The Chronicles of Nir

18 | Tripped Traps

Eri released the lever and the hatch in the ceiling closed as the water continued to rise, passing knee height in a handful of seconds. When he pulled the lever again, the hatch reopened.

"Well, we know that part works," he shouted over the noise of the water.

"Keep holding it!" Tallon ordered, wading towards the trap.

With the lever activated, Tallon located the plates in the floor, taking care not to step on them yet. Once activated, the piece had to remain depressed, or the mechanism would jam and they would both drown.

Carefully, Tallon bent and picked up the rock. Then he positioned it over the plate and met Eri's eyes.

"Ready?"

Glancing at the open hatch above, Eri shook his head. "Wait. Something isn't right. There's got to be a way to open the hatch from above. If we wait for the chamber to fill, I will open it for you, and then you can open it for me from the other side."

"And what if you're wrong?" Tallon argued. "Or what if there is a way, but it takes me three, four, five minutes to figure it out? Can you hold your breath that long?"

Eri bit his lip. He usually trusted his gut, and his gut said this was a bad idea. He chose to trust Tallon instead.

"Alright. Do it."

Tallon studied the trap but couldn't detect anything different between the two equisized plates. Nothing stood out to differentiate one block from the other; not a scrape, rune, or anything else.

With no choice but to choose, he set the stone atop the plate, sent a silent prayer to Zetia, and released it. The block sank a half inch and something clicked.

At first, nothing happened. Then, a vent opened with a hiss. A mist rose from the water, which turned a milky green, and Tallon's exposed skin began to burn.

"Shit! It's a chemical reaction!" he cried. "We need to get out of here!"

"You don't say." Eri coughed and covered his mouth and nose with his sleeve. The poisoned water reached his waist now, and continued to rise fast. "Any ideas?"

Tallon swore under his breath. He'd been so certain, but clearly this trap was different from the one he'd encountered with Gunda at the Games. The adrenaline in his veins transported him back to that moment, and he shut his eyes, reliving the memory.

Gunda had panicked too. He recalled how her green, slit-pupiled eyes had gone wide with horror when the trap hadn't disengaged the way she'd expected, thinking she'd killed them both. Then... Well, then she had retained her calm and solved the puzzle under pressure, as the challenge demanded they do.

Scanning the room, he realized his mistake at once.

"Let go of the lever!" he shouted, and coughed as his throat and lungs burned. "We've got to press the plate before we open the hatch!"

Eri obeyed and the hatch closed again.

The water now reached the middle of their chests, and whoever moved the stone into place would have to do so while fully submerged.

"Let us trade places!" Eri called. "You take the lever; I will move the stone."

Tallon hesitated; then he sloshed through the water and took the lever while Eri went for the rock. In order to succeed, he needed to trust his partner, just like in the games.

Tallon's lungs burned despite the bandana covering his mouth. Tears streamed from his eyes as his skin burned as if being melted off by lava. "Do it! Then we can swim to the top!"