04Lonewolf's Short Stories

🏷️The Cave🏷️

Prompt: Weekend adventurers explore a cave in the Glasshouse Mountains and can't find their way out again. Then they encounter something terrible...
(Word Count: 2068)

[Warning: This story is set in Australia and is very cringey. I apologise in advance for the terrible language and exaggeration. Please know that I don't mean to offend any Australians reading this]

We hiked up one of the Glasshouse mountains, looking for a cave to explore. I glanced behind me to see my fellow weekend adventurers crawling up the mountainside behind me, sweaty and out-of-breath.

Checking our position again, I cheerfully called down,

"Come on guys, we're almost there. Promise".

Marco glowered at me,

"Would ya just bloody give it up Fiona, you've been saying that for the last hour. Now are there caves or isn't there?"

I frowned down at him. I personally hadn't wanted the blighter along, but Jenny 'ad insisted. How dare he be so lazy and rude yet have the audacity to complain about this adventure that no one forced him to come on.

Glancing at my friend, I saw that she too was struggling, and my righteous indignant softened,

"I promise, we really are close. If my geographical calculations are correct, the caves ought to be beyond this crest."

I hope, I silently added to myself.

My Golden Retriever, Watson, scrambled up a bit before me, going over the crest, hidden from view. I wasn't worried though, he's such a well-trained dog that I trust him to not get into any mischief without a leash. Then I saw his head reappear and he glanced down me with a lopsided grin. Then he barked.

The was only one reason why he would do that. My hopes lifted, I turned to my comrades,

"Come on! We're almost there!"

I scrambled up the last part of the bank. Peering around, I saw a dark, almost foreboding, opening in the side of the mountain.

Sitting on one of the boulders that were scattered around, I waited for the rest of my group to come over the rise. One by one, heavily panting, Jenny, Amy, Marco, John and Max appeared. That was all of them.

Whilst they rested, I assessed the situation. This cave seemed a suitable place to start, but the sight of all the scattered boulders – possibly indicating landslides – concerned me.

I raised this concern to the group, but Marco abrasively brushed it aside, sneering,

"I ain't climbing around to find another cave just 'cause you a bit scared".

I inwardly seethed at this, but had to concede that it could be hours before we found another cave – hours that we didn't have, already the sun had passed its midpoint and was beginning to near the western side of the skies. I shook my head. Dammit.

Once everyone had gotten back their breath and rested for a bit, we headed into the cave.

"Headlights on" I said, clicking on my own headlight which I had attached onto my head outside.

We walked in a bit and wandered around. I peered around the caves interior. We had barely gone 10 metres in and it was already pitch black, with only the beam of our headtorches lighting the way. Something didn't feel right. I voiced my concern,

"I don't like this guys. I think maybe we ought to turn back".

"Pah!" Marco spat, his loud voice echoing through the cavern, "I ain't turning back because your scared of the dark".