Dreamwalker's Bride - Chapter 345

Chapter 345: Sometimes I feel like a monster
“Ford,” Mia whispered softly, but he shook his head at her.

“I won’t risk anyone else until I know I can do it,” He explained. “That creature didn’t seem normal, and it might have a way of detecting me even when I’m hidden. I’ll need to make sure it’s doable before I risk other lives.”

“We can’t let you go alone,” Seth frowned, surprising Ford, but his mind was made up.

“It’ll waste time arguing. Wait here,” He said, shedding his shoes and socks. For his pants, there wasn’t much to be done depending on how deep the water actually wound up being, but his boots, at least, he could save for now.

“Be careful,” Mia whispered as he invoked his power.

Ford strode more confidently than he felt towards the edge of the water. There was every possibility, in his estimation, that he would still cause ripples as he moved through the pool. That motion might alert the monster, or monsters, to his presence. Was the creature hungry, or merely defensive of its territory?

Despite having legs, it hadn’t pursued them beyond the border of the water. Perhaps the air was too cold for it?

He gazed across the pond and just barely caught sight of two nostrils opening and closing before they dropped below the surface.

No time better than the present.

He stuck his hand in the water first, as he had before. A small test. He wouldn’t go out of his way to disturb the water, but he did need to know how likely it was that he’d be spotted.

Thinking about Mia’s powers, and how she directed them, Ford concentrated on remaining hidden specifically from that monster, and others like it. Whether that actually made any difference in how his powers manifested, he couldn’t tell.

Nothing came to devour him, at least.

He lifted one leg over the side, and then the other, sitting on the edge. The pool was slightly deeper than he’d thought, and as he dropped into it, the water rose to his waist.

Fleeing quickly would be all but impossible, should the need arise.

Carefully, he began to wade to the other side, towards the ramp that would let him walk out and up onto the next shelf. The hot water would feel heavenly to his aching body if not for the horrifying danger that lurked beneath the surface.

His gaze flickered between his destination and the last known location of the beast. The water did not seem disturbed, and his bare feet made their way through the white silt bottom of the pool slowly.

Since the water was deeper than he’d anticipated, the ramp up the far edge became all the more vital to making sure the horses would be able to make their way out, once in.

The incline was steep, but thankfully not slippery, and Ford scrambled up and out of the water, letting his magic dissipate as he turned to look back across the expanse he’d crossed.

The family was staring at him with a wide range of emotions varying from excitement to extreme worry. Mia’s face held a profound relief that made his heart thud a little. He raised a hand to wave before disappearing again and making his way back towards them, a little faster this time.

The monster was undisturbed, it seemed, or had no interest in him, for he passed uneventfully through the waist-deep water.

As he triumphantly emerged, he let a tired grin loose when he became visible again.

Grandpa clapped him on the back, and Seth let out a breath that was a little more anxious than Ford had expected. Mia looked nearly ready to cry, and Anaisa took his hand briefly with relief.

“You’re all right? No trouble?”

“It was all right,” Ford nodded. “The only part I’m not sure of is how to get the horses to agree to come.”

He and Mia had traveled through the forest for the course of a morning while cloaked without the horses seeming to care, but being led by an invisible person through dangerous waters seemed an entirely different matter.

“Same way you get them through a fire,” Grandpa shrugged. “Blindfold them first, and they have little choice but to go where they’re led.”

“So then, who’s first?” Ford didn’t like the idea of making so many trips across, but he was more confident in sustaining a lower level of magic than he was in keeping more people invisible for the required time.

“I am,” Seth jerked his chin upward slightly. “I’m the most disposable if things go wrong.”

“That’s just entirely untrue,” Anaisa said. “And I hate this concept of ‘disposability.’ None of you are disposable to me. I won’t kick up a fuss about what order we go in, but you mustn’t say things like that.”

“Fair enough,” Seth shrugged, turning back to Ford. “How do we do this, exactly?”

Ford glanced over the group. Six people, including himself, and eight horses.

“You and I will lead our horses across. You keep them on the other side once we’re across, and I’ll come back and bring another person and two more horses, repeating until everyone’s safe.”

“Can your magic last that long?” Seth searched the younger man’s eyes, and Ford sighed.

“I… I think so.”

He couldn’t say for certain, because he wasn’t sure exactly how long it would take.

“Then I’ll be last,” Grandpa volunteered. “If need be, I’ll camp on this side of things tonight and come across in the morning when your magic replenishes.”

Ford nodded, a little relieved that the pressure was lightened at least that much. Mia eyed him with mild concern.

“Do you have a grasp on when your magic is near its limit? It would be better to stop and rest than to faint midway across and leave yourself and someone else exposed to the monster.”

“Better than before,” Ford nodded. His nights in the forest staying invisible next to Mia had given him more of a feel for how the drain of magic felt.

He hoped it would be enough to get them all safely there.