Aiden:
I stared around myself as I stood next to Will in a black void of space.
"Why exactly are you here?"
I asked turning to Will.
"Well I assume were dreaming, so I guess I just show up for those."
We both looked around in silence for a moment.
"Don't dreams normally have content? What the hell even is this?"
Will asked gesturing around himself. We stood for another minute or so before there was the wound of flapping wings. Looking over, a massive Oxwing was flying towards us from the dark. We both stared as it came down to land. Around it the darkness shifted to form the familiar woods of the mountain in Hopestone. As Will and I turned to look around The Oxwing actually spoke.
"Aiden Hallowcreek, I should warn you that you seem to have an invader in your mind."
I looked at the Oxwing for a moment before gesturing to Will.
"You mean him, has actually helpful, so not so much an invader."
"Aw, so you do care."
Will said in a slightly mocking tone.
"I changed my mind, hes hostile and needs to be destroyed."
I said sarcastically. The Oxwing stared for a moment before nodding and fluttering its wings. Around us 3 doors appeared. The Oxwing seemed to vanish as it said.
"You who has left my herd in peace shall be allowed one insight into their mind, please choose your insight."
Looking around the doors had various labels. The first was called self doubt, the second was called abandonment issues, and lastly the third was called something weird. Its tag read What if I only matter when I'm useful?
I turned to Will, not sure what to pick. Will looked back and shrugged unhelpfully. Between the doors, honestly the one with more text seemed worrisome to me, so I turned away and faced the other two. Between Self Doubt and abandonment issues I took a moment to think. I stepped to the door of self doubt and opened the door.
The black world vanished, replaced dark room, ancient bricks sat around me, as I saw a familiar scene, Liora and Kaelen fading from the poison as I tried to treat them. However something was different. I kept doing the steps to make the antidotes, but they kept not working, and when I poured the healing potions they broke apart into their base ingredients. Panic rose in my chest as it felt like I couldn't breath. The others screaming for me to save them as everything I had practiced for years kept failing and wouldn't work, and I was trying and failing and trying and failing until the world went dark, replaced by a single massive system Announcement.
Party member Kaelen has died
Party member Liora has died
You failed to save them
Seeing this I jolted away, the sun cresting the horizon
Jax:
I like to say that I am well-traveled, be it in the realm of good drinks, good food, and card games of chance of all kinds, yet I have never seen a massive Moth vanish into 3 doors. I spun on my paws to see the doors. The first was labeled fear of failure, the second was labeled gambler's fallacy, however the last one caught my eyes and raised my hackles. Your brother is waiting.
A simple sentence, but for me it was everything. I turned silently to the door labeled gambler's fallacy, and while I expected to struggle against the know for a moment, the door swung inward as I approached. The door seemed to leak out color and more into the dark room around us. As it did we were back in a familiar dungeon, the smell of bone and rot permeated the halls as behind me the others stood as I heard what sounded to be the shaking of dice as I heard them bounce, the others flashed, Aiden desperately trying to stabilize Liora and Kaelen.
The scene shifted as the dice sounded as they bounced again, this time as Kaelen and Liora step forward they don't even survive the first arrow, both falling dead as the system announced their death coldly. My breath started to race as I heard the dice shaking again as I said a very quiet.
"Stop it."
The dice bounced as this time Aiden and Selene had been the ones to step forward, the scene shifting to show Selene carrying 3 bodys out as everyone walked their own directions away from each other.
"Stop it."
I said louder, my hairs raised in panic as the dice rattles again. Aiden standing over Liora and Kaelen as he searched his pack wildly as he yelled he was missing the right herbs. The scene changing to Aiden hanging from a rope in his room as a note left below said "I'm sorry i couldn't save them".
"STOP IT!"
I Roared at the top of my lungs, I channeled my Ki, I punched, bit, kicked, lunged, but the nightmare wouldn't end. I stood breathless as the nightmare shifted to me sitting as a table, a cup with dice in it sat before me as across from me, my father stared back, an evil grin on his scared face as lightning crackled around him.
"Whats the most you have ever lost on a dice roll?"
He asked as the cup in my hand felt heavy. I looked down and where a cup had once been was now my brothers head, the scene of my father beheading him flashing in my mind.
I Jolted awake, the sun cresting the horizon.
Kaelen:
There were 3 doors on either side of me, one was labeled behind the mask, the second was labeled what is love, however the last door drew my eye. What do you have to complain about!? It was a simple question, but it felt like even looking at it added 20 pounds to my shoulders. I turned to the door labeled what is love.
Stepping trough I was in a familiar garden, around me a host of servants stood as across from me a figure sat, their face was obscured in shadows as based on how I looked at them everything changed, clothes, gender, all of it changed as I glanced at them from different angles. As we sat I saw a younger me, only 30 at the time, I quietly ate the snacks and drank the tea sat before me with the practiced politeness.
"I am truly thankful you were willing to come out to see me."
