Night Terrors

A Chapter by Eddie Davis

Aaron is plagued by a remnant effect of the arcane torture he experienced.

23.

Night Terrors

The sounds pulled him awake with a start. It was the sound of

guttural voices and somehow Aaron knew it was the Hobgoblin language. The jingle of weapons against armor just increased his dread, for he could tell there were a number of them and they were cautiously entering the cave.

He nudged Lysa, afraid to speak, for that would alert the Hobgoblins that they were there. Without waiting to see if she awoke, he rolled off the bed and saw the spear from the Bag of Holding resting against the wall of the cave.

In a moment he had snatched up the weapon and crept forward against the side of the wall.

Yet somehow they heard him and with a howl of discovery, they rushed forward. He could see at once that he and Lysa were in terrible trouble. There appeared to be between 10 and 12 of them, all wearing the same sort of armor that the Hutcaiah soldiers wore, and armed with wickedly sharp pole-axes.

Aaron yelled an alarm to Lysa and rushed forward with the spear in front of him. He pushed aside the first Hobgoblin pole-axe and thrust the spear at the gaps between his armor plates. But his aim was off and the armor turned aside the point.

The Hobgoblin swung the butt end of his weapon into Aaron’s face, sending sharp pain through his jaw. But the Half-Elf could not pause and he swung the spear like a club, knocking the Hobgoblin backwards.

Yet before he could rush forward, another one of the brutes swiped at him with his pole-axe. Aaron felt his leg pulled out from under him and blood flowing from where one of the weapons’ blades had sliced through him. He rammed the spear tip into his attacker’s upper leg, but the Hobgoblin did not even flinch.

The creature’s pole-axe whistled through the air at Aaron’s head. He ducked, but he felt the axe-side of the Hobgoblin’s weapon cut his scalp deeply.

He pulled out the spear and thrust it at his attacker’s belly. It sunk in deep, finding a gap between plates, but the Hobgoblin, with a gurgling snarl, swung the Pole-axe over his head. The axe-side sliced through Aaron’s ear, cutting it off, then tore deeply into his shoulder, causing that arm to go numb and lifeless.

He sank to the cold, hard cave floor as blood quickly pooled around him. He tried to scream out something, but nothing seemed to work at that moment. Behind him he could hear Lysa screaming hysterically and the coarse, cruel laughs of the Hobgoblin soldiers.

Aaron tried to yell, tried to call out her name, tried anything to move, but nothing came out. Desperately he tried to will himself to move. His ears rang as he forced with all of his might.

“Nnnnnoooooooooo!” The terrible sound left his throat and echoed around the cave, making his terror even worse. Suddenly he was sitting up, yelling wildly in the dark, swinging and clawing at something or someone in front of him.

“Lord! Lord! Aaron! Aaron it’s me! It’s me! It’s okay, you’re okay! It’s alright, you’re safe, you’re safe! It’s alright! I’m here! It was a nightmare! You’re alright.” Lysa had grabbed his wrists, ducking her head to avoid his flailing arms.

For a frozen moment he just stared, wide-eyed, not knowing what was real. Cold sweat dripped from his nose and forehead, and he was trembling so violently that he feared that he had lost control of his body.

“L-L-Lysa? T-The H-Hobgoblins! They w-w-were here! T-They w-w-were here! It was horrible! They surprised us! I c-couldn’t get y-y-you to wake up! I tried to stop them, but-“ To his shame and horror he realized that he was crying hysterically at the thought of the dream. It was as if one last nightmare from the Hutcaiah torture had found him. His body seemed detached from his mind. He panted and shook, wept and whined like a scared toddler. He was out of control and could not seem to stop.

“S-S-Sorry… I can’t… can’t calm down…” He began to hyperventilate.

“You’re alright.” Lysa cradled his head to her breast, rocking back and forth as she stroked his hair. He clung to her with the terror of a young child.

“C-c-can’t… stop… I’m…scared…” He gasped, looking up into her blue eyes.

“Shh, you are alright, just breathe, focus on breathing, you’ll be alright.” She said in a soothing voice, rocking him.

“W-what’s happening… t-t-to me…?”

“You are just panicking, that is all.” She hugged him tightly to her.

“I-I c-can’t stop… c-can’t calm… down!” He told her, gulping in air. His chest was tight and he wondered if he was about to die.

“You’re alright, I’m here. I’m here. I won’t let anything happen to you.” She said gently.

“Scared…” He managed to say as he desperately tried to pull in air.

“Calm down, hon, calm down. Breathe slowly, that’s it, just slow down. You’re alright, you’re safe. Just calm down.”

“Sorry…” He whispered, staring up at her as he tried to do as she told him.

“Shh, it’s alright, you’re safe. We’re in our cave, just you and me, all alone. Don’t be afraid, hon. Just a terrible nightmare. No-one will get you now. You’re safe; I’ll take care of you. Don’t worry, I love you, you’ll be fine. Close your eyes and relax.”

He did as she said and he felt her warm lips kiss his cheek.

“Lysa…”

“Shh, be still, love. It’s alright, I’m here.”

He let the fear leave him then, his body sagging with exhaustion, but Lysa did not let go of him. Clutching him tightly, she slid slowly into a reclining position, taking him with her. He was too weary to even consider resisting it. He rested against her chest, listening to the reassuringly strong beat of her heart as she gently caressed his cheek and kissed his forehead.

Aaron pulled her closer, her touch soothing the madness of the nightmare. Firmly held in her arms, he drifted off into a peaceful sleep. Lysa lay there comforting him and soon fell asleep as well, a contented smile on her face as she held him next to her.

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