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This story is a work of fiction and contains adult situations. No character depected as engaging in sexual activity is under the age of 18. No one under the age of 18 should be reading past this disclaimer. All characters are copyright Radical Gopher.

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PINS AND NEEDLES - Part XVI

"Are we in?" asked Victor as he glanced around at the bleak landscape.

"We're in," Gwen confirmed. The landscape was a wasteland of dead grass, withered trees and bare shrubbery. A dry, rock-strewn creek bed lay at their feet and the air reeked of sulfur.

Turning his head Victor continued to examine their surroundings. The sky was a deep crimson, broken by black clouds that threatened to consume what little light existed. On the far side of the creek sat a massive stone archway. The remains of a rusted iron gate hung from broken hinges. Beyond the gate he could see the silhouette of a run-down colonial mansion. A single, pale yellow light flickered from a gabled window on the third floor.

"Somehow, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," the todd muttered.

"Kansas?" asked Gwen and Sapphire together.

"Sorry... old vid reference. "Why on earth would Dr. Aryan, or for that matter Cypriana, create a dream image like this?"

"

Dr. Aryan is having a nightmare," observed Sapphire. "It obviously influenced by Cypriana to confuse and or frighten her so she'd be easier to control. Remember... none of this exists without her input. It's her mind and dream we're in. Cypriana might manipulate it, but Aryan creates it."

"So Dr. Aryan is dreaming?" asked Victor

"Yes... But she's not getting any rest. A dream like this won't allow her mind to relax. When she wakes up, she'll be exhausted and mentally numb. If Cypriana can keep this up long enough, she'll be able to take over Aryan's conscious mind.

"Is there any way we can make this dream work to our advantage?"

"Yes and no," the skunkette replied. "Because we are in a dream we can combat your sorceress with anything our mind is able to create. Trouble is so can she."

"So how do we handle her?"

"You don't," Sapphire replied. "You let Gwen and I take care of Cypriana. Right now, she's concentrating on influencing this dream. We'll keep her busy while you find Dr. Aryan and try to make her aware this is a dream and that she can control it. Once she does then Cypriana looses any power she has here and we can expel her from the dream."

"Anything else I should know before we separate?"

"Be careful, Gwen cautioned. "Once you begin interacting with the dream environment, then you can be hurt. Anything that happens to you here will impact you in the real world. The longer you can remain just a passive observer... the better. Other than that, improvise."

Victor nodded, leaned forward and hugged both women. "You be careful too," he said. They separated. Sapphire and Gwen headed for the front of the structure. The todd headed for the back... if there was such. He knew from his psyche studies in college that dreams followed a logical pattern and were based on memories and experience. It was only the waking mind that found them confusing because details of the dream often faded rapidly. Reasonably, therefore, if there were a front door to this building, there would be a back door.

Stealing along the side of the house, Victor reached the back only to find himself facing a completely blank wall, devoid of windows or doors. He paused and looked around. Not far from the structure he spotted what looked like the entrance to a storm cellar. The heavy, double wooden doors were padlocked shut.

Remembering what Gwen had told him about her trip into his own dream, the todd focused for a moment, then tried to push his way through the door. He managed to get his hand and arm partway through before he met resistance. There was obviously more to dream walking than he thought. He pulled back, but his arm wouldn't budge. It was as if it had become part of the door. He braced his feet against it and pulled unsuccessfully again. At least it didn't hurt he thought ruefully, but he was trapped.

Victor felt around the door, looking for a weakness in the wood. For a dream, everything seemed so real. The door had mass, texture and even a slight smell of pine to it. He stopped. Maybe that was his problem. He was treating everything around him as if it existed in the real world. The door didn't have to be made of wood. It could be butterscotch pudding for all he cared. There was a sudden slurping sound and his arm came free. The scent of butterscotch filled his nose pad and he grinned. Maybe this wouldn't be all that hard. He focused once more then slowly pushed first his hands, then his body through the barrier. Within moments he was on the other side of the door looking at a wide set of stone steps that lead down into a pitch-black world.

"No," he thought... "not darkness." With that, a line of torches sprang into existence along the wall. Now Victor could see the stairway curving to the right as it descended. It was almost like something out of an old twentieth century horror vid. Almost in response colors seemed to fade to a series of gray-shaded, black and white images. Even the glow of the torches shifted from yellow to white. The todd took a deep breath and began walking.

* * * *

Sapphire and Gwen reached the front porch of the house with no trouble. The skunkette tentatively pushed on the double oaken doors, which slowly creaked open. Sapphire glanced up at a set of bronze doorknockers and paused. "Look at this," she whispered.

Gwen glanced up, examining the heavy images. One was the head of a unicorn, the other, that of a powerful lion. She pursed her lips in thought. "Rather ornate for a dream, wouldn't you say?"

"Maybe," the vixen replied. "It speaks rather loudly as to how much influence Cypriana has gained within this dream."

"Hopefully not too much," the skunkette muttered.

Looking about they found themselves within the grand foyer of the house. Three sets of sliding, wood paneled doors, one in each wall faced them. A double set of curved stairs led up to the second floor. They tried the doors first but found each one opened onto blank walls with no rooms beyond.

