Fennel's Nightmare

A loud yelp escaped Fennel’s lips as she jolted herself awake. It was that dream again; the dream that had been tormenting her on and off for the past week and a half. Like always, the dream was exactly the same as the first time. It was all very unusual, especially for Fennel. She knew it was only a dream, but she couldn’t help but double check the area. Better safe than sorry.

The mountain. They always came from the top of the mountain her cave resided in. Every time without fail. A small rock would tumble down the hillside, Fennel would check it out, and then she’d be ambushed. After that the dream would end, and Fennel would wake up in a cold sweat.

Like most mornings, it was cool outside. The sun had yet to warm up the area, so the stone ground was cold to the touch. Fennel got herself dressed and made her way outside to scope out the mountainside. Getting up there was a bit of a hassle, but it was deemed necessary. If she didn’t check things out, her paranoia would get the best of her. It’s hard to work when all you can think about is your impending doom.

Just like the days prior, the mountainside was clear. There was no reason it wouldn’t be; the area was too cold and steep for anything to want to live there. Fennel was all alone out here, just the way she liked it. Pleased with herself, she made her way down to her basking spot to warm up like she did every morning. Sitting on the small ledge that overlooked her pond was calming. A great way to start the day.

Several minutes later, Fennel heard a noise. It sounded like a small rock tumbling down the side of the mountain, landing with a dull thud on the dirt below. Dread immediately filled her mind, and her thoughts began to race. It was just like the dream! It always started with that rock! Despite the fact she knew how the dream ended, she hastily got up and readied the small knife she kept in the area for situations such as this. Slightly trembling with fear, she made her way over to the source of the noise.

Nothing. There was nothing there. It wasn’t surprising, though. Fennel’s dream was always exactly the same, and in the dream she was unarmed. Of course there was nothing! It must have been the wind, or maybe she was hearing things? No, that couldn’t be it. It had to be something…

“SALIX!”

A familiar shrill voice called out from right behind her, causing Fennel to scream and stagger backwards before jolting around to look at the source of the sound. It was Spades, one of her associates. She had a horrid shit eating grin on her face, as she laughed to herself at Fennel’s expense.

“S-Spades! Dammit, you scared the hell out of me!” Fennel muttered, her voice still shaking with adrenaline.

“Hah! Oh come on, Salix. You knew we were coming today, didn’t ya? Don’t tell me you forgot” Spades replied.

“No, I didn’t forget. I just don’t appreciate being startled”

“Yeah yeah, whatever. It was hilarious! Have a sense of humor for once in your goddamn life!” She laughed some more. “Anyway, I think I hear Wicker. He should be here soon”

Indeed she could. They both could. The sound of Dewey’s gallop was unmistakable. Why they were running was a mystery, but at you learn not to question these things after a while. There’s no use in asking questions, especially when Dewey’s involved. The enormous demon slowed to a trot as they approached, then stopped once they had gotten close enough. Dewey’s tail wagged ever so slightly upon seeing their friends.

“Hey, Wicker! Took ya long enough!” Spades shouted in a taunting manner.

“I’m not the one who decided this was a race” a small voice grumbled.

Flying down from the large creatures head was Klaus, the leader of Wicker’s Crew. He was the one who scheduled today’s meeting. The small, fluffy, iridescent demon gave Spades a disapproving look as he gestured for the group to follow him.

“Dewey! Take your seat, we’re going inside” Klaus yelled, pointing to Dewey’s usual spot. Dewey was far too large to enter Fennel’s house, so they often found themself sitting outside with their head laying near the entrance in order to participate in the crew’s activities. Dewey, however, seemed preoccupied with something. Their large ears were pointed upwards to the peak of the mountain, and their head tilted inquisitively.

“Dewey!” Klaus yelled again, this time getting their attention. “Sit!”

“Aw, but I don’t wanna!” They whined.

“We’d like to get started. Sit down already!”

“Fine!” Dewey huffed, as they plopped themself down.

With that, the rest of the crew made their way into Fennel’s house and took their usual spots at the table. Immediately upon sitting down, Spades pulled out her deck of cards and began mindlessly shuffling them. Meetings like these bored her, so it wasn’t uncommon for her to be playing with something or other. Klaus cleared his throat before addressing the group.

“Well, I’m glad you could all make it this time” He began, giving Spades a brief glare before continuing. “ I have some important things to go over.”

So, the group talked over their plans for the next two weeks. The conversation was fairly dull, mostly talking about dropped clients and inventory. While the deaths of clients was unfortunate, it wasn’t unexpected. That’s what happens when one of your main exports are addictive. People overdose.

Eventually, the discussion turned to Fennel’s work. Being the crew’s translator, Fennel constantly had to study languages and customs of other realms. She was supposed to be learning the languages of the newest addition to their trade route, but things kept getting in the way. Klaus was beginning to get impatient. His greed often got the best of him, and he didn’t want to wait any longer.

“So Fennel, how’s your work coming along? You’d better be making progress” Klaus asked.

