Jimena didn't really like going to sleep much. She didn't really mind it before but now with Herodias in her head... things were getting weird. And the fact that the Watchers were going to attack in two days didn't help. Or did it count as one day now, because it was nearing midnight?
Jimena tossed about in bed for a little while, trying to stay awake and avoid the nightmares, until she finally succumbed to her drowsiness. With a sigh she lost consciousness and woke up again in the strange purple room that Herodias had made in her mind.
You finally fell asleep. Herodias said from where she stood leaning against the corner of the room. Why don't you just let me have a normal dream anymore? Jimena asked tiredly. Psychology says that whatever you dream has a heavy emphasis on what you do in the waking world. Herodias said. Hopefully this makes you understand better.
With a sigh, Jimena just gave up and resigned herself to her fate. She stared at Herodias as the Watcher used her powers to shift and warp the room to her bidding. The walls bent and twisted into sharp spires, the floor writhed and bubbled like a mass of snakes. Jimena felt the pain as tiny spikes brushed her back but didn't bother to turn her head. She already knew what was going on. It had been happening every night ever since Herodias had come along.
Look, I get it. I'm supposed to listen to 2. Jimena said in a deadpan voice as the room threw her to the floor and something started to roughly scratch her arm. Can you stop now? She pleaded. Herodias shifted uncomfortably but Jimena couldn't catch her facial expression with her face masked by the purple veil. I need to make sure you fully understand that. Herodias said at last and the room twisted and warped again.
Jimena sighed as her mental body seemed to dissolve into a mass of pain. She'd figured out by now how to just not care about it and not scream. It was because she expected it. Unfortunately this was not the kind of thing people should be expecting. At least in real life she was still like other people who said 'ow' and yelped at accidentally jamming their finger in the door or something.
Then she spotted Herodias watching her oddly. I think that's enough for tonight. She said unexpectedly. Then she walked over and held out a hand to lift Jimena up to her metaphorical feet. Jimena took it and just stared at her in growing confusion. Why do you do this? She asked. She didn't just mean the unexpected end of the nightmare. She meant the nightmare itself.
Herodias shifted and turned away. Because you're me. She said. Three words. Just three words to attempt to explain her complicated behavior. Jimena couldn't make sense of her other personality with just those three words. She tried to ask another question but then she was thrown out of the nightmare and landed back in her own bed.
Jimena stifled a yelp as she involuntarily flailed about as she suddenly regained consciousness and painfully kicked the footboard of her bed. Clapping a hand to her mouth she walked over to the window where there was light streaming in through to check the time on her watch. It was about three in the morning. There was only one free day left until that dreaded day.
She sighed. Good thing I didn't scream. I wouldn't want to wake up False and Martyn. Wait... She did a double take. Why was there light streaming through the window? She looked out and realized that the light was coming from Martyn's window. Why's he awake? Curious, Jimena changed into daytime clothes and went out to go see.
She passed by an iron golem as she crossed the street and the shy automaton offered her a poppy. Jimena giggled and accepted the flower, tucking it behind her ear. "Thank you." She said, and the golem seemingly smiled and walked away. They were all over Cogsmeade now after False had diverted her whole iron supply to crafting the golems for extra security. Jimena honestly found their company rather nice.
She knocked cautiously on the door of Martyn's borrowed house. "Go away." Came the muffled voice of the evolutionist turned lifer. Jimena frowned. He doesn't sound too good. He did leave earlier and then skip dinner and head straight to his room... I wonder what happened. "Martyn, I can't go back to sleep if you're going to leave the light on." She said.
At first nothing happened, then there came the clanking and clicking of some locks being opened up and the door slid aside to reveal Martyn looking exhausted. "Sorry, I though it was... someone else." He muttered. He turned around and let Jimena walk inside.
A quick glance around the house revealed that Martyn hadn't really bothered with the interior. It was as dusty as if it was still abandoned and someone apparently didn't think that trashcans existed. Jimena stepped around the small piles of wrappers and sat down on a clean chair as Martyn just paced around mindlessly.
"You didn't change the decorations or anything?" Jimena asked. She and False had honestly expected Martyn to switch up the Cogsmeade theme quite a bit; the way he dressed and acted made him really out of place in the quiet clockwork town. So it was a bit of a surprise to find out that he had just left his house alone and let the decor stay the same.
"Why bother?" Martyn muttered. "The Watchers aren't going to let me stay here anyway." "How do you know that?" Jimena asked. "Because they're not going to leave us alone." Martyn said. He sat down on a chair opposite to her and leaned back with a tired sigh.
"Why are you awake at..." Jimena double checked her watch. "Three twenty five AM?" "Bad dream." Martyn said after a short pause. "Oh, you too?" Jimena said sympathetically. Martyn nodded wordlessly. "I was dreaming about the life series." He said. "Killing everyone. Killing my friends. Because the Watchers made us do it."
Jimena shuddered and sighed. "I'm sorry." She said, wings drooping. Martyn hummed but said nothing. "What about you? What did you dream about?" He asked, not unpolitely. "Well..." Jimena hesitated. "All I'm saying is that having another personality... is kind of weird when you dream." She said at last, thinking that it was an okay censored description of what was going on.
Martyn seemed to understand. "Yeah, the Watchers mess with my head when I dream sometimes too." He said. "I assume you don't hear the rhyming?" "Rhyming? Oh yeah, normal people only hear rhyming unless the Watchers are holding back." Jimena said. "No, I just hear them talk normally."
