifted up as if by an invisible hand. The streams of magic blended together to form a blindingly bright whitish-blue, and I as the stream started shrinking in length I realized that I was moving along with it, and the magic glow of the island increased in size as I got closer and closer. When I reached the end I felt a final burst of air swirl around me, lifting my hair up into the air and with it, pulling the bright stream of magic back into my body with a force so strong I actually stumbled backwards. Then, I opened my eyes, and I was on the island, the tree so far away it seemed almost impossible that I had just been there. I curse under my breath, dust myself off, and move onwards, feeling a bit tired the same way that you feel tired after lifting something heavy or running a mile. Now that I was up close, I could tell that everything on the island was somewhat strange. The trees were all tinted slightly odd colors; one was reddish, with slightly pink leaves, one had a bluish hue and leaves of almost pure silver; and even the grass seemed odd, blowing in breezes that didn’t exist and tickling my feet with blades softer than silk. Even the pond was strange, with sand that sparkled like it was made of crushed diamonds and water too clear, too smooth yet moving to be completely natural. It swirled around and around at random intervals, like an invisible stick was stirring the water, and yet no ripples appeared anywhere. The eeriest thing, though, was the weird quietness of the place. Nothing seemed to make a sound. It took me a moment to put my finger on it, but once I realized I couldn’t stop hearing that overbearing silence. The trees swayed without sound; when I stepped on the grass I heard nothing; the water, and the waterfall, didn’t so much as trickle; and even when I placed my hand on the trees, scratched at the dirt, it was as if I wasn’t doing anything at all, for the amount of sound it was making. Then I woke up... NIGHT 2: I resumed in almost exactly the same spot which was kinda weird. Slightly spooked but resigned to the worst either way, I make my way to the castle. The bricks were shimmering like a mirage, as if they couldn’t decide what they should really look like. I recognize a spell as soon as I see it, and I realize this is what the grayish glowing must’ve been. I close my eyes just to be safe and, sure enough, the walls right in front of me emit a very odd gray, swirly glow. When I open my eyes again I know what I need to do, but I don’t want to do it because I just used magic and goddammit, I just need these artifacts okay? But since I can’t do much else, I walk over to the entrance of the castle and push open the gray wooden doors, which are silent as they sway inwards. The inside of the castle is completely dark. I sigh and call out in a tired voice, “hey, um, can I come in? Would that be rude or...?” My voice sounds strangely empty, and walls that I’d expect to echo almost absorb the sound. Nobody answers, of course, so I walk inside and the doors slam shut behind me. I don’t even jump because I was totally expecting it to happen, and I just groan and close my eyes, trying to ignore the swirling gray magic all around me. I think of the words I want again, “Everlasting flame, summoned by the control of my hand, a light to guide me through halls my eyes would not see;” and a red stream of magic flows out of my chest. My staff helps me recharge again, it’s green magic flowing into me as my red magic flows out, and I ‘watch’ as the red stream curls around and around before settling in my outstretched palm. Orange and yellow streams join the red, swirling in a ball of energy in my hand. Then the words come forth to my lips again, the language of magic, and I feel a pleasant warmth in my hand, along with a slight tickling sensation. I open my eyes, a bit more tired, and suddenly I can see- a ball of crimson flame is swirling in my hand, acting as a light source. It casts reddish light over the brick walls, making deeper shadows that flicker with the flame. I’m situated in what seems to be a lobby sort of area. To my left and to my right, long, brick-lined hallways lead into other rooms. In front of me is a fireplace against a back wall, with some red velvet seats in front and a big carpet on the floor, which has words inscribed in the magic language on it. I can tell it’s the magic language because the letters shift and rearrange constantly, similar to the bricks, like they’re not sure what they should look like. I pinch the bridge of my nose, like, are you kidding me? I’m gonna have to use even MORE magic? At this rate there’s gonna be dragons showing up at the front doors of this castle. And even worse, I probably won’t even hear them coming on this goddamned silent island! Muttering curses under my breath I walk over to the carpet, lay my free hand over it, and close my eyes. Then I focus on the carpet specifically, trying to read its magic- the gray magic that’s in the air around this place grows transparent and I see the more specific Magic’s instead: my red, orange and yellow glowing hand; a weird dimmed red glow coming from the fireplace; purple glows moving steadily up and down the railings to the staircases; the glow of my staff which is laying on the floor next to me; and a rainbow glowing coming from the carpet. I focus on the rainbow glow and think of the words I want, yet again, “In Magic’s language find words in my tongue, and in my tongue find something I understand.” Instead of magic coming out of ME, this time, the magic of