I SURVIVE (#Wattys2017)

CHAPTER 1

*New and Improved Version*

'Perrie...'

A soft, melodic voice called my name.

'Perrie....wake up darling.'

"Mother?" I stirred.

Drops of icy cold liquid softly landed on my face then slid down to the temple and caught among hair repeatedly. I blinked my eyes and felt annoyed with the dewdrops from a long grass above me for disturbing my peaceful sleep.

My head still hurt and my ear created a sound inside that seemed like holding a microphone near a speaker. I took out my two way radio from the pocket of my jeans and placed it beside. In addition to all my temporary troubles, my throat was sore for the lack of water yet I managed to only wet it with saliva. Drinking the salty water is quite hazardous for blood cells so I had to ditch the attempt on sipping some. Slowly, I stretched like a cat for the back bone ached and got up to sit.

Now, I could see where I was. In a huge cave. The air smelled salty and I could taste it in my throat. Clear enough the water in the cave around the surface where I slept, was sea water. I was in a sea cave. However, I was not afraid because I had once encountered an area much more dangerous than this, like a treacherous room which was part of my training before.

I peeked at my reflection on the water and washed my bloody nose. Thanks to the light from the sun, the inside of the cave I was able to see. Opposite from where I sat was a small entrance to another part of this cave.

I waded in the water which was waist-deep at once and felt eager to get out from this dull cave. A bat brushed past me as I waded faster. Some nearly flapped its wings in my face and I pushed it away with the radio in my hand. Finally, I reached the land and my clothes were dripping with water. I glanced back at the room and wondered how I got in this cave.

'The water might had brought me here and pushed my body on the ground over there,' I thought.

The new room was quite dark but not a pitch-black cavern. It was as though being trapped in a shoe box with five tiny holes on the lid of it, poked by a pencil's lead. Fortunately, I stepped on a matchbox which was placed on the cave floor and inside of it contained two matches as I strike one gratefully. It was like a miracle that I desperately need right now. The passage was a bit low and I had to keep my head down in case I bumped my head into a rough rocky wall. Soon, I walked into another opening which was a little bit bigger than previous one. Only it was rounded with no pointy rocks on the ceiling or on the ground.

Lanterns were everywhere. Either hanging up or just sitting on the smooth rock surface. I blew out the fire from my match, threw it away and took up a lantern that was placed on the floor, three centimeters to my left. Beside it was a stack of red painted barrels. People must have came here before probably mining because there were crates, odd tools and machines like rock drills and chipping hammers. But they were modern tools.

I went from blank to curious.

It must be a copper or gold mine, but I was sure it was copper. It looked like it had been touched currently for there were still copper that had not been taken. Only, there were zero noises of destruction going on. I rounded a corner and knew why no human came in to work. The only path was blocked by piles of huge rocks on top of each other. It would be dangerous to either pull or push them. All of a sudden, I remembered the barrels that had been labeled High Explosive Dynamites which I met earlier when I was picking up this lantern in my hand.

I found five barrels and stacked them on top of each other, in front of the blocked up passage. A feeling of pride glowed inside to see five, red barrels ready to explode. My head all of a sudden, thumped loudly as if my heart had went up in there and it made me dizzier. Hastily, I set the closest barrel's string on fire using the last match and hid behind the farthest boulder.

Boom. Boom.

It was deafening and had added more lightheaded motion. Everything that was near the explosion was ruined by my doings. I awkwardly moved on with hands on both sides of head and at the same time, finding it hard to keep alert for thugs. I was wrong to expect humans for I should have given full attention to the cave's condition. It began to shake wildly. The whole place began to collapse and I tripped, fell and bumped my head on a stalagmite. Causing it to bleed.

Trust my hands to create an apocalypse.

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A penny for your thoughts about this chapter? Your comments and critiques will help me improve my writing!

~NSAN~
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