Dreamer's Throne

Garrett’s vision shifted as his mind sank deep under the city into the bloodied chamber, merging with Viper even as Henrick tried to wrench himself free. The monster that had taken over Henrick’s body had brought with it an unnatural level of vitality, and so long as he could escape, he was confident he could survive and recover. Trying to pull back to free himself from the blade that had been plunged into his heart, he raised his cleaver. He intended to cut Viper down, but as his arm rose pain coursed through him. Shaken, he looked down only to find another blade, a dagger this time, stabbing up through his armpit, slicing into the joint of his shoulder. Cartilage and bone alike fell under the edge of the dagger, causing the strength to drain from his arm.

Screaming in pain, he tried to kick Viper, only to hit nothing but air as Viper drifted backward. In his shocked state he was unable to understand why his enemy would suddenly retreat, but ultimately it didn’t matter. Even with his right arm inoperable, Henrick still had his hook, and he was confident it would be enough to ensure his escape. With his torso already leaning back, he crouched slightly and then jumped backward.

His face was warping into a sneer when the ceiling above him collapsed and a white flower with five petals burst out, snapping shut around his head, its teeth latching onto him. Squeezing him like a vice, it lifted him further into the air, using his existing momentum as his feet flailed in the air. Unable to find any purchase as he was pulled up, there was no way for Henrick to stop his ascent. Dirt closed in around him as he was dragged into the hole the flower ghoul had made. Realizing his only possible defense was his hook claw, he tried to lift it, but dirt blocked his way. Thrashing about to try to break past the earth, he felt another flower latch onto him from the side, pinning his left arm to his body.

Muffled bellows echoed from inside the flowers as he thrashed about, but the petals simply gripped tighter, causing his legs to spasm. The teeth on the edges of the petals ground away, shredding his flesh until they locked up against his skeleton. Inside Henrick’s body, the Chosen of the Crimson Eye let out an enraged scream and tried to flee, only to realize that Henrick’s life force wasn’t the only thing being sucked away. When it had fully possessed the man it had taken over his mind as well as his body, melding together with him. That had increased their collective strength by giving it access to his abilities, but now as Henrick’s mental energy was absorbed by the large flowers, so too was the Chosen’s.

Mustering all of its remaining power, the Chosen’s eyes flared, summoning the power its master had given it. About to burn its way out of the trap, its crimson eyes caught sight of a glittering white flower that waved with impossible grace. A shiver ran through it and its crimson eyes grew glazed, entranced by the bewitching flower. Sensing a problem with itself, the Chosen tried to break free, but its roar only came out as a whisper as another flower appeared in its line of sight. One after another, white flowers grew around it, adding their beguiling beauty to its sight. If anyone had been within range to see it, they would have discovered it staring in fascination at the shimmer of rainbow color that played across the sea of flowers.

“So beautiful,” it whispered, its hiss lost into the Dream as its life was absorbed.

Already terrified by Henrick, who had transformed into a monster, the Swamp Shark gang was unable to react at all when the flower ghoul appeared and pulled Henrick up into the ceiling. A gaping hole dripping blood was the only thing left behind by the monster, and even the muffled thrashing soon grew silent, causing everyone watching to feel a creeping chill. The entire chamber was completely quiet as Viper stepped forward, drawing another short sword from a sheath on his back. Dressed in the hardened leather armor of an adventurer, he held a dagger in his off hand as he walked out in between the two armies.

Swallowing, Obe shot a glance at the hole in the ceiling, unable to wrap his mind around what had just happened. He’d never seen a flower ghoul before, but visions of the last time he’d seen Viper fight flashed through his mind. Despite the naked fear he felt when he looked at his back, he fell in behind Viper, incredibly glad he was on the bizarre, masked man’s side. Together they walked toward Vic, who was surrounded by his men, as if they might be able to provide him with some level of protection against Viper’s blades. Understanding the twisted way Vic thought, Obe sneered to himself. Stopping well before they reached the Swamp Sharks, Viper looked over the crowd, his gaze making them shiver.

