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His dreams were especially vivid that night, as he once more lived through that fateful day in his past as if it were absolutely real. A sudden blow on his chin stunned Aiden as he crashed down the hole in the forest in Cairnwood. Bewildered and smarting from half a dozen scrapes and bruises, Aiden struggled to clear his head, trying to figure out what had just happened. The daylight had disappeared, except for a small shaft that came from above to pierce the darkness around him.
Pacian eventually went for help, leaving Aiden to spend a considerable amount of time down in the hole. Aside from the light streaming in from above, there was only blackness, but in the deepening gloom before him, he thought he saw something shining in the dark. Curiosity getting the better of him, he crept forward to try to see the faint light more clearly.
Avoiding the worst of the sharp rocks, Aiden reached the source of the dim blue light. Slowly, he moved his right hand close to the light, and felt around to try and figure out what the object was. It was round, cold and hard, which did very little to enlighten him. But the instant both fingers touched it, his world changed.
The darkness of the cave was replaced with the near-blinding light of midday, dazing Aiden as he squinted against the sudden brightness. Gaping in astonishment, he found himself crouched upon a snowy plateau with majestic peaks looming around him.
He stood amidst a battle, surrounded by armoured men wearing the gold dragon tabard of the Kingdom clashing against hooded and robed warriors, with signs of steel armour hidden beneath their garb. The fallen from both sides of the battle littered the landscape, and the ringing of steel and the cries of the combatants echoed across the land.
His mind struggled to comprehend what had happened to him when one of the Kingdom soldiers suddenly ran through him, appearing out of his chest as though he were a ghost. Sayana stood to his left, looking just as shocked as he was. Her right hand was touching the glowing sphere in Aiden's hand, but she was too stunned by the vision to move.
She tugged at Aiden's sleeve with her free hand, drawing his attention. Her mouth was moving, yet no words came out. She pulled on his arm, trying to drag him backwards, but his feet were stuck fast.
Aiden's attention was caught by one man who stood on the wall of the fort, dressed in shining, gold-trimmed armour, and appeared to be in command of the Kingdom forces. He pointed across the field in warning, and as if on cue, the ground started to shake from what seemed to be a minor earthquake. Aiden felt all this as if he were standing right there amongst it all, but the soldiers around him paid him no heed.
The ground shook with greater intensity until the head of some armoured creature appeared, revealing more of its body as it closed the distance. It was easily over twelve feet in height, with shoulders eight feet across and completely encased in ornate armour. It gleamed with the appearance of burnished steel, and the face etched onto the front of the helmet was forged into an expression of haughty superiority.
It was joined by another, and another of the massive creatures, and a cry of despair arose from the defending soldiers. Sayana grabbed Aiden's attention once more, turning him toward her and practically shouting in his face. As before, no sounds came from her mouth, and a look of frustration appeared on her fine features. She was trying to pry her right hand off of the glowing sphere, but it refused to budge. Looking around desperately for something to help, Sayana resigned herself to watching the battle before them and slumped against Aiden's side.
After long minutes of untold bloodshed, only the black warrior remained to defend the castle, and he faced off against the last of the armoured creatures alone. This one was different to the others though – shorter by two feet and wielding a huge sword in one hand, the edge of the blade rippling with light. They came together in a devastating dance of savagery, sparks flying from their weapons and armour as each combatant sought an advantage over the other.
A shadow grew over the battlefield as something immense obscured the sun. Aiden squinted against the light to see what was happening, and was staggered by the appearance of a creature straight from legend. An immense gold dragon was descending onto the battlefield, its wingspan easily over a hundred feet.
Talons the size of a man dug into the ground as it crashed to the surface behind the black warrior and its tail swept over the battlements of the fort. Its fine scales gleamed in the cold light, the majestic creature both immensely beautiful and terrifying beyond measure. Sayana gaped at the sight of the great creature and trembling like a leaf, she moved behind Aiden as far as she could.
Then, unexpectedly, the dragon turned its great head to look directly at her, eyes narrowed and steam issuing from its nostrils. Sayana's mouth opened wide in a silent scream, her left hand held up before her to create a translucent shield that seemed familiar to Aiden. The dragon bellowed a mighty roar towards them and a flash of white light engulfed the battlefield as a blast of wind sucked Aiden and Sayana off their feet. Reflexively, he reached out his hands to stop the fall and dropped the glowing orb, shattering it upon the ground of the cave.
Aiden sat bolt upright, throwing off his blanket and gasping for breath. The forest of the Calespur ranges surrounded their camp and the grey light of pre-dawn tinged the sky. The others were sleeping around the remains of the fire, but Sayana was sitting next to him, her right hand still holding the shard hanging around his neck and a look of horror stamped on her face. Snapping out of the trance she appeared to be in, she let go of the shard as her body went limp and collapsed to the ground.
Aiden shook his head to try and clear out the nightmare from his mind as he tried futilely to understand what had just happened. Sayana gestured weakly with her left hand for him to lean closer. Still shaking, he got close enough to hear her whisper something in his ear before she passed out.
“Aiden, that was no dream.”