[center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/16a8bf35-d965-4909-ac95-0db9781b733e.png [/img][/center]

After finishing the last of the hot chocolate, Connie and Mia had both decided to turn in for the night. Snuggly tucked in beneath several layers of blankets, both young women looked forward to what they hoped would be a pleasant and restful sleep. Unfortunately, hopes and realities can often be very different things…



[hider=Connie and the Lord of Nightmares]Connie found herself alone in a dark void. All around her, myriad pinpoints of light twinkled in the distance, leading to the impression that she had somehow become adrift in space. But this was not space. At least, not space as humanity knew it. This was space that had volume, not vacuum. It seemed to churn around her like a roiling storm cloud. Every so often, flashes of amethyst lightning briefly illuminated her surroundings, but Connie took no comfort in this, as what the flashes made visible wasn’t anything she whished to see. 

Menacing shapes twisted and writhed in those blessedly brief moments of illumination, shapes, whose smooth tendrils and segmented insectoid limbs protruded and dissolved with no apparent pattern. Occasionally, a mouth would emerge, filled with needle-sharp teeth. It was this last highly unnerving sight that had led the terrified Connie to an even more horrific revelation: the scattered pinpoints of light were not, in fact, the stars she had believed them to be. No, she now realized to her horror, they were not stars at all. They were eyes. Thousands of eyes…

Hugging her trembling body tightly, Connie realized that she was in her magical girl form, and that, coupled with her unpleasant surroundings, could only mean one dreadful thing… 

[color=Purple]“You did well tonight, Empress,”[/color] the Lord of Nightmares said approvingly.

[color=DarkOrchid]“T-thank y-you,”[/color] Connie replied timidly.

[color=Purple]“BUT NOT WELL ENOUGH!”[/color] the entity bellowed, its voice sounding like the roar of ten trillion demons fused with the sound of fifty trillion nails scraping upon a chalkboard of infinite size.

At this, Connie’s already racing heart began pounding like a jackhammer, and she attempted to curl her violently shaking body into a tight ball. However, nothing would spare her from her Patron’s fury. Indeed, her latest terrified actions seemed to only anger it further.

[color=Purple]“YOU DID NOT GO FAR ENOUGH IN YOUR TASK OF BESTOWING NIGHTMARES UPON THE SLUMBERING! THE TASK THAT I INTRUSTED TO YOU! YOU RETIRED WHEN THERE WAS STILL WORK TO BE DONE! YOUR ACTIONS HAVE BEEN A DISGRACE, EMPRESS!” [/color]

[color=DarkOrchid]“I-I’m s-s-sorry…”[/color] Connie whimpered.

[color=Purple]“CEASE YOUR COWARDLY GROVELING! YOU ARE THE EMPRESS OF NIGHTMARES! YOU ARE MY CHOSEN CHAMPION! IT IS BENEATH YOU TO ACT IN SHUCH A WRETCHED MANNER!” [/color]

Her enraged Patron's words assailed her like a torrent of the sharpest blades, and Connie felt as if thousands of needles were being driven under her finger nails, while wicked spikes plunged themselves deep into her brain.

[color=DarkOrchid]“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry,”[/color] Connie sobbed hysterically. 

[color=Purple]“SILENCE!!!”[/color] the Lord of Nightmares roared. [color=Purple]“YOU MUST CONDUCT YOURSELF IN A MANNER THAT IS BEFITTING THE POWER AND AUTHORTY I HAVE BESTOWED UPON YOU, EMPRESS! NIETHER SHALL YOU SHRINK FROM YOUR DUTIES, YOUR OBLIGATIONS TO ME! DO YOU UNDERSTAND THESE THINGS EMPRESS?! DO YOU KNOW WHAT SHALL HAPPEN IF YOU CONTINUE THIS REFUSAL TO OBEY ME?!”[/color]

[color=DarkOrchid]“Y-y-y-yes,”[/color] Connie said meekly. [color=DarkOrchid]“I-I-I’ll t-t-try t-to d-d-do b-b-better… I-I p-p-promise…”[/color]

[color=Purple]“Goood Empress,”[/color] the Lord of Nightmares replied. [color=Purple]“See that you do…”[/color][/hider]




[hider=Mia and Mother Earth]Meanwhile, Mia was having a dream of a different sort. Like Connie, she too was in her magical girl form, but aside from that similarity, every other aspect of her surroundings was profoundly different than what her friend was experiencing. She was standing in the center of a lush forest clearing. Warm rays of sunlight fell upon her face, while a cool breeze caressed her bare skin. Birds twittered in the trees and hundreds of brightly colored butterflies flittered around her. She felt completely content and at peace. 

[color=LimeGreen]“I am so proud of you, my daughter,”[/color] a soothing voice commended. [color=LimeGreen]“You have done so much to heal this wounded planet. Lands once lost to desolation have returned to bloom again because of your efforts. And that is not all that has blossomed of late,”[/color] the voice added, as its source emerged from the surrounding foliage to reveal itself as a towering robed woman, formed from various instances of plant life. [color=LimeGreen]“Your work to nurture your dear friend’s abilities has not gone unnoticed. Indeed, it is this love for her that brings me the most pride, for I believe that, with your guidance, she will greatly assist in bringing about the world’s glorious rebirth.”[/color]

[color=SpringGreen]“Thank you, Mother,”[/color] Gaia replied, treating her Patron to a dazzling smile. [color=SpringGreen]“Your approval fills my heart with such great joy!”[/color]

With that, Gaia gracefully spun and twirled her way through a dance that she was sure Mother would appreciate. This was simply Gaia’s way of showing her Patron just how happy her words had made her.

