The Conquest of Mytheyr
Chapter 31

Raven led the way to her tent. From the outside, the tent looked barely tall enough to sit in, just long enough to lay down in, and almost wide enough to turn over. But, as usual, looks were deceiving. Inside, the tent had three rooms; a room in front with couches and a fireplace, and two rooms branching off, one mostly empty to make room for the dragons to sleep, one a bedroom for herself and, for now at least, for Morgan.

“Until we attack, you’re sleeping here.” Raven told her, “And that is by no means negotiable. Savvy?”

Morgan held her hands up in surrender. She let Raven lead the way. The bedroom was small, and had two simple beds and tapestries hanging from the walls. The images in the tapestries changed with Raven’s mood. Right now, the tapestries were mostly crimson and black, depicting Raven’s legendary Nightmare form, her shadow stretching far behind her.

“Nice.” Morgan commented, gesturing to the tapestries. Raven grinned.

“Terrifying. Now go the fuck to sleep. Bitch.”

“Asshole.”

Morgan threw herself on one of the beds, and she felt a small thread of Raven’s mind curl around hers as a barrier.

“This is gonna be good.” she thought just before she fell asleep.

Semele frowned. This was not the place he had meant to create. He was not in control. There were twisted black trees as far as the eye could see, with rose vines that climbed up the trees, blooming with heavy crimson flowers, and a red streak on the horizon, frozen in an eternal sunset. Nothing that could ever come from his mind.

Looking around, he did not see or sense Morgan anywhere. Had she managed to outsmart him? Just as he thought to leave, a strange, alien yet faintly familiar presence manifested behind him. He whirled around, and a pale hand clamped around his throat. A creature with ebony horns emerging from her black hair and deep green eyes outlined with black tattoos leaned close to his face, boring into his eyes.

“Oh look.” The creature whispered, “Some novice doesn’t realize he’s been intercepted. So how the fuck did a noob like you get into Morgan’s head?” she tilted her head, and gasped softly. “Oh! What a dirty little trick. Bad enough that you even dare to touch that vile stuff. Well, you’re in my dreamscape now. I hold all the cards here, no matter how you get in. Tch, you didn’t even think of using the opportunity to see Morgan’s dreamscape. Don’t you know that’s the fastest way to learn about someone? You really are a noob.”

“Who are you?” Semele choked out in shock.

“Not so pleasant, is it, to be given a taste of you own medicine? You can dish it out, but not take it?” the creature cooed. “I’ve seen what you did to Morgan. Now I can see what you did to that Dark Elf boy. And Markus, too… oh, you’re in this shit deep.”

Semele fought her grip. How could she have seen these things? Neither of them were even physically there. He didn’t even feel her attack. She picked out his thoughts so easily… This shouldn’t be possible.

“Please.” she said, a look of contempt on her face. “I’m a master, and you’re a tiny little child who found a loophole. You don’t even know what’s possible. Don’t get over confident. There’s always someone better than you.”

“Who-” he tried again, and she tightened her grip to cut off the repeat of his question.

“I make men pray to the gods they always denied. I make even the highest devil in the Underworld shiver in fear at the simple mention of my name. I’m the Nightmare, love, and you harmed my Queen.”

She dropped him on the ground, but Semele barely got to his knees before a silver tendril erupted from the ground and wrapped around him. He screamed in pain at its touch, and it tightened around him as he struggled.

“Hurts, doesn’t it? Think about that next time you think to touch someone with that black magic of yours. And unlike me, you don’t have as much control over it as you think.”

The Nightmare bent on one knee to be level with him, and stroked his temple. Fleeting, yet detailed images danced before his vision. Morgan, her face stained with dirt and blood, pushing a child behind her as she held a sword up to a horde of shadows. Morgan, pulling a black haired girl out of the mud and carrying her over her shoulder. Morgan, standing at the edge of a cliff, run through by her enemy’s sword. She grabbed a fistful of the enemy’s shirt and fell back off the cliff, piercing him with her dagger as they fell together.

“Who could bear to hurt that girl?” the Nightmare asked softly, her voice only just loud enough for Semele to hear it over his own cries, “That girl who’d do anything to keep someone safe, who’d do anything just to see them smile. That girl who so many people look up to, who so many people would call her Queen.” She tilted her head again and smiled viciously at Semele. “She wouldn’t be able to do this, you know… she was never one for torture. Now, I don’t really want to waste my all energy on you, so I’m going to let you go for now. I’ve gotten all the information I wanted from you… but… don’t think you’re getting off easy. You hurt our Queen. You destroyed our forest. You defiled our land. We’re all coming for you. And I’m not the only one of us who’s okay with a little torture.”

Semele woke up, alone in his room in the palace. He pushed himself into a sitting position, clutching his hands to his chest. His heart was racing and his breaths heavy. He was sticky with sweat, and his skin was still stinging from the pain. How… who…