The Devil Spawn

Chapter 5

The days pass by in a blur. It's so hard to tell the difference between day and night in this hole. By now I think I have been in this hole for almost a month. The only thing that's keeping me going is my quest for clues on the etchings on the rocks, but I haven't seen any hints.

The same big woman keeps bringing me the same soup, sometimes with a slice of wholegrain bread. Every time the woman brings the soup, I strain my eyes to see some kind of shape in the foam on top of the soup, but it's only random swirls of foam.

I drag myself up from my makeshift bed and stare at the line of rocks. I pick up a rock at random and rub the edges. I've rubbed the rocks so much that the edges have become quite smooth. The rock that I had picked up is the rock with the star etching on it. I scrutinize every inch of the stone, trying to find some clue that I had missed before. I hold the rock at arms length from my face and a glaringly obvious detail strikes out at me. The rock is shaped like a square! "I can't believe I didn't realize that before!" I say, my energy renewed.

I move the other rocks out of the way and put the square stone next to the spiral rock. I look at the shape of all the other rocks, but they all just looked like rocks. Random, ordinary rocks. I sigh, but I'm still ecstatic from my discovery of the square rock. (why is that exciting to her?)

Just then the big female cook appears in my hole. "How did you get in here?" I say, leaping to my feet. the cook just shakes her head and motions toward her mouth. "Are you mute?" I ask. This is the most I've ever talked to the cook. She nods her head. "What's your name?" I ask.

She bends down and picks up a stick and scratches the name Lainey into the dirt. What's your name? She writes. "My name is Ciara." I say. I can help you figure out how to get out of here. She scratches out. She pulls out her necklace from underneath her starched white uniform. The pendant is in the shape of a triangle with a hole in the center. It's edges are rounded, like the woman has rubbed them smooth. She holds the necklace away from her body, towards me. I just stare at her, not understanding. She motions to my line of rocks, then back to the pendant.

"Ohh!!! Triangle is the next shape!! Thank you!" I exclaim, and give Lainey a giant bear hug. She smiles and hugs me back. Enfolded in her embrace, I realize how much I miss Mom. A tear rolls down my cheek. The cook lets me go. Come on! She lied to you your whole life! You cant miss her! I think to myself. But she's still your mom. She still loved you, and you still love her. Another part of me says. Okay. Let's deal with this later. We have a puzzle to solve. A third part of me says. I take a deep breath and push all thoughts of Mom to the back of my brain. I walk over to where Lainey is standing.

"Okay." I say, and move the rock with the triangle etched onto it next to the square. "Is this right so far?" I ask Lainey. Almost. Spiral isn't first. It is in the right order though. "Spiral isn't first?" I ask. I had been sure that spiral was first. No. "Then what is first?" I can't tell you directly or the passage won't open. "Okay, so can you give me a clue?" Lainey rubs her boot on the floor of the hole, rubbing away the words she had written before. What is the first shape you saw in this prison? "Spiral!" I say. I'm starting to get annoyed. "Why can't you take me out the way you get out?" Because I am a prisoner here too. I was captured when I was 12, and I never figured out how to get out. Once you stay here for a year, you can never leave no matter what. "But then how did you appear in my hole?" I ask. Since I am now a cook for Gastrone - "Who's Gastrone?" I ask, my mouth stumbling over the unfamiliar word. He is our capturer. Anyway, Since I am now a cook for Gastrone, he embedded me with the power to appear in any of his cells, but nowhere else. "Oh." I say. Look up. Lainey writes out. I do what she wants me to. All I see is the circular opening where I had fallen in. I started to tell her that. "All I see is the opening where I fell in and a cloud passing overhead. Oh! The opening Is a circle!! Circle is first!" I rush over to the line of stones and move the circle etched rock to the front of the line. I look up at Lainey. She smiles down at me. "Only two more rocks to go!" I say.

I forgot! you must come with me to Gastrone's lair! He sent me to take you to him. "Ok." I agree, but inside I am shaking in fear of the horrible creature, or Gastrone. I am sorry about this, but you must be unconscious for me to transport you. I sigh. Lainey apologetically raises a rock and brings it down on my head.