Dreamwalker's Bride - Chapter 261

Chapter 261: Unsurprising threats
Mia’s heart sank. Denholm had her there. She wouldn’t risk her friend’s life for her stubbornness.

She glanced at Ford, who was glaring steadfastly at Denholm.

“Don’t do it, Mia. Don’t help the man.” He said.

“It will be all right,” She told Ford slowly, and turned away to lead deeper into the cave. “You said I’m to look for a tree?”

“Yes. And don’t try to fool me, I know where it is already. If you try to lead me on a wild goose chase, I’ll know.”

“So why have me look for it at all?” She pursed her lips. “Just go yourself. We’ll not get in your way.”

This entire journey had been a mistake. All of it. Ford might get murdered because of her impulsive quest to fill in her memories, to overcome her fear.

Denholm had certainly distracted her from her fear of the cave itself, she could say that for him. She hadn’t even thought about it until now that she was about to lead them deeper.

“You go ahead,” Denholm said. “Just in case.”

“In case of what?” Ford asked darkly.

“None of your business,” The older man snapped.

“Fine, I’ll go,” Mia tried to make peace between the two men. She didn’t know exactly what Denholm was afraid of, but she couldn’t stay here forever. The heat seemed to ebb and flow, but it was still very warm down here. She longed to be up at the cooler surface.

She decided to look for this alleged magical tree, and the pull began. She blinked in confusion at how very strong it was as she stepped into the large room.

In fact, it was no longer simply a vague pull in one direction, but a distinctive picture in her mind.

Mia gasped at the beauty.

The tree in her mind’s eye was beyond anything she’d ever seen, even in her cousin’s magical images or storybooks.

Golden branches, jewels for leaves. A larger, dead trunk surrounding its base, like when one of the trees in their grove had been struck by lightning and grown back from the roots. That was puzzling.

For a moment she was so overwhelmed by the sight that she froze in place. It was as real as if she were looking at it in front of her face. Absolutely clear, and with a path to it laid out before her. Every turn on the way, like a map inside her head.

“What’s happening?” She shivered slightly despite sweating. The power in the room was infectious.

“Stop stalling,” Denholm said a little nervously, with anger overlaying his words. “Go now. Don’t stop for anything.”

“You can’t just tell me not to stop,” Mia said vacantly. “I could trip or something… but I see the way.”

“If you see it, take it,” The man’s voice grew in volume. The ground shook, and it jolted Mia out of her stupor.

“More cave-ins?” She looked to Ford, and he shook his head in bewilderment. Panic began to build inside her.

She turned to look for a way out, and saw it clearly. The entire path they’d come down, ending with the exit at daylight. That gave her more comfort than she expected, and she took a deep breath.

Denholm brandished the blade at her again, and she jumped.

“Ford, do you need help walking?” She asked. He’d taken a nasty fall, and his leg might be hurt.

She hoped the question wouldn’t wound his pride, but Mia didn’t care half so much about that.

Ford hesitated.

“No. He can hobble along behind and act as a secondary distraction in case we need to run and leave him behind,” Denholm decided. “We’ll go first. Now get moving!”

Mia sent another look towards Ford and turned away. She didn’t have much choice, did she?

And so began the hike into the large room of the cave. Mia was absolutely certain she hadn’t been down here before, and yet, because of her vision, she knew each step of the path to get there. It all came into even sharper focus as she went along,

Each step seemed to clarify the image of the tree, the sharpness of the path. It was at the same time disorienting and grounding.

To know exactly where she was in the world, and what she was looking for. The secondary pull also became stronger. The tug towards Ford that she’d felt since meeting him became more keen, even though it never overwhelmed the primary search.

Trying to focus and ignore it for the sake of helping them survive, she put one foot in front of the other. The ambient light grew, but she paid no attention, so consumed was she with comparing each step to the ones in her mind’s eye.

Her magical vision was almost clearer than life; More well lit, with each turn laid out clearly, she was able to recognize rock formations even before the light hit them enough to see them normally.

“What is the light from?” She wondered aloud, and Denholm shushed her. Ford brought up the rear, but Denholm was walking her at a pace too quickly for him to quite keep up; probably to prevent him from being able to effectively attack Denholm from behind.

“Why must I be quiet?” Mia whispered this time. “What’s in here?”

She paused, and turned to Denholm. The path ahead was clear enough in her mind now from memory that she didn’t even have to actively look for the tree anymore.

“Just keep going,” Denholm growled, looking around suspiciously. “There’s no reason to stop here unless you’re stalling. I don’t like stalling, you’ve done too much of it already.”

“I’m asking a simple question. Is there any danger here I should be aware of?” Mia squinted at him, and receiving no answer, decided she would search for the danger herself.

Blinking her eyes shut for the barest second, the images that pummeled her mind nearly knocked her to her knees.

She saw dragons.