CSILLA
The Dream Realm
The jungle of Macaya felt like just as much of a home as the small cottage Csilla grew up in. In her dream, the cacao flowers were in full bloom. No, not a dream. She could smell the jungle flora and feel the humidity clinging to her skin. That wasn't possible in dreams.
Csilla was crouched behind the trunk of a tree with gnarled roots sprouting from the ground, peeking around the side to see if Rhoda was coming. Then she heard the song Rhoda always sang when they played hide-and-seek in the jungle.
"...the snake slithers by,
"The owl flies at night."
Csilla leaned farther around the trunk, her hand over her mouth to keep from giggling. She still couldn't spy Rhoda, but her voice seemed closer than before.
"And when you least expect it..."
Suddenly, Csilla was grabbed from behind.
"The fox will strike!"
Csilla squealed and spun around, coming face to face with her elder sister. Rhoda wore a smile so big it lit up her eyes, something that Csilla didn't see very often. Her skin held a glow that made Csilla feel warm.
"Rhoda," Csilla said with a laugh. "You're in such high spirits today."
"Well," Rhoda said, her hands falling to Csilla's and gripping them excitedly. "It is my twelfth birthday today."
The smile fell from Csilla's face. "It is today?" Guilt crept into her heart. "How could I forget? I'm so sorry, sister, I—"
"Little Cub," Rhoda said softly. "Birthdays come every year. How about you just surprise me next year?"
Csilla smiled. "Aye aye, Sister!"
"Csilla!" came the call of a familiar voice. "Rhoda!"
The smile Csilla wore slowly dropped. Tears sprang to her eyes and she didn't know why. That voice. It was one she longed for desperately, one that she held dear to her heart. She'd seen her just that morning, but somewhere deep inside of her was an ache that felt deeper, like she hadn't seen her in ages.
Something wasn't right.
"Come home for dinner!" yelled the voice again.
"Mother!" Csilla yelled back through the jungle, even though there was nothing but tangled trees. She was surprised by the desperation in her tone.
"Let's go home," Rhoda said, pulling Csilla forward as she stepped back farther into the jungle. "Mother's waiting on us."
Csilla shook her head clear and donned a smile, hoping the unease would slip away. "What do you think she cooked for us?"
Rhoda grinned at her, but there was a strange gleam in her eye. "I suppose we will just have to see." She turned away, still holding Csilla's hand and started trudging through the jungle, pulling Csilla along.
As they walked, the jungle grew quieter. When she looked up at the tree canopy, it seemed as if the leaves had bundled closer together, blocking out any sunlight that tried to stream in. Just moments before, they had been surrounded by vibrant life, yet the farther they trekked, the darker the jungle grew.
"Rhoda," Csilla said, her voice sounding small. "I'm scared." She'd never felt more like a child.
Rhoda squeezed her hand tighter. Too tight. Their pace picked up speed. The jungle grew darker, the shadows becoming sinister.
"Rhoda?" Csilla asked, her voice a whimper.
Rhoda dropped Csilla's hand and spun around. She suddenly wasn't twelve anymore and stood tall over Csilla, staring down her nose at her. Gone were her still full cheeks, replaced by sharp cheekbones and even sharper gaze.
"Why do you always have to ruin everything?" Rhoda sneered at her.
Csilla's chin wobbled. "What's happened to you?"
"You," Rhoda replied through her teeth. "If you would've just stayed quiet for a little longer, we would be home by now." She fiddled with the sword at her waist that wasn't there before. "If you would've let me be captain of the Scarlet Maiden, then I would've been queen. If you wouldn't have dueled me in that cave, then I would still be alive. Perhaps I should've just left you to hang in Port Barlow."
With each accusation, a memory flashed through Csilla's mind. Climbing cliffs and playing hide-and-seek with Rhoda, arguing with Rhoda over captainship, Csilla's sword piercing Rhoda's stomach. Rhoda was dead. Csilla had killed her own sister. The realization was a punch to the gut that almost had Csilla falling to the lush jungle floor.
"That's right, Little Cub." Rhoda slowly unsheathed her sword. "You can wake up to what you've done, but I won't let you awaken from this dream."
Csilla jumped back from her and reached for her waist on instinct, surprised to find a sword waiting. Once her hand touched the hilt, her mind suddenly felt clearer. None of this was real. She remembered going to sleep on board the Wavecutter with promises that Flynn would keep watch over her.
