In My True Element

Chapter 16

As I stand at the edge of what seems to be a bottomless pit, the words inscribed on the talisman come back to me – "dark and empty monster". Looking deep into the nothingness, I bite my lip, fearing this first step. Yet Ilana seems to be unaffected.

She turns on the light on her helmet and winks at Davidson, "Let's see if we'll live to tell the tale. Stay in touch."

"We will." He promises taking one end of the rope in his hands. The other soldiers are at his side making sure they can help in case something goes wrong.

Ilana takes her first step down into the almost vertical cave and soon I can't see her at all. I take a step closer to the edge and see her descending lower and lower.

"Now it's your turn, princess. Ready?" One of the soldiers smiles at my obvious discomfort.

I fix my gloves, take one end of the rope in my hands and take the first, which is also the scariest, step down. With every subsequent step there's less air, it makes me feel very edgy.

I. Don't. Like. It

Damn it all. I won't be able to get out of here soon enough.

To stop myself from hyperventilating I concentrate on Ilana's movements. Her breathing is even and each of her steps is well calculated. Soon she reaches a landing where I join her seconds later.

"Wow, this thing is really deep," she marvels, looking down at the dense darkness. "It feels like we've been going down forever."

"It's only been four hundred feet. But I'm not sure if this thing has a bottom at all."

"C'mon, don't be such a wuss." Could it be? Is she actually excited? This is the first time Ilana hasn't been grumpy or stone cold.

"You're enjoying it, aren't you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." She pretends to be busy making sure her rope is long enough for the next part of the descent, which we both know it is.

"Admit it, you like it here, in this cave."

"You're delirious," she snorts and practically jumps off the landing.

I know that it's not safe to scream inside a cave, so I quickly follow her down. "I might be delirious, but for the first time in weeks that annoying wrinkle on your forehead has disappeared."

"You do know I'll punch you once we get down."

"You do know that you need me to get to the end of this thing."

"You're such an A-hole."

"At your service." I want to curtsy but all I can do is nod my head.

After another two thousand feet we finally get to the bottom of the cave.

"We're there," Ilana informs Davidson. "There's a tunnel leading north; we'll follow it."

I take the talisman out of my pocket; the light inside it has grown brighter, but surprisingly enough it doesn't cast any light at the surrounding objects. "Yes, we need to go there." My convinced voice doesn't invite any questions.

"Be safe," Davidson says as we leave our harnesses behind and move down the tunnel. It's big enough for us to walk there freely, though I can't help but wonder if it's only a temporary convenience.

I'm sure soon enough the cave will grow smaller and there won't be anyone to help us. Uninvited fear freezes my body and I look into the deep darkness that can't be penetrated even by our lights. I know I shouldn't fear; nothing bad can possibly happen to us. Two teams of top-notch soldiers are at our disposal should we need their help. But my body refuses to listen to my mind.