Solo Caught in a Nightmare

[Xylona Redwater]

41st of Summer, 513 A.V, Evening


Blood oozed over the rocks, dripping onto the blackened grass below and staining it a deep red. Where there once had been screaming, there was now a silence so loud it left her ears ringing and head aching. Images flashed past, but none she could hold onto long enough to understand. All she knew was pain. There was pain and loss and a heavy, penetrating soundlessness like she had never heard before. Xylona lifted her hands to her head and screamed to fill the void but it was no use. Each time she closed her eyes, a second pair stained the inside of her eyelids, staring right into her, begging, pleading for help. “My little Lona, I miss you. Will you come visit me soon?”

“You’re dead!” Xylona howled, half trying to convince herself. Her mother’s voice persisted, never fading, but echoing eerily through the darkness.

“You can still speak to me. Does that mean...you’re dead too?” The blood splashed onto her face and up her nose, drowning her on dry land. As she gargled the thick liquid, she realized something was off. This wasn’t human blood. There was a strange smell to it. Almost like...dog spit?

Xylona’s eyes snapped open and she thrashed for a moment, still lost in the nightmare. In her panic, a rogue hand flung out and smacked into Sasha, smashing his tiny wet nose. Sasha whined loudly and scampered back out of reach while Xylona found her bearings. Both human and dog lay panting for a moment, sharing a moment of fear, even though neither knew why.

When Xylona finally recovered enough to uncover her face, she was met with a large pink tongue and Sasha’s morning breath. Xylona chuckled and shoved him back, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. Sasha’s head cocked to one side in a perfect look of innocence. His eyes widened and his tongue lolled out comically.

“Come on Sasha,” Xylona murmured, reaching for his ear, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hit you- I was just scared. How about I make it up to you. You want some food? Huh?”

Sasha’s ears perked up first, disbelief written on his face. It wasn’t long before his whole body followed suit. He danced about, tail wagging and nails clicking on the hard floors. Xylona allowed herself a small smile before the memory of the nightmare came sweeping back to her.

*****

It was the same as usual, She mused as she ate. Except for the speaking parts. I think I got farther this time since I don’t remember actually answering Mother before. Is that better or worse, if I’m making progress? Maybe if I go back to sleep and finish the dream, it will leave me be?

Sasha finished his own meal with a loud slurp, interrupting her thoughts. His claws clomped heavily on the floor as he came over and laid himself by her feet. Sometimes, she forgot that he was the last link to her father, and just pretended he was any other family dog. If only she were so lucky...

A sigh escaped the link, summarizing Xylona’s own thoughts clearly.

“Sigh is right.” She burst out. “I’m tired of this! I can’t sleep with these nightmares, and I can’t do anything else worthwhile if I don’t sleep. This can’t go on any longer! I’m going to find out how to stop this nonsense!”

Sasha’s ears drooped on his head in response to her shouts, but Xylona was too busy to notice. Already, she had grabbed her notebook and boots. Shoving the boots on her feet and the notebook beneath her arm, she deposited a quick kiss on Sasha’s head.

“Thanks for listening Sasha. When I get back, I’ll make sure you go on the longest walk you’ve ever been on.” She couldn't be sure, but Xylona thought she saw the dog grin before she closed the door behind her.

[Xylona Redwater]

As Xylona walked, she took time to notice the stars. One by one, they peaked out of the sky. They glowed softly at first, as if they were shy, but eventually twinkled as brightly as the moon. All the stars were out before Xylona found the Wishing Bridge. It was peaceful here, and peaceful was just what she needed.

Her eyes swept over the bridge itself, taking in the sights and sounds of the river below. The river was low; you could barely make out the water at all if it weren’t for the faint sound of splashing. Stones littered the gorge, some about the size of Xylona’s palm, others as small as her little finger. The vast majority had writing on them in white ink. Though she couldn’t make out most of them in the dark, she knew what they said. She had heard the stories from her father long ago. Happiness, love, wealth, knowledge- all of the past Lhavitians dreams lay at the bottom of this crick.

Xylona walked over to the wooden table beside the bridge, beneath which a basket of cobblestones lay. She shuffled the stones around for a moment before picking a large, light grey rock. It was smooth and round, almost soft. When she ran her hands over it, she could still feel the day’s heat hidden inside it. Opening the table, she found herself a thin brush and a dab of white ink. There was only one problem, what would she write?

She knew what she wanted of course. She wanted to cure her nightmares. But there was something more than that- a deeper purpose. She wanted peace of mind, to be young and carefree and loved again. She wanted to know that everything would be alright, that she would not only survive, but live. She wanted to be reassured that she was doing the right thing, that Mother and Father were proud of the way she was handling her life.

Her fingers closed around the rock tight enough to turn her knuckles white. She leaned close until her lips touched the smooth surface and whispered, “Love.”

That was her true wish. The deep root of all her problems, the one thing that had been taken away time and time again. The thing that had made her want to stop living but at the same time, that kept her going. Love was that unattainable dream of hers.

She couldn’t write that though. There was no way Xylona would admit that love was what she wanted most in this world. Instead, she took the brush and quickly wrote “serenity” in a thick blocky script. It was close enough to the truth. At this moment, serenity was what she needed most.

In a few large strides she was on the bridge. She closed her hand firmly around the rock one last time before launching it with all her might into the river below. There was no splash; the water was too low for that. It did, however, make an audible click as it crashed into the other rocks below.

There! Xylona thought bitterly, Now my dreams can go die at the bottom of a river like everyone else’s. Misery loves company.

*****

The girl sat alone on the Wishing Bridge, staring out into the night. Every once in awhile, the birds would sing lullabies to her, but Xylona refused to fall asleep. She cradled her notebook for a long time before she finally opened it to write. She wasn’t thinking, wasn’t reading what she had written. She just let the feeling out onto paper, hoping that, somehow, it would help. Maybe the path to serenity was achievable by writing.

When she was finished, she sighed and looked down at the paper. She read her own words, feeling something heavy growing in her throat and behind her eyes. She couldn’t even finish the page due to the tears threatening to spill over her cheeks. Xylona Redwater was not a girl who cried. Someone must have cried though, because the letter to her mother was wet and salty by the time she made for home.

[Elysium]

Xylona Redwater

Experience
Observation +2
Writing +1

Lore
The Reoccuring Nightmare
Sascha, a Furry Friend
Lhavit: The Wishing Bridge
Writing: Penning the First Wish

Notes
You were right - not too much experience to be had, but very nice in the realm of character development. I would love to see this as maybe a series of vignettes, all related in some way to her overcoming her grief. Very nicely done, all in all. If you have any questions, please PM me!