"A city? In a dream?"

 

"Oh, yes! It was a society all its own where people of different cultures, and even different worlds, could meet and share their knowledge. The City of Dreams used to be a very important place to some. These ruins used to be one of their buildings. I think it was called a Sanctuary," he said nodding knowledgeably.

 

"A Sanctuary? Why would they need one of those?" I asked, gazing around.

 

"They needed the Sanctuary because they didn't always get along. You see, here in the Dream you can gain power." He made the flinging-whooshing gesture again. "That can go to your head, you know." Fitzhune shook his head matter-of-factly.

 

This made me remember the man in the forest. "I saw someone else earlier."

 

"Who?" he asked, his eyes narrowed suspiciously and he began to look around with wild twists of his head.

 

I described the hulk of a man that had somehow thrown me across the woods.

 

He immediately waved his hand dismissively. "Oh. That's Cron. He's another reason you have to be careful."

 

"Oh?" I asked cautiously.

 

"Yes. Supposedly there may still be some relics from back then. Artifacts of power. He's determined to find them, if there are any. I was looking myself, but I've never found anything. Yep, he's quite determined," he finished with a slight laugh.

 

"So what happened?" I inquired.

 

"Huh? Happened to whom? Cron? I thought you just saw him."

 

"No, to all the Dreamers. To what this place used to be."

 

Fitzhune shrugged. "No one knows. There could have been some great Dreamer war where they all killed each other. Or the Chaos," he swept a hand to indicate the pulsing mist above, "could have crashed down, destroying everything and everyone. The Nightmares could have even killed everyone..." he finished.

 

"Um… What is a Nightmare?" I asked becoming slightly worried again.

 

Fitzhune's smile faltered. He looked at me and asked, this time adopting a worried tone, "Where exactly did you say you saw Cron?"

 

"Well, I'm not sure. It was over that way-" I explained, pointing.

 

Fitzhune stood up suddenly and began looking around nervously. "What if he was hunting?" he said to obviously to no one in particular. In his mind, I was no longer there. "If he was hunting, that means there's probably one nearby."

 

"One what? A Nightmare? What exactly is a-"

 

A roar issued from the other side of the ruins that made us both jump out of our skins. Out from the undergrowth slithered a towering creature with rubbery, glistening black skin and white razor spines down its back. Cold red eyes glared from its demonic face and four short tentacles writhed in place of a mouth. The Nightmare, because that is what it had to be, had a muscular, humanoid torso with long, powerful arms ending in scissor-like claws. It slithered purposefully toward us on its hideous serpent-like lower body. Its claws clattered together in anticipation, as it whispered to me in a raspy voice. I felt my bowels begin to loosen when I realized it actually spoke my name.