He sat up.
The thick straw around him was filled with sweat. He shifted deeper into the straw. It enveloped him with a nice warmth and he closed his eyes. The straw stung his skin. His skin was clammy and his nails were filled with dark soil.
A realistic dream, full of reality, and nothing else.
He climbed out of the straw and walked outside. The flame still raged, near it sat the three of them. All of them slept near the fire. David blew on the embers and the white ash tore away from its place.
He clambered over to the now-awake Bernard. Bernard shivered in the cold and wet. Droplets fell from him as he stood. Bernard stifled a yawn.
"Near the afternoon, it seems. I'll be going to get some food from Denton", David asked.
"Okay"
David ran down the hill and jumped over the jutting rocks. He neared the forest, then stopped. The tent swayed with the wind, and billowing as the cold filled it up. He opened the flaps and ducked his head into the darkness.
"Denton?", David rubbed his eyes. Red dotted his vision, then faded away. He blinked and stumbled forward.
He heard no sound. Denton had gone. The bags lay clean of their contents. Empty of food, empty of water. He looked back. Behind him, footprints continued to Pnoaphales. They led away and into the forest. Further into the trail and up onto the mountain. Not climbing back down and into civilization, but Denton furthering without them, Denton had abandoned them.
Gone was Denton. Their friend had scrambled off with everything. Everything, except the money. David ran toward the others. The hardened mud cracked beneath him. His breath turned into fog.
"Denton's gone!", the others sat around the fire before sitting up. He scrambled over a boulder and ran to Bernard.
"He's run away, the bags are gone, everything. Further up the mountain, without us...", he caught his breath, "He's gone!"
Bernard looked at David, droplets fell down his face. He began to realize that it wasn't the rain, but sweat, running down from his forehead.
"Gone?", Darrell asked, "Gone?! Without us? What was this journey for then? What was it for!?"
Darrell stopped and sighed. A foot tapped the ground. He shifted. Bernard looked at the fire.
"Show me it", Darrell said.
David ran down the hill again. Bernard didn't follow. The grass parted around David's feet. He ran around the rocks and toward the tent.
Darrell jogged behind him. The tent arrived in their view and David ran inside. Then he ran out with the bags.
"The food and the water", David picked up the bags, "He left money, and other things."
"We'll have to find him and convince him to go back or stay" Darrell sighed, "Denton... Denton... Denton.... What've you done now?"
"There we go...", Darrell traced with a shaking finger on the skyline, "Over the trees, past that, onto Pnoaphales. It shouldn't take long. But soon we'll make it."
"Further up the trail then, and we'll make it", David pointed to the footprints, which zigzagged and stumbled past them.
"We can wait back home. We can sit and relax, never have to bear this journey to Pnoaphales. C'mon, let's pack up. Better we go back to town", Darrell replied.
"No", David pointed again, "Denton's stolen everything, and left us to journey for ourselves. And if we catch him today, we might never have to bear the sight of his corpse."
"Corpse? Denton's impervious to harm. Never had a scratch on him, I've seen."
"Why not your friend between you?"
"Well....No. Wait", Darrell nodded, "Let's go forward then. The faster we hurry; we can catch him. I don't want him to... get lost."
"Foward to Pnoaphales", David nodded.
They ran back. Bernard sat there with Osmond. The two of them talked. The fire blazed lively, wavering in the cold air, weak against the wind. Bernard huddled while Osmond talked.
"An example would be...", Osmond looked up, "What happened?"
"Denton ran off with everything", Darrell shivered in the cold.
"David says that we must go further"
"What about the path? And its danger?", Osmond asked.
"We can bear it. But only if we catch Denton in time. After that, we won't have to bear a single danger."
"If we become the fools we fear, then what'll happen?"
"We won't. The journey won't take long."
"Let's go forward. Catching Denton will be a hard thing. Like the slippery fish that he is", David pulled at his beard,"We might as well go forward."
Bernard watched him. He paid no attention to David. He sat occupied by something else.
"I can still see it, very bright, still there...", Bernard whispered.
"Bernard, what're you talking about?", David asked. Osmond looked at Bernard.
"It's fine, we were talking about dreams. He told me his, but he stopped and thought when you came"
"Dreams then? That's fine, that's fine", David pointed towards the looming mountain, "We must hurry, no regrets for now."
"We should go to the village, back, for a while. We'll get some rest.", Osmond stared at the shivering Bernard.
"No", Bernard stared at Osmond, "Denton..."
"Alright", David replied, and looked past them, onto Pnoaphales. "Let's go then"
"I'll pack up", Osmond said and walked away. Darrell followed behind him. Bernard sat near the fire and shivered as the wind made the fire waver.
David watched them go and sat near the blaze. The journey ahead awaited, the immortality he would gain. He'd walk home with bliss, with immortality in his hand, with time in his grasp. With everyone, the same. With life for all, and death for none. Then, his mind would soothe itself, and calm would overtake him. Worries about the plague, all gone. After the Prophet... After the Prophet.... But now he needed to find the Prophet. He shivered as the wind blew a cold gust towards him.
Ahead, going forward, to the Prophet.
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