Onyx and the Possession

Skeletons in the Closet

Onyx stood with the others, looking up at the reddish stone that formed the Caves of Despair. The wind wailed through the rocks, screaming at them to turn back. "The Caves of Despair," Kai murmured. "This is where we first came for the Golden Weapons. It's like everything has come full circle," Cole said. Jay gulped. "Don't say that. Full circle means it's coming to an end, and I don't want to hear that before I go into the Caves of Despair, one of my least favorite words. How do we even know the tomb's in there?" Jay asked nervously. "Well I certainly hope Morro's time in our world is about to end," Onyx said.

Zane's eyes flicked around the cave mouth before he pointed at something. "Aha!" He exclaimed, tapping his finger on a small skull carved into a rock at the entrance to one of the caves. "The third symbol," Kai said. Jay shrugged. "Good enough for me. Let's go," he said, starting into the cave. Onyx suddenly wished she'd had pockets to put a flashlight in as they walked deeper into the cave. "There's another symbol!" Jay exclaimed, pointing at another skull carved into the ground before a small wooden table.

Cole narrowed his eyes at the downward slope of the cave. "Huh. Looks like it only gets darker the deeper in we go," he remarked. "Then it's a good thing we have a little light," Kai said, nodding his head at five lanterns placed atop the small table. Onyx narrowed her eyes at them before cautiously reaching out for one of them. "Wait! What if this is one of the tests?" Cole said quickly. Jay gasped. "Yeah, Sensei said the tomb was gonna be protected by three deadly tests. Maybe if we pick the wrong lantern..." he trailed off with a gulp. Onyx drew her hand back, not wanting to risk it. "They look normal..." She said, scrutinizing them.

Kai gritted his teeth and reached forward, grabbing one. He was still for a moment before smiling. "Ha! No tests, just a lantern," he said. With that encouragement, the others took a lantern for themselves, though Jay was still nervous. The others didn't bother waiting for him, simply deciding to keep walking. A few moments later, they heard him cry out. "Like I thought, just another lantern. Wait!" Onyx would've snickered if she hadn't just accidentally put her hand in bat guano.

The farther into the caves they went, the stuffier it seemed. "Is it just me, or is it getting warmer?" Cole asked after a while. Onyx frowned. "Definitely warmer," she said, wiping a thin sheen of sweat off of her forehead. As they came up on a jumble of fallen rocks, her nose twitched, picking up on an unpleasant smell. "Looks like there was a cave-in," Kai said. Jay wrinkled his nose. "Ugh! What's that smell?" He cried, pinching his nose. Onyx sighed. If someone even...

Zane frowned. "My sense pick up traces of Kethanol, a highly flammable gas released from deep well mining," he said. "Sure. Bet that's what all Nindroids say," Cole muttered. Zane crossed his arms. "If you're implying that smell came from me-" Onyx rolled her eyes. "Zane doesn't even have a digestive tract," she said. Kai cleared his throat, effectively getting everyone back on track.

"Look! Some of these rocks appear to have been recently moved. Maybe Morro's already been through here," he said, wriggling through a gap in the rocks. Onyx pushed herself through after him, landing on the ground on the other side. She noticed a grey powder on her hands and frowned. "Is this ash..?" She murmured, getting to her feet. "Everything here has been burned. Maybe one of the traps?" Cole said, looking at the fine layer of ash coating spots on the floor and the wall in a strangely splattered pattern.

Zane looped around a rock outcropping and gasped softly. The others followed and found him standing at the edge of a hole in the ground, it looked unassuming and innocent, but the smell was stronger by it, and Onyx noticed her candle flame flickering as she approached. "The Kethanol geyser. We cannot stay long," Zane said. Then his eyes widened. "Get away from it with your lanterns! It might ignite again at any moment," he cried, shooing them away. Onyx quickly backed away, around another rock outcropping. As she did, she felt something crunch beneath her heel.