Temple of the Serpent

Chapter 9

Rex eased into the water, hoping to sneak up on Digger and teach him a lesson for making him double back. Dig, you're going to pay. When he floated down into the chamber, he noticed two things. First, all the larger frogs and newts had vanished, only the smaller adolescents of both species remained. But the more alarming fact was that so had Digger.

With the depletion of the number of glowing amphibians, the chamber was significantly dimmer. Even the glow from the alga on the wall seemed faint, as if the two had a symbiotic relationship somehow.

Rex lit a magnesium flare and the chamber brightened.

The prick must be hiding. Rex kicked over to the shaft where Digger had removed a good portion of material from the cave-in and constructed a minor wall from the debris. He pumped his legs and picked up speed, a torpedo on a collision course.

Faster. Halfway through the chamber. Faster.

When he crested the wall, prone to ram Digger from behind, he fanned out his body and slowed to a drift. What the hell?

Rex opened his channel to the shared radio frequency.

"Sir, Digger's not here. Repeat Digger is MIA. Over."

Static filled Rex's dive mask, surging like a punishing wave crashing over him.

"Sir, are you receiving? Come in Captain Edgars, sir."

The static sputtered before cutting out. "Great. Just, great."

Rex poked his head up into the chute to check the progress, water still as death.

He leaned in farther and held his breath. A dark smudge leaped out from the darkness and smacked Rex's mask. The hefty frog darted past him and joined the ballet of aquatic life, newts wiggling and frogs surging.

The shaft was far from clear, but the beam of light streaming through the passageway brought hope that what rock remained jammed overhead would be manageable. Rex considered picking up on the excavation work but instead prioritized on contacting the captain.

He would decide.

Rex pushed up from the floor and rose over a pile of rocks to the side. When he saw the dive mask on the ground, his heart pounded in his chest.

"Digger's mask," he murmured to himself.

Rex drew the bangstick from the holster at his side. When he pressed a button, the rod telescoped open, quadrupling in length. Fingers playing over the additional ammo shells in his bandolier, Rex flicked his gaze around the chamber for danger. He checked every cubic inch but found only the glowing frogs and newts present.

Next to the dive mask, Rex found Digger's prybar and an underwater drill scattered across the floor. He passed a smaller pile of rubble and spotted one of Digger's fins.

Rex tried to hail the captain again, but his radio was dead.

"I've got to catch up and report back." He prodded himself forward.

Frogs darted aside, and then an adult newt merged next to Rex, tail propelling it enough to match his pace. "Where did you come from?" He scanned the chamber again. "And where the hell is Digger?"

Suddenly, the bright-yellow newt crossed in front of Rex and swam for the far corner, opposite from the air-pocket-exit to the acid pits. It turned and disappeared behind a rocky outcropping.

Rex focused his sight at the location.

Two seconds later, an army of bigger frogs spurted from the wall.

"Hmm. Better check it out."

Rex changed course and kicked for the outcrop. When he swam past the spot where the frogs had just appeared, he discovered a cutback in the wall. If he hadn't been deep in the corner, he would've easily missed the offshoot—again.

A glint from below winked at him.

He swam down and scooped up the object. Rex pressed his lips together as he examined Digger's knife. The pointed tip bent over in curl, and a deep scrape covered the blade.

"Shit."

Rex pressed a button on his bangstick, and a LED light projected near the tip. He swam toward the narrow crevice and entered, weapon at the ready.

"You better be alive if I'm coming to save your ass. You hear, me Digger? You're going to owe me—big time."

[731 words / 5650 total]