Serena's Story

Serena opened her eyes, blinking a couple of times until her vision wasn’t blurry anymore. She hadn't slept well. She had dreamed about her parents, and the way they had been brutally murdered by Getsus Enterprises. She had always liked to hang out with dreamwalkers on the seashore or river banks, but now she didn't know which ones she could trust. She pushed herself up and brushed some water plants off of her light blue tail.

Serena swam out of her under water cave and looked around, quickly inspecting the water, like she always did. Once she was certain that everything was safe, she swam to the place where the sea connected to one of the rivers of Interactive Dream Dimension. As she swam through the river she grabbed some water flowers to bring along as a snack.

When she arrived at her destination she swam up to the surface and rested her arms on the river bank. She looked at the little village in front of her. This was one of her favorite places to be. Though all of her friends had moved to another village in an attempt to flee from Getsus Enterprises, she still liked it here. Watching two-legged creatures living their lives was quite interesting.

Suddenly she saw a boy run off and disappear into the forest. He was fast, for a human. He had looked a little panicked and he was wounded. She could feel it if a wounded creature was nearby. She wondered if he was alone too.

Serena rested her chin on her hands, nibbling one of the water flowers, silently observing the village. Something about the village felt different. Like something was wrong. She'd felt this way before and could only hope it wasn't what she thought it was.

It didn't take long until Serena found out that what she'd feared was happening right now. The fishermen along the river had run off into the village or into the forest. She heard people screaming and tried to think of something she could do. There wasn't much to do since she couldn't move well on land and would be an extremely easy target. Suddenly, she got an idea. In a flash she was back underwater, searching the bottom of the river.

Once she was back to the surface, she had four snakes with her. They weren't the most powerful creatures and their poison couldn't cause more than a blurry vision, severe dizziness and maybe a little nausia, but it was all she could find in a short amount of time.

She held the snakes up and said: "As you know, our world is being destroyed. We live in this world together and must help each other fight back. This village is being destroyed right now and I want you to attack the people from Getsus Enterprises. Make sure they don't see you before you attack. I'm not sure what they look like, but they'll have shadow bugs with them. They have good fighting skills and they'll be the ones who aren't screaming or running. Go."

The snakes nodded and crawled up towards the village. Serena knew they would probably only cause a little distraction, but it might give some people the time to run away.

Serena went under water again and swam towards the sea. Once she'd arrived at her cave she grabbed her trident, the one her father had always used to fight with the people from Getsus Enterprises before he died. She didn't think she'd need it, but brought it along back to the riverbank just in case.

When all this was over, she'd help heal the survivors. If there would be any...

Serena hid between a couple of river plants. Only her eyes above the surface. She felt a strange water movement on the surface a little farther on the left and ducked down into the water. As she swam closer she felt something she'd felt before, someone was wounded. She'd felt it all the time since the attack started but never this close. Was it someone from the village?
She swam to the left until she saw something in the water. It was a foot. The ankle was bleeding. A bit of blood flowed into the water. Serena approached the foot, careful not to be seen through the water. Someone was wounded, and she had to help as much as she could. Just as she wanted to start healing, she saw the two red bitemarks on the ankle. The snakes had done their job, but who was the target?

Serena swam up to the surface and looked at the girl in front of her. She was definitely a dream walker, Serena thought, looking at her clothes.

"Who are you, dreamwalker? Are you with Getsus Enterprises?" Serena asked, raising her trident to the surface, making the top visible. The girl looked strong, but didn't look like a bad person.

Noah started to feel the poison wear off. It was nice that the venom wasn't going to last very long, and the cold water really helped, but she still felt dizzy and every now and then her vision would blur. She was still angry with herself that she let herself gt weakened by such a small threat. Either way, she hoped Aron wouldn't go do something stupid and would follow Getsus's orders. She never really talked to him, but she'd met him a few times when working with him and Noah was actually a little surprised when he was sent with her to the Dream Dimension. She leaned forward a little and closed her eyes as she tried to clear her head.

