I gasped for air; the dry cold air scraped my throat. My eyes opened to see a starry sky beyond the frame formed by the jungle’s treetops.

“Fin,” Deleim cried; her face came into full view, obscuring some of the sky.

“Oh he’s awake! He was able to break the trap then?” It was a voice I didn’t recognize, that of the speaker obscuring my view. The body of a humanoid covered in the skin of a jaguar with piercing green eyes; a were-jaguar. The famed warriors of this jungle region.

What’s he doing here?

My eyes wandered over to Deleim. She was wearing her red robe, loosely tied. She must have put it on in a hurry. She nodded at me and looked across to the were-jag.

“Yes, it seems he was able to disengage the relic-trap that caused this from the inside. As I told you however, the main perpetrator, the one who seems to have brought it in, escaped.”

Huh. Disengaged? Relic-trap? She’s lying?

“Yes of course, I understand. I got word that my allies have picked up the scent and are in pursuit.” The were-jag looked over into the distance. “I see the smoke is clearing. In your estimation, does that mean we’ll be able to enter the building?”

It seemed that the were-jag was taking Teach seriously.

“I think so. As long as you don’t breathe in the smoke, you should be fine,” she replied. I could feel her fingers tangling themselves in my hair.

“Excellent. I would still like to interview you two, but that can wait. Where will you be? I’ll try to come around within the hour.”

“Yes of course,” Deleim replied, “We need to check on our two travelling companions. We’ll be in room 212.”

The were-jag nodded. “Thank you for all your help, and your flare.” The were-jag clicked his tongue and gestured with his hand before moving away. Three more shadows darted through my sight, following him.

“What was that?” I feebly asked, getting back feeling in my body.

“I called for help,” Deleim replied. “Just in case. I got the town guardians’ attention.”

I got it now. She had to tell them a story that wouldn’t get Hanna in trouble. She must have blamed all the events on the Blood Claw.

“Okay,” I said rustling myself off her lap. I noticed my top half was covered in a blanket that fell off as I rose. “Okay, let’s get to Ange,” I said, before Deleim helped me onto my feet. It felt a little alien getting up and walking normally, but I didn’t pay it any mind.

Must just be because my body is still sleepy.

We hustled to the room; I hoped that when we would open the door Ange would be there, waking up to tell us about the dream she had. A dream where she survived an encounter with our enemy. I knew that it wouldn’t be so simple; the images of her impaled on his claws still haunted my mind. But I hoped.

I opened the door to find only one person awake; Hanna. And much like in the dream, she was there, tugging on Ange, trying to pull her awake. But like the dream, it was to no avail. She saw us come in and she looked at us with those sleepy eyes except now, small tears were forming.

“Ange!” Deleim shoved me out of the way and rushed over to the bed. She gave Hanna a pitiful look and returned to trying to shake Ange awake.

“Is she-” I didn’t know what to say, or what to ask.

“Fin.” Deleim’s back was to me but her voice reached me. It was coarse enough to make me jolt. “How much do you remember?”

“Wh- What?”

“Damn it, Fin! How much do you remember of Ange’s wounds?!” Deleim was anxious and scared. I could see that light was leaking from her hands; most likely the light of some healing spell she knew. I could see that she was shaking lightly. I could see that Hanna’s expression had changed in response to whatever face Deleim was wearing. I could see how frustrated she was about to become with me.

“I only remember my nightmare clearly.”

It was true. I remember the torture of seeing my mother again. But once I got down to the temple, everything became hazier. I knew that I found Hanna, rushed to Ange, fought the Blood Claw, saw Ange, and made Hanna a promise but that was it. I knew the facts, but I couldn’t fill in the details or the images that went along with the facts well.

“I’m sorry, Teach. I don’t remember clearly enough. But it’s just a dream right? She’ll wake up, right?”