the carpet swirls under my hand. The different colored streams separate and untangle like threads pulling themselves apart. Then they form letters; slowly a message appears. “Trespassers beware; theft is punishable with theft, and eyes for eyes for eyes are taken, and here they stay. When here the things lie, here the trees don’t sway. Frozen in time and frozen in place, beware the woman with one hundred a face.” (I don’t remember the exact wording but it was something like that lol). Anyways I opened my eyes and was like, well, fuck. Some woman’s gonna steal my face for breaking in here. That’s just great. I turn around and inspect the doors. They don’t seem to be opening any time soon. I groan again, loudly, because I just don’t wanna be here bro. Like why me. I don’t wanna piss off some witch faces lady whatever she is. But I kinda need to do it I guess so I walk around and go down the right hallway. The floors, which would normally echo with my footsteps are, as expected, silent. I try to stomp extra loud, and bring my staff down extra hard as I walk, because I can’t stand this place with no sound- but to no avail. The hall leads to a forked path, one going down into what seems to be a cellar and one going left. I stare down into the cellar and go left with low hopes, and find myself in a living room type area. There’s a bunch of randomly assorted couches, chairs, I can even spot a rocking chair, a La-Z-boy and a weird egg-shaped chair with white cushions and a beige plastic cover. On the shimmery brick walls there’s an assortment of different tapestries and wall hangings, strange objects and heads of weird creatures, and other various decorations. One of the creature heads is a literal unicorn, and I feel its eyes on the back of my head when I turn around. I pat down all of the cushions and check under the couches but I only find two things- a weird rose-gold coin with the Illuminati symbol etched on one side and a big “2.75” on the other, and a gemstone that matches my staff’s gemstone, except it’s a deep red color. I pocket the two items and leave, knowing that the scary cellar is definitely where I need to go but dreading going down all the same. To try and stall the moment when I have to go down those steep, dark stairs, I turn and go down the left hall from the lobby, but it leads to a dead end. I close my eyes and summon my magic, and sense a spell placed over the wall which conceals a hidden doorway, but somehow I get the feeling that if I use my magic to open it, the witch lady person will be alerted. And I reaaaally don’t want that. So, with a heavy heart, and also heavy feet because I’m pissed off at the silence of this place, I go down the cellar stairs. Once I get to the bottom I realize I have a bit of a problem- I seem to be inside of a huge room, but my flame only illuminates a few feet around me. I tense my muscles, bring my staff up, ready to defend myself, and scream. Just. Into the hall. It doesn’t echo which is annoying but it’s nice to hear SOMETHING. I wait for a response but nothing happens. So, encouraged, I close my eyes and begin summoning the words I need yet again; “fire, spread, illuminate the hall.” A stream of red magic flows into my palm and the ball of fiery magic grows, swirling, and then suddenly the flaming magic ball floats upwards in the darkness towards what I assume is the middle of the room. The ball grows, grows, grows, then finally stops, a swirling ball like the sun, red and orange and yellow. I notice vaguely that there’s a bunch of other colors hanging from the ceiling, swirly purples, pinks, blues, greens, whites and more scattered around the room. I open my eyes and suck in a breath through my teeth. A giant ball of flame flickers at least a hundred feet above my head, lighting up a room made of the same shimmering gray brick as the rest of the building. All around me, crystals of different colors hang down from the ceiling, and immediately I know that they were the source of the glowing lights I saw when summoning the light. They sparkle brilliantly in the light of my flame, casting lights around the room. The room itself is what can only be called a magic room. There’s a cauldron against the back wall, and a fireplace with no wood- I’m assuming it’s meant to be lit with magic- and along the walls, bookshelves housing old spell books, potion materials and more are rearranging themselves with magic. A casting circle is laid in the center of the room, painted with some sort of magical substance and forming the strange letters of the magic language. A casting circle! Curiosity overtakes me and I step inside and mutter a simple spell, that of a finding spell. I decide to try and find a ruby- a common gemstone used in magic. Normally it’d give me a sort of sense of where the ruby is, like a compass in my stomach which draws me to it. But as I summon the magic and mutter the spell within the casting circle the runes on the floor come to life, absorbing my magic and magnifying it. My sight blurs and in its place I see a clear vision of a ruby laying on a shelf. Magic is ripped from me and I feel my arm outstretch on its own; something smooth and cold flies into my hand. I collapse on the floor, mostly out of shock, and glance at my hand. A large, perfectly formed ruby crystal is clutched between my fingers. I marvel at it. Then I hear laughter. “Never cast inside of a circle before, I’m guessing?” I jump to my feet, feeling a sinking in the pit of my stomach. The casting circle must’ve been linked to the witch lady