24/06/337

Audra

Audra had no idea how long she was out of it. Everything felt amazing, every sound, every feeling, every sensation felt like it came from another world. A sense of wonder and amazement overcame her with every small thing that happened. She didn’t remember much of anything she had said or heard while more stoned than a Golem but she remembered it felt really relaxing, and not completely unwelcome.

Somehow, she wasn’t sure exactly how, she had found herself in a cavern, a warm light coming from below the rocky bridge she stood on. Heat waves were expelled from the molten rock below, making the view of the large demon in front of her blurry. The smell that surrounded her was one of soot and ash mixed with rot and decay.

The beast in front of her roared, filled with power, enough to send a blast of air that sent her skidding back. She put her arms up to protect herself. Suddenly the heat seemed to become more bearable, looking down she could see that the magma had become solid rock.

Audra sent her gaze to the quadrupedal beast. It was sitting, not unlike a dog would, but this demon was far from a dog. While seated it’s height was easily two, maybe three, meters tall. She could probably fit in between it’s shoulders. The demon was like a wingless dragon, gray scales covered in black fur. A thin mane traced it’s shoulders along with some of the fur on it’s back, as if wearing a cape. Two large lapis horns, each the thickness of two thighs extruded from it’s cheeks and passed it’s jaws. Her heart began to beat quickly, but almost came to a stop when the beast spoke.

“Your fear is more than welcome here, however you would do best to hide it.” It said, directly into her head. It’s voice was deep and animalistic.

“What are you?” Audra asked.

“I am a Demon, a Barakusr. I believe the monster form you are more accustomed to is a Vera Daosr.” The demon said, “Come with me.” It said turning around, revealing a curved lapis colored bladed tail. Somehow every bit of animosity Audra thought she felt from this creature seemed to vanish.

“Where am I?” Audra asked as the two of them walked through caverns, magma seemed to seep through the walls around them.

“You are seeing the Nightmare.” The creature said. She gulped.

“Did I die?” She asked. The Barakusr seemed to laugh.

“Far from it, you are very much alive. It seems your soul was summoned here. I can not say for certain but my Master appears to have taken a liking to your circumstances.”

“Master?”

“You humans ask so many questions, it is intriguing. Runahera.” He answered.

“He created you?”

“He created all of us,” The barakusr stopped, wrapping it’s tail around Audra’s torso to stop her from moving forward as a plume of hot magma seared past them, he continued as they began to walk again, “From the Plinth, the weakest of the demons. To the Unadorned, the more common of my kind. The Embellished, the ones that have become more powerful and threatening. The Apex, the creatures that stand near the top of the hierarchy you humans have made for us, under only the Zenith, like myself who have learned to harness the energy you call Etherea, and the Descended ones.” The barakusr explained.

“There are more Descended?” Audra asked.

“At first I admired your curiosity, now I find it rather annoying. Enough questions.” Audra wasn’t going to argue with a Zenith Barakusr.

The Nightmare was...unique...uniquely hot and cavernous. Everywhere they went was just more magma, heat, and rocks. There was also the occasional window into the rest of the Nightmare, showing giant lakes of lava that seemed to stretch on for eternity, with strange stone-like structures dotting the ocean of fire.

“This place has stood for hundreds of years, since Runahera and Kalano were born from Zerian.” The demon explained as he led her deeper into the caverns.

“I’ve heard that name before.” Audra pointed out.

“It’s normal, Zerian is the ancient of all Creation, they were the first being ever born of the Rift. As far as we are aware of.” He claimed, as they reached a wall. It was made of crafted stone, similar in color to the rest of the caverns but it seemed out of place.

“We are here.” He started, “The next time you are here I will not be able to guide you.” He claimed before the stone wall opened from the middle. A bright light spilled into the darkness of the cavern, blinding her. The heat from this hell vanished, a cool breeze hit her face.

When Audra opened her eyes she found herself in the inn, standing in front of the open window. The nightly breeze was cool against her skin, being in that hellscape...it was just a dream, but that demon...the Barakusr, it felt so real. How long had she been out of it? How long had she been standing there? She looked back to see Vasuki sleeping on the edge of the bed, far from where she had been. She saw flowers next to her side of the bed in a vase of water, she had no memory of who had brought them but it was a nice gesture. She bent down and smelled the roses, finally being aware of what she was doing was a very nice change.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Audra clicked open her pocket mirror. Her regular reflection was staring back at her, she tapped on the glass.

“Come on Lulu, where you at?” No response. “Oh, now that I’m awake and feeling better you’re not going to bug me?” She whispered. Her reflection stretched.

“Do you mind?” Lusalene asked, “I’m trying to sleep here.”

“You haven’t had enough time to do that?” Audra asked.

“I haaave….I just...haven’t done it.” She explained, “So what is it that you want? You’re feeling really concerned right now.” She added.

“You can feel that, huh? I had a weird dream...do you know anything about the Nightmare?” Lusalene scratched the back of her neck at the question. She was nervous.

“No, I can’t say I do. Why do you ask?” Audra shrugged in response.

“I had a dream that I was in the Nightmare, it felt so real...There was this Barakusr speaking to me, telling me that his master has taken an interest in me.” Her reflection lost all of her color.

“Put the mirror up right now, lay down!” She yelled, she looked...scared.

“Alright, alright. Calm down.” Audra said, putting her pocket mirror next to the flowers, and laying down on her side of the bed.