"You're not Rhoda," Csilla said, no longer her child self.
The dream Rhoda smiled, her lips stretching too far, her cheekbones jutting out. "You've been sleeping for too long, Little Cub."
"I know what you are now," Csilla said, unsheathing her own sword. "And you will not drown me in your dreams any longer."
Rhoda growled, the sound inhuman and echoing in the jungle, and attacked Csilla with her sword high. Their steel clashed. Csilla pushed Rhoda's sword away with her own and raised it again to block the next attack. Left then right. High then low. Block after block Csilla executed, their dance ever familiar
"Fight me!" Rhoda yelled; her voice vicious.
"I don't want to fight you!" Csilla yelled back as she stumbled over a root. She quickly caught herself before Rhoda could swing at Csilla's side. "I've never wanted to fight you!"
A cruel laugh came from Rhoda. "We were made for this. We were born to compete against each other. This was always our fate." Rhoda sliced at Csilla with each sentence, barely missing.
"That's a lie," Csilla grunted, pushing her sister's sword back once more. "Our mother wanted us to be close. That's why she always had us come back home between trainings. She didn't want this for us."
"Our mother was weak." Rhoda's face twisted even farther into a demon's—one that Csilla couldn't even recognize. "Just like you."
The dream Rhoda's attacks were relentless, making Csilla retreat farther and farther until they stood at the cliff by the waterfall. The same one where they used to play when they were small and innocent.
"Do you truly think someone as weak as you can lead a nation of pirates?" Rhoda laughed. "Lockhart doesn't respect you and neither does the council officials. No one truly does."
"More lies!" Csilla yelled as she blocked one more attack, but this one was so strong it nearly had her stumbling backward over the edge of the cliff.
"You should be back in Baltessa, leading them all, instead of chasing after the Stormblood."
Rhoda's sword came too close, slicing her upper-arm. Csilla dodged around Rhoda's next attack and ran around her, putting Rhoda between herself and the cliff now.
"You chose her over me," Rhoda hissed. "You chose her over your own blood."
"It's not my fault!" Csilla finally yelled. "I am so sorry that it happened, but it is not my fault. You made this happen. You left no room in your heart for love, only hatred."
Rhoda's eyes gleamed. Csilla realized her anger was only feeding the dreamwraith.
"I loved you, Rhoda," Csilla said calmly, letting her sword relax in her hands. "You let Magnus's whispers taint your mind, but I still love you. I forgive you."
Her sister's face froze for a moment before her expression dropped to one of fear. The dream jungle around Csilla quivered, splotches of the cabin where Csilla slept appeared through the leaves and bark before becoming whole again.
"I forgive myself too," Csilla said.
Rhoda's face became stone, unreadable and cold, as she stumbled backward like Csilla had stabbed her. Her foot lost baring as she came too close to the end of the cliff and she fell back, her scream echoing as she dropped out of sight.
Csilla called out her sister's name on instinct, reaching out for her like she could save her. Then she remembered this was a dream and she wondered why she wasn't waking up yet if she'd defeated the wraith.
A hand reached over the edge of the cliff and grabbed at the ground. Csilla watched as they pulled themselves up. Long silky black hair covered her face as she rose to her feet and adjusted the arrows at her back. Her hair parted to reveal Nara's smiling face.
Csilla's heart tugged. She had missed her dearest friend. It was so nice to have her visiting them in Macaya. She knew her mother would treasure Nara as her own daughter if given the chance.
Csilla shook her head.
Wait.
Nara didn't smile.
Not Nara.
"I won't let you win!" Csilla yelled at the dreamwraith. "This is my dream. You're just a part of it."
The dream Nara laughed, then her smile fell into a flat line, her eyes dead of emotion. "We will see about that, Csilla Abado." She inhaled, as if gathering a scent. "Your guilt and regret is divine. I've never had a meal this tasty before."
Csilla readied her sword as Nara unsheathed her own. The attack was quick and precise, just like Nara's true self. The dreamwraith must have studied Csilla's loved ones so they could be authentic in her dream. It nearly had her fooled, especially when it said things that Csilla only worried about to herself, keeping it buried deep so no one could see.
