The Children of When (Complete)

Chapter 31: Into the Cave

Raff's breath exploded out of him with a loud whoosh as he stepped inside the cave and wasn't instantly ejected. So far so good! He figured it was only a matter of time before he'd have to prove his worthiness, but was relieved he was at least going to be given the chance to try. He pulled his trusty torch from his pocket and switched it on.

The beams of three torches flickered around the inside of the cave. The natural light filtering in through the mouth of the cave flickered out, as the curtain of water reformed across the entrance. The increased sound was deafening. They stumbled forward over the surprisingly smooth ground into a wide tunnel, eager to escape the cacophonous roar.

When they had gone far enough for the roar to become a distant rumble, Raff suggested they stop and get their bearings. His ears were still ringing from the deafening sound they'd finally left behind.

"Okay, so I'm pretty sure we haven't passed any branches off this passageway yet. Guess that means we're heading in the right direction."

Belle grinned. "I'm glad you were looking. I was just following you, hoping my head wouldn't explode from the noise!"

Leah chuckled. "Ditto to that! I thought we'd never get far enough away."

Raff shone his torch around the walls of the cavern as they talked. He was amazed how smooth the rocks around them were. It was as if a giant ball had tunnelled through the rock, smoothing the jagged edges as it passed. He pointed the beam in the direction they were heading. It looked no different further on than where they were now.

Scratching his head, he wondered for the zillionth time how they were supposed to find this vault. What would they do if they reached a fork in the tunnel? What if they went down the wrong one? They could end up lost in here forever. He shook his head, trying to banish the negative thoughts creeping into his mind. Idiot! You were the one craving adventure, maybe you should be careful what you wish for next time?

"Hey Raff, you alright over there? You've gone awfully quiet." Leah's voice jolted him out of his gloomy thoughts. He jumped up, holding his torch under his chin and trying to make his face look spooky.

"Were you talking to me girl? Muahahahaha." He followed up the evil laugh with a howling noise, that had the girls rolling with laughter. "Seriously though, I think we'd better get moving. We have no idea how far in this vault will be, and some of us have yet to prove our worthiness." He winked at Belle, as they brushed off the dust and moved forward.

After about an hour of trudging along the seemingly never-ending, monotonous tunnel, the rock suddenly expanded around them into a humungous cavern. At its centre sat a pool of stagnant water, giving off the repugnant smell of decay and rotting fish. A soft greenish-coloured glow emanated from the fetid water, enabling Raff to see the opening of another tunnel, on the other side of the cavern. He shuddered at the thought of having to go around the edge of the pool to get to it.

"What is that smell?" Belle looked like she was about to be sick. "It's absolutely disgusting!"

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we're going to have to go around it to get to the next tunnel." He pointed towards the entrance to the other tunnel.

"Well, let's just get it over with then, before I throw up!" Belle was striding towards the wall to the left of the pool. Before Leah and Raff had taken a step to follow her, something long and snake-like emerged from the pool and slid across the ground towards Belle.

"Belle, look out!" Leah screamed, as she raced towards her. Belle looked around her wildly, but she was looking everywhere but down. Raff pulled his knife from his belt as he ran towards her, watching in horror as the long slimy tentacle wrapped itself around her ankle. He reached her just as she toppled backwards, screaming as she was dragged towards the water. He dived forward and severed the slimy appendage, pushing Belle back away from the edge.

Hot, bile green liquid spurted from the flailing tentacle. Raff groaned as the centre of the pool began to bubble and froth. Of course the slimy appendage was attached to something much bigger! The water surged upwards and a hideous creature rose from its depths, a high-pitched keening sound spewing from its voluminous mouth. Countless more snake-like tentacles lifted out of the water around it, waving madly in the air, before lashing out towards where the children huddled in terror. Within seconds, the tentacles had found their targets, latching onto arms and legs, intent on dragging their helpless victims towards the water and certain death.

Raff knew his knife was useless. He needed to do something... and suddenly he knew what it was. He closed his eyes and concentrated on building the perfect weapon, shaping and moulding it in his mind. His eyes flew open, and he looked directly into the creature's single eye, floating above its gaping mouth. He threw his arm forward, feeling the familiar jolt as the fireball hurtled towards the hideous creature. The ball of flame hit the monster's slimy flesh and exploded. The keening noise grew louder, and then spluttered into silence as the flames engulfed the monster.

Raff felt the tentacles wrapped around his ankles fall away, relief flooding through him as the now lifeless appendages were dragged backwards into the pool, still attached to the dead creature sinking back into the depths. Now, where were Belle and Leah?