Chapter 2
There was a late night and the silver moon obscured partly by the layer of clouds was shining above forests. The slight wind was touching meadows which were humming their characteristic, monotonous rustle, while hooting of nocturnal birds were heard from a distance. Ruins standing on the hill, blackened by the night sky seemed darker and more monumental than by a day. The team of people gathered by the sulky fate were slowly awakening after the forced walk through the unknown dreamscapes. Alan Scott shook his cape from a grass and lightening the path with green light of the ring, he moved to search his companions. After a few steps he found Sakiko and Jessica. The first girl was sitting on the stone looking at stars glittering here and there through clouds. She was disorientated. Unconscious Jessica was lying by her feet. Alan approached young women. Sakiko reacted instinctively defending her companion. Scott lighted her face with the ring. The girl calmed down and slowly came up to him.
"I'm sorry. My senses didn't get used to this place. It's so different from my world. Full of life and at the same time so empty..." The girl said.
"My ring isn't able to categorize it also... what about her?" Alan pointed at Preview.
"She's all right. Her organism isn't recuperating as quickly as mine..."
"What about the rest of us?"
"I feel all of them. They're alive... They are nearby, but they didn't wake up". Black-haired girl announced dispassionately. In other part of the forest clearing Mint was kneeling by unconscious Narea. Her face expressed concern for the life of the companion. She rested her hands on her breast and immediately a delicate lighting appeared around her. Elf girl started reciting spell in her ancient ancestors language. Narea moved and opened her eyes.
"So warm, pleasant..." She whispered. Mint was glad that her healing charm had worked. After a few moment Matts loomed from bushes into the view. Illumination of elf girl brought him to the place in which girls stayed.
"Are you in one piece? Don't you know what happened to the rest?" He asked shaking off from leaves.
"No. Only we are here..." Mint answered coming up to him.
"I'm completely disorientated. The life of this World is so different from my Forest. I'm not able to ask protective spirits of trees and meadows to show me where I'm supposed to search our team".
"Don't be upset girl, can you see this green flash in the distance?" The boy pointed his finger at the place where the lighting appeared.
"It's certainly this older guy in the cape. Let us walk to him!" Elf came up to the priestess raising her from the earth.
"Can you go?" She asked with worry in the voice.
"Yes, I'm fine... thank you for everything". Three of them moved in the direction of the signal of Alan Scott's ring. After a few minutes of the road they met with the second group. Jessica was conscious and she was coming to her senses sitting on the stone. Matts quickly came up to her.
"Are you in one piece?" She asked.
"I'm feeling as if I was in thousands of pieces. I have a headache... I cannot concentrate on anything..."
"Somebody is missing..." Narea announced looking all around.
"Rann and Morpheus and his helpers." Sakiko replied.
"Nice, the one who caused all of this disappeared!"
"Wait, somebody is approaching!" Green Lantern warned them pointing the ring at the figure moving in the shadows. As it turned out the stranger was Rann Shaner.
"We have a big trouble! Walk with me!" The man screamed showing stone ruins in the distance.
"What happened?" GL asked.
"Some strange man is gearing himself up to kill Morpheus!"
The team quickly arrived at the foot of the destroyed temple. The tall man with long hair as purple as the night, dressed in the flimsy, dark dress was standing on one of rocks. In one hand he was holding robes of the unconscious Master of Dreams and the second one prepared to give him the death blow. His eyes were full of hate, frenzy and unhealthy desire.
"What are we doing?" Jessica asked.
"We must help him..." Alan replied.
"But how, if this guy defeated the being with the divine power?" Sakiko asked rhetorically. In the same moment in heads of everyone sounded words of Master of Dreams.
"Don't be afraid. Fallax is a false god who was forgotten ages ago. The Awakening unnaturally restored him to life. Fallax has the power over my body only because she gave him the soul of his own dream, part of my land. And every dream is a fragment of me. He does not have such a strong power over you. Attack now, as long as he still has not regained the total control over the newly given life."
"You heard the guy!" Matts shouted.
"Loud and clear!" Alan added. He produced the bundle of green light which was formed into huge hand. Using its help, he shook Morpheus out of the hug of the angry god and moved him into the safe place.
