Rastaban opened his eyes to find himself in a strange predicament.
He was in a dream.
But, how? He was sure he had no magic to spare after his last dream-walk. Yet here he was, standing on the graying edges of someone else's vision with absolutely no idea what to do.
Just as he was about to step out of the dream, a thin filament of magic appeared amidst the unfamiliar scenery, flickering and swaying in a non-existent breeze. Calling him to follow.
It wound through the narrow cobblestone streets and little brick houses, color slowly returning to the world the further he went.
He looked closely at the thread, watching it pulse with a rainbow of hues. The source of this dream was close.
He hesitated for a moment. This was Vega's dream, right? Was he even allowed to be here?
A harsh pull interrupted his train of thought, the string of magic having impatiently wrapped itself around his neck. Maybe... she wanted him there?
He stepped towards a stone archway, a light beyond it flickering like a dying ember.
The line pulsed one last time and shot towards it, dissipating into the air before it could finish crossing.
His eyes squinted as they adjusted to the sudden change in lighting. And once his vision cleared, so did his understanding of the situation.
No more than a few feet away from him, a pair of wraiths shrieked nonsensical phrases whilst struggling to get through an unstable magic shield. And huddled beneath that bubble-like barrier, was Vega.
So she could use magic after all.
How interesting.
In an explosive blast of color, the protection spell broke, sending both creatures flying across the space.
They stood up in jerking, unnatural motions, their faces a disturbing distortion of the worst traits of humanity. Before even leaving the ground, they'd closed the distance between themselves and Vega.
He watched as she screamed and kicked the wraiths away, scrambling to get as far from them as she could. But she didn't cast a single spell. She wasn't defending herself at all.
He weighed out his options: Leave Vega to work it out on her own and risk being ejected from the dream. Or destroy the wraiths for her. It was a difficult decision. Her magic was clearly being suppressed, and if he did everything for her she may never use it again.
The longer he spent thinking about what to do, the closer the wraiths drew to her, and all the while his stomach was tying itself in knots at the sound of her cries, desperate to do something, anything to make it all stop.
Not wanting to waste any more time, he ran in, scooped Vega onto his neck, and leapt out of their way.
Trembling, she clung to him snug as a vine to its trellis. "Rastaban? What are you doing here?"
"What the hell are you doing?" he scolded, "Why aren't you fighting back?"
He eyed the wraiths who'd been chasing after her, there was something off about them, like they were fabricated by something...
The sky darkened and rumbled with an ominous booming sound akin to a heartbeat. He had never encountered such fear from her before, not even when they had first met. What could possibly be inciting this much anxiety?
"I can't do it Ras," she whimpered, clutching tightly onto the periwinkle spines of his mane. "They're my parents I... I just can't."
Oh. So that's what was happening.
YOU ARE READING
In the Absence of Light
FantasyVega was a respectable young woman, never straying from the path set out for her no matter the cost. Despite having made her own home, she never expected much to come from her life. After all, her parents would never truly let her leave. So when a d...