person as well- of course it would be, she made it with her own magic so she’d know if it were used! I spin around, trying to find her, and when I don’t see anyone I close my eyes and use my magic to find her, outstretching my magical energy like someone stretching their hands out in the dark, feeling for something, anything. I find a shape charged with the most energy I’ve seen, against the entrance to the cellar. “Very clever,” says the voice again. A woman’s voice, definitely. I open my eyes and gasp. There’s an old hag sitting by the stairs- but then she’s not a hag anymore but a pregnant woman with purple eyes- and then she’s not a pregnant woman but a small child with blonde hair and dark skin- and her form changes again and again, shimmering with magic. I shake my head like a dog trying to rid itself of fleas. “Listen, I’m really sorry for using your casting circle, I’ve just never seen one before,” I start, but she laughs, and as she does so she shifts forms again. It’s hard to concentrate on what she’s saying when she’s never the same person. “Of course, darling,” she says. “I would’ve done the same thing.” Questions burst forth from my lips before I can stop myself. “Who are you really? How old are you, I mean? And what do you really look like?” She laughs again, changes, continues laughing. “So many questions!” I stare, waiting. Silence is the best thing you can give someone to get an answer out of. And it works. “Here, I’ll change into my regular form, if you really need to know,” she says, and she shimmers again and changes. I bite my lip. She looks to be just a bit older than me, with sleek black hair ruffled on her head, fading slowly to a natural red, curls that reach the back of her neck and are cut in a messy pixie style around her head. Her eyes are a bright, dangerous red, the same color as the ruby in my hand, but somehow it looks good on her. She wears a simple black cloak, pulled back to show a tight black tank top and some basic adventurer’s pants with some tall black leather boots. All in all, she’s really hot. Which sucks cause now I REALLY don’t want to have to fight her. I must stare a little too long because she laughs for the third time and says, “yeah, everyone always expects some old woman, but I’m actually seventeen. Surprising, right?” A response reaches my tongue before I have time to react. “No, not really. Younger people tend to be more open to change and experimentation, so it would make sense that they’re better at magic. I’m just surprised because I didn’t think you’d be hot.” I blush as soon as I say it but I can’t take it back. I almost slap my forehead but catch myself. Wow. So much for a boss fight, at this rate I might as well throw myself off the edge of this island for how well I’m doing. To my surprise, though, she blushes a little and giggles. “Wow, and I didn’t expect the brave adventurer who came here to be a lesbian, yet here we are.” I blush even harder and since I’m literally pale as can be, I know my face must be nearly as red as this girl’s eyes. Since I have no idea what comes next, I clear my throat. “Um, I read the magic on your rug, but I don’t really think I got your name?” I internally facepalm again but she smiles. “I’m Asha. And I don’t think I ever got your name either?” Asha. Of course she has a pretty name. “My names Ella,” I mumble, “but like literally everyone around here calls me-“ The girl finishes my sentence for me. “The Chosen One, yeah, I’ve heard. I’ve also heard you’re here for a certain artifact?” She raises her hand from out of her long robes, revealing a golden object I recognize from the old mentor’s description. The last artifact I needed, a simple golden bowl at first, which sparkled iridescently and seemed to glow all on its own. Little etchings of the same runes on the knife are carved into the side of the bowl, in thin lines that seem to glow with the same magical light. She grins slightly as she holds it up. I feel my mouth open slightly. I don’t know what to say. She senses my hesitation and twirls the bowl in her finger. “You know, I was kind of expecting a fight for this. Even looking forward to it, to be honest. But I think, if you want, we can just come up with some sort of deal.” I breathe out in relief. “Yeah, that’d be awesome... I really did not plan on fighting for that thing anyways. I mean, I know I’m supposed to resurrect the hero or whatever but like...” “Yeah,” she says. “So here’s what I was thinking. You want this bowl, and I want all the wannabe-heroes to stop looking for me and my island. However, this bowl is pretty powerful, and I’m sure the resurrected hero might try to come for me sooner or later. So in return for the bowl, I’d like you to help me disguise this island even better, tell everyone you’ve killed me and that my island is not worth coming to anymore, and if anyone decides to come onto my island anyways, I want you to help me fend them off.” It’s more than I could’ve hoped for- I get the bowl, I don’t have to fight or give up my firstborn child or any weird shit, and even better, I get to occasionally visit a hot witch. But then I find a question. “Why do you need me to help you disguise your island? No offense or anything, it’s just that you seem really powerful, so...” She shakes her head. “Why do you think you’re the chosen one, Ella? Your soul and it’s strength determines the strength of your magic. Your raw magic is the most powerful I’ve ever seen- if not a bit untrained. But with some help your magic would be so much more effective at