BadBoyHalo: The 808th Demon

-Chapter 4- A Day with Dream

Dream flew open the door and stomped inside. He whipped off his battered mask and slammed the door behind him. He shuffled over to the dining room table, and flopped down in the chair, pouting and mumbling to himself.

The sound of clanking dishes and silverware echoed from the kitchen. The savory smell of pungent seasoning filled the entire house.

"Hey Dream," George chirped. Dream replied with a grunt.

"I made you some steak." George walked over to the table, and set the plate in front of him. Dream looked up, staring him dead in the face.

"I'm not hungry," he grumbled.

To this George let out a tired sigh, and took a fork from the kitchen counter.

"Eat..." he pleaded. "I know you haven't all day." He cut a chunk of the steak and put it up to Dream's mouth, poking his cheek a few times until he finally gave in and started eating.

George took a seat across from him, fiddling with his glasses until he thought of something to say.

"Rough day?"

"Wouldn't you like to know..." Dream began. "Those dumb kids, I swear!"

He seemed to have ranted for about a solid hour, going on and on why he was right, and why they were wrong. He carried on about L'manburg's foolish existence, and spitballed ways to finally take the nation down. Envy was soaked in his words— George could hear it. Yet he sat there and listened to every word carefully and intently. Dream was a madman for sure, but he was still his dearest friend.

"I- I need help, George," Dream muttered, polishing off the steak.

"Finally!" George exclaimed.  "It's about time y-"

"Not that kind of help..." Dream's eyes darted around. He looked rather anxious, but then a devilish grin spread across his face.

"What kind of help are you suggesting?"

Dream pulled out a ragged book from his pocket. On the cover were the embossed words:

THE STEWARDS OF THE NETHER

"I found this book in a nearby village," he spoke softly. Not a good sign. Dream had something rotten in his head whenever he spoke like that.

"There are more worlds out there than we realize, George..." his voice was getting shaky, ready to break out in a full cackle any minute. Danger was imminent.

"More than the Nether and the End?" George inquired, deliberately sounding as innocent as possible.

"More than the Nether and the End," Dream repeated in a spine-tickling whisper. He rose from the table and headed toward the door, motioning for George to come with him.

"Pack some food, we're going on a little hike." Dream slung a backpack over his shoulder, and picked up his mask. Sliding the smiling mask over his face, he headed outside. "I'll meet you out there in five."

—————

They hiked for a good hour and a half. Every few minutes Dream flipped through the strange book, scanning the maps and diagrams. Every once in a while he whipped out his compass. He switched his attention from the book, to the sun, to the compass, and everywhere else in search of landmarks. It was amusing yet terrifying to watch his head twitch around in three directions per second. He was determined. Wherever he was going, he wanted to be there as fast as possible. George had to keep catching up to him, otherwise he would be unintentionally ditched.

Clouds were beginning to settle in the closer the day was coming to a close. Humid fog made itself comfortable among the stilt-like birches and pines shortly after. The buzz of crickets grew and grew in intensity; and soon the soft ivory glow of the moon shone through the clouds.

They approached a small cave, a black hole made of fear itself. Places this dark made black look like a liquid, as if you could put your hand in it and feel it's deathly chill. The mouth of this cave looked strangely geometric. Perfect arches were etched into it. Fuzzy moss was growing out of every nook and cranny. George squinted his eyes, straining to see past the wall of shadows. The floor inside the cave looked tiled, he even saw columns carved out of the stone. Odd.

"It looks like a dungeon," George huffed, rather unamused. After all this hiking — for just an old, abandoned dungeon?

"That's what I thought too..." Dream closed the book, wearing a smirk.

"But it's not..."