Dimension Travelers

Chapter 58

Right now, we are trying to find our way back. I must admit, Chloe is much stronger than I had thought she was. I don't know how she managed to carry Jared for such a long period of time. I mean, I probably would have had to take a few breaks.

Anyways, we found Rick and he is ok, but he can't stay here for much longer because of his asthma. He can barely walk, so he is using me as support. Chloe still has to carry Jared on her back, so I have no right to complain.

For some reason, this part of the castle is totally new to me. I have never seen it before. I have tried over and over but I can't remember this place. It seems to be a never ending hallway. The smoke is making it difficult for me to see very far. Rick's coughing continues to get worse.

I glance over at Chloe. Her face is still a bit pale and her forehead gleams with sweat. Of course, I probably look just as bad. Lifting that boulder was no easy task. I still feel a bit drained, but, compared to Jared and Rick, I could run a marathon.

"How're you doing, Rick?" I ask.

He coughs and says, "The same. How much further?"

"Hard to say. Could be another few feet, or a mile for all I know."

He sighs, "Great. Just great."

"If we don't find a way out," Chloe says, "I'll make one. Even if it kills me."

My expression says: that's-really-not-funny-and-this-isn't-the-place-or-time.

"Sorry." She says. "I just don't like wandering in circles."

"I know whatcha mean." I reply. "We'll find a way out. Don't worry."

She looks at me with sad eyes and sends me a thought:

Too late...I'm already worried.

I sigh. I'm always here for you. Just hang in there ok?

She nods. Yeah, ok. I will.

We keep walking for what seems like hours. Every wall that we have past looks exactly the same as the one before. I get it; this is a giant maze. All we have to do is find the exit...Which is close to impossible! I take a deep breath and try to calm myself. If I keep a cool head, maybe I'll figure something out. But so far, that has not worked. Even if I manage not to totally freak out, we won't be any closer to getting out.

After awhile, Rick insists that he can walk on his own. I didn't object, knowing that if I did, there would be an argument. Now I have the pleasure of carrying Jared. Chloe needs the break, before her back gives out or something. I saw relief on her face when he slid off her and hopped onto me.

We walk in silence, since everything has already been said. So far, the only things we have encountered are: walls, smoke, boulders, glass, sirens, and more walls. There have been no signs of any humans around here. I normally don't give it a second thought, but now, this feels like a trap of some kind. I have tried to make sense of it for the past hour or so, but no such luck. If Eclipsa wanted Chloe and me so badly, then shouldn't she have made a move by now? Ugh. My head hurts now.

A low growl interrupts my thoughts. I turn around and see that it's Rick. His (uninjured) hand is glowing yellow and shaking. His long hair is covering his face, so I cannot see his eyes. His teeth are showing. I tense up immediately. Chloe and I make eye contact. Jared slides off me. He leans against the wall and watches.

What's the matter with him? I ask Chloe.

Don't know. He's obviously mad, but I can't figure out why.

This isn't lookin' good. Back up a little.

Ok.

"I'm sick of wandering in circles." Rick says in a scary tone. "I'm gonna bust a hole in every single one of these walls if I have to. I'm gettin' outta here."

Before we can react, he punches the wall with incredible speed and strength. As a result, there is a giant hole in the wall, a couple feet wide. Also, the ground shakes as if there is a level five earthquake. Unfortunately, the ceiling starts to collapse as well. A boulder falls straight for Rick. I tackle him and roll out of the way. Chloe grabs Jared and dodges her way around the boulders. Rick shoves me aside and punches another wall. I have no time to stop him. I look all around to find Chloe and Jared.

The smoke is lifting, but I can't find them. I look all around. All I can see are boulders scattered across the hall. All I can hear is Rick getting further away. Suddenly, I hear,

"Chloe! Chloe! Wake up!" It's Jared! So he's alive.

"Jared, where are you?" I call out amongst the rubble.

His hand appears a few feet away. "Over here! Hurry!"

I head in the direction of his hand. I trip over a medium sized stone, but manage not to face-plant. Once I reach Jared, my heart stops. Underneath a boulder, is an unconscious Chloe. Her head has a small cut that's bleeding. I check her pulse. She's alive.

"What're we gonna do?" Jared asks.

"Can't we just pull her out?" I ask.

He shakes his head. "No. We'd risk hurting her even more. The boulder is massive and we don't know what its shape is."

"What about shoving it?"

"Nope. She'd be crushed in the process. In fact, if we did that, the boulder would cut her in half."

A sickening image enters my mind and I shudder. Now it's my turn to get mad. "Then what the heck are we supposed ta do? Just wait?"

"I don't know." He says calmly. "Try waking her. Maybe she could morph into something and crawl out."

"I don't think it'd work. She got a pretty bad blow to the head, I'm guessing. She won't be able to morph into anything for awhile."

He sighs. "Great. Rick got away, Chloe's trapped underneath a boulder, and we're lost."

"Come on. We've gotta think of somethin'."

"Like what? If you try to move it by yourself again, you'll pass out or something."

Before I can say something clever, Chloe's eyes open and she looks at me. "Seth? What happened?"

"A boulder fell on you and knocked you unconscious." I answer. "Try not to move."

"Ok." She looks all around. "Where'd Rick get to?"

"We don't know." Jared says.

"Is there a plan to get this thing off me?"

"We haven't come up with anything that'll work yet." I say.

"I see." She says.

This is beyond frustrating. How are we gonna get home now?

*****

To be continued in book two: Dimension Seekers, now published. Here's the link: http://w.tt/1pBEzzw