Dreamwalker's Bride - Chapter 351

Chapter 351: Good news bad news
Mia didn’t linger to see how Ford would respond to her hug, but released him and scurried off to find the largest and heaviest rocks for her mission. Using her magic, she quickly located the most suitable things.

“Maybe if I can hit it directly, I’ll aggravate it enough to come to the edge side and stay away from…”

She murmured to herself as she gathered the items and settled them in place. By the time she finished, she looked across to see that Ford had made it safely back to the rest of her family. From his gestures, he appeared to be explaining the new plan.

Grandpa’s returning gestures implied some discussion of the finer points, while Anaisa and Daniel stood off to one side, apparently gathering more throwable things like Mia.

Wishing they had a better way of communicating, Mia waved both her arms at the pair, getting Daniel’s attention first before he pointed for Anaisa to look as well.

Mia held one finger aloft, then pointed towards Ford and the horses, then to the side of the water. Then she pointed to herself, her pile of white rocks, and the part of the water nearest to herself.

Holding two fingers up, she then traced the path Ford and the horse would take, and when she got close to the ending side, pointed to Anaisa and Daniel and to their pile of things, then to the water nearest to them, furthest from the end point.

Anaisa and Daniel appeared to have some discussion over the meaning of Mia’s cryptic movements, but then the boy spread his hands and bold words appeared in the air above him.

[YOU THROW FIRST, OVER THERE, WE THROW AFTER, OVER HERE?]

Mia beamed and gave a large thumbs up, to which the boy responded with a smile. Meanwhile, it seemed the discussion between Ford and Grandpa had been deciding which of the final four horses would go next.

Ford now held the reins of the mare Daniel had been riding. The gentlest and most obedient of the available animals had been given to the youngest member of their party.

It was a wise choice; she was least likely to panic. It might not be a terrible idea to leave the second pack horse behind them as those two creatures were the least used to trusting humans. Mia would suggest that the next chance she got.

As Ford prepared to move again, Mia felt her father’s presence beside her. He bent over to pick up one of the rocks, weighing it in his hands.

“Where is it now?” He asked softly, and Mia closed her eyes, searching for it. The pull was straight again, and her eyes scanned the water.

From this higher elevation it was easier to spot the creature once she knew where to look. Her eyes widened as she glimpsed its full outline.

The monster’s head appeared at least as wide as her body, but its length made it seem even larger. Its white scales made it difficult to perceive readily, but her eyes traced the long, long outline of its powerful tail.

Its legs were almost stubby by comparison; no wonder it had not tried to venture beyond the confines of the pool it occupied.

As the air cooled in the setting sun, the wisps of steam wafting off of the water became more prevalent, painting the scene in an eerie mist.

“There. It’s huge,” Mia pointed out the creature to her father.

“Are there any others?” His eyes looked. “More than one?”

Mia closed her eyes for a moment. Looking for another creature. A pull on her soul caused her heart to race.

She opened her eyes. Took a few steps towards the pull, towards the ledge of the shelf, and looked down.

And down.

Tossing the rock she had in her hand, she watched it fall into a pool some distance below. It plopped into the water, and almost immediately, a monstrous form disturbed the surface.

“Oh.” She murmured.

It was at least as large as the one they were currently in the process of passing. When it breached the surface of its pool, its maw frightened her, and it let out a roar of displeasure at being disturbed.

The deep sound chilled Mia’s heart. It was like the earth was groaning, so harsh was the sound of the monster’s ire. But that was nothing compared to several seconds later when several other voices joined in to the disturbance.

Mia couldn’t count how many. They blended and competed in such a way as to make her pulse stutter and her courage waver.

This whole journey had become more dangerous with each step. Was she leading her family like lambs to slaughter? Was her magic not being put to use to save Uncle Trace, but to cost the lives of everyone she loved?

Rapidly, she shifted through several adjectives, overusing her magic in her desperation for knowledge.

The biggest monster in the cliff formation, the smallest, the most dangerous, the nearest sleeping monster, the palest, the darkest, the meanest, taking note of the direction of each pull, trying to count the creatures, make some semblance of a mental radar for them. With each additional attempt, her heart grew a little more faint, from the exertion of her magic and the mental strain of the enormity of what the group faced.

Eventually she ran short of adjectives.

The highest?

She suddenly noticed her father was holding his hand aloft. A sign for Ford to hold in place… not that he needed it. The roar of the creatures had scared the group on the other side of the pool.

Since their own monster had not joined the call, they might not even realize what Mia had done. What she had discovered.

She swallowed her fear, and bent down to pick up another broken white stone, preparing for what must be done. The sooner the better.

“Mia?”

“Yes, Papa,” She noticed her hand quivered, and endeavored to hold still. “I have good news, and bad news.”