The Inner Jungle pt. 1

Waiting in the darkness was a paranoia that Tarmen knew well, from years in similar ruins and hiding from similar crazed savages. Everything about this had some familiarity to it, but had turned out so wrong. He could be frustrated about it or he could try for some shut eye. Wasn’t hard to choose.
Steading his breath and easing into the exhaustion so that his rest was not as deep, he still slipped into fitful dreams.
He floated through darkness, no true form and no solid thoughts. He had always hated these sorts of dreams where you have no control. Tarmen only understood them as an old wives tale of Zin visiting your mind and judging you on a more personal level; so you couldn’t hide anything from him. He still remembered the toothy hag that would spook many of the urchins in his home village with such tales. Made them think she was a witch and cursed those who wronged her, when in fact she was left alone out of respect for living so long. One of the more gentle traditions he could recall.
As he floated through the ethereal memories of his youth, the vision dispersed and was reformed into one much later in his life. Already on the road as a mercenary and fully embracing the ‘no questions’ rule many of the employer’s enjoyed. Tarmen found no respect for the softer folk outside of his home, especially when so many begged. He could never stand the begging.
The memory chosen was of an old woman, not as ancient as the hag, but still weak enough to be tossed with ease. He couldn’t recall her features, what she was wearing or even what she sounded like. He didn’t care, she didn’t matter.
All he knew was that she owed something to his employer and something of value would be coming back with him. Of course she had to be a poor farmer and of course it had been a bad year. Just another week and she blah blah. Back to the begging.
Tarmen couldn’t remember what he had taken, but seeing the look of filthy joy on his employer disgusted him. Why not do the job himself if he took such satisfaction in beating his fellow weaklings?
He sensed a deeper presence in the memory, a fellow watcher into his private thoughts. Trying to see what it might be, the vision shifted again to a new scene.
It brought a sense of dread, a festering knowledge that soon this would be his path once again. He had never faced a full battlefield before, nor a siege. His role was always as a scout or skirmisher.
This battle would have no major renown, no grand epics or songs of what happened, just written documents to let others know who won and why.
It didn’t matter to Tarmen. He remembered cries of honor and prayers to the Pillars, but if any gods appeared, they were second to Zin.
This was a job he preferred, it was one he learned quickly to do well. He smirked fondly at the axe he had at the time, sturdy thing, chopped trees and limbs like Vastad had blessed its edge to never dull. He grinned at the cowards who ran, those were the first he killed as they stumbled through the trees and bushes. Their fellows either tried their luck or stuck to their guns, but usually fell to one of the others assigned to join Tarmen. It overall was a memory he relished in revisiting, back when his blade would meet its mark and not have to worry about spirits or gods messing with him.
The presence got heavier as his thoughts shifted the scene to a more depressing one. The same cave he was stuck in right now, with no way out and no clue where to go. Stuck with someone who would have his own head if she knew what he had been doing.
A rumble came from the darkness, Tarmen putting together this was where they had broken free. Where the woman had fled came a snarling breath, followed by a frigid wind that pierced his essence.
Stuck in place as the dream demanded, Tarmen recoiled at the sight that entered his view. A monstrous boar, wriggling through the tunnels like an abominable worm, carrying the twisted and fused bodies of the Arbiter and the Imp on rows of gnarled tusks.
For Tarmen’s sake this startled him from his sleep, jolting upright and nearly striking the body he felt near him in the dark. Stopping himself as his true memories returned, he caught his breath before whispering into the void.
“Well, that’s all the rest I’m gettin’. You better catch what you can.”