"Who dares to disturb my peace!" Fallax jumped down from the stone. He noticed six persons standing before him. Scott attacked him with the stream of green fire but the man defended himself producing the protective magic shield. Narea took glistening, blue, sharp crystal out of her bag. Reciting the invocation, she threw it at the opponent. The shield fell apart into small pieces after contact with the magic item. Furious Fallax started throwing energy discharges at members of the team.
"If only he stopped..." Rann said.
"It can be done!" Mint informed and her body glowed with white light. Two huge roots materialized under feet of the man. They wrapped up around his legs, effectively immobilizing him. Shanner touched panels on his glove and he pointed it at Fallax. Body of long-haired man was paralyzed by the strong electric charge.
"Time to finish him!" Sakiko announced with unnaturally sounding voice. Vampire teeth fleshed in her mouth and her eyes became red. The girl jumped to the stunned opponent and slapped him in the face using entire power accessible to her. Fallax was thrown toward the monolith and hit it very heavily. The stone glowed with blue color and shattered to pieces, burying the evil god under itself. After a moment, Corinthian holding big knife in his hand appeared out from nowhere. His eyes hidden behind the sunglasses looked at Jessica and Matts who were holding the seriously injured King of Dreams.
"Take him farthest from this place. Travelling so close to the woken up dream influences destructively on his human avatar. You who have the power, escape from here also..." When everyone walked away in order to protect the only person who was able to get them back home, Corinthian moved in the direction of the smashed obelisk.
"And what about you?" Alan asked.
"I have one more thing to do". The man replied smiling ominously. Green Lantern was looking at his direction, but when the living nightmare disappeared in the black of the night, Alan rose above the meadow and joined his companions going down the hill. Corinthian bent over Fallax lying in the rubble. He raised his head by hair and put the blade of the knife on it.
"Eyes of the god... I have always been interested how such a being sees the world..." He laughed loudly, disturbing the peace hanging above the entire land.
The group walked away to the nearby forest. Under crowns of numerous trees, the black of the night seemed even blacker than on the extensive hills around the temple. Each member of the team felt relax and lack of irritation which accompanied them in the vicinity of ruins, where they had a fight with their first opponent. Mint was the happiest from everyone, because the tangle in which she was, reminded her of her house, the Forest. Girl not waiting for others collected dry branches lying close by and prepared the bonfire. Everyone sat down on stones and fat roots of trees sticking out of the earth. They were looking with a concern at Morpheus who was slowly regaining consciousness and the power over his body. Elf girl kneeled at him with the intention of healing him, but the man stopped her hand.
"Don't do it, child of the Forest. You are exhausted and the magic cultivated by your people for centuries isn't able to fathom out secrets of the being belonging to the Endless family". Mint sat down on the rotten stump of the fallen tree. The group were looking at the burning flame of the bonfire in a silence. Mats Sunder first lost the patience. He stood up in front of the Master of dreaming.
"Will you finally explain us where we are? How we get here and who was this guy who attacked us? And most important... when the hell will we get back home?"
"I also want to know answers to these questions." Rann Shaner added.
"We all want." Jessica finished.
"You are very impatient and it can be a cause of your defeat. But this is a nature of beings, whose life is only a brief lapse in the eternity. You were gathered together, because you heard my call. It was your fate to go on a journey to my land and to face up with the Awakening there. It is your task now, but the fate complicated the road for you. Our enemy acted more quickly than we expected. Exploiting the power coming from the dream of the false god, it stopped our journey expelling us from the Dreaming. We are not able to come back the same road we arrived here, because it does not exist anymore, turned by the Awakening into Devourers created from the nothingness of Dreams. Answering your first question Mats Sunder, we are in Alaria, the world which was vibrant with a magic at one time. Unfortunately the short-sightedness of beings living here led to the disaster after which all magic was destroyed and forbidden forever. Fallax who we met, was one of ancient priests of the magic who reached the divinity. He was one of the ones who brought the annihilation to this world ages ago and who was put to sleep so that the tragedy never happens again. But now the Awakening gave him the second chance. Probably not for free, because prices of this being are high.
"But we defeated him, right?" Sakiko asked.
"Yes, temporarily... and my servant probably made him something you do not even want to know about. But he will never be defeated, if we do not remove the brand of the Awakening from this world, I cannot answer your final question..."
"Namely we're imprisoned here?" Black-haired girl continued.
"The road by which we arrived here was irretrievably destroyed. My old acquaintance, last of magi from this land can give us the only possibility of the return. Finding him can be very difficult or maybe impossible..."
