The Emerging Part I: Dream

Uxxok stares at Teqqc as she concentrates on tracking down the foreign aura. He notices her calm face, but he observes her eyes twitching behind her eyelids. Her mouth is slack, almost open, her lips parted slightly.

He shakes his head, feeling he has wasted enough time staring at an incoherent statue and goes back to his research. He reads a book filled with Rniti symbols and their meanings. He continually looks between the book and to a piece of paper where he wrote the scholar’s last words.

He scratches his head as he flicks through the book, finding nothing of interest. He finds his eyes glazing over. He shakes his head and finds his gaze has found its way to the stained floor where the scholar’s body use to lay.

He winces to himself. He turns back to the book before him and spots something of interest. He reads, ‘Long ago, in the time before the Rniti, there was created, a power that no one person should control and so, it was split amongst the warring tribes of Munda Luna. This power was never named and the tribes were immediately extinguished when they tapped into this power. After this extinction, the civilized people were able to leave the perilous mountains and settle Munda Luna. These civilized people adapted their...’

Uxxok groans and stops reading when he realizes the passage has turned into nothing more than a history lesson. ‘This is all rumor anyway,’ Uxxok thinks to himself.

He hears Teqqc stir, suddenly and turns to look at her. She groans but opens her hopeless eyes.

“I cannot find this aura anywhere, Uxxok,” she begins.

“No matter. Perhaps we do not need to find this aura.”

“How can you say that? This aura is the one who has murdered six men. That monster deserves what is coming to him.”

Uxxok shrugs knowing Teqqc is right.

“What are you reading?” Teqqc asks.

Uxxok shrugs again, “Something I thought would aid in deciphering this cryptic language,” he says while pointing at the paper with the scholar’s last words written.

“May I?”

“Certainly,” Uxxok says, handing the book to Teqqc. “Only the first few sentences are anything worthy of-”

“Oh my...” Teqqc suddenly says, her eyes widening.

“What is it?”

“This cannot be meaning the power that corrupted a Thousand Nightmares can it?”

Uxxok mouth drops, “I had not thought of that.”

“If it is, then whatever figure we are dealing with is more than just a murderer. Its a fiend.”

Uxxok can only nod as he rises from his chair to look for anything and everything in the library mentioning a Thousand Nightmares.

Suddenly, Teqqc screams, piercing the quiet room as if a knife stabbed the air. Uxxok turns quickly, drawing his sword and preparing to don his icy shield until he sees no one is in the room except for him and Teqqc.

He looks to see Teqqc on the brink of tears. He rushes over and embraces her tightly. Teqqc holds Uxxok just as tightly. She cries into his shoulder. He feels her sobs wrack her body. He disbelieves the strong woman he is holding can cry but each sob convinces him otherwise.

Not before long, however, does Teqqc push away from Uxxok and sit down in her chair. Uxxok sits down as well. He looks at her with patient eyes.

“Another scholar has been found. In Coas. You will never believe where or how he was killed.”

Uxxok slams his fist down on the table, causing a few books to fall off. “I have had enough of this. I am going to track this fiend down. I hope the underground is ready for my fury!” Uxxok storms from the room, leaving Teqqc by herself to concentrate and compose herself.