"Who are you, dreamwalker? Are you with Getsus Enterprises?"

Her eyes snapped open and she looked at the water in front of her. She pulled her foot out of the water and attempted to jump backwards, but she ended up slipping and falling into the water instead. She let out a small yelp as she fell into the cold liquid and quickly climbed back out onto the bank on her hands and knees. She coughed a couple of times, then then turned around and stayed sitting on the grass. For a first impression on her enemy, she'd never made such a humiliating one in her life. "I'm guessing you're the one who sent the snakes." She said, removing the belt that her sword and sheath were attached to. She pulled the katana out of its sheath and set it in the grass next to her, then dumped the remaining water out of the sheath. "I'm sorry but I killed one." She said calmly, though she was still dripping wet and her ankle continued with its throbbing.

The girl nodded and held tighter to Shen's clothes. As he carried her out, Shen noticed that the rest of the village was almost empty except for the shadow bugs. He set the girl down in the woods and told her to run along while he went to make sure there was no one else inside the village. As the girl watched Shen stagger off, she sent a silent thank you to God and the universe for sending him to save her life. Ten minutes later, Shen returned to find the girl was still waiting for him. "What are you still doing here? Shouldn't you be looking for your family?" The girl shook her head. "It's getting dark. I can't go by myself." Shen sighed. Great. Now I have to help her find her mother. "Okay. Well my name is Shen. I'll help you look for your mother in the morning, but for right now-" Suddenly the woods swayed around him. Before he knew it, Shen was on the ground completely unconscious. He had reached his limit. The little girl jumped back alarmed before rushing over and putting her hand in front of Shen's mouth to make sure he was still breathing. "Hmmm... I'll be right back." The girl ripped off a portion of her long white dress and headed towards the river to get some water. When she arrived on the riverbank, she noticed the mermaid and the other older girl. She made sure to stay far away from them as she dipped the cloth in the cool water.

Serena didn't expect the girl to react the way she did. As the girl fell into the water Serena pulled back her trident and waited for the girl to climb up again. This girl can't possibly be with Getsus Enterprises...

"I'm guessing you're the one who sent the snakes," the girl said, pulling out her weapon. It was a fancy weapon. Certainly not one a citizen here would have. Okay, maybe she is one of them. Serena raised her trident, ready to use it if necessary.
"I'm sorry but I killed one."

"I know. The snakes only let go when killed. If you hadn't killed it it would still be on your ankle now. But it hurt you badly enough." It probably gave some people the time to get away safely.

Serena felt a small movement in the water and looked to the right. There was a little girl at the river bank. She was quite far away, but still an easy target. Would the Getsus girl attack her if she saw her? Was she really that evil? It was possible. Serena had seen it before. Heartlessly these people had killed her parents, who were just trying to defend their home. The mermaid's head filled with anger. Serena always hoped she wouldn't have to use the trident to attack someone, but if the little girl was going to be attacked, she wouldn't have a choice.

Serena noticed the venom was wearing off and tried to distract the girl.

"Why do you do this? Don't you care about any of these people?" she asked, trying to stay calm.

Noah stood up and pulled her hair over her shoulder to ring it out as the mermaid explained that the snakes would only let go when killed. That was something Noah hadn't known before, since the last time she was bitten she did the same thing she'd done for this one was immediately kill it. She brushed her hair back behind her shoulders again before sitting back down to remove her shoes and dump them out.

"Why do you do this? Don't you care about any of these people?"