"But we have to try. Right away." Sunder announced.
"The journey is long and you are exhausted. You must spend a night on the rest. Tomorrow we will set off farther. There are still many things concerning the world in which you are that you must know ".
Meanwhile the couple from the tavern was looking around at the foot of the ancient temple. The girl kneeled by the smashed stone looking at tracks of the blood shimmering with colors.
"They had a fight, they must be nearby..." She said.
"However they didn't emerge victorious. Their opponent lives, although he will be curing himself of sustained wounds."
"Yes... Are we supposed to search him?"
"No, we are worn out. We must move to seek accommodation". The bearded man decided.
"As you wish". Black-haired girl answered.
Jessica was standing in the middle of the little forest clearing looking at the sky on which myriads of stars gathered into the fanciful shimmering constellations, completely different from the ones which the girl knew from her own experience. Matts came up to her.
"It's magnificent, don't you think?"
"Yes, I just recalled one chat with my friend..."
"In my world the night sky is dark and boring. The lighting of the city in which I live doesn't allow to see stars" The boy announced.
"Exactly... but where I come from, sky isn't as beautifully as here even in the complete remote place far from the city. Here it looks like the entire sky is singing some magic song by its light. I would like to sink in it..." black-haired girl replied.
"Yes... I know what you feel..."
Jessica closed her eyes and suddenly her mind was flooded by the vision. She was alone amongst stars forming the Milky Way on which the man with hair tied in a pony tail and holding a bundle was travelling. The girl quickly shook the hallucination off.
"What is with you? Your mind was somewhere a long way from here..."
"How to explain you... you know, I'm having visions of things which are supposed to come. I saw some guy with the bundle.."
"With the bundle? With red hair tied in a pony tail? Damn it! I've been dreaming of this guy since childhood..."
"Perhaps we'd better lie down to sleep. I'm feeling strange". Preview announced quickly going to the place where the bonfire was burning. The boy moved after her.
Rann was sitting on the big stone. He was touching keys on his glove and the hologram showing stars of the universe from which the black-haired man came appeared before him. Alan Scott was looking at the visualization with the interest.
"Is it the star system from which you come?"
"Yes. It's the part of the Galaxy we know. I'm trying to determine our place... in a vain. Local stars don't resemble what I have in the memory of the computer. Values of correlation are exactly like for the random noise, zero probabilities of coming across the familiar region of the space".
"It means that we're farther, than you suppose".
"Exactly... we are in the Uncharted Territories or in some distant Galaxy".
"There is one more possibility.." Lantern replied raising his ring. After a moment the visualization of the map of the Universe drawn up by ring appeared. The computer inside of the ring wasn't able to categorize the sky above heads of men to some sectors of space in its memory. After a moment Alan ordered the ring to compare maps: its own and belonging to Shaner, without success, because the computer hasn't found resemblance other than resulting from the random configurations of stars once again.
"... which is more and more probable.. We are in completely different reality".
"And what is happening is far bigger than us..." Rann completed.
Narea, Mint and Sakiko were sitting at the bonfire. Elf was feeling the best, because the closeness of trees gave her power to live. The girl told Narea about the event that brought her to the place. Black-haired girl was surprised by the resemblance of friend's story to her own, coming from completely different world. Sakiko was sitting in a silence, embracing herself by arms. She was very pale and shivers were shaking her body. She was looking at dancing flames trying to focus on them her entire attention. After the certain time Narea and Mint lay down to sleep in the bonfire's vicinity. The female vampire didn't join them. Elf noticed that the girl was shaking with cold.
"Sakiko... Are you feeling bad?" She asked.
"Yes, but don't be upset with me. You must get enough sleep".
"But you're shivering. If you are cold, come up to us. Together we'll warm ourselves up..."
"No! I don't want! I'll manage somehow!" The girl answered with an effort.
"You don't look healthy..." Mint wanted to come to her.
"I'm fine, really!" Sakiko got up and move a few steps away from girls.
"Maybe my treatment can help you?"
"No! Go to sleep... I... I'd better go from here... I must... move away... quickly..." Sakiko quickly left the bonfire and she disappeared in nearby thickets. When she walked away from the camp she stopped. She was unusually pale, she was breathing with difficulty.
