Andie darted between bunker walls and piles of rubble, making her way through the shadowed and hidden areas Cedric favored when exploring new mindscapes. She briefly considered a more aggressive approach, taking advantage of how much smaller than the Nightmare she was to bob and weave her way into melee range… but any bullets that missed Andie hit the cement and steel that made up Dyllan’s mind. Avoidable collateral was unacceptable collateral.
A sudden impact to Andie’s side interrupted her search for Cedric. Her first instinct was to strike whatever had just hit her with the pommel of her sword, but she stopped mid swing when she noticed it was one of Cedric’s drones. After a brief moment of hesitation, Andie shifted her weight and leaned onto the head-sized drone, climbing on top of the device as she let it lift her off the edge of her current platform… then carry her back underneath it.
For a brief moment, an uncomfortably peaceful stillness carried through the air, as Andie tried to secure what little footing she could on the drone. The peace was strained - but not broken - when Dyllan’s Nightmare peered underneath one of the many bridges and began to scrabble around between platforms’ undersides. It used its knife hand to hold its helmet on, and dug into the steel underside of each platform with its three free hands.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Instinctively, Andie gripped her sword tighter and held her breath. She checked the color and pattern of the drone she stood on - careful to keep the Nightmare in the corner of her vision. Black and green, it was Cedric’s Vice - the drone that made illusions. She relaxed.
As soon as the Nightmare was satisfied with its search of the mindscape’s underside, it crawled back on top of the nearest platform, leaving Andie alone.
“You alright?” Cedric’s voice came from behind Andie without warning. She hated how he did that.
“…I’m fine.” Andie let her eyes linger on where the Nightmare had left her field of vision. “Could have done with a little warning before being knocked into the void, though.”