Wild

chapter 3

Dream groaned tiredly and buried his face deeper into the soft wool he was sleeping in, cursing whatever woke him from his comfortable nap. He laid there for several moments as his foggy mind tried to figure out why he was awake. He couldn't hear anything that would have woken him up, not even the birds singing could be heard.

Dream jolted upright, eyes wide when his mind finally released the problem. Quiet….It was too quiet. He'd been sleeping to the sounds of hooves clicking and the occasional neighing for an hour and now it was quiet, no more hooves clicking or even the sounds of nature's ambiance. That meant he'd definitely slept through his plan of slipping away when the mule stopped moving. “Alright gonna improvise” he muttered to himself as he pulled himself away from the wool, making sure to grab his bag. He was all too aware of how bare his face felt without his mask and it was making this situation ten times more nerve wracking than it should be.

He looked up towards where he remembered the chest latch being and sighed in relief seeing a small ray of light shining through. Either he didn't close it all the way or it got jostled enough in the ride to open, either way was a win for him. Dream pulled out his grapple hook and looked up, trying to gage the distance he'd have to throw it without hitting the lid. He couldn't afford any extra noise right now, he still wasn't sure where the human was. Biting his lip nervously, Dream started swinging the metal hook. He didn't spin it as strong as he normally would, hoping that would make it be a bit more gentle. He waited until he felt the perfect moment before letting go of the hook and watching it soar upwards towards the latch.

Dream cringed back when the hook missed the latch completely and came flying back down at him. He quickly reached out and caught the hook, thanking himself for the many years of practice he put himself through to do that. The borrower once again started swinging the hook, focusing more on accuracy this time. He let the fast spinning hook loose again and heard it whistle through the air towards the latch.

This time the hook actually did catch the latch, making Dream let out a quiet sigh of relief. He tugged on the rope a few times to make sure it was secure before walking over to the wall. He heaved himself up and planted his feet firmly on the wall to use it to climb. Of course that move harshly reminded him of his fractured rib, making it send bright hot flares of pain through his chest. He lost his grip on the rope and fell the short distance to the ground, landing with a thump that knocked the breath out of him.

Dream wheezed trying to get air back into his lungs, still feeling the dull ache in his chest. “Well that was a shit idea” he wheezed out as his breathing came back. He laid there letting the pain fade away until he could ignore it, only then letting himself slowly sit up. He gingerly climbed to his feet and walked over to the rope. “Alright take two” he grimaced, picking the rope up again. This time he was expecting the flare of pain when he pulled himself up the rope, that way he didn't lose his grip, only grinding his teeth at the pain.

Slowly and painfully Dream pulled himself up the rope, gasping every time his rib disagreed with his movements. but finally after what seemed like hours of the endless climbing he made it to the top, heaving himself over the gap between the slightly ajar lid and the chest. He laid there on his back as he unhooked the fish hook, slowly reeling it back in. Once he had it collected he leaned over the other side, on the outside of the chest.

Dream's hands with the rope froze when his eyes landed on his surroundings, stunned by the foreign sight. An endless sea of polished dark wood floors stretched out as far as he could see, he could even see deep scratches and worn down spots in the wood everywhere. The walls that seemed impossibly tall rose from the ground to connect with giant rafters running along the roof. And tucked away against the walls and in the corners were all sorts of furniture, like a wooden cabinet that stood proudly against the wall, tall enough to reach the rafters. Or the short table sitting on a soft carpet in the corner of the room, and an equally soft couch of a deep blue color sitting next to the table. He could see an entryway into another conjoined room but couldn't see where it led from his vantage point. But against what logic said, the giant empty spaces that towered over Dream didn't give off the hollow and cold feeling you'd expect with such space. It gave off a warm feeling, like a hollow dug out in the heart of winter shielding its residents...it felt familiar. It even had a little fireplace in the center of the wall, currently not lit.