Lundama Jungle, Desmond, 10416 P.C.

Todd had never been in a jungle before. The trees were thick and tall, the sky hardly visible through the canopy of green above them. So it confused him — weren't dreams made up of things the mind had already seen? Maybe this stranger was right, maybe he wasn't dreaming. The attacking dragon had felt so real, as did the girl, but he wasn't about to rule out the possibility of this being a dream. He wasn't ready to accept this as reality.

The girl ahead of him was silent. He studied her from behind, trying to read her. She was almost as tall as him, and she was fit, like he didn't want to get on her bad side kind of fit. Her hair was curly and dark, more of a red than a brown, woven into a long braid down her back. She was attractive, he wasn't going to lie, but her rude and superior attitude was a turnoff. He wasn't sure how to feel about her.

Since this was probably just a dream, Todd decided to be bold. "So, Anna, was it? You said you'd tell me what's going on." It'd be interesting to see what his subconscious came up with.

"Annabella," she corrected firmly. "Not Anna, not Bella, it's Annabella and if you call me Anna or Bella I will make your death look like an accident."

Empty threats. If he was this so-called 'Deliverer', he seemed to be rather important. She wouldn't kill him. "What if I think Anna suits you better?"

She glared at him over her shoulder. "That's not for you to decide, Smartie."

"If you're gonna call me Smartie, I'm calling you Anna."

"Fine, I'll stop."

Todd rolled his eyes as he stepped over a fallen log. Who knew his subconscious was so sassy? He must have picked it up from Mikayla at some point.

His heart throbbed at the thought of Mikayla, and he shoved her out of his mind. "You said you'd explain what's going on."

Annabella took a deep breath; it was as if his mere existence was a burden on her. "Okay. History lesson. A long time ago, Desmond was the only world in existence. Everyone lived here in peace and harmony under the rule of our Creator, the Immortal One."

"The Immortal One?"

"Don't interrupt me. Yes, the Immortal One. He's the Creator, the One who made everything you see. Trees, ground, sky, people, so on."

"Uh-huh." He'd never heard the theory of a creator before. In truth, he hadn't really thought about how life had come to be. It had just always been there, hadn't it?

"Anyw- don't step in that." Annabella steered him around a mysterious-looking patch of sand on the jungle floor. "Anyway, years and years ago, people rebelled. They thought they knew better than the Creator. A war started, one that lasted a long, long time. In the end, the rebels were banished to another world. Your world, in fact. Amissah. There, in their ignorance and stupidity, they forgot about their Creator, which is why I must now explain history to you."

"Mhm." Todd made faces at Annabella's back. She had, inadvertently, just called him ignorant and stupid. Or maybe it had been purposeful. Yes, it had definitely been purposeful. He sighed.

"Here in Desmond, we thrived. For many years, peace ruled. Then, again, people started getting restless and rebellious. Hoping to bring Himself closer to His people, the Immortal One took a wife for Himself. They called her Lucille the Pure. Only a pure heart could commune with a perfect heart. She bore His children, the firstborn being a son they named Terrence. Their second and last child was a daughter, Saryn. Lucille died giving birth to Saryn."

She paused, disquieted it seemed, and Todd spoke up. "Okay wait. This Immortal guy. He was the Creator? So... why did His wife die? Couldn't He have, you know, stopped that, being the giver of life and all, as you say?"

"Maybe. I don't know. I don't understand it myself. Maybe He was sparing her from what was going to happen next.

"What?"

"Marrying a commoner did nothing to stop the rebellion in the people. They rose up against Him. Their appointed leader was Motch — or, as he is widely known as, the Great Dragon."

"The Great Dragon. Cool."

"Fitting too, since he was and is the greatest dragon in all of Desmond."

"Oh." Todd could feel his stomach plummeting. "So, he's, uh, actually a dragon? It's not like some nickname, like... you know..."

Annabella gave him a look. "We were just attacked by a dragon and you're questioning whether 'the Great Dragon' is actually a dragon?"

