The Old Mine

Chapter 9: Lost

     Cal rolled over not wanting to wake up yet. She drifted back to sleep then the pain hit her, sirens sounding all over her body. Suddenly wide awake she clenched her fist and blinked rapidly as the pain peaked then ebbed. She focused instead on the room around her to distract herself from the pain and discomfort, the three guys were talking, unfortunately she came in at the end of the conversation so it took her a second to figure out what they were yelling about.

     "And what the hell do they mean by adding the item still rings back with your team to the argument" Midnight rolled his eyes and started to pace.

    "What's left to send?" Recke laughed "how could it still be here, we've sent half the valley forward!"

"Or blew it up" Tahk added with a smirk.

Midnight laughed at Tahk's comment then straightened his face out and got serious again "But not the old mine." He turned to face Recke "we need to send the mine."

    "Won't help," Cal sat up slowly as all eyes were suddenly on her "so many artifacts have been removed from the mine throughout history. They're in museums and private collections throughout the valley."

      "And the arrogant white man's family still believe they own the entire valley and can do what they want." Midnight ran his hands through his hair and groaned, the tension raising his heart rate.

"Apparently our plan failed." Cal nodded angrily. "Okay, plan B..."

"Big time fail." Tahk took a bite of jerky and slumped down into a chair. "What's plan B?"

       "How we can shake up the town, change their attitudes. Make them turn on that family." Cal was trying to focus through the pain.

"I'm thinking that if we scare them enough they will just deliver the items to the mine." Recke was standing, rocking and thinking.

      "They have to be pretty scared already, I mean half the valley is on fire or covered in lava." Cal took a ragged breath "why does everything hurt!"

     "Adrenaline has dissipated and now you feel it." Recke smiled at her "we do have a lot we can do to heal you, heal the burns, heal the head injury, however that leaves... pain." He looked worn out "thank you for saving our lives."

    "You had a lot of damage to your lungs, so did we all but..." Tahk's typical oblivious face was fluctuating slightly, revealing his concern.

    "I'm not strong enough to travel now, am I." Cal was terrified she could feel her heart threatening to break all over again.

     "It's a good thing we can't leave yet then huh." Recke smiled at her.

    Midnight leaned against the edge of the dresser "we aren't going anywhere, we have a mandatory mission to do."

    "We won't leave you," Tahk took a deep breath "the chemistry of the team seems to have gotten a lot better since we found you... you go with us or we are all left behind."

     "So team," Recke took a deep breath "how do we do this?"

    "Build on the fear." Tahk pointed at Cal "she knows how to do that."

    Recke turned to look at Cal. "Do you know how to turn the villagers on the problem family?"

     "They aren't going to give in to superstitious nonsense, they will just spread gossip and not care about it..." she took a breath "it has to be fact, like something they can hold... wait, the volcano and fire was enough fact for them but now it's not." She smiled, wanting to draw it out until they got it too.