“Don’t lay in the bed! Lay on the floor!” Lusalene barked from the mirror. Audra didn’t understand why she would lay in the floor of the inn, the bed was far more comfortable. She laid on her back on the hard floor yet it didn’t even take a second for her to get dragged into unconsciousness.

When Audra found herself standing in the lake she didn’t have anywhere enough time to register what was going on before Lusalene had her hands on her shoulders.

“Tell me everything!” She demanded.

Audra told Lusalene everything she could remember. The heat, the weird door, the Zenith Barakusr made her eyes go wide with fear, but the fact that Audra was taken to the Nightmare in the first place was what made her scared...no Lusalene wasn’t scared, she was terrified.

“It wasn’t just a dream was it?” Audra asked. Lusalene shook her head.

“No one dreams like that. Even if you were dreaming...this is...I don’t know what to call this...a warning? He said he wouldn’t be able to guide you the next time didn’t he?” Lusalene asked, trying to confirm what Audra had told her. Audra nodded, worry covered her face.

“Yeah, will I be going there again?” Audra asked, she really didn’t like the first experience she REALLY didn’t want to go back to the home of every demon that had been created.

“Doesn’t matter if you will or not, you’re getting your training now!” Lusalene said, before Audra could get a word out two longswords plopped up from the lake at their feet.

“W-wait, what are you planning?” Audra asked, “What is my training going to be?”

Audra barely had time to grab the longsword but not enough to also block Lusalene’s attack. She had to jump back, using a plume of water to hit the bottom of her feet for that extra oomph. Lusalene’s blade had landed where Audra had been just a second ago.

“Reflexes aren’t too shabby, guess that has to do with all of my memories you’re living off of.” Lusalene claimed, spinning her sword with the hand of an expert, “Now it’s time to make your own memories.”

“Lusalene, I can’t fight you! I’m far from ready from that!” Audra reasoned.

“That’s my bad, allow me to correct my mistake.” She flung her sword towards Audra. She summoned a watery circle around her wrist and quickly froze it, it was crude and not well made but it would be enough to defend against her...hopefully. Lusalene ran towards Audra, no doubt using Etherea to boost her speed far beyond humanly possible, catching up to her sword in mid-air, jumping in the air and slamming her blade against the icy shield breaking it as if she were holding an axe and cutting into a tiny piece of wood. The ice shattered and Lusalene planted the bottom of her boot into Audra’s chest, but she suspected there was no Etherea in the kick. Audra just got the breath back in her lungs before Lusalene’s blade met with hers.

Audra pressed Lusalene away and gave up any chance of reasoning with her, she summoned water around her and kept her focus on it to make it a small blade. She sent the blade of water to Lusalene only for it to stop mid-way there.

“Magic can be challenged by people who have the same kind. Remember that.” Lusalene explained, narrowing her eyes, easily overpowering Audra’s magic and sending the blade of water in her direction. Audra froze it and pushed it into the lake before it got to her, Lusalene was back on top of her, swinging her blade with a mixture of feints and actual full on attacks, but making sure to only nick Audra’s skin at every opening, which there was a lot of, which in turn forced tiny cuts into Lusalene’s own skin. They were one in the same, the more Lusalene injured Audra the more she injured herself.

Audra finally saw that Lusalene was getting bored, and overconfident. Audra quickly wrapped Lusalene’s weapon with water, froze it, then pulled it into the lake Lusalene let go of the sword and put her scaled arm in the way, blocking Audra’s sword. Audra was just quick enough to see Lusalene push her blade away, grab her wrist with her right hand, spin to have her back face her and elbow her in the jaw, chest, and stomach in rapid succession. She planted her boot on Audra’s wrist and pushed her to the ground.

“Getting better. With my memories and a mixture of both of our reflexes I’d say you’re ready for an embellished demon, such as a Varulv. As long as they were alone anyways. You’d be fucked if it was two or more.” Lusalene said, a giant bruise was forming on the left side of Lusalene’s jaw. Audra groaned in pain before falling to sleep.

Audra woke up to a panicking Vasuki, as he and Cabana were bandaging the countless tiny cuts over her body, she hadn’t lost too much blood, but it was enough that it would have stained the bed. So that was the reason she told her to lay on the floor.

“Good to see your awake, either Lusalene is wanting to make you strong as hell or you pissed her off.” Cabana pointed out. Audra felt like she was a walking bruise, so she groaned in agony and held out her pointer finger.

“Strong as hell, good to know that you’re getting trained by the only person that could kill Noelem. Cause I’ll be honest with you honey there ain’t no one else that could do that.” She said, handing Vasuki a clip to hold some of the bandaging together.

“Lusalene could have gave us a fair warning. Then we could have put something on the bed so you could have slept comfortably, at the very least.” Vasuki said, his panic had turned to aggravation. Audra groaned, and nodded her head.

“She’s got a massive bruise, we’ll have to go to the apothecary for her injuries.” Vasuki pointed out. She was touched that he cared so dearly about taking care of her injuries. Giving out grunts she pointed towards her jaw, chest, stomach, and then made a quick elbow movement groaning through it all.

“Damn, she fucked you up,” Cabana said blankly, she seemed more blunt; more cold hearted this morning, “Feel grateful Vasuki, I’m not going to beat the shit out of you and call it training...not yet anyways.”

After Audra was bandaged up she sat against the wall of the room and ate a small sandwich, it was a nice change to the taste of sweat and hair. Though she was tired she couldn’t help but feel just the tiniest bit more lighter.