"I always liked your sister better," Nara said. She spun gracefully on her toes and lunged, sword nearly missing the side of Csilla's ribcage. "I only watched out for you because I felt sorry for you."
Csilla reminded herself that Nara's words weren't true, that the dreamwraith was only feeding on her emotions. She couldn't let herself succumb. If she did, the Ruin Witch said she'd be stuck in the dream realm forever. She looked to the trees, hoping to see the cabin walls fading back through the pretend jungle, but only leaves greeted her. Csilla swung her sword as Nara swung hers, the collision sending Nara's sword into the jungle.
Nara stood, defenseless, hands splayed in surrender. "How could you abandon me in Smuggler's Harbor?"
Csilla blinked and the dreamwraith had changed its appearance. Blue eyes stared back at Csilla now.
"How could you abandon us?" asked Lorelei. Her eyes flickered with gold sparks like she the day she woke up from Limbo on that cave floor. "After all we've been through."
The hairs on Csilla's arm raised, the air changing as Lorelei's fingers curled. Csilla jumped back just in time as lightning left Lorelei's hand and struck the spot where Csilla had stood just a moment before.
"I was there the entire time and not one of you could save me?" Lorelei's voice amplified like thunder in a storm. "I'm just a girl from the fish-reeking Port Barlow, right? Perhaps Incendia is where I truly belong."
A fierce wind whipped at Csilla and she braced her feet on the ground. She took a step forward, the force of the wind pushing her back. Csilla's heart raced faster and faster. Was this the power of Lorelei's magic that she'd been so afraid of that night on the balcony at the palace? If she was still unraveling, Csilla had to find her now. She couldn't let her friend down when she'd begged her for help.
The dream world flickered again, like a candlewick threatening to snuff out.
"You mind games won't work any longer!" Csilla yelled over the roar of the wind. "I won't let you win!"
The dreamwraith smiled at her with Lorelei's face, her hair unmoving even though the wind circled wildly around them. Lorelei flicked one finger and a burst of wind hit Csilla like a canon, throwing her into the jungle. Her head knocked against the trunk of a tree and the dream world went black for a moment.
When Csilla cracked open her eyes, the jungle of Macaya was gone. She laid in the sand on a beach that stretched for miles, not a single dock or person in sight. The sea gently lapped at the shore. In the distance, gulls squawked and waves crashed over each other. The sky was a blue as endless as the sea. Just a moment before she'd been visiting her mother in Macaya and now she was... she didn't know where she was.
"There you are," came a familiar honey voice.
Csilla glanced in the direction the voice had come from and saw Flynn walking toward her, holding his boots by their straps. He stopped at her toes which were buried in the sand.
"I've been looking all over for you," Flynn said, a smile hooking at his lips. His sea-colored eyes glimmered in the light of the sun as the breeze blew at the sandy hair that had escaped from its tie. "And here you are, right back at the sea. I should have known." He winked, the scar on his cheek dimpling.
Her heart warmed from the sight, but it didn't cease the confusion swimming in her head. "Flynn, where are we?"
"Are you alright?" Flynn crouched down in front of her, his eyes searching hers. "Did something happen?"
Csilla shook her head. "No, I'm fine. I had the strangest dream is all. But I..." Her eyes trailed down the unfamiliar shore once more. "...I don't recognize this beach."
Flynn's gaze narrowed at her. He reached toward her and brushed her curls away from her face, then rested his palm against her cheek, his thumb tracing once under her silver eye. "Are you sure you're fine? How could you forget our home?"
"Our home?" Csilla's voice broke off. She turned her head away from his hand and to the left, her gaze trailing up a planked path that led to a quaint cabin on a hill. It sat alone, overlooking the shore. Nothing more than a whisper left her lips when she looked back at Flynn. "Our home..."
Flynn's smile was uncertain. "Yes, our home. Do you truly not remember, love?"
Csilla watched him for a moment, remembering all the times he'd looked at her with such confidence in his gaze, even when she'd been adamant in her feigned distaste for him on Crossbones. This uncertain expression of his was something she wasn't sure she'd seen from him before.
Something wasn't right.
"Where is everyone else?" Csilla asked. It was odd being in a place so quiet, not surrounded by the chaos of her friends.
"It's just us," Flynn said. "We came here together after Crossbones, a little island to call our own."