"Hunger... so strong... because of the contact with this Fallax..." After a moment of peace she moved farther. She knew very well, that if she traveled close to her companions she could become a threat for them. She was waiting for the end of the night in the complete loneliness.
The consecutive day began for the squad very early. They had to be on legs right after the appearance of the sun above the horizon, since a long way to the city awaited them. The Dream lord wanted to gather everyone together around himself, because he had to tell them important details about the world. Sakiko was nowhere to be seen. Mint and Narea tried to track her down without a success. She didn't come back to the camp and Morpheus sent raven Matthew to look for her.
"We must reach the city today. Then I will be able to uncover how I can find a friend of mine I knew a long time ago. As I recalled, the world in which we are carry huge scars which the magic set on it centuries ago. Everything that was magical was destroyed by its inhabitants and if anything new, carrying the magic turns up in it now, it will also be detected and removed forever. It concerns also you" He pointed his finger at Mint and Narea.
"Hide your crystal deep, Guardian of the Garden. And you, you cannot show your ears, Child of the Forest". Elf girl touched the pointed ear. She corrected hair.
"You also, Green Lantern from the Earth, you must hide your ring. Even if it isn't a sign of the magic, by inhabitants of this world can and will be recognized as such. It also concerns your technology Rann Shaner". Matts prodded Jessica.
"Probably we're the only ones here who can feel safe". He announced.
"Yes... but when they learn about my visions..."
"Or about my dreams. They'll burn us on stakes". The girl laughed.
"Don't waste time for unnecessary jokes". Lord Morpheus said.
"And how can you appear in the city? With the paleness, in these black garments..." Matts asked.
"My appearance is dependent on who is observing. The one who does not want the magic in his life he will not see makings of it in my person." Morpheus explained.
"Useful ability..." The boy commented.
"This path will lead you to the main route to the small town. Do not turn aside from it because in these thick forests it is possible to get lost easily." Dream advised the team.
"And you, Master of Dreams?" Alan Scott asked.
"I must seek out and get the last of you." Morpheus replied disappearing behind the huge oak. "Sakiko..." Mint whispered.
Dream reached the edge of the precipice. He looked at the forest stretching out below expecting his messenger back. He extended a hand sensing that the black bird will appear in a minute. Matthew rushed out from bushes and sat down on the hand of his man.
"Did you track her down Matthew?"
"Yes... but my words aren't getting through to her. She's standing over the chasm, She's ignoring me, she doesn't want to return".
"In that case I have to personally meet with her." The master of dreams replied and he headed quietly like the morning fog in the direction shown him by Mathew. Sakiko was standing on the edge of the precipice and the wind was blowing her hair behind which she hid her face. Lord Morpheus approached her with a saunter. The girl didn't turn around, she clenched fists.
"You'd better not come up to me at the moment. I'm on hunger and it can end for you badly". Dream moved the hand toward the girl.
"The coating which you can see is only a manifestation of concepts rooted in the awareness of the living beings of the Universe. There is not even a drop of substance which you desire now in this body". The female vampire hesitated, but in the end, she broke and turned away to the black-haired man.
"Indeed... I smell nothing." She wiped tears flowing down her cheek.
"What are you doing here alone, on the edge of the land? It's time to move forward". Dream asked.
"I'm thinking whether to finish my journey here. Once and forever".
"The mission was given to you, do you want to resign from it?"
"You're a god, or something similar and you can't see who I really am? I'm a threat to your squad! I'm threat for the mission and everyone who is unfortunate to be in my companion! Did you know what happened, when I felt hunger! I really wanted to cut the throat of some of these girls. I'm a monster and it should lie in your business to be as far away from me as possible!"
"You are the important person in the future of lands. Therefore you heard my call".
"And you're a bloody egoist". The irritated girl replied.
"You are describing yourself". The Master of Dreams said calmly. Sakiko went quiet.
"I know the truth about you and your psyche. The truth you are afraid to accept. You are afraid to tell them the truth about who you are, you think that they will turn away from you and they will start to hate you. You are afraid of a solitude in which you stride every day. Cannot you see that they all are also hiding the darkness in their souls? Rann Shanner did things of which you did not dream in the worst nightmares and the maltreated Jessica Vale's psyche was the largest power in the Universe some time ago. And what you did in your life Sakiko?"
"Before I was... bitten... I lived as an ordinary girl".
"And after your transformation?"