[color=LimeGreen]“Ah, that was such a lovely dance, Gaia,”[/color] Mother Earth said with approval, as her daughter concluded her performance with an elegant curtsy.

[color=SpringGreen]“My gift to you, Mother,”[/color] Gaia replied as she gracefully sat down upon a large root beside a small pond of clear, sparkling water. [color=SpringGreen]“I can only hope that it brought you at least a small amount of the exquisite bliss you have brought me.”[/color]

[color=LimeGreen]“Oh, Gaia,”[/color] Mother Earth said warmly as her hand gently stroked her daughter’s face. [color=LimeGreen]“You have brought me more bliss than you can ever know. I cannot even begin to fathom what I would ever do without you.”[/color]

[color=SpringGreen]“There is no need to worry, Mother,”[/color] Gaia replied serenely, closing her eyes to savor her Patron’s gesture of affection. [color=SpringGreen]“I am your daughter. I am yours until the end of time itself.”[/color]

At this, Mother Earth laughed, a sound that could perhaps best be described as the song of a trillion birds after a spring rain entwined with the joyous tonalities of the most harmonious wind chimes imaginable.

[color=LimeGreen]“You speak of [i]my[/i] worries, and yet I can sense that you are weighed down by some of your own.”[/color]

[color=SpringGreen]“Yes…”[/color] Gaia replied hesitantly. [color=SpringGreen]“You are, of course, correct as always, Mother. It is Connie. I am… concerned for her. Her powers are vast, but she lacks the skill and, more importantly, the [i]confidence[/i] to make full use of them. Just this very night, she praised my abilities, while severely doubting her own. But my competence is only thanks to you. If Connie’s Patron was more like you, and not the despicable fiend that it is, then I truly believe that she too would have already reached the same heights that, with your guidance, I have attained. She is such a gentle girl… She simply needs positive encouragement and guidance. I have tried my best to give her that, truly I have, but…”[/color] 

[color=LimeGreen]“But you are not a Patron?”[/color] Mother Earth asked gently, and with a hint of amusement. [color=LimeGreen]“No, you are not. You are something far more effective in that regard. A [i]friend[/i]. Her [i]best[/i] friend. You have told me that you have known each other since you were small children, yes? That is a most powerful bond indeed, far more powerful than any Patron could have with their champion. Yes, Gaia, even including my bond with you. Even if I were Connie’s Patron, I could never help her quite the way you can. Only you have the power to allow Connie’s hidden potential to fully blossom, and I know you shall use it well.”[/color]

Gaia sat in silence for several long moments, while she contemplated her Patron’s words. Mother was right, of course. She was [i]always[/i] right. And this time, Gaia could feel that truth with greater strength than ever before. After all, was it not Connie herself who had said that with her best friend by her side, everything would be all right?

[color=SpringGreen][i]Yes,[/i][/color] Gaia resolved firmly, [color=SpringGreen][i]with me at her side, Connie shall reach her full potential. And then, together, we shall cast the Lord of Nightmares back into the foul pit from whence it came! So swears Gaia, Daughter of Mother Earth![/i][/color][/hider]

[hr]

[center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/11844121-70b4-40d4-8d27-6274ede736b1.png[/img][/center]

Violet Covington was not asleep. Far from it, she was, in fact, hard at work employing her considerable web of contacts to acquire any and all information they could find on incidents of recurring nightmares similar to what her father was experiencing. The heiress strongly suspected that her father’s predicament was not an isolated occurrence, and her suspicions were soon proven correct when the first reports began to trickle in. As it turned out, two other prominent CEOs had also been suffering some particularly traumatic nightmares of late. 

[i]Could this be some attempt at blackmail?[/i] she wondered. 

Her curiosity grew stronger scant minutes later, when the trickle of new information transformed into a flood. Multiple high-ranking members of the city’s criminal underworld had also been experiencing frequent night terrors in recent weeks. 

[i]Curious… Most curious…[/i]

There clearly seemed to be some sort of pattern, but what it pointed to, Violet couldn’t even begin to fathom. She did know one thing, however. These were not random incidents. Some unknown, antagonistic force was employing supernatural means to attack various people through their dreams. Now, with that confirmed, she just needed to find them. This would prove a bit more challenging, since normal channels, as extensive and well connected as they were, would not suffice in this regard. No, to find a paranormal enemy, she would need to employ a paranormal investigator. 

Fortunately, she had multiple options available to her. First and foremost, there was Sammy, the renowned paranormal “supersluth.” And if that didn’t pan out, there was always the Penrose Independent, a small, but popular, local news agency that, she had on good authority, investigated both mundane and magical matters. Either way, she would insure that whoever was behind these vile attacks would be found, and once that happened, she possessed an even greater variety of ways to put an end to them…