"Looks like there's no path but up," whispered Gwen. Cautiously the two women started climbing the stairs. Various portraits lined the walls. Each showed images of what Sapphire assumed were Dr. Aryan's early childhood and family life. It was a life of privilege and wealth, but few friends or close family members. Examining the paintings the djin started to understand something about the human. Most of her achievements and personal drive were over compensating for something she lacked and wanted desperately... friendship and love. The problem, judging by the themes in many of the portraits seemed to be that no matter how hard she tried; her wealth was always a stumbling block to building honest relations with others.

Sapphire found the last two paintings were the most interesting. One was a simple portrait of a Zorr. He was sitting on a park bench reading a rather thick, scholarly book. His body language was totally at ease. Next to him was a small thermos, a sack and a half-chewed apple. His glasses were perched farther down his muzzle than normal and he was looking toward the viewer with a calm, warm expression that seemed to draw the viewer in. Sapphire immediately recognized Victor, though in the portrait he looked older; closer in appearance to when she had first met him; before she had cast the rejuvenation spell on him.

Gwen looked over her shoulder. "Is that...?"

The blue-furred vixen nodded. "Yes. Apparently Dr. Aryan met, or at least saw Victor before they were formally introduced He told me he often used to lunch at the park near the museum."

"I'd guess she probably saw him there or around the museum when he was working in restorations. But why put him is such a prominent place?"

"Good question," Sapphire replied. Her eyes strayed to the last painting and she frowned. "But not one we need to explore right now."

Gwen looked up and a chill ruffled her fur. The last portrait in the series showed Dr. Aryan sitting on a throne of gold, carved in the shape of bones. Standing behind her, was the image of a humanoid unicorn. The figure was translucent and seemed to merge with that of the human even as it rested its hands of her shoulders. The image seemed to glow with power and malfeasance. This was it... Cypriana's ultimate goal, and judging from the image she was not far from achieving it.

"I think we need to find your necromancer, and fast," Gwen muttered. The two women began searching around the balcony that ringed the second floor. More portraits decorated the walls, all a continuation of Dr. Aryan's life story, but that was all. There were no doors or stairs leading off into the rest of the house. After circling the balcony once, they stopped in front of the painting of Cypriana.

"I wonder," Sapphire muttered, reaching up to touch the portrait. Her fingers skimmed along its surface, creating ripples as if the canvas were liquid. Both she and Gwen quickly checked the other paintings. Only this one reacted when touched.

"Obviously a door," whispered the skunkette.

"Yes... With someone waiting for us on the other side." The djin smiled grimly and nodded. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be," Gwen replied. The two women clasped hands, drifted upward off the floor and dove headfirst into the portrait. Neither saw the image shift as a red-furred Zorr replaced the human figure.

* * * *

The stone steps seemed to continue forever. Victor lost track of how much time had passed or how far he'd come. Pausing for a moment, he thought about it. This was a dream. By rights, neither time, nor distance had much meaning relative to the dreamer, or perhaps even the dream walker. If that were so, then he didn't necessarily need to bring Mohammad to the mountain... He could bring the mountain to Mohammad.

The todd closed his eyes and concentrated. At first there was nothing. No smell, no light, no sense of anything, not even the sound of the torches crackling above him. He took three deep breaths and focused on the image of Dr. Aryan, thinking back to how she looked when he'd last seen her. Something within him seemed to shift, almost as if his spleen had jostled his liver. It wasn't exactly an uncomfortable feeling, just an odd one He opened his eyes and looked around. Blackness greeted him.

"Light," Victor muttered to no one in particular. "I need some light." He was rewarded with a tiny spark that drifted in the air before him. Within seconds it increased in strength until everything around him was bathed in torchlight. What the todd saw sickened him to his core. Alyssa Aryan knelt before him on the hard, stone floor of a dungeon. Her clothing had been stripped from her and her back and thighs were a mass of deep welts. Her head and wrists were locked into a set of ancient stocks that rose barely three feet off the floor. A spreader bar had been used to force her legs far apart Her knees were torn and bloody.

A thick, heavy, cruel laugh cut through the air, drawing Victor's attention away from the woman and towards a dark corner He could see a pair of glowing, slitted eyes hovering there, moving in time to the laugh.

"Pathetic. Truly and wonderfully pathetic," it rumbled. "Do you really think I can't deal with yet another of your illusionary rescuers? Just how many times are you going to dredge up this flea-ridden construct of yours before you realize he can't save you. No one can. I rule here... now and forever." The eyes stared directly at the todd, yet the creature's tone sounded as if he were addressing Dr. Aryan. They moved toward him, exiting the shadows. Victor found himself staring at the figure of a massive Numidian lion. KUROK!

It circled him, words rumbling from its throat. "I will admit," he laughed. This simulacrum is much better than your others." He turned to face Alyssa. "How do you want me to deal with it? Should I rip its throat out, or disembowel it... Or perhaps just bite its head off."

"Please," the human whimpered, her voice ragged with pain. "Please... let me go... Please. It hurts! It hurts!"

