Chapter 197 - Nightmare/Future

"I wish we could enjoy it more," he told her. This was far from a vacation for them. They were essentially running for their lives, trying to buy themselves time to get stronger.

They blew past cities and sights that he would've loved to stop and explore with her. Maybe they could one day. They just had to make it out of this alive first.

"I'm just glad that we're together," Alyssa said, brushing her fingertips along the frame of his face as their eyes met.

That was the biggest silver lining out of this entire situation. He didn't know how he would handle all of this stress and uncertainty without her.

She kept him from falling apart at the seams, and he hoped that he was bringing her some form of comfort.

"How are you doing?" he asked her.

"I'm scared, but it's nice seeing you and Melina get along. That gives me hope," Alyssa said with a soft smile.

Elias nodded, knowing that everyone was relying on him and Melina to get along and bond so that they were stronger.

"We're different, but I can see how we're similar in some ways," he told Alyssa. He still had a lot to learn, but he was glad that Melina was easy to get along with.

He knew that he hadn't exactly been like that at the start, but he was warming up to her.

"A lot of siblings are different from each other. Doesn't make them any less related to each other," Alyssa pointed out. "She's been showing me some herbs and spells."

Elias chuckled, cocking an eyebrow at her.

"Are you trying to be a witch or something?" he teased her. He liked that Melina and Alyssa were getting along too.

Alyssa smirked and shook her head.

"I can't be a witch, but I wouldn't mind learning a few extra healing techniques. I'm technically a healer after all," Alyssa pointed out with a proud smile.

"Yeah, you are," Elias said before leaning forward to kiss her on the forehead. He was happy that she got to learn more about healing while on the road. He knew that she missed helping people.

A yawn soon broke from Alyssa as she cuddled up close to his chest.

"I'm so tired," she murmured.

Elias put his arm around her, holding her close. His eyes had been feeling heavy for a while now. He rested his head against hers.

"Let's just take a quick nap," he told her, finally letting his eyes close.

********

"The field. The blood," she murmured.

"What the hell is going on back there?" Scott called from the driver's seat.

"What does it mean?" Elias asked Melina. He felt more than spooked right now that they had the same terrible nightmare.

He only heard Alaric's laughter, but he knew that Alaric killed everyone in his nightmare. He caused all of that blood and death.

Melina shook her head as she lowered her eyes.

"He wants us to lose hope, to feel isolated," she said. "I don't know how he managed to break into our dreams."

Elias frowned, feeling Alyssa come up to his side. He wished that they had some clue about what was going on.

He put his arm around Alyssa, letting her know that he was somewhat alright. He was just glad that he was out of that nightmare.

"Was that a look at the future or something?" he asked Melina.

"I hope not," Melina breathed out.

"What did you two see?" Alyssa asked, peering between the both of them.

"She said bodies when she woke up," Tyler said, giving Melina a worried look.

"Everyone but me was dead in some field. I heard Alaric's laughter," Elias replied. He would never forget that nightmare. It wasn't like he had never had bad dreams before, but that felt a little too real.

Melina nodded as she pushed her hand through her hair. The roots were damp from sweat.

"That's what happened with me too," she replied.

"That's it. I'm pulling into the next town," Scott called from the front.

Elias didn't even argue. Maybe that was for the best. He could certainly use some fresh air right about now.

He sat down in one of the lounge chairs, taking a moment to breathe and settle down. It was just a nightmare.

Alaric was toying with him. But if Alaric could mess with his dreams, what else could he do?

"Hey, it's okay," Alyssa said as she sat next to Elias. She took his hand, stroking his knuckles to calm him down.

Elias looked over at her, and all he could see was her laying in that field, gazing up at the moon with still eyes. It nearly made him nauseous.

She couldn't ever die. He wouldn't be able to survive that. For her sake, he smiled faintly and nodded.

"I know," he said, but no one believed his words. They didn't know what exactly loomed ahead, but they knew that it wasn't pretty.

There would be blood, and if they weren't careful enough, there would be plenty of bodies too.