hiding my island.” I agree to the deal and she gives me the bowl. I put it in my backpack gingerly, feeling it’s warmth and vibration under my fingers, the pure magic inside of it. Then Asha takes me to the casting circle and tells me what she wants- not only does she want the halls of her castle to be placed under powerful confusion spells for intruders, but she wants invisibility spells placed all around the island itself. Then she hands me a few choice items and gives me a few choice words- in magic, of course- that I should use in my spell. I nod and close my eyes, and see her body outlined by the huge amount of magic swirling inside of her. If her body has that much magic, I wonder how much mine must have? I keep in mind the magic she told me to use, and think of what I need to happen. “And upon the stone walls, a curse will befall all those unwelcome; twists and turns turn them away from true rooms, endless halls lead wandering feet to other exits, and lights distinguish themselves to hide all in darkness. The door open only for company expected, and this spell is seen only by those who know it casted.” The spell’s longer than most spells I’ve done before, and I feel the magic drain from me like energy, all different colors swirling out to do what I say. The words come from my mouth, a few of them words Asha had instructed me to use, and I pull magic from the items she gave me to fuel the spell. I feel the casting circle absorb and expand upon my magic, and it swirls around me like a tornado of glowing color, blocking out all other magic. It’s so strong I feel a slight breeze stirred up by the flow, making my hair billow out of my face. I smile at the feeling of power that flows through my body; my fingertips feel charged, like if I were to touch something it’d burst into flame, and my feet feel strong enough to run a thousand miles in a second. I breathe deeply as more and more magic is pulled from me, and yet with the combination of the casting circle, the items, and the choice words Asha gave me, I feel if anything more energized than before. A laugh escaped my lips as my body is lifted into the air and energy rushes through me, finalizing the spell. I feel the halls changing around me, the bricks shifting even though I can’t hear it, and I can sense the floor rumbling below me as it rearranges. When the spell is done I slowly lower to the floor, feet flattening gently against the stone, arms billowing down back to my sides, hair gliding down against my back. When I open my eyes Asha is grinning from ear to ear. “That was more than I could’ve hoped for! I mean, I knew you had power, but wow!” I rub the back of my neck, embarrassed but pleased. “Oh, it was only because of all of your help. I really am clueless about spells and whatnot, I’ve always just winged it...” She smiles as my praise and takes the objects from my hands, replacing them with new ones. Then she tells me new words and I work another spell, this time disguising the entire island. I think of the words first, “From the eyes of unwanted, gazes unneeded, the prying searchers who are not known- hide the earth and the stone, mask the bricks and cover the trees, and make this island of silence also an island unseen.” The magic swirls out of me again, absorbed by the circle just as I absorb magic from the items, and the words escape my lips, loud and clear, some of them Asha’s; and I feel everything around me change, see through the darkness my magic- a light pink color this time -spread throughout the entire island, covering everything in sight with the light glow, hiding all other magic. When I opened my eyes this time, Asha was just outside of the casting circle, looking at me strangely while biting her lip. “What’s wrong?” I ask immediately, concerned. She giggles. “You know, I’m supposed to be the ‘bad guy’ and stuff, but you’re making it kinda hard.” “Uh, what do you mean?” I ask, genuinely confused. “Well, I was waiting here, protecting this bowl, so I could have an epic fight with some dumb, fourteen-year-old guy with an inflated ego and overpowered gear who was just calling himself ‘the chosen one,’ but like, now I just feel like a jerk for making your job harder when you’re nothing like what I expected.” She pouts and I feel really bad all of a sudden. “We can still fight, you know, it just won’t be to the death,” I offer, and she brightens. “Really?” “Yeah! I mean if you want to. I’m not the best at fighting but I’m kinda decent I guess, and as long as we agree not to actually hurt the other person I’m down. After all, I feel just as bad as you do, I literally magicked onto your island, broke into your house, used your casting circle and then tried to take your artifact just cause some old dude wants me to.” The girl grins and grabs my hand, pulling me up the stairs and down into the other hallway, which was a dead end. Then she places her hand on the wall and murmurs some magical words. I close my eyes for a second and watch, fascinated, as her hands glow with strictly controlled magic energy- a control I didn’t even come close to having- and filtered through the wall in a neat rectangle. I open my eyes and see the wall pull itself open, bricks folding backwards into bricks, opening up to another cellar-looking place. I gasp, both in awe at the magic, and at the fact that for once I can hear something on this island- the bricks actually make sound as they move inwards, clanking together, the grinding sound of stone on stone as they slide. “This part of the castle has different enchantments,” Asha explains, once more taking my hand and pulling me after her. She moves through the hallways with ease, navigating the darkness as if she has night vision- which she probably does, since she’s this amazing at magic. “I’ve been wanting to have an epic fight like this since forever, so when I made the castle I made what I like to call a ‘boss room.’ The dumb adventurer comes down here, looking to steal my artifact, and meanwhile I wait in the shadows, silent until their hands touch the bowl- then- BAM! I emerge from the darkness and we fight!” “You really thought this all out,” I say. “Yeah, I even had a whole fake monologue about how I wanted to destroy the world or something- honestly I found this bowl on accident, the only reason I’ve kept it is so that I can have the fight I’ve always wanted.” I smile. Then I frown. “Hey, by the way- how were you changing back there, when we first met? I know you’re called the woman of many faces, but are those actually...?” “Other faces? Of course not! I’m not that evil,” she replies quickly before I can finish the question. “No, I‘m just a Prime in illusionary magic and shapeshifting. In fact, I’m the best illusionist I’ve met so far.” I feel my jaw drop. A Prime was sort of like the magic version of a PHD- instead of calling them ‘Dr.’ though, you call them ‘Prime.’ To become a Prime in a certain type of magic you had to not only master it but do all sorts of other things- invent your own spells in that category, learn the language of magic pertaining to that sort of magic, learn about and even collect the rare objects used in those spells, and more. At seventeen that was impressive. “Oh, so those are all illusions you made?” I ask. “Yep. My own spell. Aaaaand here we are!” She whispers another spell and torches along the walls light themselves, leading down the line one by one. It’s very cinematic. But what’s even cooler, to me at least, is the fact that I can actually hear them light, the ‘whooosh’ of the flames as they burst into being, the crackle as they start to burn in their holders. Once they’re all lit, I see that we’re in a massive dome-shaped room, with shimmery gray brick walls and the most beautiful and creepy ceiling I’ve ever seen. At first glance it looks like glass, but if you look closer it seems to be some sort of crystal. Arranged similarly to stained glass, the pieces of crystal come together to form a grisly scene; a faceless woman in a dark cloak raising her hands towards a red sun, which seems to be bleeding on her hands; and surrounding her are red/bloody faces of different women, some of which I recognize from when we first met. I see the face of the hag to the woman’s immediate left, the face of the child near her feet to the right, the face of the pregnant woman near her head on the left; and surrounding the woman are various shades of bloody reds, fading out to a dark, menacing maroon. But that’s not all- the crystals seem to be alive. They shimmer, sparkle, and move, as if there’s something just above the crystal that I’m seeing, even though I know it’s just a powerful illusion spell. Shadows seem to slink along the crystal, swirling and snaking across the different patterns, accentuating the woman and the heads. Little specks of what I can only describe as blood flow along the bottoms of the reddest crystal pieces, everywhere blood is pictured, and in the sun, and somehow it seems to be made to float and flow in streams all on its own. Behind the crystals comes a menacing glow, dark enough that it would be unnoticeable without the torches providing extra light, but light enough that I can see it now without any trouble. And with the flames dancing on the walls, reflecting off of the crystal, the entire picture seems to come to life with a deadly shifting of shadows, throwing strange symbols on the walls and red light that look like blood splatters on the brick floor. In the center of the floor there’s a pedestal, with an empty space where I can only assume the bowl would sit. And on the back wall, there’s a tall throne; a black steel, threatening, menacing with spikes coming from the back, cushioned by red velvet along the seat itself, bordered by wicked knives along the top edges of the seat and arms. “Well?” Asha looks at me expectantly. I realize that my mouth is hanging open and I close it hastily. “This is like the coolest place I’ve ever seen. Literally. It’s perfect for a boss battle.” I know the words sound flattering, but they’re true. Even though I don’t particularly wanna fight, I have to admit this is awesome. “Well, let’s not waste it then! We’ll just fight until the other person WOULD be hurt and/or dead- but stop before it actually happens. Kay?” I knit my eyebrows together. “Um, I totally agree, it’s just, I’m not sure if I have enough control over my magic to do that...” She closes her eyes but I can feel her staring at my magic, assessing me. She nods to herself. “Okay, well, that should be no problem... here, hold on a sec.” She breathes in once through her nose, then out through her mouth. Then she starts muttering a complex spell. I close my eyes to watch her building her magic, weaving complex patterns of different colors and streams. I almost jump as a stream of bright purple shoots towards me, but it veers off last second, and instead goes around me, around and around and around, like a piece of yarn forming a ball, creating a sort of bubble of magic around me. The bubble slowly starts to glow brighter, and then it turns pink, shrinking inwards and wrapping