The Taupee Chronicles- Blight and it's Master's

Chapter Nine

It took Ava nearly half a day before she finally spied the huge rocky hills that contained the glimmer caverns. At this point her mouth was so dry it felt like her tongue was made of sandpaper. She was struggling to keep herself cool with her exertions, having to take small breaks every few minutes or so to ensure she didn't overheat. She needed to find water, and soon, else she was worried she would start to become delirious in her current state. Whenever she rested, she made a point to listen to the forest around her for any sign of running water. Currently she had spied none. At one point she had come across a small pool of stagnant water, however the horrible smell emanating from the foul water was an obvious sign she would get very sick if she drank from it. Despite her thirst, she had enough sense not do something so stupid. At least it was a sign that there indeed was some form of freshwater near to her. The longer she walked, the more frequently she came upon these stinking pools on the forest floor.

Eventually she exited the tree line onto a large area of rocky terrain that swooped upwards to form some steeply inclined hills. A few shrubs dotted the hills here and there, the rockface being too steep to support the forest trees below. She gazed toward one side of the hills and let out a gasp of amazement. A small waterfall exited the rock between two hills. It gathered in a small pool before winding through the rocky terrain toward the forest. This was likely the stream that was feeding the stagnant pools gathering on the forest floor. Ava hurried as best she could toward the small stream. She fell on her hands and knees with a cry as she reached its edge and started to drink directly from the lifegiving liquid. It tasted so sweet on her tongue. Ava didn't think she has ever tasted anything so good in her life. The water was so clear as it fell from the hills above her and ran over the rockface. She knew it must be fed by some sort of spring somewhere within the caverns in the hills.

Once she had drank as much as she was able, Ava filled her drinks cannister before continuing her way around the hills to find an entrance to the glimmer caverns. She had heard so many of the stories about these caverns that she thought she would see them for herself before she headed back to the forest. Her plan was then to find a place to sleep and continue to the resistance encampment in the morning. Now she was fully hydrated, she knew it was safe to take her time to find the resistance. The risk of exposure was pretty low now she was so close to the end of her journey. As she meandered around the hills, she spotted a shady area slightly up the incline in the distance. Making her way over to the area she speculated that it was likely an entrance to the caverns. As she got closer, she could see that it was indeed the entrance to a cave system. She could spy the walls of the cave snaking into the hill as she made her way near. As she walked through its entrance, she followed the snaking path until she stepped into a large oval area within the hill.

Ava gasped at the sight in front of her. The whole area around her, even the floor, was covered in clear, diamond like crystals. Their rod like structures jutted from the top and sides of the cavern, while the floor looked like a studded sheet of glass. Ava could see the bottom of the cavern a few feet beneath her feet through the clear sheet. The rods of crystal were so thick and numerous that she could not see any of the rock beneath them on the sides and top of the cavern. There were a few small open holes along the side of the walls, causing a slight glimmer of sun to enter the cavern. The sunlight reverberated around the cavern, reflecting from all the crystals it hit, causing the whole place to glitter and twinkle around her. She stared at the scene before her, mouth agape and in complete awe. The stories she has heard about the caverns did not do them justice and she was glad to have stopped on her journey to view them.

After some time, she managed to gather herself and slowly leave the awe inspiring scene behind to continue on her journey. The massive crystal structures were cold and rough underneath her fingertips as she touched them on her way to leave. Her eyes were drawn to the sparkling giants as she walked, distracting her enough that she nearly tripped on a larger indent in the floor. Shaking her head, she moved her eyes to the caverns mouth and slowly emerged from the glittering cave. The sunlight hit her with force as soon as she emerged causing everything in her vision to become white. Squinting, Ava tried to get her bearings. However, before she had a chance to choose which direction to walk next, she felt two large hands grab her shoulders and heard a deep, gravelly voice.