Deepwater's Daughter

Chapter 27

"What's that smell?" Ysara gasped as they entered a larger chamber at the juncture of several tunnels.

"It smells like soap to me," Rasha said, smacking her lips with a disgusted frown. The fox woman steadied herself against the wall as another tremor shook the caverns.

"No!" Plec exclaimed, "It's liftgas!"

"I think you're right," Geffen agreed, sniffing the damp air as he braced himself against the rock. He lifted the replacement torch that Plec had given him after the first had burned out. "If it is," he added, "I'm not sure we should be using an open flame."

"I can light the way," Rasha sighed, "for a little while."

"I will do it," Xsatca said, whispering gently as her scales shimmered with argent light.

"Ysara, can you do that?" Plec gasped, staring in wonder at the shining winged naga.

"No!" Ysara scoffed.

"Have you tried?" Plec asked.

"Let's keep moving," Geffen sighed as he tried extinguishing the blazing green torch in a shallow puddle on the tunnel floor. He scowled at the steaming green sparks that refused to go out.

"Here!" Plec said, taking the metal torch from him and tossing it back up the tunnel they had come down.

Geffen furrowed his brow at the flaring green glow.

"There's not much gas back that way," Plec explained, "and, since I'm the only one makin' a map, if somethin' eats me, then that might be the only way you can find the right tunnel back to the surface."

"You've thought this through, Plec," Rasha chuckled.

"I don't like the idea of bein' lost in a cave," Plec said with a shrug, "If it was a mine, you might could figure your way out again, but caves... caves give me nightmares!"

"Thanks for coming with us," Ysara said, earning her a buck-toothed grin in response.

The mouse girl's grin disappeared just as quickly as the cavern trembled again.

"They're getting weaker," Xsatca noted with a worried look on her face.

"That's good, right?" Geffen asked.

"Not if whatever's making them is dying," Ysara said.

"What does it matter if those things that tried to kill you die off?" Geffen asked.

"It matters if those are the only things that keep the island floating to begin with," Ysara said.

"You've discovered the secret of Catamaki, child," Xsatca said with a sad smile.

"Oooh!" Plec said, understanding at last, "The monster things make liftgas, and that's how they have enough to keep the whole island up!"

The mouse girl looked suddenly troubled.

"What is it, Plec?" Geffen asked.

"There may be a problem, if that's the case," Plec said.

"Fumes," Rasha sighed.

"We can't breathe liftgas," Geffen said.

"Not for long," Plec said.

"You have fumes in mines, don't you?" Geffen said, "Do you have anything in your pack for this sort of thing?"

Plec shook her head. "If you find a gas pocket in a mine, you run!" she said, "That's the first rule of mining... well, the second maybe... or was it the third?"