Chapter 9: The Dream
Shang sat with Yao, Ling and Chien-Po at dinner as usual. He didn't feel hungry; he was too preoccupied. But he numbly went through the motions of eating and going about his normal routine anyway.
His three friends and comrades could see how distraught and grief-stricken he was but there was nothing they could say and nothing they could do to help the situation.
Chien-Po merely told the captain that he was praying day and night for Chen's safety. Shang patted his shoulder in grateful acknowledgement.
Shang retired early once again, exhausted and wishing to be alone. His nights alternated between complete sleeplessness and deep, exhausted sleep. Fortunately, tonight was one of the latter nights. He practically fell into bed and sank into deep, oblivious slumber.
He began to stir before dawn as he thought he heard a voice in his room. He still felt sleepy and his eyelids felt too heavy to open.
"Shang."
Shang lay there, half-asleep still, his eyes remaining closed.
"Hmm?"
"Shang, wake up. I need to talk to you."
Shang turned onto his side, toward the voice, and his eyelids fluttered open. He blinked. The sun had just started to rise and the room was still dark. But he could make out what looked like the curved figure of a small dragon. He blinked again. The figure seemed to be coming toward him.
"Shang, Mulan needs your help."
"Mulan?" he repeated, blinking at the small outline of the figure that seemed to be talking to him.
"She is waiting in the forest. But there is more to this. There is a plot against the Emperor and you must get to her. She will explain the situation and her plan."
Shang's eyelids closed again. "I'm dreaming," he murmured.
"Look, it doesn't matter whether you're dreaming or not, Shang, this is a matter of life and death! There is more going on than you have been told by Captain Tang. You must get to Mulan. Follow the road toward the Henan province."
"The Henan province," he repeated.
"Yes. But stay off the road. There is an ambush set up there. Go through the forest on foot, staying off the paths. Be in full armor, but cover yourself with the long black cloak that I'm leaving for you. It is part of Mulan's plan. She's waiting for you in the forest there.
"I don't know if you will be able to see me, Shang, so I left clues for you. Look in the trees, but above eye level. I left a trail of small bright blue pieces of cloth in the leaves of the trees along the way between where she is and here. The cloth is from the dress that she was wearing at the banquet the other night. Okay, Shang? And the tree where she is waiting has an unusually thick trunk and thick branches. You must go as quickly as possible. Have you got all of that, Shang? Oh, please tell me you've got all of that."
"Yes," Shang mumbled. Then he drifted back into slumber.
Mushu groaned as he looked at the sleeping captain.
"Oh, man! I hope this works, Mulan," he muttered. "And I hope he remembers everything I just told him."
xxxxxx
The sun was almost risen when Shang woke again a short time later and he sat up blinking, remembering the strange dream he'd had of a voice in his room. The voice had been male and had known his name. And he had been dreaming of a figure of a small dragon in front of him.
He glanced around. The room was lighter now and his gaze fell on the desk in the room. There was a large piece of black cloth spread out over it. A cloak.
Shang stared at it in disbelief for a moment. He got out of bed and walked over to the desk, picking up the black cloak. He was sure it had been a dream. Who would have been in his room talking to him and leaving him this cloak? He remembered the outline of the small dragon. Had he been hallucinating?
"Maybe I'm going mad," he muttered to himself. It was certainly possible that he was going mad with grief and worry over Chen.
Still, there it was. The black cloak that the voice had mentioned. If that part was real, the rest of it must somehow be real, too.
He remembered the voice saying something about a plot against the Emperor. Something about Captain Tang. And Mulan. She knew something about what was going on. She was in the forest, along the road toward the Henan province. He remembered that. And that was where the rebel uprising was believed to be starting. As strange and unreal as this all seemed, somehow it made sense. And wherever she was he had to go to her.
He had to report to Captain Tang for the day. He decided he would leave after dark, when no one would see him.
He knew that he would be in trouble for leaving his post, and he knew that his duty to his country came first. But if it was true and there was a plot against the Emperor, then his duty was to try to find out about it and help to prevent it.
He was preoccupied the whole day, thinking about his dream and trying to remember the details. Something about blue cloth from Mulan's dress in the trees.
And that she knew what the situation was and already had a plan.