Todd ran his fingers through his hair, his cheeks reddening. This dream was getting weird. "We... we don't have dragons in my world."

"Uh-huh... Well, anyway, Motch and the rebels overthrew the Immortal One."

"How can you overthrow—?"

"Personally, I think He let them." She seemed annoyed that he was interrupting her again. "I think He was sick and tired of it all, so He let them win. The people soon regretted it, because Motch became a tyrant. He took over Desmond, tore it nearly apart. He stole away all the children, forcing them into submission and training them to be his army. Anyone who opposed him was killed. Motch truly became Desmond's biggest regret."

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Todd followed Annabella through two trees that created a sort of cool-looking arch. Above them, vines hung down, swaying a bit. He swatted them out of his way. "Okay, but what about the Immortal One? Where'd He—?" Todd stopped, frowning at the vine he had just tried pushing aside. It had somehow wrapped around his wrist. Weird and weirder. He tried shaking it off.

Annabella was several yards ahead of him. "The Immortal One took His children and went into hiding. No one knows where they went. It's been a long time since then and no one's seen the kids. The Immortal One, He shows up every now and then, but—" She seemed to sense that he wasn't behind her anymore, because she stopped and turned around. "What are you doing?"

Todd was still wrestling with the vine, which had somehow managed to wrap around his arm all the way up to his elbow. "Sorry, this... dumb vine is being... dumb..." The more he tried shaking it off, the more it seemed to be wrapping around his arm.

Annabella's eyes went wide. Without a word, she took the space between them in two strides, drawing her sword. Todd yelped when she hacked the vine in two. Brackish blood soaked his hand as the vine on his arm writhed and squirmed before sliding off and plopping on the ground. It thrashed for several more seconds before laying still.

"Get back, get back!" Annabella grabbed Todd's sleeve, dragging him away from the... the thing. It looked just like a vine, but it most definitely wasn't.

"What was that?" he whispered. His voice didn't seem to want to work anymore.

"Strangler," Annabella said quietly, quickly, still pulling him away. "They're like snakes, carnivores who feed on the flesh of their prey. They incapacitate their prey by strangling them." Her grip on him tightened. "Hurry. They attack in packs. Where there's one, there a hundred."

Suddenly, the vines hanging above them didn't seem so natural anymore. Especially when one several feet above Todd's head revealed blood-red eyes and rows upon rows of razor-sharp teeth. It made a sound unlike anything Todd had ever heard before, like a battle cry of a creature being choked. Then it fell toward them, its long body floundering through the air. Todd shrieked. Annabella jerked him out of the way and swung her sword at the thing, slicing it in half. It was dead, but the sound it had made seemed to be multiplying, echoing around them.

"Run!" Annabella yelled. Todd didn't have to be told twice. He took off running, managing several yards before something tripped him and he fell flat on his chest, the air knocked out of him. Annabella tripped over him, falling and rolling, gasping and panting as if she were injured. Todd rolled over, unable to move his feet and for good reason: they were pinned together tightly. A Strangler was weaving its way around his legs. Panicked, Todd grabbed for the neck, trying to stop it while also trying to avoid those teeth. It dodged his hand but caught his wrist, wrapping around it and yanking it down to bind to his legs. Todd tried jerking away, yelping when the creature's skin dug into his — it was like sandpaper, or tiny spikes or needles. In desperation, Todd yanked his wrist free, gasping when he found a long bloody scrape along his wrist and hand. The pain set in, and he nearly choked as it burned.