“I’m getting there. I believe I know enough Canid to be able to do business, although we’d have to start small. Unfortunately, a lot of it is based on body language, and I don’t have a tail to practice with.”

“Aww, poor Salix doesn’t have a tail like the rest of us” Spades chimed in, while caressing Fennel’s leg with her tail tauntingly. Fennel quickly swatted it away.

“I wouldn’t consider my abdomen a tail” Klaus replied. “But to each their own. Anyway, Canid is all fine and dandy, but I gave you a list of things to learn. Please tell me you’ve been studying other languages as well…”

“I’m working on it, Klaus, but these things take time. Things would be going better if you’d just let me…” Fennel’s voice trailed off, as her attention shifted to Dewey.

Dewey seemed to be staring at something. Their eyes darted back and forth, as if they were tracking something. What were they looking at? Was it the same thing as before?

“Fennel!” Klaus shouted.

“Sorry! Uh… Where was I again?” Fennel said, still focused on what Dewey was doing. “I-I’m sorry. Dewey? Uh, what are you looking at?”

“I saw something! I saw a shiny~” Dewey chirped, tail wagging.

“For fucks sake, Fennel. Whatever dumbass out there is looking at isn’t important right now!” Klaus said angrily.

Sensing Klaus’ anger, Fennel tried her best to stay focused. Still, it was difficult. The dream kept fighting it’s way back into her mind, and it was causing her paranoia to take over. She just couldn’t get the thought out of her mind. Eventually, Fennel’s distraction became too much for Klaus. He stood up and clapped two of his hands together.

“Alright, I think we can call it here for today. I’m sure we all have shit to do.” He said, addressing the group as a whole.

“Cool. I’ve got somewhere to be, so if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be heading off.” Spades said, before getting up and shuffling her cards one last time. “See ya later Wicker. Salix.”

Spades made her way over to the counter, where a large golden hand mirror layed. She rubbed the center of the mirror, until the glass surface began to ripple like water. Then, she stuck her arm in, and quickly disappeared through the newly opened portal. Fennel sighed as she watched her colleague leave.

“You do know she’s headed to Cassinex, right?” Fennel said, a bit worriedly.

“How the hell do you know that?” Klaus asked

“I saw her tucking cards in her wings. She only does that when she’s planning on cheating”

“She’d better not gamble away last weeks profits again…” Klaus grumbled. “Regardless, that’s not important right now. What’s your deal today, Fennel?”

“My… Deal?”

“You’ve been distracted as hell. Something’s up, and it’s affecting your performance. We don’t have time for setbacks, Fennel. I’m getting sick and tired of waiting.”

Fennel stared at Klaus for a moment, debating whether or not she should tell him about the dream. He’d probably find it ridiculous, but then again, he’s the only one in the crew she could actually tell. Given the context of her dream, telling Spades or Dewey would risk giving away the one thing her and Klaus had sworn to secrecy. She sighed heavily.

“Fine. Look, I’ve been having this dream a lot lately-”

“A dream? This is about a dream?! Fucking hell, Fennel, you’ve been shirking your work because of a dream?” Klaus yelled, annoyed.

“Please, just listen…:

Klaus grumbled a bit. “Fine. Get on with it then”

“Thank you… Alright…” Fennel took a deep breath to calm herself before beginning. “The dream always starts with me outside. It’s a pleasantly warm day, which is the thing that tips me off to something being wrong. It’s never warm like that here. Things don’t go right for me, my curse won’t allow it. I-it only can only do one thing at a time though, so right off the bat I knew something was up.

After a little while, I hear a rock get knocked off the mountain and tumble down the cliffside. Nothing lives up there, so I got curious. Every time, I decide to climb up there and investigate, and every time I make it up without issue. Another red flag...

At the top of the mountain, I'm greeted to the sight of nothing, but I can hear movement. I take a few steps forward, looking around as I do so. Once I've made my way over, someone runs up from behind and pushes me down. I hit the ground hard, and it always disorientates me.

The last part of the dream always gets me. I look up just in time to see…" Her voice trails off.

It was obvious to Klaus that whatever happened next was bad. Fennel was nervous as hell, and whenever she got nervous she'd start clawing at herself. Now was no exception. Her arms were already starting to bleed, as she subconsciously ran her claws across them.

"Alright, alright, calm down now. It's just a fucking dream, no need to get so worked up!" Klaus said, as he swatted her hand. "Continue".

"R-right. Sorry… Continuing on; I look up just in time to see one of the Ministry's members. Specifically the white one, uh.. what's his name…"

"Who, the lizard? I think it's Alder, but who can say?"

"Y-yes! Alder… I'll never forget that face… Anyway, while I'm down he puts his knee to my chest, and tilts my head up with one of his hands. After that he takes out his knife and…" He executes her, but Fennel couldn't make herself say it. Still, it was clear to Klaus what happened next.

He sat there and mulled over everything Fennel had told him. The two of them were the only members of the crew that knew the Ministry was after them. Klaus had been doing his best to lead them astray, and so far he'd been successful. None of them even knew Fennel's house existed!

