TO TAME A NIGHTMARE

Caspian first gazed at the monstrous figures that suddenly came to life like ancient engines and then, back at the young boy in white. 

For a moment Caspian considered pulling the boy into the snow to hide him from the abominations. But then the chill that ran up his spine as he stared wide-eyed at the child named Monster made him decide otherwise.

It sounded insane but certainly Monster had all these fearsome creatures subjugated and they were all strolling in the direction Caspian had come through. 

"So you don't have to worry about Makima, all you have to do is tame that."

Again Caspian's attention was drawn to the abomination that crawled out of the lake. It had pale bone-white skin with steel claws. Its back was hunched over like a fox with a similar fox-like nozzle, only this one had a single vertical eye radiating a sinister red glow at the centre of its forehead. 

"My advice. Take him somewhere much more confined."

Monster said as it fashioned a blade out of thin air and handed it over to Caspian. 

'What the?!'

"You're joking right?!"

Caspian stuttered as he alternated his gaze between the mirrored him and the one-eyed fox thing. 

He would have honestly even preferred having to face Makima, but unfortunately, it wasn't seeming like he had a choice. 

Gazing at the exquisite blade it had fashioned out of thin air, Caspian couldn't help but admit that he was certainly dealing with a true abnormality.

The blade itself was made of stainless steel with a golden hilt. The power it radiated was just ridiculous. Staring at the blade and then at Monster, Caspian couldn't help but shudder. 

'Just what are you?'

Monster had this childish innocence around its mannerisms and gestures. But Caspian could easily tell that it was no regular being–at least in here, and the way it spoke most definitely couldn't be taken likely. 

Caspain was in its world and its rules seemed absolute, for whatever reason. 

Certainly, it had to have known that Caspian couldn't possibly do anything to harm that beast. 

The abomination wasn't large but four meters could hardly be considered as small. 

The thing was Monster never said it wanted Caspian to kill the beast. Instead, it had wished for him to tame it. 

'If that's the case…?'

Caspian thought as he peered at the beast, then at the lake behind it. 

"This world is just like the mountain?"

Caspian asked.

"Well, it's as vivid as you remember it."

Monster replied with a thoughtful expression. 

'Wasn't it even sure.?'

Caspian thought with a sigh.

Either way, it still made sense, all he had experienced as he drowned in the lake could only be gotten from his memories. This meant that there had to be a relation between Caspian's mind and the dream world Monster claimed to be Sovereign over. 

But if this world was truly modelled after his mind and memories, then his objective didn't seem too unattainable. 

If he managed to make it to the base underneath the mountain, then there really could be many ways he could bind the beast.

He glanced at the abomination one more time as it tried to pass its steel claws through the ethereal figure of the lady that stood beside the lake.

The claws went through her like a bird cutting through the air. Yet she barely flinched, only lifting her lite cigarette to place between her lips seconds after. 

Caspian ignored the strange phenomenon, passing it off as something that happened in dreams.

Soon he was circling the lake. 

It wasn't long before the beast picked up on his activity. 

Moments later he was running through the forest with an abomination locked in a demented frenzy chasing him tirelessly from behind. 

Caspian was already heaving and panting laboriously before he found the massive maw that served as one of the many entrances into the government's underground base. 

'Thank God mg trauma made it shorter than it actually was.'

He barely had enough time to stare at the eerie chasm that stood out from the white snow like a gap in space. Neither did he have enough time to shiver at the sinister updraft that spilt out of that gap.

He immediately ran inside, his steps echoing after him.

The fox-like thing was already upon him, curling its gaunt figure so it fit into the tunnels.

With how much it struggled Caspian could only thank Monster for first planting the idea to lead the vile thing into the tunnels.

Although it was still covering the gap between it and Caspian quite quickly. It was still being slowed down. 

Caspian meanwhile only had his breath to focus on as he ran in absolute darkness. Sometimes he could feel something strange trying to pull at his legs, but he refused to buckle and fall. 

After all, they were only the stuff of nightmares.

With how over-exaggerated his memories were it only made sense that the cave would be much darker than it had been. Even the creatures he could hear crawling about and trying to grab onto his feet were all constructs of the trauma he had developed climbing down to the base so often as a kid.

For as long as he could remember visits down here were a weekly occurrence and it only got worse the more Calamitous Will his body learned to harbour. 

At some point, this had even been his home. 

Caspian's mind was already stroking at deep mental wounds when suddenly he heard metal groan like it got ripped apart like cardboard. 

When Caspain turned he immediately caught sight of the fox's claws tearing through the metal-plated tunnel as it struggled to pass through. 

It was only a matter of seconds before it would befall Caspian. 

A few moments later Caspian was leaping into the air trying to avoid the claws as they grabbed onto the metal plates. 

It took careful consideration to avoid those claws. 

One mistake and he could get sawed in half just like those plates, and he couldn't promise how long he could keep himself from error. 

Soon hope shone in Caspian's eyes in the form of lights at the end of the tunnels. 

These white lights, however, weren't rich and radiant like the golden glow he had heard the sun spilt constantly in the south, and in other events. 

No, these lights were eerily bright and lifeless.

When Caspian finally leapt into the lit area, a massive opening with metal panels and strange contraptions received him, with the strange ceiling lights helping to push away as many shadows as they could.

Caspian rolled on the floor and immediately picked himself up with the sword Monster had gifted him pointing directly at the hole he had leapt out off. 

Soon the fox was out too, its claws landing solidly against the metal flooring. 

Caspian stared at it and then at the strange contraption that lay behind him. 

"Come on then."

He said with a nervous grin.