move on,” Dink answered.
Silas nodded and moved to the front of the group again, his mind not completely on their current situation, but on things to come and what his next steps should be.
The cave kept leading down. The group slid along the icy slope with few handholds, but the air was gradually getting warmer. Slowly, they descended and after a couple of hours and a few more breaks to rest, the cave ended and they walked out into the open. There were still patches of snow on the ground, but most of it was melting, revealing a rich green earth with a forest that surrounded their path. Silas could hear the sounds of birds in the trees, calling to each other to join in song of the newborn spring. It was now conceivable that Barron had not been lying about the river after all. Perhaps there was hope.
Silas felt his first pang of hunger. Did people eat in the afterlife? He supposed they did if there was hunger. Curious. As he led them down, the path began to level off a bit. With lush green trees and several snowcapped mountains in the distance, the view nearly brought tears to Silas’ eyes as it showed promise that Marenon may not be such a dreadful place after all. Although, getting there had been horrible. Why would the king implement a system to eradicate as many people as possible before allowing them in? Barron had said the king had ordered it. Some king, Silas thought. First impressions showed that Marenon was not quite the welcoming place it could be.
The clouds still covered the sunlight, but at least the diffused rays were able to warm their skin. After another hour or so they finally reached the bottom of the mountain where the air was now warm. At the bottom there was no river, but the path continued on. Silas caught a glimpse from Dink. Neither was sure of what needed to be done next. Obviously the only choice was to follow the path. The forest to their right was so thick that trying to navigate through would be impossible. The mountain was on their left and none of them wanted to go back. The only way was forward.
They had been traveling all afternoon. Exhaustion had set in long before they made it to the cave and many were now on the verge of collapse. Silas was ready for this journey to be over as well. He thought of what he would do when he finally made it to the bridge and into Marenon. He knew he had to find his grandfather, but how would he accomplish that? No solution came to mind. His thoughts then drifted to the plan. Did Garland know about Marenon before his death? All signs pointed to the fact that he did. He knew of the Stühocs. So, the question was, if Garland did know about Marenon, then why did he never say anything about it to Silas? Why would he have kept it a secret all these years? He thought about his training. Was it all in vain, or would the skills he learned benefit him in this new life? He felt so clueless as well as angry. Being left out of the loop on such a large-scale plan was wrong, especially since he was now dead and a new death was awaiting him at every turn. His grandfather had told him that he was destined for great things. Apparently this was not to be on Earth. But was the plan for him to do great things in Marenon?
As they walked along the grassy path, Silas wondered when it would end and the bridge would reveal itself. They rounded what felt to be the entire base of the mountain when he finally saw it. Flowing, tumbling, white-capped water splashed against rocks and gushed into the distance down the winding river. What stood above the water was not a bridge like Silas had ever seen before. It was more like a dam with its base allowing water to pass through. On the side nearest him, connected to the dam-like structure, stood a massive wooden door. The dam seemed ten times larger than any conventional bridge, making the door one of the largest Silas had ever seen. Soldiers, dressed similar to the ones that accompanied Barron, stood at attention in front of the structure. Across the path, opposite the huge door were several shacks that Silas presumed were the soldier’s