Dreams or Reality?

Chapter 34: The Second & Third Reality

CHAPTER 34: The Second & Third Reality

The canyon below the cliff yawned unforgivingly before me.

Falling off this cliff would kill me, I had no doubts about that. I turned my head ever so slightly to look behind me, knowing what I'd see but not wanting to see it. In the distance, I could see something rushing towards me and into each other, as if at war. It was obvious they were coming towards me.

To kill me?

I couldn't tell whether they were friend or foe.

In front of me was a vertical ride to death. Peering down, I could make out the a ribbon of blue and clumps of gray in the dirt. One step and all this would be over.

No more Serquin, no more magic, no more drama, no more anything.

Those thoughts aren't mine.

Someone else's thoughts had been eclipsing mine, blocking out rationality and thoughts of my friends, family and Demetri. It didn't take a genius to figure out they were Serquin trying to kill me. Strange... I thought he wanted me alive.

Glancing at my feet I could see one was hanging out in the air over the drop to my doom. I could feel my eyes widen as I realized I couldn't get my foot to move back to safety.I didn't have control over it.

But that wasn't even what scared me most. This was my dream. Worst, it was the second dream that had become alive before my eyes, and I had no control over it.

I tried to scream in terror, frustration and exasperation but my mouth wouldn't open. I could practically hear my ghost-self from the dream screaming at me to stop. I had to stop. I had to. I had to save myself as well but this wasn't exactly easy.

If I didn't save myself my friends could become Serquin's prisoners forever. What do I do then? No, I couldn't let that happen.

Whatever had the grip on me broke. I was in control of my body again but the change was so sudden and unexpected that I pitched forward, my weight going to the foot hanging in nothingness.

I leaned back as far as I could and put all my weight on my back foot, it looked like I might be safe.

Until an invisible force pushed me from behind and I fell forwards anyway, free-falling off the cliff.

I screamed as I fell, my brain had no clear thoughts. Despite that I tried to think, what can I do? But the ground was rushing forwards to quickly and it looked like I might die here, now.

I don't wanna die! I don't, I don't, I don't!

And then I hit something hard and was flying backwards through the air, up, instead of down. I bounced twice more before managing to come to a stop.

I was sprawled on top of a black trampoline hanging in mid-air, feet away from hitting the ground. I tried to figure out who was controlling the trampoline because it sure as hell wasn't me. I searched through my mind and the magic surrounding the trampoline until a face came up.

Demetri.

I relaxed a little and let the trampoline move upwards. Ok, maybe I didn't relax at all, I had just fallen off a cliff, now two dreams had become realities and I was trying to disguise how hard I was shaking. I was nowhere near relaxed.

When the trampoline finally reached the top of the cliff I could see that only Demetri was standing there. I let him pull me onto the cliff and watched as the trampoline disappeared."Where is everyone?" I asked, at last.

"Serquin decided it'd be more fun to split everyone up, individual challenges," Demetri told me and I felt a wave of shock ripple through me. If these challenges were anything like the first few, they weren't going to make it all the way to the end.