Deleim breathed in loudly. I knew that breath; she was holding back her temper. “Fin,” she said. “You probably forgot. But I told you. If your mental body thinks it’s dying, then that is going to translate to the physical world. If your mental body thinks it doesn’t have an arm, then you could find that you can’t move your arm. The mental body’s perception will be forced unless the consciousness is able to overcome the perception.” As soon as she delivered her tempered lecture, Deleim shifted her focus to Hanna, “Hanna. Give me all the details. Please.” Deleim didn’t miss a beat in her transition.

“She was punctured here, here, here, here, and here,” Hanna replied, pointing all over Ange’s healthy body. “She had her head ripped off too.”

“HER HEAD?!” Deleim screamed, causing Hanna to jump with a startle.

“She means the skull! I remember thinking her skull was off! And I remember…”

Deleim began working once more, showering light over the afflicted areas.

“Understood,” she replied. “Thank you, Fin.” She spared me a teary glance before returning to Ange.

“Is Ange going to be okay?” Hanna had the courage to ask the question I couldn’t.

“I don’t know. I’m not sure. I’ve never dealt with damage to a mental body. I… I don’t think my healing spells that target just the physical body are going to work.”

“Th-Then-” I struggled to speak up; the emotions were getting to me too. “Why are you still using spells?”

“I’m using a spell that promotes healing instead of overtly sealing up wounds. Maybe the spell will make Ange’s mind think it is able to- Wait…”

“That sounds like a good idea!” I called from behind. “If not-”

An idea came to my mind, but I was afraid to say it out loud. If this wasn’t going to work, there was one more person we could call upon.

“Fin?” Deleim was looking at me again with pointed eyes.

“Yes?”

Deleim had stopped casting her magic and seemed to be struggling with getting the words out.

“Fin, listen.” I was quiet and all ears. “I don’t think I can help Ange from out here. It won’t be the most efficient method.” I was about to speak but Deleim caught me right before I could make a sound, “No, listen for a second,” she turned to Hanna, “Hanna, could you invite Ange and I into the dream?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I protested, “We just tried so hard to get out from there!”

“I can,” Hanna replied, not reading the air in the room.

“Fin, calm down. I’m going to go into the dream, and apply healing magic to Ange there.”

“How is that going to help?!”

“I’m going to assume you don’t remember what I told you. The Plane of Dreams is ruled by mass perception. If my healing magic in the physical world heals wounds to the physical body, then in the Plane of Dreams where the mental is perceived as physical, maybe my healing magic can cure wounds on the mental body.”

I wasn’t going to pretend I understood. There were other things that concerned me.

“But you have to go through a nightmare, don’t you? There’s no way to guarantee you’ll be able to reach Ange.”

“I can invite Ange and Deleim straight to the temple.” Hanna said something unbelievable. “We just have to hold hands and fall asleep together.”

“Then what’s what we’ll do,” Deleim declared; she didn’t even give it a second thought.

“But… What if it doesn’t work?” I didn’t want to be negative, but there were no guarantees.

“Fin,” Deleim said stoically, “Even in the physical world, healing magic can’t solve grievous wounds beyond a certain point. At least, not healing magic at the level that I can use. The best case scenario is that I save Ange. But the worst case is that I only prolong her life. Do you understand what I’m saying, Fin?”

The worst case is buying us time? How can you be-

It clicked in my head. I knew what Deleim was telling me. I glanced over at a window; it was still dark outside.

“Okay, I understand. In the worst case, you delay Ange’s death.”

“I’m going to dive in, and if we save Ange, Hanna will let us out.” Deleim looked at Hanna for a confirmation and Hanna nodded without issue.

“Fin, handle things out here while we’re gone. I’ve set the lie up so that Hanna won’t be taken.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“You can count on me,” I replied with the most confidence I had managed to muster thus far.

“Hold on,” Hanna said. “I have something I need to give Fin.”

Something she has to give me? Wait-

Hanna pulled yanked down her pants and opened her legs for all to see. If Ange was awake, she would have tried to cover my eyes.

“Mmm-” she grunted as a small orb slowly began to crown.

“Whoa- what?” I yelped.

“She is a Nightmare Womb after all,” Deleim muttered wide-eyed.

“Ahh, it’s out. Here, Fin,” she said, pushing the palm-sized orb in front of me.