She paused a moment at the question and looked down the womans head in the water. She had her trident raised a little as if ready for an attack at any moment, but Noah didn't feel very worried. She didn't think the mermaid would actually do anything unless Noah made the first move. She didn't answer for a moment as she removed her left shoe and shook it out before putting it back on and gently remove her left shoe to also dumb the water out. "I'm just doing what is ordered of me to do." She said blankly, slipping her right shoe back on carefully so she wouldn't hurt her ankle. "I gave those people in the town a choice, but they chose the wrong one. Simple as that." She stood back up again and started to strap her belt back on when she spotted a small figure in the corner of her eye down river. She turned her head and narrowed her eyes a moment. It was a little girl, probably from the village. What is she doing? She seemed to be dipping something in the water.

Noah picked up her sword and slid it back into its sheath before, glancing over at the mermaid for a moment, she turned and started to walk, though limping a little bit, down river where the girl was. She kept a short distance between herself and the river in case the mermaid tried to do anything until she stopped a few feet from where the girl was. "Excuse me, do you belong to this village here?" She asked the girl, though she already knew that that was most likely the case. "You shouldn't be this close to it right now, it's not safe." She said, supporting herself on her left leg.

Serena watched as the girl took off her shoes. She was getting impatient but just as she wanted to repeat the question, the girl answered:

"I'm just doing what is ordered of me to do. I gave those people in the town a choice, but they chose the wrong one. Simple as that." Before Serena could get mad, the girl stood up and started walking in the direction of the little girl.

Serena followed the katana-girl, keeping her distance. She couldn't let her harm the little girl.

As she got closer, Serena felt it again. Someone nearby was wounded, and it wasn't a snake bite.

"Excuse me, do you belong to this village here? You shouldn't be this close to it right now, it's not safe."

The words surprised her. So the girl wasn't completely evil. Serena wasn't done talking to the girl, but remained silent for the moment. She waited to see what was going to happen.

The girl looked up in alarm. "Uhm... I did." She looked at Noah and her eyes filled with tears. She was only 5-years-old. She pointed at Noah and said, "You burned our houses. You took away our homes. You killed our neighbors and friends and- and-" Suddenly a stubborn expression came upon the girl's face. She wiped the tears off, and dipped another piece of cloth into the river water. She stared at the water for a few minutes before saying, "We have nowhere to go back to." Her voice was soft, barely above a whisper.

Noah's expression didn't change as the girl pointed at her and her eyes filled with tears. Though, Noah's on eyes did sadden a little, it was hard to tell. Once again, she was only following orders. It was the only thing she ever really learned how to properly do. She didn't really know how to handle others emotions all that well, so she didn't feel all that phased from the girls tears. The little girl wiped her tears away and continued dipping a cloth into the water and Noah looked down at the water. She expected that the mermaid would follow her. At least for now the poison had warn off, but her ankle was still throbbing from the bite. "You should go find your parents and leave this area." She said, moving her eyes onto the girl and speaking calmly, yet with a small hint of authority. She looked at the cloth and narrowed her eyes a little. It must be for someone that was injured by the attack on the town. "Who is that for?" She asked the girl curiously, tilting her head a little.

The girl ignored Noah and dipped one last piece of cloth in the water. By now the bottom of her dress was shredded and came up to about mid thigh. The girl took the cloth and looked at the mermaid. "Um... I don't know if you have any, but would you have some healing oil?" Even though she was only 5, her mother had taught her to be resourceful. Living in the village wasn't always easy, and some nights she and her family had to go hungry. Now those skills and foodless nights were coming in handy. The girl looked at the mermaid and managed a smile smile. "Mama and I will pay you back later for it."

As Serena listened to the conversation she realized the Getsus girl wasn't going to hurt the young girl and relaxed.

The little girl didn't look scared at all. Suddenly she looked up at the mermaid.

"Um... I don't know if you have any, but would you have some healing oil?"

Serena smiled.

"No oil, but I could try to find something else underwater, it'll only take a minute," she said, swimming down.

When she came back to the surface she had 3 little yellow plants in her hand.

