S҉h҉a҉t҉t҉e҉r҉e҉d҉ But Alive (Rainimator Story)

Chapter 4

A few days had passed, Astra was settling in nicely, she had made friends with Azura and Dexter, they were nice enough. Ser Patrick respected her and did trust her enough. And Daryll... she felt her face become hot when she remembered that... incident in the training room. 

She still couldn't explain that fluttering feeling when she thought of it. Still, she told herself. Don't trust too much... Remember what happened when you trusted her? But for now, everything was fine... until she received another sight.

The dragon... is that Dreadfort? Ah, he is there. But why is Dreadfort being attacked? Is that... Ceris? What... What is this?

She saw Ser Patrick and him yelling at someone, she could hear crying, but couldn't see the person. Straining, she tried to make the image clearer...

Only to get jolted back into reality, a sharp pain flaring in her head as she hissed in pain. Yeah, thanks alot, that sure helped, she commented silently, sarcasm dripping from her thoughts. 

"Ugh," she groaned, leaning against the wall. 

"Astra!" She heard someone yell and she opened her eyes, seeing Daryll. 

"We have to go- Are you alright?" 

"Yeah," she replied curtly, "What is it?" 

"Mobs. Another village. You, me and Ser Patrick have to go." 

"Why didn't you say so?" she snapped, breaking into a sprint as she dashed towards the stables. 

Mounting her house, she stared at Daryll and Patrick. "Hurry up!"

They quickly rode towards the village, seeing that it was, fortunately, still standing. Only a handful of mobs were present, and Astra slashed at multiple zombies. Suddenly, she leapt in front of Daryll, splitting an arrow and, well, saving him. 

"Thanks...?" He returned unsurely. 

"No prob," she replied, looking over to where Patrick was getting rid of a few remaining mobs. 

"I think we're good," she sighed, relaxing slightly. 

"No, I don't think so..." Daryll spoke as the crowd of mobs thinned out.

A lean figure stalked forward, her orange eyes blazing. It only took a split second for Astra to recognise her. The figure- a woman, smirked, lunging for Ser Patrick, aiming multiple Arcane blades at him and a quick Pyromancy attack at him. 

A glowing red book hovered before her as she struck Patrick with an Arcane beam, knocking him out. Using another spell, she used the Lightning Whip Attack on Daryll, weakening him before she blinded him temporarily with the Illumination Spell. 

Astra had no time to react as she felt a strong impact hit her, knocking her out. When she next opened her eyes, she was in a black emptiness, only with a white floor. 

"Astra... took me long enough to find you. What, now you're siding with those pathetic mortals too?" Disgust was clear in the woman's voice as her orange eyes flashed with anger. 

"...Ebony. What... what are you doing here?" Astra asked weakly. 

"Giving you a warning," Ebony spat as she teleported to Astra's side. Astra took in her features. Greyish-blonde hair, blazing orange eyes... 

"What warning?" She questioned calmly.

This evidently infuriated Ebony, for the next thing Astra knew, she was blocking a huge Arcane Greatsword, struggling under its power. Summoning her strength, she threw it off her, eyes narrowed. 

"Don't help these mortals, Astra. They bring you nothing but weakness and pain." A low growl came from Astra as she unsheathed her sword, lunging at Ebony, who vanished. 

"Heed my warning, you have no idea what's coming..." her voice lingered in the air before Astra's eyes snapped open.

"Ugh..." there was a dull throbbing in her head as she got up, only to see a zombie looming over Daryll, who was still unconscious. Her eyes widened and she dashed towards the mob, slicing into it using her katana. Behind her, Ser Patrick and Daryll were slowly coming to. 

"Is that Nightmare?" She questioned softly, staring at Patrick. 

"Yes... It's about time you knew, Astra. She is a powerful magician and warrior. She is extremely dangerous to take on alone. Some say she can control the dreams of others..." he trailed off. A wave of fear crashed over her. 

What they didn't know was that Astra knew exactly who Nightmare was, and what she could do. 

"Are you guys good?" She asked carefully, looking them over. 

"Yeah... I'm fine..." Daryll muttered, before casting a concerned glance at Patrick, who was coughing violently. Drops of crimson splattered the snow, causing Astra to gasp softly as she ran over, helping him up. 

She could have sworn she saw Daryll narrow his eyes at her, but perhaps it was just her imagination. 

"Let's go," she muttered, mounting her horse and helping Ser Patrick to get up behind her. Daryll led Patrick's horse behind, mounting his own horse. They rode towards Dreadfort quickly, and Astra held back a hiss of pain, feeling the throbbing in her head worsen. 

Holding up the Arcane Greatsword had clearly sapped more of her energy than she thought. They entered the castle gates, where Azura and Dexter were waiting worriedly. Getting off Midnight, Astra let out a sharp exhale. 

Azura quickly ran forwards to help Ser Patrick, and Astra gave her a grateful nod. Now that the adrenaline had finally worn off, she could feel her whole body aching, sharp pains shooting through multiple points. 

Staggering forward, she called, "Hey, Daryll-", but was cut off as she collapsed, and everything went black. The bandit's eyes widened and Dexter's face was filled with horror as she called out Astra's name. 

Just before she hit the ground, Daryll caught her, worry written all over his face. 

"Astra..."

Haha another chapter! As per usual, hope you enjoyed, please vote, comment and follow! (constructive criticism is allowed, hate is not) I have more to say for the next chapter, so that's it for this one! Stay safe! :)

~Lightningstar out