Chapter 26 - Standing Ground

Tyra sat weeping in bed. Burying her face in the mattress upon which she slept, she wished and wished that Jude was there. Kysandra, the other person in her room, was awoken from the noise. Seeing Tyra crying on her bed, she walked over to comfort her.

"Tyra, what is wrong?" she asked, her voice more curious than comforting.

Tyra sat up, tears streaming down her face. She regained her composure and faced Kysandra.

"I had a dream last night," she said, her voice crackling from her sadness. "In it I saw my lost lover, Jude. He sat weeping on a rock on an island. I tried to comfort him. He looked into my eyes, and began speaking to me. 'Tyra,' he said, 'I am coming for you.'"

"He is coming for you?" asked Kysandra. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"He told me that he received a vision from our mentor and surrogate father from our camp, and that he told them that Krynn, Relik, and I were safe. He was also told how to find us, though he did not tell me how he planned to do it."

Kysandra looked at Tyra, her head filling with questions.

"What exactly do you think this means?" she asked, the question taking the most importance in her mind.

"I am not sure," said Tyra. "One side of my mind tells me it was only a dream, while the other side says that he is indeed coming for us."

"I do believe that he is coming," said Kysandra. "Dreams happen for a reason, Tyra, whether we know it or not. If you dream that someone told you something, then within their soul they are telling you that thing.

"We shall stay here, at this motel. It is in good condition, as is much of the area, and the Council should be able to find plenty of food. I will call a meeting to tell the others of this."

Both walked outside, and Kysandra walked from room to room, banging on the doors and calling for the inhabitants to come outside and hold a meeting.

In a few minutes the people were gathered around Kysandra, their expressions making it clear that they were curious as to why they were being called to a meeting before they had woken naturally.

Kysandra spoke to them. She told them of Tyra's dream, and what it means. "This dream is not just a dream. It is the bind between two souls. Jude's soul is restless in its search for Tyra, and so they will be joined again. This dream is a premonition: Jude is coming. We shall wait here until he arrives."

Hylik was the first to call out from the crowd.

"And just how do we know that this is not just another dream? How do we know that this was not just Tyra's desires manifesting?"

"This was no dream," called Tyra, addressing Hylik directly. "This was too real, and I could feel Jude's truth. We spoke to each other through dreams, it was not just me wishing to see him."

"And why should we trust this Jude? Three people know him, and we barely know them!"
Kysandra silenced him. "Tyra, Krynn, and Relik have all acted very responsibly and helped us an enormous amount. Had it not been for them, the Order of Vengeance would still stand."

"And why should we stay here? Shouldn't we travel more, as we decided just days ago?"

This time it was Relik who spoke. "We have no reason to travel. We do not know for what we seek. We travel aimlessly. This place has beds for all, and the area still lies safe. Food is sure to be plentiful."

Hylik's face turned red, and it looked like he was about to scream at the head of the council. He said nothing, however, and instead returned to his room.

The others murmured, though no others raised questions to the plan. They either agreed with Kysandra or with Hylik, or were indifferent.

The rest of the day was spent exploring the area for food. It appeared that a number of deer herds existed in the area, and if hunted correctly, could serve as a permanent food source - and it could easily hold out until Jude arrived.

The Free Council went to bed that night knowing that they would be spending time here, in this building, until their visitor arrived.