The Inconvenient Alliance

Chapter 6

Drake's POV:
We continue further at a slow pace, as the storm rolls in and the rain comes down harder the forest seems to be getting darker and darker. We stay close together and try not to trip over a random tree root sticking up out of the ground and fall into the wet grass as it's so hard to see anything now, there are merely the large ominous silhouettes of shadows of the trees and their branches that wave in the wind, creating shadowy movement on the ground. I admit I jumped a few times seeing the shadowy movement of the tree branches, beginning to think we are not completely alone in these woods after all. Still, I try to stay focused and continue to follow the odd feeling, the feeling of what I suspect to be one of "his" diamonds again. Maybe a few more minutes of walking, letting the magical presence of the diamond lure us to it and we come to a small hill with a ticket of bushes around it. Why would it lure us here? I would think and I pause to look around a bit, there has to be something here, something hidden perhaps, as we haven't even found the diamond yet. I hear Grayson speak to me, "Are you sure it's here?" I look back over at him and walk around the hill some, the aura from the diamond is definitely coming from inside of it somehow, perhaps a hidden cave is here. I respond to Grayson, "Yeah, I'm sure, I think there may be a cave around this hill somewhere, that or the diamond is buried in the ground here, which I'm hoping for the first option, to be honest." This rain is really starting to get to me, something about being half-enderman I guess, we hate water. "Maybe look around some, see if you can find anything, and call me if you do" I add in and continue to look around with no luck. I even discover these bushes have thorns and a few snag at my robes a couple of times. I also find some berries in them and know how to identify the edible ones as Grayson has taught me so many times before. I pick some off the bushes for later as I'm searching for this cave, I know Grayson really likes these berries and we could use them later on. I hear him call out to me suddenly, "Hey Drake! I think I found the entrance to a cavern!" I immediately run over to where I heard him and notice the small rocky entrance in the side of the hill that was well hidden by the bushes around it, "I see it, I'm getting inside before I get any more soaked from this rain." I have to crouch and avoid more thorny bushes to squeeze inside the entrance as it's small and awkward, Grayson even has a bit of trouble coming inside, but at least it's big enough inside for me to stand upright once we are in and it's drier in here than outside right now. I glance around, noticing it descends further into pitch-black darkness and I look over to Grayson who already has a lit lantern out. "Do you have a spare lantern I could use?" I ask him, "Yeah, here," he responds and takes another out of his backpack and hands it to me. "Want me to light it?" He asks me and I respond, "hmm let me try something first." I take it by the handle and put my hand in the center where the flame would be, after a moment of concentration it ignites in flame, I'm able to use some of my magic to light it and I quickly move my hand away from the flame before I burn myself. "You're getting good at that magic stuff." Grayson would say to me and I look over, "yeah, I guess so, some of it uses less mana than other, bigger spells, so I practice it sometimes when I don't have to use up too much mana." "Yeah, that makes sense, just save up enough so you can still teleport." He says to me and I would respond, "Believe me, I will." "Are you ready to see what's down there now?" He would ask now, as he looks down the dark descent ahead and I respond, "part of me is kind of dreading this and I have a really bad feeling, but yeah I'm ready" I would say back, and we both begin to descend into the darkness of the cavern with only two small lanterns as a light source.

Credits for the art goes to its respective owner(s).