Eileen's dream

Upon returning to the organization hall, Leo and Tyler carefully carried Eileen through the dimly lit corridors, heading towards the healer's chambers "Veronica", She examined Eileen briefly, her calm gaze sweeping over the unconscious girl, Instead of a detailed diagnosis, she simply instructed the two to take Eileen to her quarters on the upper floor and allow her to sleep, "This happens sometimes," she explained in her usual clipped tone, "There's nothing I can do but let her rest. The mind heals in dreams."

Leo and Tyler exchanged glances, unsure whether to question the simplicity of the advice, but in the end, they complied. Gently, they carried Eileen to her room and laid her down on the soft bed, Her face was pale, her breathing uneven, as if even in sleep she was haunted by unseen phantoms, After ensuring she was comfortable, the two left her side, exhaustion weighing heavily on their own bodies, The night had taken its toll, not just on their minds but also on their bodies, worn out from the laborious digging in the cold, unwelcoming cemetery.

The following afternoon, as the sun climbed higher in the sky, Leo and Tyler made their way to the captain's office, The events of the previous night still weighed on their minds, and they were eager to report what had happened, However, they were taken aback when the captain, seated at his desk with an air of finality, announced the mission's termination.

"Since Eileen was affected," the captain said, his voice steady and resolute, "there's no need to continue with the mission, A village envoy will be arriving at the end of the week, and I will inform them that the mission has been canceled, You're dismissed."

The news hung in the air as they left the captain's office, Once outside, Leo turned to Tyler, perplexed, "Tyler, is this how things usually go when a mission fails?"

Tyler's expression turned somber, more serious than Leo had ever seen him, "We've lost a lot of people on missions like these," he said quietly, "That's why the captain won't let anyone weak handle them anymore, Eileen wasn't strong enough this time, so he called it off."

Leo nodded, understanding the weight behind his friend's words, The guild's history, it seemed, was filled with more than just stories of victories, It carried the scars of lost comrades and failed missions, decisions made by the captain not just to save face but to protect those under his command from unnecessary danger.

As the evening approached, Leo found himself reflecting on Eileen's condition, She hadn't left her room since the night of the cemetery incident, and he realized that no one had told her that the mission had been officially canceled, Resolving to inform her, Leo made his way to her room, However, as his hand hovered over the door to knock, a sense of unease washed over him.

Inside, Eileen was stirring from a restless sleep, her brow damp with sweat, Her dreams, far from being a place of solace, were consumed by dark visions, She opened her eyes abruptly, heart pounding, only to find herself standing barefoot in the middle of Linkom Cemetery, The air was thick with mist, the cold seeping into her bones as a haunting silence filled the air, Her white gown fluttered around her, its fabric ghostly against the surrounding shadows.

The graves before her, nameless and eerie, seemed to whisper, Faint voices called to her, rising from the earth like a distant chorus of the damned, She covered her ears, but the sounds persisted, growing louder, more urgent, Her heart raced as her eyes fell upon the grave they had disturbed the previous night, The knocking began again, faint at first, but increasing in intensity as she drew nearer, The air around her felt heavy, almost suffocating, as if the fog itself had come alive with a malevolent will.

Her fingers itched to dig, to uncover what lay beneath the earth, but there were no tools in sight, Desperation overtook her, and she knelt, clawing at the ground with her bare hands, The soil was cold and damp, and with each handful, her skin tore, her palms bleeding freely, Yet she continued, driven by an impulse she could not explain, As she dug deeper, the earth shifted beneath her fingers, and suddenly, a cold, withered hand shot up from the grave, wrapping itself around her wrist with an unnatural strength.

Eileen's scream pierced the stillness of the night, but the hand did not loosen its grip, Her eyes widened in terror as the earth parted further, revealing the form of a young girl perhaps sixteen her golden hair matted with dirt, her skin a deathly blue, The girl was clearly not among the living, yet she smiled at Eileen with a strange, unsettling warmth.