The figure with the hidden face said. Even thought I couldn't see their eyes I could see they were staring at my face, and not me. That feeling, the tar like, sickly feeling of them looking at me, but not at me. I clutched my chest as the young version of me below nodded along, a forced practiced smile making many of the servants blush as he said.
"No, thank you for inviting me, I am having a wonderful time."
"No your not, be honest."
I hissed trough my teeth as the scene shifted to younger me walking down a hallway as the voice of my father echoed trough the hall.
"I found a nice buyer, The princess of Misagen has an interest in him, she even said she would make us Dukes."
I felt a familiar anger surge as I heard the sound of my father, the slopping noise of meat as he ate and ate, growing fatter and fatter as he promoted me as his perfect golden goose.
The scene shifted to the birdcage, where I had been locked after I told my dad I didn't want the marriage and he had locked me up so I couldn't run away. The younger version of myself in the cage sat, holding their knees to their chest as a small pink flame within them dimmed and extinguished. I didn't need to even look down, my chest gave off no light, the flame long extinguished.
I woke up, the sun cresting the horizon.
Liora:
Presented with 3 doors, Doubt, what is my function, and If your my blood, prove it. Some would say I should pick doubt or what is my function, but I instead turned to the familiar door. The words practically carved into my memory from that day.
The scene shifted to show a familiar doorway to a large tower, the winds billowing as they always do in Cliefop. I was on my hands and knees, desperately searching trough the runes to figure out a way to escape. My father had given me a simple mission.
"This sphere will teleport you to the bottom of the ocean, if your my blood prove it and change the location so you survive."
Cutting my finger so I could make new runes in blood as the magic hummed faster and faster around me was terrifying as I just kept thinking to myself. Breath girl, you survive this, just make sure you hold your breath.
Moments later, just like always when I have this nightmare, I end up under water, caught in a fishing net and dragged aboard. However unlike in the nightmare, where that is where I wake up, my body spoke even though I didn't say anything.
"I wonder if I passed my dads test?"
The words were so full of hope that a shiver ran up my spine.
"Yikes, no wonder people use this Oxwing stuff, rather potent."
I said as I woke up, the sun cresting the horizon.
Thalia:
As I appeared before the 3 doors, I had a guess as to what I would expect. The three doors read, stoicism, the right time, and lastly The tunnel collapsed, please believe me. Analyzing the doors I nodded.
"Stoicism must simply be a method of showing my lack of outward emotion in most situations, most likely to the point of driving others away. I can assume the right time relates to my role as someone who is meant to get timings right in a fight or get someone hurt and or killed, but I'm not going through the third door."
As I said this aloud the first two doors seemed to dissipate into smoke leaving me alone with door 3. I stared at it for a moment before I looked up and said.
"Oxwing, I chose to forgo this aid, please return me to the waking world."
They seemed to be the sound of surprise as the sound of wings returned and the Oxwing landed again.
"Are you sure, for most our dust is considered an expensive commodity."
It said sounding confused.
"Yes, please allow for me to wake up now, I do not require your assistance in my mental faculties."
I said matter of factly as I turned to walk away. I woke up, the sun cresting the horizon
Selene:
When I woke up in the black space, I was a bit worried as to what might happen. However the Oxwing was a bit reassuring, its presence letting me know I'm not stuck in a dream hunt like by those monstrous horse monsters, the nightmare or a memory eater. However what did startle me was the Oxwings moment of hesitation.
"Normally you would be given a choice, however your psyche shows me that you have one big problem that overshadows the others."
Knowing where this was going I paled a bit as that feeling of worry built up in my stomach as I tried to say hold on a moment, but before I could I was in a familiar place. As the smell hit my nose, and I saw the familiar cobblestones my breath started to race.
Behind me I heard a familiar but old voice, one I had not heard in years. I turned and saw the banner that read. Happy 10th birthday Selene. My heart raced as I tried to slow my breathing to calm down, but I couldn't. I saw a younger me, a girl only 9 years old, in a fancy pink dress, a fake tiara on her head as she giggled. Our brother, only 13 at the time had me on his shoulders as we ran around the yard. Our oldest sibling was 17 at the time, and watched with a happy smile as he leaned against a nearby wall.
As I looked at my oldest brother My heart raced so fast it hurt as all I could hear was the deafening crack, the cry of pain, and the sound of him dropping his sword. It echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed! I let out a guttural scream as I held my head as the scene shifted, I stood on a small seat as the party of nobleman, guards and more all stood around as I prepared to blow out my candles.
"No, no, No, NO!"
I yelled trying to dive to stop her, to keep the candle lit, but I couldn't do anything. The flame was blown out as I suddenly screamed, a ripping noise could be heard throughout the party as my left arm mutated, changing into its new form.
I was suddenly in the view of my younger self, looking around as I saw the word I hated, that gutteral word that tore at my mind and spirit, and made me want to scream. Monster, monster, monster, MONSTER!!!
I awoke screaming, the sun cresting the horizon