Had it been three days, or two? Ariel had lost track of the time in the hellish nightmarescape of pure and endless black. Though it looks like she and Takara had also lost the Eater of Dreams for the moment, the ever present and pervasive sense of utterly oppressive and ominous dread lingers regardless.
It's only been a few days, but with no rest and constantly keeping up her dreamweaving in a dark place with so little to work with, Ariel is haggard. Her armor has lost its shine, her hair is a tangled mess, and she just seems so much smaller and frailer as she drops to her knees for a moment, to catch even just a moment of rest if she can.
"How... How are you holding up?" She ventures in a voice little above a whisper, lest she draw attention from something terrible and call it down on them by being any louder.
Takara isn't looking that much better than Ariel. Being on the run constantly for days has taken it's toll on the young girl as well, and it's only through sheer stubbornness she hasn't dropped by now.
"I'm hanging in there," Takara admits, her voice hardly any louder than Ariel's. She rests her hands on her knees as she takes deep, panting breaths. Once she's got her breathing under control, she stands erect and takes a look around. "I think we lost it for a bit. Hold on..."
Her brows furrow as she seems to be searching for something in the darkness that only she can see. "Here we are... Let's see if this works." Her sword flashes as she makes two cuts in the air, and there's a kind of twanging feeling that comes from deep inside as if something that had been pulled taught is suddenly cut loose. "That should give us a bit of time. I just cut the threads of fate that tie us to the Eater. They'll... they'll reform, but I hope that it'll be confused."
Hunching forward, Ariel lets her hands brace on the black void that is the ground. Though she doesn't let herself collapse all the way. To relax truly even but a fraction in this place would be to invite disaster.
"Mn." Is her initial response as Takara severs the threads of Fate itself, but her lips purse. She need not be told they'll reform. Not while here, she can already tell that much. But it should buy them a little bit of time to breathe.
"M-maybe you can do it again when they reform," she suggests. "I don't like to think about being connected to that thing, but as long as we're here..." Ariel trails off as she pushes to her feet with a wobble. "I'm sorry. This was my idea, I shouldn't have dragged you in with me."
Takara wanders over to the unicorn and rests a steadying hand on her back. "It's okay," she says softly. "I'm not upset, or mad or anything. I wouldn't want to be here by myself either, and out of everybody who was willing to stay, I think bringing me was a smart choice," she chuckles dryly. "I'm used to living in the dark."
She scowls again, and starts unwrapping the red ribbon that runs up her arm, leaving it tied to her left wrist. "Here," she says, handing the other end over to Ariel. "Tie this to your wrist so we can't get separated. I just.... I just don't want either of us to lose each other in this mess."
A slight tension runs through Ariel as that hand sets on her back. But she doesn't shy away from it as she finds her balance after a moment and heaves a sigh. "I know. It's just. I miss everyone already." She murmurs, but takes the ribbon.
That's a good idea and she can't refute it, so she quickly ties it in a secure knot around her wrist as instructed.
"I know they're going to come back for us. I just hope it's sooner rather than later." She says as she starts trudging through the darkness again. "We should stay on the move. I can lay a few breadcrumbs to keep the Eater off of our trail, but I don't know for how long that'll work before it catches on."
Takara nods, and starts following Ariel through the dark. "Don't tire yourself out," she cautions. "We need to conserve as much energy as we can." There's a moment of silence. "Sorry for touching you without permission," she says meekly. "I always screw up that kind of thing."
Another moment of silence. "The thing that I'm most worried about is how they'll contact us to let us know when they're ready. I'm pretty sure I can find our way back. I can still sense the lifeline to my body, but it's pretty weak, but we need to know when to go back." A hint of worry touches her voice, "we have family to get back to."
"--No it's fine. Really, I'm okay." Ariel says after a beat. "My mother always told me only good people can touch a unicorn." She explains before pausing briefly in her tracks.
"I'm not worried about it." The little unicorn says matter of factly. "They will find us. It's just on us to hold out until they do. And that's what's keeping me going right now."
The legends must be true. Unicorns really do run on hopes and dreams, huh. The question is just how long that hope will last in this place of endless nightmare.
Takara nods in agreement, feeling reassured from Ariel's certainty. "Yeah. You're right. We've got enough on our plate to worry about that." She takes a deep breath, "They're a smart bunch. They'll figure something out soon, and we're tough. We'll be able to last longer than the Eater will think."
Takara stands up a little bit straighter. "I've faced it's shadow before. And won. And that was by myself and I didn't really know what I was doing at the time. Between you and me we'll be okay."
"I've never faced anything like it before." Ariel admits. "I've dealt with a lot of Nightmares but... Nothing like this. Nothing even comes close." She murmurs, cheeks puffing out. "Just... Just think of it as a bigger, scarier, Nightmare, and we'll get through this, right?"
Right.
It is a lot on their plate at the moment. "I'm not going to lie, I am a little tired. But I can keep going." Said with a shake of her head, glitterdust sloughing from her hair in a shimmery powder. "We just have to keep a step ahead of it."