Daymares and Nightmares

"What's happening?" Hunter asks Naamah as he holds the fiend in his arm and checks for a pulse.

"I don't know," Naamah said defensively. "This has never happened before," she stated.

"You sure? Cause this looks like something a demon would pull off," said Ishani.

"I didn't do this," Naamah stated.

[Put her on her belly]

Hunter turns the fiend such that her back is facing upward.

[Take off her shirt]

'Huh?'

[Hunter ...]

'Alright.' Hunter's eyes turn iridescent and a blue figure of Sasha appears and uses her blade to tear the back of the sprite's shirt before disappearing as quickly as she appeared.

Zoe's tanned skin had a black spot that covered most of her back and seemed to have spread to her hips. The pure demon gasps once she sees the black spot.

'What is this?'

"I've seen this before," Naamah said, gently shoving Ishani away and kneeling next to the sprite.

"What is it?" Hunter asked again, this time out loud.

"Your friend was sacrificed to the Adversary and now that she's out of the Deadland it's affecting her."

"What are you talking about?" The sprite asked confused.

"She's bound to the Deadland because she was sacrificed and did not travel on her own. You cannot leave Hel as long as she has the spot and if you don't stop it from spreading to the rest of her body, she will die," Naamah stated.

'Is the regeneration ability back?'

[Yes, your injuries have already begun healing]

'Would the spot go if I give her my blood?'

[Not possible]

"I can fix her but I wouldn't be available for anything else while I do so," Naamah stated.

"How long would it take to remove the spot completely?"

"In Nym'Roal time? At least two weeks," she explained.

"And how long would it take before the spot spread?"

"Days if unattended to, months if I start counteracting now," Naamah stated.

"Okay. Do your thing," Hunter said.

"One thing you should know," said Naamah. "The Adversary can appear from any dark place or location," the pure demon suddenly says.

"Why are you telling us this?" Ishani asks.

"Your friend here was sacrificed to him. Chances are he can sense her. Good luck master, you'll need it." Naamah stretches her hand and begins to glow and glow until the pure demon turns into a huge ball of energy.

The sprite could sense the energy from where he stood; a large source of pure energy, unlike anything he has seen before. Hunter looked to the side to see that the Indo-African woman was just as surprised as he was.

"She wasn't lying about being a pure magic user huh?"

"This is nothing," the dark brown-skinned woman rolled her eyes.

"No need to downplay it, she's not here, you can admit this is pretty cool," Hunter stated.

"Yeah," she agreed. "What I could do with this energy ..."

[Hm ...]

'So since you were the ruler of Hel, what do you suggest we do for fun? Preferably one that would take two weeks.'

[The marketplace, it's so much fun at this time of the month]

'Market place in Hel? Color me surprised.' Hunter turned to Ishani. "Hey, would you like to visit the Marketplace with me?" He asked the battlemage.

"Hel has a marketplace?"

"I know right?"

"What about Zoe?" said the battlemage looking at the passed-out fiend.

[Better to leave her here]

...

Following Waleed's direction, the duo arrived at the marketplace. It was just like a seventh-century human market except with demons instead of humans. The demons all cast sidelong glances at the school of mysticism students before looking away or saying something to another demon next to them.

"You think they can tell we're not from around here?" Ishani whispered.

"With the way they are eyeballing us? We'd be lucky if one of them hasn't sold us already."

A pure demon walks past the duo eyeing them suspiciously. She looked like a human - the first one with such a look since they got to the marketplace. Hunter did not see her lips move but he heard her voice in his head. "Follow me if you wish to live."

The sprite's eyes widen and he turns to his partner. "You hear that?" He asked.

"Someone else's voice in my head? Yes. You think we should follow her?"

'What do you think?'

[Why not?]

The duo turned around and followed the pure demon as she navigates her way out of the marketplace and to a different region where the sky was as red as blood and the weather cold and shivering.

"What the hell do you two think you're doing?" She demanded.

"I'm confused," Hunter said.

"How did you bypass Lilith's travel ban?" The pure demon asked.

"Long story. You asked us to follow you, any reason why?"

"Yes," says the pure demon. "I have a warning for you," she continued, grabbing the sprite by the collar. "Return the Adversary's property before he losses his patience with you!"

Hunter pushes the pure demon backward and finds himself in the region he first met Naamah. "What the -- Ishani? Ishani!" He shouted but there was no response.

'Waleed?'

[Yes?]

The degenerated necromancer appeared in front of the sprite, with teal green eyes and long, dark hair stretching down to his shoulders.

"I'm hallucinating, right?"

[The adversary does not forgive and neither does he forget. Return the fiend while he's still being merciful]

Hunter closes his eyes, shutting off the voice in the back. He focus on his body and location and when he reopens his eyes, he was back at the region Naamah took them to - the one with the rainbow-colored sky. In front of him was Ishani, sitting next to the unconscious body of Zoe and the pure energy ball that was Naamah, drawing mindlessly in the sand.

'Phew!' Hunter sighed.

[What is it?]

'Seems Hel is messing with my head again. Saw some crazy things; You were talking about how I --'

[Hunter, You've been in this very same location]

'So?'

[Hel makes you see things so you engage in acts you wouldn't normally do. If you're only seeing things then that's not Hel's doing]

Hunter turns to Ishani who was no longer writing in the sand. "Ishani! We need to get out of here. Help me with my sword and shield," the sprite stated but the battlemage does not respond.

"Ishani!" He called again and got the same response. The sprite moves forward and taps the battlemage's shoulder but the dark haired woman grabs him and pulls him over her shoulder and throws him to the ground.

"What the --" The sprite looks up at the sprite to find that the Indo-African woman's eyes were now pitch black with no iris.

The battlemage throws a punch towards the sprite's face who swiftly rolls out of the way. Hunter rises to his feet and quickly assumes a fighting stance. "Ishani?" He called once more.

[She's being manipulated]

'I was hoping you wouldn't say that.'

Hunter rushes forward and the battlemage throws a punch. The sprite steps to the side of the attack, allowing the attack to fly over the shoulder before punching the sprite in the midriff. The battlemage staggers backward and this allowed some space between them both. Hunter's right fist glows with pink energy surrounding it which the sprite uses to knock the battlemage out. "Sorry," he apologized.

"Alright," he sighs before picking up the battlemage and putting her on one of his shoulders and the fiend on the other. Hunter then picks up the sword and shield Naamah had given to him from the ground. His eyes moves to what Ishani had been writing in the sand: 'Return the girl!'

The sprite begins racing away from the region with the ball of energy Naamah had turned into following after him. If the Adversary could manipulate and possess them then surely he knew exactly where they were and Hunter needed to get them away from there.

He ran and ran until he felt his legs hurt, and when they stopped hurting, he continued running. A while later, the sprite arrived at another region where the sky was somewhat orange and the weather was hot.

'This should do.'

[I don't think so]

'What --'

"Hunter?" A voice called from his shoulder, low and soft. The sprite sets the two ladies on the floor. "Zoe?"

"Hunter," she repeated. "He's coming ..." She revealed.

The pebbles on the ground begin to float and the ground itself began to rumble.

Large rocks fly around as the Adversary emerges from the ground. He had four large horns around his head, eyes of fire and magma accompanied him as he emerged.

"Run Hunter, run."

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