The ground caved in and the whole group fell. It was over twenty metres down, but there were a series of vines that slowed their fall. They opened their eyes as they lied on the cold surface of a cave’s floor. On the bright side, there hadn’t been any stalagmites that could have impaled them.
It took a while for them to get up. Patrick was the first on his feet. He helped the others and they took in their surroundings. They were in a sort of circular room. The walls were smooth and hard rock. The only light was from the moon shining through the hole that had got them there.
None of them had any rope and not a single vine remained, all of them had been ripped apart by the falling crew.
Alan had a torch (flashlight) which refused to work until he banged it against the wall. There also seemed to be a passage branching off to one side.
“What do we do now?” asked Martha. Alex took put a tiny magnetic compass and checked the direction. “That tunnel is heading North and that’s the way we want to go. So I say we take that path.” Alex said. Patrick realized his hands and stepped to the centre, “Wait a second here guys. We don’t know where that leads.” Delton was next, “I don’t see a better alternative.” Alan, Andrew and Martha agreed with him. Patrick bit his lip as they ventured into the unknown. It sounds a bit dramatic, but the events that would follow were on a completely different level.
The beam of light from the torch illuminated what looked like ancient cave drawings. Andrew stepped closer to have a look.
The drawing seemed to represent a sort of battle scene. There were tiny humans around what looked like a dragon with wings and four legs, and a sort of alligator. There was a circle around the dragon. The men standing by the crocodile had spears raised as though in celebration.
Was this a scene that they had witnessed? The answer was lost with time. Or was it?
The crew eventually hit a dead end. Though, that wall was made of some glittering metal. It radiated its own light but was just as cool as the rocks.
“What do you think this is?” enquired Delton. “Is it…is it the entrance?” Andrew shook his head, “No. Don’t you remember? The entrance is next to a well and I can’t see a single well anywhere close.”
Their discussion was interrupted by a screech further up the tunnel. For a second they were of the glow elephants, but one couldn’t possibly fit into the tiny space. This had to be something different.
A few seconds later, small, one metre tall creatures with only three legs came bolting towards the shining wall. They were small, but the sight of hooked claws and teeth were menacing.
Alan thought it to be awkward that this didn’t surprise him, but after the events of the past forty-eight hours, he doubted that much could surprise him now.
There were hundreds of these little animals, piling up at that end of the tunnel. The whole night was spent by the crew, hiding in the same spot. None of them had slept even for a minute, due to the fear of being discovered. They found a spot to hide and squeezed in.
Sunlight finally entered the tunnel through the holes on the ceiling. The darkness that had been their cloak for so long was slipping away. Just as a beam of white light touched the metal, the creatures started squealing. The sound was not too different from the one the glow elephants had made.
The metal seemed to vibrate at first, following the squeals. The vibration soon turned to violent shaking and the metal seemed to melt into a liquid. It fell onto the ground with a splash. The silver liquid seemed to be trying to regain its form, but was held down for some reason. The horde of monsters bolted to the other side with surprising speed, coordination and agility for a creature with three legs.
The crew stayed where they were, resisting the urge to get out of the claustrophobic space where they had been crammed into for several hours. The moment that the last of them was through, they stopped their little song and the solid metal gate reformed almost instantaneously.
The next hour or so had been spent by the crew planning a way out. “The metal probably reacts to the sound they make.” Martha said. No one had a better theory, so they decided to act on the basis of what Miss Frost thought was most probably the truth.
Patrick rubbed his hands together. He reached into his backpack and produced a tiny handgun-like device. Alex looked stunned, “How did you get one?” He was referring to one of his acoustic weapons that had been disbanded due to their tendency to blow up in the face of their wielder. They weren’t to be sold until the problem had been resolved. “We can talk about that later, but for now, do you think we can blast our way through.” Andrew shook his head, “No, it might attract the attention of the creatures that left. For all we know, they could be on the other side of that door or at least close enough to this place to hear an explosion.” Alan then said, “Plus, if it turns to a liquid at a particular frequency, we don’t know how it might react to a different one.” “I have a better idea.” said Delton, “Maybe the creatures will come back out and if they use the same frequency of sound, we theoretically can record it on the blaster and open the door once they’re gone.” Alex admitted, “He’s right. The device can record sounds and analyse frequencies too. Though, that isn’t exactly safe. Well, what are the odds?” The question had been rhetorical, but Patrick answered, “Probably fifty-fifty.” Not too reliable but it was all they had.