itself tightly around my body. I feel a sort of heat on my skin and shiver at the suddenness of it. When I use my magic to look past the barrier around me, I see a similar one coating Asha’s body. I open my eyes and find her staring at me. “Life barriers,” she explains. “If two people agree to it, and allow the magic to stay, then the barriers will ensure that the people using them will never die from the other whilst inside.” “Wait, if it basically never lets you die, then how come people don’t use this more often?” I ask. She laughs. “Well, it doesn’t necessarily ‘never let you die,’ it just forms a sort of bond between two people who have the same barrier. Since I cast the barrier and split it in two between us, that means that, for now, since we both have the barriers, we can’t really hurt each other. But it requires compliance of both parties, so it’s useless in a REAL fight.” I nod, finally grasping the idea. “Okay, got it. So... what now?” She runs over to the opposite side of the dome, her feet moving faster than should be possible. “Now... we fight.” “Wait!” I yelp. “Lemme take off my pack real quick, I don’t wanna hurt the artifact.” Asha bursts out in laughter but I maintain my dignity and seriousness. If this bowl broke, the old man mentor guy would literally kill me. I take off the leather pack and, for good measure, take off my jerkin and wrap the pack inside of it to provide extra padding in case something happens. Then I walk back over to my spot and nod at Asha. “Okay I’m good now.” Asha smirks and suddenly she’s gone; I curse and close my eyes, stretching out my magic. I see her shape running at me, a ball of red-and-orange magic balled between her hands. “Oh SHIT,” I scream, quickly conjuring up magic. “From my hands and magic, cast something to stop the fire magic she conjures,” I think quickly. It’s sloppy, but it works. A ball of blue magic flies from my body and towards Asha’s just as she reaches me; I open my eyes to see I giant ball of swirling water flying towards the opposite wall, and in the middle, the outline of a person, Asha’s invisible self. I close my eyes again and quickly think up another spell; “Reveal her true form and keep it shown to me.” Again, sloppy, but I don’t exactly have all the time in the world here. A purple stream of magic shoots out of me, quick as a striking snake, and launches towards Asha, who is still inside of the blue magic of my massive water ball. I open my eyes and laugh, panting a little, as I see Asha suspended in the water. The laugh drops from my face as I see her eyes closed, mouth working, hands together as she prepares a spell. I quickly run around to the side of the arena and just barely close my eyes, catching a glimpse of a green swirl of magic flowing out of Asha’s hands and out around my blue magic. I think up a spell, “Alight my hand and staff with flames and from my throat, a burst of fire at will, with the power of heat which leaves not a burn on my own skin, but which chars those foolish enough to do it themselves;” and red magic bursts forth from my hands as the words form on my lips naturally. I open my eyes to see a stream of fire sprouting from my hands, and by the looks of it just in time- Asha has powerful green vines emerging from her palms, absorbing the water and whipping like powerful ropes towards me. My flames engulf her vines and as the fire travels up the green leaves towards her hands, I start to think that I’d won. But then I close my eyes to see what she’s doing and realize my mistake. What I thought was her body is glowing with only a single dull purple glow- it’s an illusion. I whirl around and see the real Asha, full of colors and glowing magic, behind me, approaching fast with a swirl of magic between her fingers. Before I have time to come up with a spell to defend myself, I open my eyes to see a ball of swirling spirits hurtling straight for my head. I know they’re spirits because of the ghostly moans and screams coming from the swirling mass, which is all dark and purple and silvery mixed together, wisps of what seems like balled up fog trapped together in a weapon. I put my hands up as if I was trying to catch the thing, and somehow magic words come to my lips; I don’t even know what I’m doing but my palm burns with immense energy as magic is summoned from inside of me, even though I’m not closing my eyes I swear I can see the magic flowing from my chest down to my hand and swirling around as it prepares to fire. Then the spell takes shape, and all I can do is watch as my body summons raw magic on its own accord. Bright blue flames sprout from the ground around my feet, licking at my leather boots. The leather itself burns away but my skin remains untouched, save for a tickling sensation mixed with pleasant warmth. The flames grow until they’re surrounding me (luckily my clothes stay intact because I would’ve died of embarrassment if they burned away), and the strength of their color grows until I can barely see through the wall of blue fire surrounding me. I hear a hiss and the roar of the fire devouring whatever Asha fired at me, see the ball of spirits disintegrate just before it hits my face, and hear the screams and loud sputtering as the spirits are dispersed into the air, where they scamper through the walls back to wherever they came from. Asha’s form just barely filters through the flames, and I see her stumble backwards, probably in surprise. I’m just as surprised as her, especially when the blue fire continues to grow and my magic continues to work