Last Resort

Chapter 3

We walked for half an hour before we reached the grove of trees that hid the entrance to the cavern. The trees were arranged in a half circle and resembled a crescent moon. The grass here was incredibly soft right in the middle of the grove, and on hot, summer days, Flint and I would lie in the grass, often falling into the clutches of sleep.  

 

I found the mass of raspberry bushes piled high against the mountains face, and the vines that cascaded down it. There was one area of the wall that was deeper than the rest, and that's was where we needed to go. I pushed aside the thick vines to reveal a long, dark tunnel. I gestured for Flint to go in first, but he nudged me in. I walked in and he followed, his sheathed claws slightly scraping the floor of the tunnel. My sight started failing in the dim tunnel, and the darkness surrounded us, with only the sound of the other's heartbeat to know we weren't alone.

After about ten minutes, the gravelly, dirt ground turned into smooth, pale sand. The walls had a blue sheen due to the lapis lazuli veins running through them and were cool to touch. I could hear the water running through the walls and saw the pool of water that was just ahead of us, but that was only responsible for a small portion of the true volume.

As we neared the end of the tunnel, water was already lapping at my feet, and I heard Flint whine quietly at the cold freshness of the clear water. The water had a blue sheen, like the walls, because the lapis lazuli veins also extended to the ground underneath the vast body of water that we were soon to reach.

Finally, we were at the end of the tunnel. The water was at our calves as we waded through it. I prepared myself to dive in and welcome the cool recesses of the water by taking off my top layer of clothes; I had a brown covering that resembled a skirt that I had undone at the side, but a pair of shorts underneath kept me from being bare. The shorter shirt that was layered underneath my longer shirt stayed on as well. I wrapped the skirt-like cloth and shirt around my bare ankle tightly, so it wouldn't float away. The water was up to my waist and Flint's haunches. I crouched down, letting the cold water envelop my bare shoulders and my neck. I took a deep breath and let my natural instincts do the rest.

My muscular legs and arms allowed me to glide out of the tunnel and into the glowing cavern. The lapis lazuli veins of energy in the walls were thicker and pulsed along with my heartbeat. The slight current pulled me with ease; I felt at one with the water. I felt a nudge at my side and when I turned, Flint's eyes were two glowing emeralds in the lapis lazuli water. The gold was shining like millions of stars in an emerald sky. He nudged me again, looking up to signal the need for air. I nodded once and grabbed his paw, pulling him up with me. We broke through the water, gasping for air. Flint's black fur lay flat against his muscular frame and skull, while my blonde hair stretched the length of my torso and ended just above my hips. We quickly paddled to the ledge of smooth blue stone, to which we pulled ourselves. I stretched myself out on the slightly-heated stones, a drastic change from the icy water. This place was my sanctuary, my place of refuge; I went there when the world was too much for me.

Flint let loose sounds of joy as he started splashing in the water again. I silently chuckled, watching him in the water, until he slipped off the shallow ledge. He whined loudly as his body smacked into the water and he sank to the bottom. I was on my feet in a flash, frantically searching through the water from the safety of the stony ledge. Even with the blue light completely encasing the whole area, the water was dark and unmoving. The ripples from the disturbance were gone, leaving me with nothing to help find Flint. I debated jumping in, but at that moment, the area dimmed to a dark lapis lazuli colour, so dark it was almost black. The lapis lazuli veins pulsed faster due to my increasing heartbeat.

I'd had enough of this.

I almost dived in, when a man with shining, emerald eyes, and beautiful gold flecks shot out of the depths, his black hair dripping with the water. He gasped for air for awhile before finally noticing me. Only the tops of his shoulders were visible, but I could tell they were extremely muscular. We stared at each other for a second; where had I seen this man before? Why was he so familiar?

He looked shocked as he stared at me. I still didn't know who this gorgeous man was! He looked familiar, but I just could not place the face. On the other hand, his eyes? They looked exactly like Flint's. This couldn't be Flint. The man looked surprised as well. It was the way he examined his hands, as if he hadn't seen them in a while, like a long lost friend one has suddenly crossed paths with. He treaded water, examining his hands, until he realized that I was still staring at him. He took one look at me that I soon recognized as the way Flint looked when he's caught doing something he shouldn't have been doing. He dived underneath the calm water. As soon as I saw him dive, I dived in right after him. I wasn't going to let this man leave; he knew something that I didn't and he looked too familiar.

The water felt even colder than before and I felt my limbs becoming numb. Still, I followed the man to the depths of the pool; the blue veins of lapis lazuli faded away to darkness. The coldness seeped into my bones and I almost gave up, but then I saw a flash of emerald and gold in the darkness. The eyes widened and turned away. I kept pushing, although I was almost out of air. It had been about five minutes since he dared me to delve into the depths, and my lungs were rapidly emptying. I saw stars, but the thought of those green eyes kept pushing me on. Where has Flint been this whole time?! I'm such a bad friend. I'd completely forgotten about him! Maybe the man knew where Flint had gone. Flint had slipped into the water right before the man had appeared. Well, I'm going to find out who the man is and where Flint disappeared to. I kept following the bubbles that appeared every time the man paddled through the water, but soon I couldn't see them anymore. I frantically looked around, but my air supply was gone. My vision blackened, and I could feel myself fading in and out of consciousness. I was aware of something solid and warm wrapping itself around me, but I wasn't conscious enough to see the source of warmth. I cuddled closer to the warmth, and hoped that this warmth was an angel's, carrying me to heaven.

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