The girl's icy fingers brushed Eileen's face gently, almost affectionately. "You can see us, can't you?" she whispered, her voice barely more than a breath.

Eileen, frozen in fear, managed a shaky nod.

The girl's smile widened, but it held no joy, "We've been calling to you… for so long. But you never answered."

Confusion clouded Eileen's thoughts, "Who… who are you?" she stammered, "Why are you calling me? And what do you mean by 'we'?"

Without warning, the girl's grip tightened, and she yanked Eileen towards the ancient well at the far end of the cemetery, Her voice, now urgent and filled with sorrow, echoed in the still air, "Look at us," she commanded, "We've been waiting for you."

As they neared the well, the girl's form dissolved into mist, leaving Eileen standing alone at the edge, The darkness within the well beckoned, and before she could pull back, she lost her balance and tumbled into its depths, The well was dry, its bottom covered in a thick, rotting mass that smelled of decay, Above her, the shadow of a man appeared, silhouetted against the night sky, She screamed for help, her voice desperate, but the figure merely turned and walked away.

Cold hands reached up from the muck, grabbing at her legs, her arms, pulling her down into the filth, The voices of young girls, faint and sorrowful, whispered around her. "Please… save us… please…" The hands tightened their grip, dragging her down, deeper into the suffocating dark.

Just as Eileen felt herself slipping away, a jolt brought her back to the waking world, Leo had burst into her room, shaking her awake, pulling her out of the nightmare that had ensnared her, She awoke with a start, gasping for breath, her skin slick with sweat. For a moment, she was disoriented, unsure if she was still dreaming.

"It was just a nightmare," she whispered, her voice hoarse.

Leo, sitting by her bedside, looked at her with concern, "Are you alright?"

Eileen nodded, though her hands trembled. "Yes… just a nightmare."

Leo, sensing more to the story, leaned forward. "Was it about the cemetery?"

Eileen hesitated before answering, "Yes, I saw something… something real. The grave wasn't empty, There was a body, but no matter how much you and Tyler dug, you couldn't see it, It was like a ghost."

Leo considered her words carefully, "You should rest, The captain has canceled the mission."

Her eyes widened in disbelief, "Canceled? Why?"

"I don't know," Leo replied: "But it's over now. You don't have to worry about it anymore."

After leaving her to her thoughts, Leo joined Tyler in the guild's cafeteria, recounting the strange vision Eileen had experienced, Tyler, unusually contemplative, set down his meal. "There's something off about this whole thing, I did some digging no pun intended about Linkom Cemetery, It's not a normal place, It's magically protected, A gravestone rises from the ground the moment a body is buried, and only the family of the deceased can carve the name into the stone, But the grave we found had a headstone with no name and no body, That doesn't make sense."

Leo frowned: "Didn't the captain tell us the mission was canceled? Why are you still looking into it?"

Tyler tried to deflect but eventually gave in. "Alright, alright, I know it's crazy, But aren't you curious?"

Leo sighed: "A little, But why pursue it?"

A mischievous grin spread across Tyler's face, "The captain's busy with the king tonight, So I say we go and finish what we started."

Leo groaned, shaking his head, "I should've known you'd drag me into this."

As they snuck out of the guild under cover of night, their stealthy escape was interrupted when they found Eileen waiting for them at the entrance, Both froze in their tracks.

"Eileen… we were just, uh, going for a walk," Leo stammered.

Her gaze shifted toward the cemetery, her expression unreadable, "A walk? In the cemetery? At midnight?"

Tyler grinned sheepishly,"You're here for the same reason, aren't you?"

Eileen crossed her arms, her demeanor firm, "So, you're planning to finish the mission?"

Leo shrugged, "Since we're all here… might as well."

And so, the three of them set out once more into the darkness, determined to uncover the mystery buried deep within the cursed ground of Linkom Cemetery.