"The juices in these should help a little. You can use salt water to speed up the healing process. Is it for you or for someone else? I sensed a pretty wounded person nearby." Serena looked at the little girl. She seemed to take on a lot of responsibility for her age. "I could help if you want. I can heal people and it's much faster than plants or oils. You can come to me if it's necessary," Serena offered, smiling, and gave the plants to the girl.

The girl sighed. "My name is Saki. And I don't think I can drag him over here." She took the plants gently and held them in her hands. "Thank you though. These cloths mixed with the plant juices should help. He should be waking up soon. I think he is named Shane... Ah no! It was Shen." Saki bowed her head in thanks to the mermaid and ran off into the forest. She arrived to find Shen still unconscious and some man trying to shake him awake. She ran over and pushed the man as hard as she could. "STAY AWAY FROM HIM! DON'T HURT HIM! GO AWAY!" Saki turned around and began to address Shen's wound. The gash had grown even deeper, and there were new cuts and scratches on his face. Saki immediately began to wipe the dirt and grime off his face. She squeezed the juice into Shen's wounds and gently wiped around the edges. After Saki had cleaned away most of the blood and dirt, she tied the cloth around Shen's gash as a bandage. Then she sat in silence as she waited for him to wake up.

Serena watched the little girl walk away. Then she looked up at the Getsus girl.

"What you said earlier, about giving those people a choice and them choosing the wrong one. You of all people should understand that if they run away, and find another village, they will have to leave there too soon enough. Once you've gotten rid of all the villages, you'll get rid of the people and creatures. They know that. No place is safe from you monsters, so why would they not try to fight back right away?"

Serena felt anger boiling up inside her.

"Oh and also, you say you're just doing what is ordered of you to do. Why don't you just think for yourself instead of being their dog?!" She was yelling now. "Everyone has a choice and I don't believe killing innocent people and children is what you really want! Or is it?" Serena stopped for a second and took a deep breath. "I don't understand how you can sleep at night."

Noah watched the little girl run off with the plants that the mermaid had given her. Whoever was wounded was probably hurt from the destruction of the village, but it wasn't much of a surprise.

"What you said earlier, about giving those people a choice and them choosing the wrong one. You of all people should understand that if they run away, and find another village, they will have to leave there too soon enough. Once you've gotten rid of all the villages, you'll get rid of the people and creatures. They know that. No place is safe from you monsters, so why would they not try to fight back right away?"

She turned her head to look down at the mermaid in the water with a blank expression. The woman was angry, and Noah knew she had every right to be. Getsus hadn't done much to the waters of the Dream Dimension yet, but the destruction on land was probably becoming a problem for all of the water creatures as well. The mermaid started yelling now about Noah thinking for herself. Thinking for myself? She blinked a couple of times as she thought about it. She'd never really thought for herself, at least not any time she could think of. Her life was always about following orders and doing what she was told. "I've never killed anyone before." She replied. It wasn't really a lie. People have died because of Getsus, but not once has Noah ever gotten blood on her sword. "And.." she stopped herself. It wasn't like she had much of a choice. She'd taken her missing fathers place and now she had to finish doing what he started. She looked down at the grass in front of her where the little girl had been sitting before. "I give them the choice to move and live a peaceful life just a little longer. That is better than nothing."

Serena took a deep breath. She was calm again and listened to the girl's response.

"I've never killed anyone before. I give them the choice to move and live a peaceful life just a little longer. That is better than nothing."

Serena shook her head. "Whether or not you're killing people, you're still helping Getsus. Part of the blood is on your hands."

"All of this is only the beginning," she sighed. Her father had always told her that Getsus could be stopped. She'd always believed him but she wasn't so sure anymore. "Getsus Enterprises has all the power and technology. Without humans from the other world on our side, this world doesn't stand a chance. If I were you I'd start thinking about what you want. Figure out which side you are really on."

Serena went down into the water leaving the river bank. She had a feeling this wouldn't be the last time she'd see the girl. She doubted the girl would leave Getsus. If she found her destroying another village, she would have no choice but to fight her.