Csilla cocked her head. "I don't understand."
Flynn sighed and looked out at the sea. "You didn't understand then either, but everyone thought it was in your best interest to take a break from everything after what happened with Rhoda."
"Oh." Csilla's voice trailed off. "Sounds like something they would do."
"Is your lack of remembrance just a façade?" Although his question was an accusation, his voice held pain.
"Flynn, no, I—"
"You don't truly want to be here with me, do you?" Flynn rose from his crouch and dragged his hand down his face.
She reached for his other hand, gripping it tightly and trying to shake some sense into him. "What? Why would you say such a thing?"
"Do you even love me, Csilla?" Flynn turned his gaze back on her then, the sea swimming in his eyes. "After everything, after all this time, you still haven't said it. Just let me off easy before I sink any farther into you."
"Flynn." Csilla's voice was soft. Much softer than she ever allowed herself to be. "It's not that simple."
"How is it not?" Flynn said, desperation seeping through his gaze. He dropped to his knees in the sand. "Stay here with me. We can forget about the rest of the world."
If he only knew how tempting the offer truly was. To forget about the troubles of the world and the crooked ways of pirates would be a freedom that she wouldn't know what to do with, but having Flynn there with her would be like a dream.
But she couldn't forget about her friends. Her found family. Not after everything they'd done for her.
"I can't," she told him. The words tasted horrid on her tongue, but they were necessary. "I will never step away from my responsibilities. It's a part of what makes me who I am."
Flynn's eyes shined with tears for a moment before he blinked them away and looked down at the sand between them. "What can I do to make you stay? Have I always fought a losing battle?"
"Oh, Flynn..." She put her hand over his that rested on his thigh. "Perhaps we can stay a little while longer."
Flynn looked back up at her then, a smile stretching across his face. Something was off about it again, but this time it seemed a little more wicked. The sinister nature behind it seemed familiar though.
She suddenly remembered Rhoda smiling at her like that, and Nara, and Lorelei. It all suddenly linked together in her head like a chain. Returning to Baltessa. Her coronation. Flynn and her together in the rose garden. The dreamwraith invading her dreams.
Her breath stilled for a moment.
"Csilla?" Flynn asked, standing and holding out his hand to her. "Ready to go home?"
Csilla gazed up at him, capturing the moment and etching it into her mind. Of all the masks the wraith wore, this one was nearly perfect. She'd almost let herself fall into the dream peacefully with just a promise of having him by her side for as long as she needed.
She knew what she had to do.
She placed her hand in his and let him pull her up onto her feet. Looking into his eyes, she took a deep breath and let it out while she let her words settle on her tongue.
"I love you, Flynn Gunnison," she said. "Across the seas and back." She placed her hands on either side of his face and closed the distance between them.
The moment her lips touched his, the dream faded to black.
Csilla cracked open her eyes and the first thing she heard was Flynn's voice.
"Csilla!" he yelled, relief pouring out of him. "You're awake!"
There were yells and shuffling as Csilla blinked, trying to see through the black, but as her gaze focused, she realized she wasn't in the black of the dream anymore and instead was face to face with the dreamwraith.
It hovered over her, cloaked in black, a bottomless abyss for a face underneath its hood. Csilla was frozen in shock for a moment, then she remembered what the Ruin Witch had told them. She'd defeated it in the dreamworld, now she would finish it.
She reached under her pillow and pulled out the dagger she kept hidden away and stabbed the black hole where it's face should be. The wraith shrieked and wailed in the air above her. The air hissed as smoke rose from its body which dissolved in the air like ashes.
"You've done it," Flynn said from next to her.
Csilla let her arm drop to the bed and let go of the dagger. She turned her head to look at Flynn and smiled full-tooth at him. Surprise lit his eyes and then he smiled back at her.
"Flynn," she started. She felt anxious, but the time had come. If anything, the dreamwraith had helped her realize that she didn't need to keep her feelings bottled up anymore. "I want to tell you something."
"What is it, love?" His voice was tender, sweet.
"Holy hell!" Arius said with a clap of his hands. "That was actually kind of scary. Were you all scared? I'm not going to lie; I was shaking in my boots a bit."
Csilla's gaze fleetedaround the room taking in the audience she didn't realize she had. "Anothertime," she told Flynn. "I promise."