on its own. Suddenly I can see my magic again, rushing to my palm, even though my eyes aren’t closed; and from my stomach words are forced from my mouth, and I vomit out the magic language harshly, in a voice that’s far too raspy to be my own- and yet I know it is. More flames, slightly violet this time, burst forth from my hand and from the ground. They spiral into the air, a breathtaking sight, before darting down towards Asha in a rush of power so great it looks like a tornado of flame and smoke and flickering magic fire. The column of flame engulfs her completely and I yell out on instinct, worried I’ve hurt her (or worse), before I remember our magic bond and her protection. Sure enough, I feel a sudden jolt around my body, and the magic stops suddenly as if someone yanked it away from me. The flames die instantly, and as soon as the walls around me turn to smoke I rush over to where Asha is laying. She turns over, coughing, and I bite my lip to stop myself from gasping. She’s covered, head-to-toe, in soot and ash, giving her the appearance of a shadow, save for her ruby eyes, which almost glow against the new midnight-black of her skin. I gingerly reach out a finger and brush it against her cheek, and sigh in relief when it rubs off. “I thought I’d burned you...” I explain weakly. She looks at me strangely and I don’t know what she’s going to say. But then she grins, white teeth startling against the dust on her face. “That was amazing! You’ve got to teach me how to do that!” I laugh, mostly because I’m glad she’s okay and that she’s not mad at me. Then I run over to where my pack is laying (thankfully untouched) and bring her my leather jerkin. “Here, get all that soot off your face. It’s not good for your lungs,” I say, wiping at her cheeks and forehead with the jerkin. She takes it from me and scrubs her face harshly and I wince, but when she pulls her face from the leather folds most of the ash is gone. “What was that spell?” she asks again. I shrug noncommittally. “Um, it wasn’t really a spell. I don’t know... when your magic was coming for my head, my body just kinda acted on its own, and before I knew it the magic language was being forced from my mouth like someone else was making me speak it.” “So you didn’t come up with that spell at all? It just- happened?” asks Asha with shining eyes. “Yeah, I guess. I didn’t even know what it was gonna do, I was so worried,” I say. She laughs. “Wow, you really are some sort of ‘chosen one’ or something. I’ve never heard of that much raw power! That was a good fight though.” I smile. “Oh, please, I only won through luck. If it were up to actual skill you’d beat me in an instant, I mean the amount of polish and control you have is unreal! You live up to your name as well as I do.” We beam at each other for a bit, then we both seem to realize, at the same time, that I’m basically naked. Although my sports bra and shorts remained in tact, it was close. They hang in tatters on my body, just barely concealing what needs to be concealed. Suddenly I feel very, very bare, especially in front of this girl who’s most definitely looking me up and down. She speaks first, which is a good thing because my face was starting to turn red and I would’ve gotten all choked up and flustered if I tried to speak. “Oh, here, we should get you some clothes before you go back to your mentor.” She takes my hand, more gentle this time around, and leads me slowly towards the main lobby area. Then we go up the staircase and towards a blank stone wall. She murmurs something in the magic language and once again, a secret door opens. But this time, instead of revealing a boss fight arena, it reveals a luxurious looking bedroom. The ceiling arches high, almost as high as the one down in the boss fight area, and at the top there’s stained glass, fading from crimson to rose red to pink, and in the bottom center is a white dot, the sun. The red sunset casts a rosy glow on the rest of the room. The floor is a soft, silky red carpet; I find myself relieved when I hear my feet whisper across the floor, instead of that unnatural silence that I hear everywhere else; and the walls are made of the shimmery gray bricks, but they’re painted and covered in so many posters you can barely see them. Swirls of red and pink paints are scattered along the room, simple patterns that add more aesthetic to the room. Posters of different rock bands, car brands, books, movies and more are posted everywhere. On one wall lies a magnificent bed, with long red curtains surrounding all three sides, and a beautifully carved solid black headboard made of the same material as the throne back in the boss room. Inlaid in the metal are several rubies, sparkling beautifully in the sunlight that is filtering through the stained glass ceiling. Runes- I close my eyes and read the magic writing- runes for protection and peaceful dreams are carved along the beds frame, and the blankets are soft and fluffy looking even from here. Against one wall is a simple, small black sliding door, and against another is a giant bookshelf which, like the ones in the cellar, rearranges itself; but this one is filled with personal items. Books for leisure, video games, movies, even a succulent or two float around on the bookshelf. There’s a desk and a chair next to the bookshelf on one side, with some papers and books scattered around a closed laptop, and on the other side of the bookshelf there’s a massive flatscreen TV placed inside of the wall. A few video game stations sit below the tv, ready to