The Dark Eye Chronicles: Silverstone

Tied to Rocks

Chapter 3

Derek woke up half disoriented to see himself inside a dark, foggy cave, breathing heavily as if he had woken up from a horrible nightmare. He was lying on top of a series of flat floating rocks, four large rocks holding his back and four smaller rocks holding his hands and feet, each moving according to his body. He started playing with them, twisting and turning, knowing that those rocks defied all laws of gravity, until he noticed that he couldn’t get himself off of them. He was somehow attached to these rocks by some invisible force, making him feel like he was part of them. He tugged on his arms, screaming for help, feeling as if heavy chains were holding him down. He kept moving until a loud screech grabbed his attention. Then came a scream, followed by many others. As he looked closer through the fog, he realized that there was more to this cave. He was in a cave with many of the creatures that captured him, and he was not the only human there. Dozens of other victims lined up around the circular walls of the cave, also struggling to get out of their rocks, were yelling and screaming in terror, but he could barely see their faces because of the fog inside. The creatures, all wearing their black robes, walked around the cave, small splashes of water heard with every step they took. He looked down to see a massive puddle leading to a river, which went through many corridors in the cave from what Derek could see. A way out. Derek thought. But he realized it was hopeless. He wasn’t a hero, he wasn’t strong, and he probably wasn’t fast enough to escape such thing. And how was he going to manage getting off those rocks? His thoughts were quickly interrupted by a piercing scream.

He saw one the creatures walk up to a woman. The creature slowly lifted her up in the air, but it made no physical contact. She floated in mid-air screaming, but completely still as if her whole body had been paralyzed. The creature started coughing something up. The rocky layers of its neck started moving forward then back, one-by-one as something ascended up its throat, until a final cough let out a black viscous ball of some substance Derek had never seen. The creature grabbed the black mass and pressed it against the woman’s neck, a black pulse going up her body. The woman stopped screaming, then dissappeared, and like every human Derek had currently seen, everyone in the cave muttered in terror and disbelief, the noise getting louder and louder by the second.

Just like the black smoke Leena left behind…Oh no! Derek instantly realized. “Leena!”

No response.

“Leena!” He called louder.

“Derek!” The voice was heard from afar and he could barely hear it, but Derek could tell it was her, and she sounded absolutely terrified.

Derek did not respond, breathing heavily just like when he woke up. “Mom!” He screamed louder.

Many women answered. Freddy? Michael? Derek? Nathan? Danny?

“Maria!” Derek realized he had to be more specific.

“Derek! Honey no! What are you doing here!?” she yelled, followed by the scream of the victim next to her  before she turned into smoke.

Now it was her turn to be pulverized. The creature wasn’t walking fast, but to Derek, it was sprinting.

“Watch out, mom! Get out! Please find a way out!”

Mrs. Sage started tugging on her rocks, breathing heavily, as she saw the beast slowly approach her.

Derek, too, was pulling and tugging to get himself out to save his mom. She can’t leave. She just can’t. This is not happening. His arms started getting tired and he felt himself weak.

Mrs. Sage was lifted up.

“No!”

The creature coughed.