“Right… Thank you,” I said as I apprehensive reached for what was most likely the treasure we had been looking for.

“Okay, well that’s settled,” Deleim said, “Let’s get back to the mission at hand.”

With a last round of nods, Hanna nestled between Deleim and Ange on the bed and slowly let a little bit of smoke leak out from her lips. She opened her eyes at me one last time.

“Don’t worry, Fin. I won’t let anyone else in,” Hanna said with a light smile.

The smoke reached the other two’s nostrils and after they had begun breathing in deeply, Hanna herself took in a deep breath, sucking up all the smoke.

I walked closer and hesitantly put a hand out, “Are you guys asleep?”

No response. It seemed that they had crossed over. I prayed in my heart that this would be all that was needed to wake Ange up. But I was prepared for the case that it wasn’t.

“Teach is sure. She’s absolutely sure she can buy us time. If I knew where he was right now, it wouldn’t be so bad… But it’s ok. Teach said she can buy time. She knows that better than anyone.”

This wasn’t the first time Deleim had ever healed someone that was maimed by the Blood Claw. She and her husband had poured their low-level healing magic into their son. When her husband had eventually succumbed to his wounds, Deleim kept the healing spells going for almost three quarters of the day. She hoped that help would come, but for the same reason the attack was so easy, the help didn’t get to us in time; we were too isolated and far away from anyone that could help.

Deleim has the best sense of what her magic can get us. She knows if too much time passes, it’s over. So I’m sure…

I tried to convince myself once more; this was what she wanted me to do.

“I see. Thank you for your cooperation and on behalf of all the victims, thank you for ending the relic-trap.”

“Haha, not that I can remember it all too well.”

The were-jag guard had come to the room to ask us about the situation. I did my best to answer his questions, but I was grateful that I truly didn’t remember all too well. The most important thing was that I didn’t give away what the actual cause of the crisis was. My knowledge of the Blood Claw came in handy too. By giving the were-jag the details of that monster, I was able to give myself some credibility as it turned out his allies were currently in pursuit of someone matching the description. I prayed for their safe return.

“I’ll be off now. I would appreciate it if you and your companion came down to the guardhouse for a follow-up.”

I looked to the sleeping women and back to the were-jag, “Yeah, of course,” I said.

The were-jag nodded and took his leave. As soon as he stepped out of the door, I returned to my pacing. I had told him that the girls were tired after all of that ordeal and just went back to sleep without much trouble. It seemed that the other victims were also deeply affected; they all were exhausted enough to just go to bed immediately after they were checked on.

So, I was able to overcome that hurdle, but uncertainty was still ahead of us; it had been three hours and Deleim and Hanna still hadn’t woken up.

“Come on, come on, come on,” I muttered, “Just come up, sun.”

In my mind, the way to save Ange was clear. It had been clear since the first hour. Ange was dying and Deleim was only going to be able to delay it. Deleim’s extended stay in the dream, as nerve wracking as it was, did however guarantee that delaying the death was possible.

Two more hours passed and I could see the colors of the sky changing; dawn was breaking. The women were still asleep, but I was rushing out of the door.

Daybreak! You’ll show up at daybreak won’t you?

I ran down the city streets and did not stop until I reached the crossroads.

This is it! This is where we wanted to meet!

“Impeerio! Where are you? I need you!”

A window flung open, “Keep it down out there! I’m meeting my friend- I need my beauty sleep,” yelled a man in blue, silky pajamas with a pink boa wrapped around his shoulders. “Huh? Fin?”

I should have done this sooner. But I didn’t think he would be right here.

It was Impeerio.

“Impeerio! I need you!”

“Yes! A hundred times, yes!” he replied; I didn’t think he had the right idea of what I was here for. But that correction could wait.

Impeerio closed his window and burst through the doors of the establishment he was staying in, another inn by the looks of it, and ran up to me in his daily wear.

“What’s up?” he asked, “You look flustered.”

“Impeerio,” I replied, panting, “I need help. Ange- she’s hurt. The Blood Claw hurt her! In a dream I mean!”