It was nearly 11’o clock before they heard the footsteps. The crew went back to their hiding spot. They had predicted that the animals might return from the inside. Instead five more came from the other direction.
Alex prepared the device by putting it on record mode. The squeals sounded through the tunnel again. The weapon analysed every rise and fall in the pitch of sound. A green light flashed in the screen in the handle just as the door solidified again.
The group stepped out in the open. Delton held the blaster in his hand. There was a good chance that it might blow up, but he seemed confident. The one who’s idea it was, pressed the trigger and an exact acoustic replica of the squeal had been created. They kept it on till all of them were through.
They had entered another long passageway. It lead to a large circular room. The room had a rough diameter of five-hundred feet with a boulder covering the next passage. Patrick swore. They tried to push it aside, but it was too heavy. Alex moved closer to the boulder and pointed out that it was attached to a sort of counterweight on the other side of the wall. Something had to be done and fast. Time was running out, they had to reach the entrance. Then again, there was the more imminent chance of the creatures returning.
There was a sudden tremor, or at least that’s what it felt like. Some rocks feel from the ceiling of the room. The crew barely managed to dodge the missiles trying to kill them. Once it stopped, their was a gaping hole in the roof and a cage fell through. It was tied at its corners to some unseen support within the hole.
Though the worst of their worries weren’t done yet. The cage held one large glowing creature. It looked the same as the ones near the river that they had seen. That incident seemed like an eternity ago. It was a miracle that the thin ropes held the weight of the creature. Then they noticed it. The cage was slowly descending. They had to get out of there, now.
Alex was struggling to figure out the working of the boulder. He decided to look at it from another point of view. How would a three legged creature open that door. Then he saw it. A small opening, like a key hole was cut into the rock on one side. Perhaps the tail, or one of the creature’s legs could be used like a key to activate the mechanism.
Right on cue, three of the three-legged animals emerged from the passage that they had entered through. It turned out that they in fact were capable of making sounds other than that squeal. They hissed and two of them stepped forward, as the other edged towards their right flank. There were a few bamboo sticks near the boulder which had been left over from the construction of the door. It was a mystery as to who had built it. One of many. Alan, Delton and Andrew grabbed one each. Martha had taken the gun which Patrick had tried to shoot Alan with earlier. There had been only two bullets left and she hadn’t wished to waste them, but now was the time. Patrick retrieved his brother’s acoustic blaster which still wasn’t recommended by the crew. Though, considering their current situation, that might have just given them the edge.
The one approaching from the side attacked first. It was neatly disposed of by Alan, who whacked it aside with a wave of his new staff. The poor creature hit the ground with a thud.
Martha fired a shot at one of the two left. It dodged skilfully. For a second, her eyes strayed to the cage of the Crenobel. It was much closer to the ground than before.
The two three-legged monsters raced towards them. Delton stepped forward and thrust the end of his stick into its open mouth. It stumbled back but was still standing.
The other one used the crew’s temporary amazement at Delton’s skill, to pounce at Andrew. Patrick knocked it right out of the air with a high frequency sound wave. They looked at each other and nodded. It conveyed a simple message, Thank you, and, It’s okay.
“Bring one of the unconscious animals over here.” Alex yelled across the room. They didn’t understand why, but Martha and Alan ran over to one of the creatures. They each grabbed a leg and began dragging it to the boulder. Goodness, it was heavy.
What had happened was that Alex had found a small hole next to the boulder, shaped like the creature’s claw. He figured that it would have to be placed in the slot to make the door open.
Meanwhile Patrick fired a few experimental shots with his weapon. The light on the screen turned red, warning him that the device was getting overheated. He had to stop.
Now only a few bamboo sticks stood between them and the animal. It took a running leap towards Andrew. This time he was prepared. He fell flat on the floor and smashed the bamboo stick into the thing’s gut as it sailed through the air above him.
