distorted dreams

chapter five;

Maxwell's face went pale, even paler than it usually was. Hope sat stiffly, her eyes wide. She held Jay's shoulders firmly.

"What happened in the dream, Jay?" She asked, making her voice loud so the fear in it was less obvious.

Jay swallowed thickly. "It was just there, watching me- stalking me!" They spoke frantically. "It's still alive in there..."

Maxwell stood up, his head reeling. "That has to be what's taking people." He murmured, pacing around the room.

Hope turned to face him. "What if it's not acting alone-" She hissed. "I mean, we know that Jay has made other creatures, and they've yet to hear from any of them!"

Jay watched as their friends chattered back and forth, laying down slowly. They exhaled shakily, hearing the room fall silent. They glanced up, their eyes landing on Hope.

She had her brows furrowed, clearly trying to think. "Jay, do you think that if you force yourself back to sleep you can try and find more of these creatures?"

Jay felt sick at the thought of seeing more of these demons, but nodded slowly regardless. They laid their head back down completely, closing their eyes and trying to get into a calm state.

"Guess it really is a good thing you're always tired." Maxwell joked, clearly trying to brighten the mood.

A faint smacking sound was heard, followed by Hope's voice. "Alright Jay, we're right here if you need us. Good luck..."

Jay nodded, then blocked out all the surrounding noise that may distract them. They breathed heavily, feeling their body go numb. The world seemed to fade away, which Jay supposed was beneficial.

They opened their eyes again, their vision blurry at first. Eventually, they focused and realized they weren't in the same place as before. Instead, they were now in the clearing where they'd last seen Amelia.

Jay looked around, trying to see if there were any signs of life in the clearing. They scanned the dark trees that dotted the surrounding land, and the tall grass that brushed up against their ankles. But, nothing showed its face, much to Jay's relief.

Jay stepped forward, their shoes kicking up a small cloud of dirt. They continued walking, scouting the territory for anything, and finding nothing. Everything was seemingly bare and empty, not a single creature seemed to be stirring.

Jay plopped down onto the ground, sighing rather heavily. All hope for this felt lost, and they were too discouraged to really ponder where something might be lurking. They closed their eyes, trying to will them self back awake.

Before Jay could wake up, however, they felt a soft tap on the back of their shoulder. They flashed their eyes open, swerving around to look behind them. They were met with a pair of amber colored eyes staring back at them.

Jay felt their body stiffen. They gazed up at the creature, recognizing it almost immediately.

It sat before them, its huge paws pressed into the ground. It was sized like a lion, but an oddly large lion at that. It growled lowly, showing off its set of sharp, white teeth. Jay gulped at the sight, reaching their hand out to touch its thick black fur.

"Wouldn't Amelia be proud of you now..." They whispered, remembering how kitten-like this creature had once been.

The creature roared, its voice loud enough to echo around the realm. Jay inhaled shakily, pulling their hand away and scrambling backwards. Dust flew up from under their feet as they squeezed their eyes shut, desperately trying to escape this dream.