“Sorry about the disruption. A bit of an unavoidable situation, really. But it’s been dealt with. Shall we continue?”

This time, it was Vic’s turn to swallow. He had been a gang boss for a long time, and before that had clawed his way over countless bodies to get to where he was. Yet when he looked at Viper, he felt a sense of horror that he couldn’t explain. His instincts had always been sharp, and now they were telling him he was standing inside the jaws of a ravenous beast that would snap shut on him at a moment’s notice.

“What treachery is this?” Vic said, his voice nearly breaking as he grasped at straws. “First you bring outsiders in to attack me, and then you replace one of your leaders with a hired mercenary? This battle is void.”

Chuckling, Viper shook his head and sheathed his dagger. Holding up a finger, he began explaining.

“First, Henrick went mad and was possessed by a monster. He fled our base days ago. We were not in contact with him and have no control over what he did. It is unfortunate that he did not abide by the rules of the challenge, but that is neither here nor there. If you have a problem with him, I suggest you take it up with him.”

Seeing Viper gesture to the pool of blood under the gaping hole in the ceiling, Vic had nothing to say. With some amusement, Viper continued.

“Second, I told you very plainly that I would destroy you if you did not agree to my demands. You had a chance to amend your ways and turn your attention to other endeavors, but you chose not to. Do not blame me for carrying out my threat.”

Shocked by Viper’s words, Vic thought for a moment that he’d been tricked and that Garrett and Viper were the same person. Yet he soon shook his head, vehemently rejecting that idea.

“You’re that cripple? That’s impossible! He isn’t awakened, he’s just a weak mortal.”

Shrugging at Vic’s outburst, Viper took a step forward and pointed his short sword at his chest.

“That’s not your concern right now. You haven’t yet answered my question. Shall we continue this slaughter, or do you surrender?”

His face already bloodless, Vic’s eyes darted around the battlefield. His forces were in shambles and Hollice was still unconscious while the other side was slowly recovering. He could see them drinking bottles of something as they tried to regain as much energy as they could. From the armor they wore to the bandages wrapped around their wounds, it was evident the Ghoul’s Tooth gang had prepared extensively for this fight. A thread of regret coursed through Vic’s heart as he realized he’d made a mistake in treating the smaller gang with contempt. Even if Viper wasn’t here and he was just facing off against Obe, he wasn’t sure he was confident in winning now that the Ghoul’s Tooth troops had gotten a chance to rest.

Yet he had no other option but to continue forward. If he didn’t win this fight, his gang was forfeit. Most likely his life was as well. Should he have come out on top, Vic wouldn’t have hesitated to kill all the enemy leaders brutally as an example, and he expected no different from the masked man in front of him. With death looming either way, anger burned away any fear he felt and he spat on the ground.

“You want my head? Hah! I’ll make you bleed for it!”

With a sigh, Garrett, who was watching the whole scene from afar, shook his head. He’d done his best to give his enemy a way out, but Vic’s warped perspective made it impossible for him to imagine he would be spared. Closing his eyes for a moment, Garrett hardened his heart and spoke softly, his words traveling over a great distance.

“Begin.”

The moment he spoke, multiple things happened at the same time. Viper and Vic both dashed forward, intending to end their opponent with a single strike. At the same time, white flowers that had appeared around the edge of the room pulsed with light, attracting countless eyes. In the center of the Swamp Sharks’ ranks another two flowers suddenly burrowed out of the ground, their petals glistening with a reddish haze. Whipping about, they scattered the haze around them, forming a cloud that quickly spread out to two dozen feet.

At the edge of the room, Ryn saw that the fight was going to restart and saw Obe sprinting toward her, his face panicked. Without a word, Obe flashed past her and slashed through the boards they’d used to block the passage. Kicking the board aside, he gestured for everyone to follow him.