"Get up, get up!" Annabella was on her knees beside him, her sword in her hands, sawing at the Strangler around his legs. It snapped, sending crimson blood spewing like a fountain and speckling Todd's face as it writhed. Annabella was visibly shaking, trying to get up while also trying to get Todd to his feet. He staggered unsteadily, holding her arm, trying to help her up. His heart nearly stopped when a Strangler slithered up her body, wrapping around her arm and his and pinning them together. It looked up at him, barring its thousands of incisors, letting out its freakish scream. He screamed too, trying to jerk away and falling over again, dragging Annabella down on top of him. She was uncharacteristically silent, struggling, and that's when he saw the tail of the Strangler around her neck, tightening slowly. She was trying to breathe, her free hand flailing for the sword she had dropped. The Strangler was in Todd's face, swaying back and forth, taunting.

Todd yelled again, grabbing the Strangler around the neck and smashing its little skull into the ground as hard as he could. He felt the crunch of bone, and then Annabella gasped, air reaching her lungs as the Strangler's body went limp and slid off her neck. Todd's triumph only lasted a moment, however; several more Stranglers were taking the place of the other, securing their ankles, wrapping their legs. Annabella tried getting up, dazed from her lack of oxygen, desperate to reach her sword. A Strangler caught her wrist and pulled it down against her hips. Slowly but surely, almost mockingly, the Stranglers were trapping them, getting tighter and tighter with each passing second.

"The sword!" Annabella gasped, trying to roll over. Clearly targeting her as the greater danger, more Stranglers slithered over her, pinning her down.

Only Todd's legs were caught. He flipped over onto his chest, clawing at the undergrowth. The sword was just feet away. With a yell, he dragged himself toward it, fighting the Stranglers trying to pull him back. He lunged for the handle and missed by mere inches. He slid back a foot, the Stranglers pulling on him.

He looked over his shoulder. "Annabella? Annabella!" She was unresponsive, barely visible through the swarm of Stranglers that covered her. Many of them were abandoning her, coming at him, trying to pulling him back away from the sword. It was as if they wanted their lunch in a neat little pile, he thought in terror, and panicked. Crying out, Todd lunged for the sword, missing yet again. He was pulled back even farther, the Stranglers swarming halfway up his waist, tightening, making it harder to breathe. They were mocking him, taunting him, one move away from finishing him but dragging out his death for their wicked little pleasures. As much as he wanted to believe it, Todd knew he wasn't dreaming. In fact, he was about to die.

With a roar he had never heard come out of him before, he clawed at the earth, dragging himself forward against the Stranglers. The sword was closer, and he strained for it. It was just out of reach.

"Help... me!" he gasped out, unsure who exactly he was speaking to. He was heard, however, because a burst of strength exploded within him. He lunged forward again, the sword in his hand now. Yelling, he rolled over, lifting the sword over his head. It was a lot heavier than he had expected, and he nearly lost his balance as he brought it down right between his legs, not even thinking of the fact that he could have lost a limb. Luck was on his side. Blood went everywhere as he sliced through the creatures, soaking him and the jungle floor. They fell off of him like simple vines, writhing and jerking before lying still. The others still swarmed Annabella, and he could barely see her at all.

"Get off of her!" He didn't know why he yelled it, but he did. To his shock, the Stranglers obeyed. They scattered, unwinding themselves from Annabella in mere seconds and disappearing off into the underbrush as if they had never even been there. Todd sat in a stupor for several seconds, breathing heavily. Then he realized Annabella wasn't breathing at all.

He scrambled to her side, gasping. She was as limp as a rag doll, eyes closed, skin pale. "Annabella! Annabella, wake up! Someone, help!" She didn't respond, and he knew they were the only ones around. He put an ear to her chest. Her heart was beating, and as soon as he realized it, she was jerking up, gasping and choking as air entered her lungs. He fell back, breathing raggedly, watching as she fought to recover. She shook as she rolled over and for a long moment just breathed.

"That... that was close," he stuttered.

Annabella's chest heaved. She looked up at him, at his blood-soaked clothes, at her sword still gripped in his hand. Then she dropped her head and closed her eyes, her breath trembling.

"You were saying the Immortal One shows up every now and then, hey?" he asked shakily. Then he laughed a dumb, giddy laugh, and collapsed on his back in the undergrowth.