War on Heiwa Book 2: At the Core of the World

At the Core of the World Chapter 7: Confirmation

"How?" Hanako asked me.

"It's just a hunch, but... ever heard of soil liquefaction?" I asked, carefully patting the corner of the cage with my foot.

Hanako stared at me like I was speaking Greek to her, so I explained. "It's when soil loses its strength and behaves like a liquid. Usually they cave in when put under enough pressure."

Hanako processed what I said for a moment, then a wide smile spread across her face. "It's almost too good to be true! That's amazing, Takuma! Where'd you learn that?"

"Um... television." I lied. I actually learned it at home-school when I was living with my foster parents. I'm not entirely sure why I lied. I must've been embarrassed for Hanako to compliment me.

After I finished patting the ground, I stood in the middle of the squishy area. "Alright, I'm going to try stomping on it. If it caves in, I'll need you to catch me. I'm not sure how deep it will go."

She nodded and readied her arms. I sighed and stomped the ground with the toes of my shoes, slowly adding pressure to them. I began placing the whole of my foot down, digging deep into the ground. After I figured it was far enough, I lifted my foot and stabbed it down as hard as I could. The ground shook for a moment, and Hanako quickly pulled me out of the squishy area. We both watched the ground dissolved into itself, spreading from the middle outward, until a two-person wide hole appeared.

"it worked." I grinned. "Now we just need to know how deep it is." I looked over the edge of it, and all I could see was pitch black. I looked around on the ground for a moment and found a small pebble. I dropped it over the edge, listening to how many seconds go by before it hits the ground. Or if it ever hits ground. It took about three seconds, and I judged the depth of the hole must be a bit bigger than Hanako's and my height combined. "I have an idea. Hold my hand, I'm going to climb down there."

Hanako nodded with a confused look, and she held my hand as I slipped over the edge, holding on to the edge with my free hand. I slowly began lowering myself. Hanako eventually had to go onto her knees to stretch herself completely so I could fully reach the bottom. The pitch-black bottom. I walked around a bit, examining the width of the hole. It spread out far in both directions, so I assumed it was the next level down in this cave.

"How will I get down?" Hanako asked. Her voice echoed within the walls, but I bet she barely whispered.

"This may sound kind of crazy, but once you lower yourself over the edge, you're going to have to jump." I said casually.

"Wha.. What?" 

"Don't worry! I'll catch you!"

"O-okay..." Her voice was shaky and she began lowering herself down, and once she was as far as she could go, she stopped.

"What's wrong?" I was now standing under her, ready to catch her.

"Th-this is... crazy! What if you miss? What if I land too hard and you... And the cuts on your arms... " Her voice trailed off.

"No! It'll be fine!" I said confidently.

Hanako nodded again and closed her eyes, completely retracting her hands, letting herself fall. My arms were in a carry, in a perfect position to catch her, but my body was still too weakened to support her weight, and I fell flat onto my back with Hanako sprawled across me.

Hanako rolled off of me and helped me sit up. "Are you okay?" She gave me a guilty look.

"Nah, it was nothing. Sorry, that should've gone better than expected. I guess my body still isn't quite back to normal." I gave her a small smile. Hanako smiled back and helped me to my feet.