"I'm spending life at night hunting beings which are threatening innocent people".
"And do you consider yourself a monster because of that? Do you think that your journey does not make sense? Do you think that you should finish it?" Black-haired didn't know how to answer.
"Think what would happen if you chose the death when you learnt about your transformation. How many persons would suffer, when nobody came to their rescue?"
"Ok, you proved your arguments. And I'm feeling better. I'll come back with you to the team. But under one condition".
"What is your condition, Sakiko Hayasu?"
"If I'm a threat to anybody from the team, you will kill me without hesitation".
"I promise, Sakiko Hayasu". The Morpheus moved toward the route. Sakiko followed him. They both joined the rest of the group soon. Mint and Narea seeing approaching Sakiko were glad. Alan Scott was nowhere to be seen, but Corinthian returned to the group. Green Lantern appeared above the forest, surrounded with green flame. He slowly descended on the route.
"The buildings are close by, but we cannot travel in such clothes".
Alan lifted the hand above the head, the green flame engulfed his uniform and the body. The dress of the man was replaced by plain brown trousers and the brown shirt. Green glitter grew dim.
"I can do such a trick for myself, but keeping the illusion for all of you would be too energy-intensive for the ring". Corinthian came out.
"Since there are buildings close by, we can find the pair of clothes for all of us". He suggested.
"And won't your appearance be arousing suspicions?"
"I am, similarly to my lord, a dream. People can see in me only what they want to see". Alan turned to the others.
"We'll go with Corinthian to the village for some clothes. Then we'll be able to continue our travel".
"Very well, Alan Scott. Safe journey". Morpheus said.
"I hope that I won't have to dress anything dirty and with fleas." Jessica said.
"Every vermin is killed in the brilliance of black crystal. We deal with dirt in robes in our church this way." Narea announced.
"Ok, I'll take this crystal from you".
Green Lantern and Corinthian was walking along the road surrounded by plains covered with grass. Barking of the dog was heard from a distance which meant that the village about which Alan Scott had spoken was nearby. Men didn't talk with themselves. Green Lantern had been looking at his companion every couple of minutes. A strange smile stuck to the Corinthian's face puzzled him.
"One case is puzzling me..." He asked.
"What?"
"What happened after we had left you one-on-one with Falax?"
"Better don't know about it".
"Namely, did you kill him?"
"No, there was no benefit in it... he is marked by the Awakening. We don't know what could be triggered in him after the death. He could come back even more powerful. I hurt him in other way". "And I don't want to know how?"
"So... but thanks to him I saw the world with the eyes of the god". Corinthian finished mending black glasses and smiling more widely. Alan wanted to learn more, but the man hushed him up.
"Somebody is approaching".
"Welcome!" The bald bearded man going along the road cried out.
"Welcome." Alan answered.
"Your faces are not familiar to me, wanderers. What does invite you to our surroundings?"
"We are... we are merchants..."
"Strange... Are you merchants and you don't have goods with yourselves? Where are your carts? What are you selling?"
"We... Our caravan was attacked. We managed to escape. They took our goods away from us". Alan quickly found the reply to his question.
"Robbers in these surroundings? It's so bad recently. When old Zibo from the Tower was looking after us it was much calmer here. But he was taken out by Guards and then he died in the iron maiden, poor man". Bearded man stopped talking as if he was afraid of something.
"But of course, he deserved it. In the end he was practicing the magic, the old fossil". He added after a moment with an unnatural vote.
"I invite you to our inn... tell the owner, that old Tomus is sending you. He'll certainly give you both the beverage and the space for the rest after adventures".
"Thank you, you're a really good person". Green Lantern answered.
"Be well!" The bearded man moved farther in his own direction.
"We're setting off to the village". Alan informed Corinthian.
"We go to the bar". Corinthian was irritated.
"Not now. We must find a way to pay them for the shelter. We won't be lying to these people again. They are so nice for us".
"In that case we won't go far in our mission".
"Principles which we cannot break exist, even if this world isn't ours and it's ruled by other laws". irritated Alan announced.
"If you think so, this Awakening will win and the following morning we'll wake up in a world without the rules."
Alan quickened the pace, he refused to talk with Corinthian. The nightmare smiled more widely mending his glasses.
"You irritate me grandpa." He said to himself.
