The Core of the Dreaming

"Welcome to my world, son." said Eranumaris, looking up at Fred with what appeared to be satisfaction. "Follow me."

Fred followed Eranumaris in silent awe. The white mole was not as steady walking upon the ground, and so trod slowly, giving Fred ample time to take in his surroundings. They were travelling down a wide tunnel, the walls of which shimmered with a strange blue glow. Fred could hear a distant tinkling, like the sound of stars. Embedded in the ceiling were row upon row of glowing white tubes, travelling down the tunnel for as far as the eye could see. Veins, thought Fred.

After a few minutes, the tunnel turned sharply right. But Eranumaris turned left instead, heading straight toward the blank bluestone wall of the tunnel.

"Moles don't have very good eyesight, do they?" remarked Fred, smirking slightly. "The path goes to the right, Eranumaris."

"Really?" murmured the mole enigmatically, his pace unyielding. His nose collided with the wall.....and passed straight through the rock. As his tail disappeared inside the wall, Fred chased after him, completely non- plussed by what he had just seen. He stood by the wall, unnerved. Gingerly he reached a hand out and pushed it against the wall. It passed through as though the rock were air, and Fred winced, expecting his hand to be burned off or sucked through. But nothing happened. Bracing himself, Fred stepped through the wall.

An extraordinary sight greeted him. He was now inside a huge stone cavern, the ceiling of which was impossible to spot, such was its height. Towering clumps of blue crystal, some fifteen feet height, gave off a powerful glow, illuminating the area around them. These had been strategically placed around the cavern so that every inch was bathed in light. Towards the centre of the cavern (which was at least several hundred furlongs away) Fred could make out a large gathering of rustic, round houses, around which there could be no less than a hundred moles, all milling around and chirping cheerfully to one another. A fire burned ceaselessly in the middle of the village.

"Nice place, huh?" invited Eranumaris, staring up at Fred.
"It's......incredible." said Fred, unable to think of a more appropriate adjective.
"Come. Let's go and introduce you."

It took a while to reach the village. Fred was forced to navigate his way through awkward stone hills rife with dangerously sharp rocks. Eranumaris's smaller form meant he had little trouble weaving through the crags and boulders, occasionally turning back to give Fred some encouragement. By the time they arrived at the edge of the mole town, every mole was silent, staring up at the human in their midst. Fred felt distinctly unwelcome.

"Eranumaris, you bring some strange things home, but this is ridiculous!" stated a smallish brown mole at the front of the crowd.

"Why have you led a Landmutt here?" demanded another small white mole, sniffing feverishly at Fred.

"Calm down, you lot!" commanded Eranumaris, leaping atop a nearby stone and rising to his hind legs. "This one is Frederigo D'Honaire, and he's under my vision whilst in the Core. I believe we now have half of the solution to the situation in the Dreaming. Where is the Elder? Where is Idinucastim?"

"He's in his Place." muttered a particularly ugly mole with awkward, angular limbs. "He said you'd be here, and that you'd want an audience."

"Good. Come on, Fred." said Eranumaris, jumping from the stone and pushing his way through the crowd of moles.

1. But just then, a monstrous shriek echoed from the edge of the cavern. Something had followed Fred!
2. But the moles were not happy about Fred's presence in the village.....
3. Together, Fred and Eranumaris reached the Place of the Elder.
4. Fred accidentally stepped on a small mole.

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