"Alright, look. Fennel, this dream is just toying with you, understand? It's all part of your misfortune" Klaus said sternly.

"Wait, you're seriously writing this off? This could be dangerous! If the Ministry figures out where I live-"

"Fennel! Do you really think your curse would show you something like this as a warning? Why the hell do you think this has any basis in reality?! Like I said, this dream is just toying with you. It's playing into your paranoia!"

"I'm not-"

"You are, Fennel. Now, you're going to forget about this stupid dream and you're gonna get back to work, understand? It's not a sign. It's not a warning. It's just your curse trying to torment you. Don't let it."

She sighed. "Yes, Klaus. You're right… I don't know what I was thinking…" Fennel muttered softly.

"You're welcome" he replied, still annoyed with the whole situation. "So, like I said, get back to work. It'll take your mind off everything… Anyway, I've got shit to do. Try not to fuck anything up while I'm gone"

With that, Klaus left the same way Spades had. Through the mirror. Fennel didn't know where he was going, but it didn't matter. He was right. She had work to do, and focusing on her work would take her mind off her anxiety. Plus, she really didn't want to piss Klaus off any further.

Several days passed, and Fennel’s anxiety over the dream had begun to subside. Klaus was typically right about things, and why wouldn’t he be? He was by far the oldest out of the crew, possibly the oldest in the entirety of Mirror Domain. His wisdom wasn’t something to take lightly, that had been proven time and time again.

During the meeting the crew had mentioned their next job. This was one of the many that Fennel had to take part in in order to translate. While she wasn’t looking forward to it, it would be nice to get away from her home for a couple of days. They were scheduled to set off tomorrow, so Fennel began to gather things needed for the trip.

It was getting late. Most of the day had been spent preparing for the trip and Fennel was getting tired. Had she overprepared? Most likely. It wasn’t uncommon for her paranoia to make her overdo things.

Like most evenings, Fennel spent the remainder of the day watching the sunset from her basking spot. It was one of the few nice things her curse couldn’t ruin, at least not to her knowledge. Cosmic events seemed to be outside the realm of possibility, so she took solace in watching the sunset. Seeing her pond turn orange and sparkle as the sun disappeared behind the mountain was calming.

As she watched the sky grow dark, her eyes were drawn over to the top of the mountain. She just couldn’t help but wonder about the dream. Was Klaus really right about it? There was no reason not to believe his word, but something in the back of her mind told her otherwise. She didn’t know why, but Fennel was compelled to check the top of her mountain once again. What’s the harm in checking?

Cautiously, she made her way to the top of the hill yet again. It was dark, and she had almost slipped several times, but she eventually made her way to the top. The sun had only just disappeared, but climbing the mountaintop allowed her to see the sunset yet again. It looked a lot different from all the way up there. Seeing the sun’s rays shine throughout the mountainous horizon was beautiful! Despite her better judgement, Fennel decided to remain at the summit and watch the sunset yet again. It was breathtaking! Fennel stood at the edge of the cliffside to take in the view.

Like before, the sun eventually fell behind the horizon and disappeared completely. It was now dark, and Fennel was still up on the mountain. She realised her predicament shortly after the last ray of light faded. At least she could see in the dark. That’s one good thing about being a demon, especially a cave dwelling one. Things being dark don’t bother you all that much.

Just as she began to make her way back down, something caught her eye. A faint blue glow shone softly on the stone ground. Upon turning around, the glow disappeared. It was probably nothing, but as usual her paranoia got the best of her. 

She walked walked back to where she was before to check things out, doing her best to stay quiet so she wouldn’t miss anything. The area was silent, other than the usual ambient sounds. The wind blowing through the leaves, causing them to rustle. The faint rippling of the water in her pond. The tapping of her claws on the stone as she walked. She was alone, as she always was. Satisfied, Fennel turned around to finally get off the mountain.

The second her back was turned, the blue glow returned. Much stronger this time. Fennel didn’t even get the chance to turn around before something slammed into her, shoving her off the side of the mountain and sending her falling towards the ground below. She screamed as she fell, and she didn’t stop until she finally hit the ground.

She had landed hard on her back, and immediently she was incapacitated. Pain radiated throughout her entire body. There was no doubt something was broken, but Fennel was in so much pain that she couldn’t pinpoint what was causing it. It all melted together into a throbbing mess of agony. Her glasses were long gone at this point. There was no way she’d be able to find them in the dark like this, if she could even get up at all. 

Moments later, she felt pressure on her chest. It felt like someone was standing on her, pressing her body firmly to the ground. Looming over her was a blurry white figure with two blue glowing eyes. It sounded like it was talking, but she couldn’t understand anything it was saying. The figure bent down and grabbed her neck with it’s clawed hand, tilting her head up. Finally, she could make out who it was.

“You really thought you could escape, huh? The Ministry doesn’t take your actions lightly. Unfortunately, someone in your position can’t be granted a trial. You’re too much of a threat.” Alder said, before pressing a sharp metal object to her throat. “Goodbye, Fennel”