play. In the center of the room there’s a large carpet, beautifully patterned in all of the warm colors, and in the center of the carpet there’s a massive floating crystal, which shimmers red like the crystal ceiling in the boss room. I stare around in awe. Asha grins at me and wiggles an eyebrow. “Hey, since I’m living here alone, I figured, why not let myself enjoy it? Come on, the closet’s this way.” She drags me past the crystal and over to the black door against her wall. When she pushes it open, my jaw actually drops. Her closet is just absolutely fucking massive. A comfortable amount of space allows for a walkway between two shelves, both of which stretch at least seven hundred feet forwards in a long, and also wide hallway. Clothes hang from the shelves, or sit folded on the bottom rows; bins and baskets line the sides, which pull out to reveal shoes, accessories and more. As we walk forwards I see an occasional section of the shelving made into a mini locker-like contraption, which I open up to reveal jewelry or sunglasses or even makeup. At the very end there’s a vanity section, with a desk and a stool (both black) in front of a large mirror, which is framed by bloodred crystal. The space is so roomy that I bet you could fit another vanity right next to that one, in the hallway, and still have a comfortable amount of space to walk by. Asha scans the room with her eyes, deciding on an outfit. Most of her clothes are warm colors, or else they’re in shades of gray and black, but I notice a few cheery-looking greens and blues here and there. I also notice that she has a ton of black robes, and a ton of leather jackets. She walks over and chooses a tight red tank top and tosses it to me. I just barely catch it. Then she starts grabbing hangers and stacking them over her shoulder. “If you’re gonna wear some of my clothes, I at least want you to actually look good,” she says, and comes over to me. She puts an outfit into my arms. Along with the red tank top, she’s chosen a cropped black leather jacket, dark ripped skinny jeans, and tall black boots that come to my knees; she’s also brought me a skimpy pair of black underwear (“don’t worry, most of my stuff is new, like that one”) and a regular matching black push-up bra. For accessories she’s brought me a few hair ties and Bobby pins, a nose ring (“it magically attaches, so you don’t actually have to pierce your nose, okay?”) and some makeup. Then, one of those movie makeover scenes happens. I tie back my hair in a badass looking ponytail, with a few small braids that wrap through it and go around my head like half a crown, and I use the Bobby pins to make a second pony tail just above that one. Then, I dress myself in those clothes- which I have to admit, look pretty good on me- and Asha forces me to put on makeup. (Okay maybe she doesn’t force me, but she asks if she can put on some makeup, and I can’t say no to pretty girls!) I insist on doing my makeup light, since I’ll be traveling and then, after awakening this so-called ‘hero,’ possibly even fighting some more, and Asha agrees. First she does mascara, which makes my lashes so long and dark they look fake, since I have long lashes naturally already- and then she applies some basic stuff, like concealer. Since I’m clueless when it comes to this stuff I just let Asha do all the work, which is kind of making me flustered since, hello? Pretty girl? Right on my face? Touching my cheeks and eyelids and lips and nose and neck and staring at my face as she tries to find which parts to put stuff on? Being so close I can smell her, all pine and sweat and ash and a little bit of cologne? So close I can see the myself reflected in those red, red eyes, so concentrated, framed by lashes that are almost as red as her hair, so close I can see the individual hairs of the single curl that falls down over her forehead, slipping from its braid; so close I can see exactly how full and beautiful those baby-pink lips are? I’m way too gay to act normal during something like this. Luckily, she either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care. When she’s done with concealer or whatever she pulls out a tube of red lipstick and grins evilly. “And for the final touch,” she whispers, putting it on. I’m glad that I have concealer on because I’m definitely blushing now. And then she’s looking at my lips for a tiny bit too long and I’m looking at her looking at my lips and when she meets my eyes I notice a sort of pinkness creep onto her cheeks. She pulls away hastily and I find that my heart is fluttering a million miles an hour. “Well, there you go!” she says. I turn to the mirror and see a complete badass. The blacks and reds against my pale skin and hair bring a contrast that’s almost scary, and somehow that ruby red of my lips makes my eyes seem grayer, colder, sharper. The blush that I’m feeling right now is nowhere to be seen. Instead I have sharply angled cheekbones, pale as ever, accented by highlight that sparkles slightly. “Wow, I look so cool,” I say stupidly. I turn to look at Asha and we smile at each other. And I think, man, now I don’t want to leave because I really like her. How do I get myself into these situations? I literally ended up falling for the final boss. Are you kidding me. What am I gonna do now? Then the dream ended. Only for some reason I remembered every detail crystal clear, like the same way you remember a story you just finished reading. I honestly am kind of confused but like I’m not gonna complain cause this was actually a good dream.