"I will know how it is to look at the world with the eyes overfilled with the Green Flame". He added in thoughts licking his lips. After a dozen minutes of the travel men reached the little village. Wooden houses amongst which men, women and children were bustling about, were standing along muddied streets. The normal life lasted in the settlements undisturbed with outside problems. People stopped working seeing travelers from other part of the land. Fat women smiled to them with toothless mouths and small children followed their step.
"They're looking at us as if they've never seen anybody beside their neighbors." Alan said.
"They think that we have some goods with ourselves, most probably merchants visit these surroundings not very often".
"In my world such a greeting isn't common". Green Lantern replied.
"Who said that what we can see was is a greeting? Appearances can be deceptive. A tribe exists in the Taar land which accepts every traveler to the feast, they serve drinks and victuals dearest to them, only to kill them like pigs after five days and eat them in honor of the god which they believe in. Groups living in town-islands on Kurios never release their guests, since they believe that with their departure souls of their ancestors thanks to which town-islands float on the surface of over-ocean would escape. Desert people from Maronis lure travelers by houses of debaucheries and later sell them to hunters of the bone marrow paddling in hot sand. In this way they avoid their invasion on their own cities..."
"All right! I know what you wanted to say. I'm vigilant all the time, but I don't think that we are threatened by some danger coming from hands of these people".
"I'm having high hopes that we are..." Corinthian replied looking into big, blue eyes of little girl going by him. Both men accessed deep into the village and they were on little marketplace. The place was exceptionally crowded, noisy and dirty. Peasants searching for various products were walking all around and fat sellers were outshouting one another trying to encourage people to buy their products. Children dressed in old stripped off clothing were chasing one another all over the entire square throwing stones at themselves and spitting on each other. Man with black moustache was driving them off his shop with a stick, swearing and getting red-faced with an anger. Alan went to the place in which clothes were being sold and his companion was looking from under the sunglasses at faces of children smeared with mud observing him with an interest. At some point Green Lantern stopped pointing his finger at market placed deep inside the square in which two older women were selling clothes. Sellers smiled at the sight of new clients coming up to them and immediately they approached them starting touting their goods. Alan calmly inspected all offered clothes. There was nothing special in them, they all looked the same - weak quality fabric and additives of animal leather here and there. The man politely asked how much he had to pay for 6 pieces of the plainest trousers and shirts, but when he heard the price, the nightmare in the human skin interrupted his conversation. He showed the women his empty hand and they rapidly came to him taking the non-existent moneybag with a gold from him with a distinct joy. Smiling widely to women and then to Green Lantern, the man took clothes and he started walking away from the department in order to be outside the marketplace as soon as possible. Scott followed him, being clearly dissatisfied. When Corinthian ignored his words, he got his hands on his shoulder trying to stop him. In the same moment the nightmare gave him a look of pure hatred.
"Take this hand, or else you will lose it!" He shouted upset.
"What did you do to these women?" Alan asked with a raised vote.
"I gave them what they had dreamt of in that moment!" Corinthain replied euphorically.
"You gave them nothing! You cheated them!"
"I gave them the dream which they can touch. There is no difference between dreams and reality for me. They will be dreaming, that they have the moneybag with a gold to the end of their days, they should be grateful to me. And apart from that, how was we supposed to get these clothes?"
"We don't act this way! It's not important where we are, we don't act this way!" Alan filled himself with an anger, he grasped the shirt of the man and he hit the wall of the old, wooden cottage standing close by with him. The ring on his hand shone with a green flame. Corinthian didn't say a word, but a broad smile didn't disappear from his face. After the short time Green Lantern calmed down and he let his companion go.
"Let us come back to the group." He announced and quickened the pace in order not to travel in the close company of Corinthian. The nightmare was looking at the man with contentment, simultaneously noticing something in the darkness between two wooden cottages. Some short, bald man with big nose and round bulging eyes was standing there. His face expressed fear, concern and simultaneously fascination.
"Magic... magic..." The stranger whispered having glitter of the green flame which got out of the ring of the man a few minutes in his thought.
Meanwhile in the completely different time and place the older woman which accompanied Sakiko during the beginning of her journey, reached to the round forest clearing in the middle which the statue as black as the night rising above tips of trees growing around all stood.
"You won't go farther, I won't let you!" A booming voice reaching from the statue and from everywhere around sounded.
"I will find him, because it is a unique chance for reality!" announced the older woman.