“Come on! Move! Leave everything! If you don’t want to die, move!”

It took a moment for Ryn’s exhausted mind to catch up, but once she did, her face paled as well and she pulled at one of the exhausted gang members, sending him stumbling toward the exit, all the while Garrett’s words echoing in her head. He had warned her strictly that if the fight restarted after Henrick fell, they needed to leave as fast as possible, since he could no longer guarantee their safety. Exhausted and battered, the Ghoul’s Tooth gang fled down the passage they had just opened, running to the backup location they’d set up. For a moment Obe considered trying to block the passage, but that thought fled as he saw a dozen flowers burrow up out of the ground, shaking dirt from the teeth that surrounded their petals.

Inside the chamber, the Swamp Sharks fell into a strange state. They were tightly packed, but as the cloud of red spores spread the gang members in the middle tried to escape, only to find that those along the edge weren’t moving. All around the edge of the room, the flowers that appeared glittered with rainbow lights, as beautiful as a piece of bright treasure. Slack-jawed, the gang members who saw them stood in place and stared, infuriating those behind them who were trying to escape the red cloud.

“Get out of the way!”

“Move!”

Shouts broke out as the trapped men started to grow agitated. Their eyes grew bloodshot and suddenly one of them hacked out with his saber, chopping down one of the enthralled men. Yet even after the enthralled man fell to the ground, clearing a path forward, the enraged man didn’t flee. Instead, he chopped down again and again. The screams woke those along the edge, and many of them turned to find their companions glaring at them with bloodthirst. Unable to process the change, they had no choice but to raise their weapons and fight as their companions charged them.

Oblivious to all of this, Vic was fighting for his life against Viper. The masked man felt strangely familiar to Vic, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. There was something about the man’s movements that enraged Vic, but he was too busy trying to avoid getting stabbed to think about it properly. Where his agility had proven successful against Henrick’s straightforward attacks, it was now proving to be a liability.

Jumping backward, Vic swore as Viper’s dagger suddenly caught up with him, stabbing toward his outstretched thigh. With no leverage in the air, he was forced to intercept the attack with his sword, but that left his side open, and it was only pure luck that Viper’s stab didn’t cut straight through his ribs. Vic preferred to fight with a bit of distance, but the problem was that Viper seemed to be able to close any distance in an instant. It didn’t matter if they were five feet apart or ten, Viper would take a simple step forward and be inside stabbing range. Eyes widening in shock, Vic slashed with his sword, driving Viper back.

“Ruel! You’re Ruel!”

Stopping, Viper sheathed his dagger and reached up, slowly removing his mask. Glittering eyes stared at Vic from a familiar face, causing his mind to shake.

“Why would you betray us?!”

“Betray? I thought you would have called it joining the winning side, Vic.”

Seeing Viper gesture around them with his mask, Vic looked around and saw his men busy killing each other. Some of them were enraged, their eyes red and their veins threatening to burst from their bodies, while others held a dazed look in their eyes, making their movements slow. Everywhere he looked, blood drenched the ground and wounded men groaned, trying to stay out of the range of those still fighting. A glance across the room showed that the Ghoul’s Tooth gang had already left, retreating through one of the tunnels they had sealed earlier.

It was at that point that Vic realized it didn’t matter one bit if he continued to fight or not. His gang had been reduced to a few dozen wounded men and his Awakened officers had either died or betrayed him. Hatred colored his face as he turned to stare at Viper, but his eyes were seeing a different face. Even as Viper started to speak, Vic heard his words in Garrett’s calm voice.

“One more chance, Vic. Don’t drag your whole gang into hell just because you can’t put down your pride.”

“As if you’d dare to let me live.”

“I’m still alive.”

“A dog will always be a dog. I might fall, but I can take you with me,” Vic spat, taking a step forward, his blade rising to point at his enemy’s throat.

“That was the wrong answer,” Viper said, placing his mask back on his face. “Goodbye, Vic.”