"Dave?"
Nang magising si Cornelia, inaasahan niyang nasa tabi niya lang ang Dreamcaster. For some odd reason, they managed to fall asleep despite the monstrous sandstorm outside. Pero nang lumingon siya sa kanyang tabi, she found no one there.
In fact, she was left alone inside the marble house.
"Dave!"
Nang mapansin niyang nakabukas ang pinto, agad na tumayo ang dalaga at hinanap si Dave. Pero bumungad lang sa kanya ang abandonadong pamayanan na nababalutan ng buhangin. The artificial sunlight momentarily blinded her, but he wasn't anywhere in sight.
She was alone.
'Saan naman magpupunta 'yon?'
Cornelia's heart raced, not believing what's happening.
Nang bigla niyang naalala ang lason, she frantically searched for it. Horror struck her when she realized that it was also missing. Natataranta niyang hinanap sa sahig ang botilya. Baka naman aksidenteng nahulog sa sahig? No, but there weren't any signs of it anywhere.
Imposibleng mawala ang lason na 'yon dito, pwera na lang kung...
"You're awake."
Her eyes widened upon hearing his voice. Kabado siyang lumingon sa pinto kung saan nakasandal sa door frame ang lalaking kanina niya pa hinahanap. Dave was staring right at her, but the warmth left his eyes even though he was smiling. For a moment, she worried that he might hear her rapid heart beat.
'Paano kung...?'
"Dave---"
"Good. The sooner we get to the Black Desert, the sooner I can resume my responsibilities."
The tension in the atmosphere was too much.
Noong nauna nang naglakad papalayo si Dave, doon lang siya nakahinga nang maluwag. Pero sa mga sandaling ito, nanginginig pa rin ang mga kamay ni Cornelia sa kaba. A bitter smile graced her lips. It's funny how a few hours ago, they were wrapped in each other's embrace. Now, everything just went downhill, at mukhang mahihirapan na silang ibalik ang anumang tiwalang ibinigay nila sa isa't isa.
Dahil hindi siya maaaring magkamali...
Alam na ni Dave ang tungkol sa lasong dala niya.
---
BINABASA MO ANG
✔ Dreamcaster
Fantasy"I am a Dreamcaster." "But you don't have any dreams?" "Does it matter?" He challenged. She glared back. "It does." After his mentor's retirement, tuluyan nang pinandigan ni Dave ang kanyang mga responsibilidad bilang isang Dreamcaster. As someone w...