“Whoa there, friend. You need to give me more info!”

Heeding his words, I briskly summarized the night’s events to the best of my abilities. I took special care in regurgitating what Deleim had told me; Impeerio would probably understand her explanations so long as I didn’t ruin them too much.

Impeerio listened to me quietly, his face marred with worry. Once my summary had concluded he simply asked, “Okay. What do you need from me?”

“Contact your God. The one that helped me. Please.”

Impeerio was the one who made the contract between me and a God I still did not know the name of. Impeerio was a special class of individual that not too many knew about. He was an Apostle; a messenger of a God. Impeerio had the special privilege of being able to converse with his God. While others prayed in hopes of a sign, Impeerio could just shoot the breeze with his God whenever he wanted. At least, that was how he described it.

It was through him that I got the chance to reorient my life and now, it was through him that I hoped I could save Ange.

“Help me. Help Ange. Please,” I begged once more, standing at attention with my head lowered.

Impeerio’s tone had lost its life and energy, “What do you hope to accomplish?” he asked.

“I want your God to heal Ange’s mental body and save her.”

Impeerio stared at me for a few nerve wracking moments until-

“Of course!” he excitedly yelled, tossing his arm around my neck, “Anything for our favorite, one-and-only Champion. Let me talk to the big guy.”

Impeerio kept his face uncomfortably close to my own, as he smiled in silence with his eyes closed. A few more moments and he parted away from me; his smile was a little dampened.

“Okay, we ran into a snag, friend…”

“What is it?!” I frantically asked. If Impeerio and the God couldn’t fix this, then who could?

“So here’s what’s going on. Our God can’t heal a mental body. It’s not in His permissions. And He most certainly is not permitted to touch anyone from the Skull Knight race without prior consent, permission or a previous relationship.”

“Wait, so we’re done?” I almost fell to my knees. “That’s not a snag, that’s a wall.”

Impeerio put his hands on me, as if to help me stay upright, “Don’t give up! There’s still a way.” Impeerio saw the light return to my eyes and continued, “If our God can’t do it, He just needs to ask the allied God that can.”

“Then-”

“Yeah, He knows exactly who to ask. But here’s the snag. There’s a price-”

“I’ll do it!”

Impeerio removed his hands, “Huh? Don’t you want to hear what the price is or why there’s one?”

“I-I don’t care! You guys have only helped me! I know I’m asking a lot! So I’ll do whatever it takes!”

Impeerio seemed to hesitate; it didn’t seem like he expected me to jump in head first. He seemed to take a moment to convey something to the God and returned his attention to me.

“Well, I still need you to hear out what we need from you in exchange. In the spirit of fairness and transparency.” I enthusiastically nodded and Impeerio continued, “As it turns out, something strange has come up which requires attention. In exchange for our God going to this allied God and exchanging His own resources for the allied God’s help, we would like for your help in investigating this matter. Are you willing to hear the terms of the contract?”

“Yes, of course!”

“Uhh-ahem, right. Here’s the terms, we need you to investigate a strange anomaly in the Northwestern Alliance’s region that occurred earlier in the day, yesterday. The disturbance occurred somewhere between the Forest Elf City of Viridia and the border of the Mandragora territory. We need you to go there, identify the source of the disruption. After identification, I will let you know whether the source of the disturbance needs to be eliminated or if it can be allowed to continue on. In the case of elimination, we will require you to put in your very best effort. If you fail at eliminating the disturbance, you will have the freedom to drop the matter and return to your present task. We would like this matter investigated within eight months.” Impeerio wiped his brow with an exaggerated gesture and sighed, “There, that’s everything. Do you accept?”

“Yes.” I stuck out my hand without a second thought.

“Huh? Wait, wait. Aren’t you going to even think about it first?” Impeerio was more flustered than I had ever seen him before. “We don’t even know what the disturbance is yet!”

“It doesn’t matter. I’d do it even if Ange was safe.”

“Huh? Really? Why?”

“Because, you two gave me a new lease on life when you made me into your God’s Champion. These last twelve years; I’ve lived them thanks to your good graces. If you need help, I’ll repay you.”