Kurok chuckled wickedly. "Does it now? Well...you know how to end the pain. Surrender yourself to us and it will all stop."

"No... I... I won't."

The lion snarled in anger. "You are a fool, like all fleshy things. The harder you resist, the greater your pain, your indignity will be." A smile crossed the lion's mouth. "I know. Why don't I have your 'hero' teach you a lesson in humility? After all, you raped him. It's only fitting that he returns the favor." The lion leaned in, bringing his face close to Alyssa's. "It's too bad you didn't think to conjure up his mate. I really would have enjoyed ripping that bitch's throat out."

Kurok turned back toward Victor. His jaw dropped open as he suddenly found himself staring into the face of an angry, fifteen-foot tall dragon

"I told you before," Victor rumbled. "Don't EVER call my mate a bitch!" He unleashed a blast of flame that caught the lion full in the face. Staggered, Kurok roared in agony as his fur curled and blackened and his flesh sizzled. He threw himself into the shadows, vanishing once more.

"YOU... YOU'RE NO ILLUSION! HOW...?"

Victor laughed mocking at the necromancer. "Oh come now, Lord Kurok, king of carrion. How do you think?"

"A dream-walker! But you're a mundane. You have no power."

"In here... I have all the power I can imagine." He spat another blast into the shadows. Kurok hurled himself aside, singing his tail in the process.

"You may have some control within this dream..." the lion snarled, "But I rule here. My will prevails!"

"I? My? What happened to we and our? Where's Cypriana?"

Kurok laughed. "She found herself another body... one she did not have to enter through the dream world. This one is mine, and as soon as I've enslaved her mind I too will step into the real world and subjugate it to my will."

Victor went cold. If true, then at least one of the necromancers might even now be free in the outside world. He had no further chance to think about it though. Without warning the lion leapt from the shadows, striking Victor in the chest. Claws raked across scales, leaving behind a triple row of gashes that oozed blood. The dragon rolled backward, catching Kurok with his back claws and hurling him into the wall. The lion hit the wall and vanished into a ripple of stone. Victor dove after him, only to slam chest first into hard granite.

The necromancer laughed. The sound echoed around the room. "You are no dream-walker. You have no instinct for manipulating your environment. You are what you always were... a pet, kept as entertainment for Krystalla; nothing more than a convenient amusement for a night's pleasure."

Victor laughed. "Those are bold words coming from someone who's been trapped within a bolt of cloth for over a thousand years. I would have though you'd reassessed my abilities after our last encounter."

Kurok sprang at him from the shadows above. There was a flash as a large shield materialized on the todd's arm. The lion plowed into it face first, rebounding several feet. Razor-sharp spines protruded from the dragon's back and the tip of his tail was suddenly covered with barbs. Victor spun, his tail catching the lion across the face. He roared in pain and once more vanished into the shadows.

"Go back to your tapestry, Kurok," the Zorr taunted. "Go back before I wind up ripping your tail off and jamming it up your ass." He dropped the shield and turned away from the fight long enough to focus on Alyssa. Reaching down with massive paws Victor ripped the stocks to shreds and easily snapped the chains on the spreader bar, freeing her. As he did something heavy slammed into his back knocking him across the room.

"SHE'S MINE!" Kurok roared, pushing and holding the human down flat against the floor. "YOU DO NOT RULE HERE, I DO!" The shadows themselves reached out with long, ebon tendrils, ensnaring the dragon; wrapping themselves around his arms, neck and torso.

Victor twisted around. His talons, barbs and spines ripped the shadows apart like cheesecloth.

He turned to face Kurok just as a hole suddenly opened up at his feet. He fell, spinning as he tried to dig his claws into the wall. Below him the floor reshaped itself into a series of long, stone spikes. Seeing this, the dragon tried extending his wings, but the hole was too small to allow for flying. An instant before he was impaled his form shriveled into that of a pseudo-dragon and he fell between the spikes, landing hard against the floor.

Victor launched himself upward, flapping his wings furiously. He'd only gotten halfway to the top before he saw the lion lean over the edge. The dragon spat a long gout of flame towards his opponent, forcing Kurok to reel back from the opening. Climbing, Victor skirted the ceiling and dove on his foe. The necromancer dodged, but not before one of the dragon's talons caught him along the flank and tore a deep gash in his hide. Once again he vanished into the shadows of the dungeon.

Transforming in mid-air the todd landed next to Dr. Aryan and tried to pull her to her feet. "Alyssa... ALYSSA! Listen to me... LISTEN. This is all a dream; your dream. Kurok and I can only manipulate it, but we can't create it. You're the one who has control here. YOU... and no one else! Can you hear me? Do you understand? Do you?"

The human stared at the Zorr, eyes dull and confused, even as she struggled to her feet. "Professor Peabody?" She looked down at herself. "Where... where are my clothes? Why am I naked?"

Victor opened his mouth to reply but never had the chance. A fragment of shadow shot outward from the darkness and formed into a spike. It pierced him through the chest. His limbs and tail jerked reflexively and every nerve in his body burned as if on fire.

To be continued.