Alan and Martha reached the boulder. Alex helped them place its paw on the indent. They expected a click and the boulder to move, but nothing happened.
Just a second later, they heard ropes snapping. The cage fell to the floor a few hundred years away. It had been high enough for the cage to break on impact and low enough for the glow elephant to survive the fall.
The others re-joined Alan, Alex and Martha at the boulder. “What happened? Why isn’t it open?” asked Delton. “I don’t know,” spat Alex, completely distraught. “I…I don’t know.”
The Crenobel stopped glowing, just like back in the forest. It stood up and charged at them. Before anyone did anything Andrew yelled, “Wait, stay where you are. We can use it to smash the boulder open.” Patrick considered using the acoustic blaster, but the display still blinked red. An explosion might kill them all.
The boulder smashing would also make quite a commotion and the creatures may be right on the other side. They might as well have used the blaster in the first place. Now this was their only hope. As usual their chances of survival were low, but they had to try.
The crew had been hoping to never encounter a Crenobel again…or at least not by themselves. They could really use a massive, killer dragon right now.
The massive animal’s eyes seemed to shimmer with bloodlust. It seemed to take an eternity for the monster to run towards them. Andrew knew that he had to time this perfectly or the lot of them would catch a one way trip to afterlife.
As the Crenobel drew closer, Alan said with unconcealed panic in his voice, “Andrew.” He replied with just one word, “Wait.” The Crenobel was almost upon them when he screamed, “Jump.” The group jumped, four to the left and the other two to the right.
The Crenobel, however, wasn’t so lucky. It slammed into the boulder, reducing it to rubble and knocking itself out.
Though this incident sounds long, it happened in a matter of seconds. The aftermath of this was rather spectacular.
The boulder had been, in every sense, destroyed. The three-legged creatures were nowhere to be seen. They had probably run away to save themselves. The crew couldn’t believed their luck. Bright sunlight shown through where the boulder had been and there were no creatures on the other side.
The crew carefully ventured into the open, their weapons at the ready in case they found any more inhabitants of the island lurking around. “I know I’m a biologist and its my job, but I think I’ve had enough of animals.” said Martha. The group shared a brief laugh at that comment.
The sun was directly overhead, which meant it was close to noon and they had barely a few hours before the island was destroyed. They were all utterly exhausted. None of them had got even a bit of sleep the previous night. Their eyes were bloodshot and swollen. Their limbs were tired and they felt like collapsing, but they couldn’t give up.
Well each of them knew that Alan and Andrew were the ones who would survive, but the watcher had not told them that himself. This meant that they had a chance to live. Its funny what a human might be willing to go through to live.
As they forged on, towards the heart of the island, Patrick began to doubt himself. Was he really doing the right thing? Was his life worth killing his fellow crew members? It had to be. Anyway he had come too far and it was too late to change his mind now. The truth was that he could. There was another way, a better way to live.
Alan on the other hand was thinking of something else. He hoped this whole thing was a nightmare and he could wake up. He tried several tricks shown in movies to convince himself that something good would eventually occur. It was irritating, being constantly reminded that he was in real life and this adventure may not exactly have a happy ending.
The only thing Alan relied on was his own plan. In the end it would succeed, but at a cost.
At the end of the adventure Alan would look back to this moment and curse himself for not taking the right decisions. There were so many ways that he could have saved all his friends. Alas! No one can alter past events, except perhaps the Harandels and the governing forces, but all in good time.
The crew had all this going on through their minds as Delton who was in front of the group came to a halt. He spread out his arms, as though shielding his friends. The astrophysicist turned his head from right to left and said, “Did you hear that sound?”
Alex grabbed his head with both hands. He was experiencing that feeling again. Every time something bad happened to them, there would be this question which almost seemed to trigger the events. For example, before running into the pirates, “What are those lights?” Or their first encounter with the Crenobels, “What are those?” The horror seemed to start almost right after the question.
Alex’s intuition wasn’t mistaken. Just a few seconds after Delton had asked the question, the bushes in front parted and this time, it wasn’t Bardos.