I knew that Deleim would not like it to hear what I was saying; to hear how quickly I threw myself at a God’s feet. But I didn’t care. They helped me. And I understood. I’m sure there are Gods that are as bad as Deleim believes them to be. But I’m sure there are also good Gods. Like the God that would change an angry ogre child’s fate by turning him into a Champion with an empowering blessing. Just like how my mom was a gentle ogre, the kindest ogre, despite our race’s tendencies; I was sure there were Gods that stood out against the tendency. That’s why I had no trouble accepting.

“I trust you, Impeerio.” I said with a smile. “Besides, that contract seemed kind.”

“Ahh. Right.” Impeerio said as he hesitantly put his hand out, “You’re a good friend, Fin.” A smile crept onto his face as we shook hands and sealed the contract.

I guess he’s not good at dealing with such straightforward declarations. Not that I’m good at it either.

The power of the contract surged through our bodies, and immediately a wave of relief washed over me.

“It’s done,” Impeerio said, pulling his hand away.

“Huh?”

“Ange is healed.”

I almost cried, but I held it together.

“Really?”

“Yeah, the Big Guy had his ally lined-up just waiting for the signal. He was sure you were going to help. I guess you can say he never doubted you.”

Hearing that, I couldn’t help but stand a little prouder now that a disaster was averted.

“Then,” I said, “I’m going to go now.”

“Of course,” Impeerio replied, flashing a bright smile, “Go get your girl, tiger.”

Just as I began to turn, a thought came back to me, or rather a memory.

I have to ask.

“Hey, Impeerio,” I started.

“Hmm? What’s up?”

“Did you... Did you know Hanna was a Nightmare Womb?”

Impeerio’s face twisted with surprise and he seemed to be thinking loudly enough that it appeared on his expression.

“Hanna’s the woman you found right? A Nightmare Womb was in my mind, but those are just traps unfortunate souls wander into in ruins right? With that bias, one wouldn’t really jump to Hanna being a Nightmare Womb, right?” I nodded along; that was what threw Deleim off too. “I personally was thinking it would be much more interesting if she were other things. One of my favorite ideas: she was some strange vampire variant. It would explain why she was asleep. But I guess it wouldn’t have explained everything, like why was she-”

“Okay, okay, I get it,” I said, interrupting him before he continued rambling. “Before I forget, here.” I pulled the small orb out of my pocket and handed it over.

“Ahh. This is-”

“The treasure that was inside of Hanna’s temple.”

“Wow. Even in a crisis, you sure are dependable.”

I smirked at Impeerio. “Don’t worry about it. Anyway, I’m off. You can let me know if that’s the right one another time!”

With a smile and a wave, I sprinted away, leaving Impeerio behind.

Okay there it is; Ange, please be awake.

I had returned to the inn, and had rushed up the stairs and was standing in front of the room once more. I couldn’t hear anything from the other side.

I steeled myself, closed my eyes, and opened the door.

…

…

…

“Fin?”

I opened my eyes immediately. Before me were Ange, Deleim and Hanna all in the bed looking at me. Deleim and Hanna were squeezing Ange between them, hugging her tightly. Aside from being suffocated, Ange looked exactly like she did when she first went to sleep.

I ran to the bed and kneeled before it; my tears were flowing out now, no one could stop them.

“Ange!” I cried, “I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry! Thank you for being okay!”

“There, there.” A light touch ran through my hair and it slowly turned into a loving pat. “It’s okay. You saved me. You all did,” she replied with a gentle, sleepy smile.

“Ange! You’re my only good student! I almost shattered at the thought of losing you!” Deleim cried, hugging her tighter.

“I want to keep having fun with Ange,” Hanna followed, gently hugging Ange, and nestling her head in Ange’s side.

I looked up at her, and she smiled brightly, “I’m sorry for being such a nightmare.”

“Really?” I asked, lightly chuckling, “You’re going to make a joke about it? It hasn’t even been a day.”

Ange could only giggle as Deleim lightly tapped her on her skull helm.