She and Martyn didn't really talk much after that. After a long enough pause, Martyn suddenly spoke up again. "I'm not saying we should go back to sleep... but we need rest." He said. Jimena nodded, yawning. "Yeah." She mumbled. She got up and made for the exit. "Goodnight, Martyn. Unless it counts as morning now."
Martyn barked out a laugh. "Oh yeah, good morning, Jimena!" He giggled somewhat hysterically. "Yeah, we definitely need rest." Jimena said, leaving the house to return to hers. On her way back she encountered another iron golem who then offered her another poppy. With two flowers in her hair Jimena lay back in bed and fell back asleep.
She woke up again in the purple room. She found Herodias there, which was unsurprising, but she was surprised to see who else was in this mental room. It was 2. And he was scolding her other personality about something. Then Qiron turned and saw her standing there.
<How long has this been happening?> He asked in a hushed tone. Jimena was confused at the way he spoke and wondered what he was talking about. Um... what? She asked. Qiron reached out a hand covered in magical blue aura and pulled out what looked like a memory picture out of the purple room. Then he showed the image to her.
Jimena winced slightly as she realized the memory was about Herodias shifting the room to hurt her. She hesitated before speaking; glancing uncertainly at her other personality. Herodias sighed and gave her the slightest nod to continue. Jimena turned back to 2. Ever since she got here. She answered.
Qiron looked a strange combination of angry and sad. He pulled the girls closer to him and spoke. <Do not do this again. Do you understand?> Herodias nodded silently and looked away. Qiron squeezed her arm tightly. <Don't hurt yourself.> He told her firmly. <No matter what in the world you think or feel you do not do anything like this again.>
Herodias nodded again and looked up at him. I won't. I promise. She said, and Jimena was slightly surprised at how sincere she sounded. She was also just confused at the whole interaction. Qiron nodded curtly and let go of her arm. He glanced once at Jimena and acted like he was about to say something but decided against it. Then the purple room dissolved away and Jimena had a dreamless sleep for the next few hours.
---
Jimmy blinked, wondering where he was. He stood in a simple green field with some buildings surrounding him... and then it clicked. This was the old world. The one that constantly evolved. "Hi, Tim!" Jimmy turned to see Martyn standing there in front of their shared property police building, waving jovially at him.
"Martyn!" Jimmy shouted in relief. He ran forward to go to him, but the faster he ran the farther away Martyn was from him. Then Martyn turned around and disappeared into the building, leaving Jimmy alone. He was alone when there was supposed to be other people... other friends with him...
Suddenly Jimmy was standing in the end with a sword and shield out and equipped, staring up at the void-black dragon that swooped above him and roared in fury that someone dared to intrude on her territory. The ender dragon fight. When they lost Grian... Jimmy yelped as the dragon breathed a plume of purple fire at him, the same violaceous shade as Jimena's watcher magic, and he couldn't dodge in time. The flames consumed him...
Just like they consumed the Grimlands. Jimmy was clothed in green and dripping with slime, standing in front of a fiery forge that clanked mechanically. He turned to see fWhip, human fWhip with black and red sooty clothes fiddling with a tank full of cod and salmon. "Okay, that should do it." He said. "We can finally remake your Codfather head! I'm glad we're friends now." He beamed at Jimmy.
The Codfather head... "No, fWhip, don't!" Jimmy shouted. "This is what destroys the world!" fWhip laughed. "Okay, Jimmy." He said as he reached over and pulled the lever. Too late, Jimmy tried to stop him, but the forge began to overload. fWhip frantically started to push and pull random buttons and levers to no effect. "Run!" He shouted, and Jimmy did so without a second thought. He should've stayed and helped fWhip. His friend. Instead he just ran...
Ran as he tossed his stupid Codboy head away. Ran away from the dried-out corpses of the many codfish that he was supposed to protect and lead. What a failure of an emperor he was if he couldn't even do his job properly. "I'm not worthy!" Jimmy shouted, tears streaming down his face as he ran even faster.
Suddenly he was underneath a tree and staring into the eyes of an angry enderman. It shrieked and reached out its long arms toward the rancher. The rancher who was red. Terrified, Jimmy stood rooted to the spot. Surely the enderman couldn't reach him under this tall tree, right? Surely...
The enderman suddenly reached out and grasped his neck. Jimmy shrieked and kicked and struggled but its grip was firm. The rancher felt his air supply run out and his windpipe shatter under the strength of the enderman's hand. "No... Tango..." Jimmy breathed his last. The enderman threw away the dead body and went off to kill another person. But he'd already killed two. Because of Jimmy, his rancher was dead. Tango died because of him. He could never save anyone...
Jimmy screamed as he suddenly sat up in bed, shaking miserably. "Jimmy, it's okay," Scott said, standing up and walking over to him. Jimmy shot a terrified glance at him. Scott? Why's Scott here? Am I dreaming about Third Life now? A dream... Under Scott's guidance he breathed in and out, slowly calming down.
"It was just a dream, Jimmy." Scott said softly, holding his hand affectionately. Jimmy nodded. He was starting to remember now. Scott had decided to stay at Tumble Town with him as a sort of sleepover and to help his emotional state after Martyn... after Martyn had ran off. Like Jimmy did in the dream.
"It was a nightmare, Scott." Jimmy breathed shakily. Scott squeezed his hand tighter. "I can't save anyone!" The sheriff squeaked. "They're all going to die again!" Sobbing, he hugged Scott tightly and curled up like a cat into him. Scott said nothing and just comforted him. "They won't." Scott promised. "We'll keep them safe. We'll keep them all safe."