The Fire Inside

16. Plunging Into Darkness

"Casper!" Maria jumped up, dropping Isadora—who was snuggled on her lap—on the ground with a thump.

"Careful with the puppy! Actually, I've been meaning to ask, who's dog?"

"Oh! She's mine," Jimin said quickly.

"But what did you find?" Maria asked, completely interested.

"O-Oh. The mountain passage! It was really hard to find so when I found I was relieved."

Maria's face dropped, "So you mean to tell me, that you simply forgot where you found THE SECRET MOUNTAIN PASSAGE?"

"Don't worry. There's no way I wouldn't find it," Casper said calmly.

"And why's that?" Varun questioned.

"I kinda feel drawn to it. You know? I'm a mountain guy myself, so those kind of mountain passages are my forte," Casper beamed.

"Ok. Well, if you found the passage, shall we get going?" Heiwa suggested.

Jimin and Julien went into the snow first. Varun complained about the cold(his leg still hadn't fully healed, but he could walk normally thanks to a certain fiery spirit), but followed Maria because he didn't want to look stupid. Finally, Heiwa and Riley packed up the camp and walked out, urging Emmalynn to move faster.

"I'm getting my scythe! Hold up already!" She complained before walking out with Isadora.

Jimin has completely forgotten about the sinister blade the small child had been carrying.

The group huddled in the blinding snow. Casper smiled at them and motioned them to follow. They stumbled through snowy expanse. As they walked, Jimin felt herself being lifted up. She helped, but slightly relaxed when she realized it was just Casper. He put her on Julien's back who smirked at her, reminding her of the promise she had made. She reluctantly grabbed onto Julien's back as the group began to see a more rocky landscape. Jimin begrudgingly watched Julien struggle to navigate through the haphazard rock. At this point, Emmalynn had practically hitched onto Varun's side, who had taken a liking to the young girl. Heiwa was aiding Riley while Casper was busy holding Maria back. The tallest just wouldn't stop running ahead!

Jimin looked for Isadora, but couldn't find her anywhere. She tapped on Julien once, but he didn't respond. She started frantically tapping Julien's shoulder until he finally looked at her.

"Izzy's gone!" She whispered.

Julien's eyes went wide, but he stayed silent. He could sense that Jimin didn't want anyone to know. Jimin asked to be let down and finally Julien obliged. She stumbled a bit at the sudden change in footing and took a second to get used to her own feet. Julien held her up, but quickly released with a small chuckle when she glared at him. Maria—who was the farthest away—caught this "friendly" exchange and decided to call attention to them.

"Varun! Your boyfriend's cheating on you! Go get your man!"

"Shut. UP!" Varun's ears slightly turned red to which everyone laughed.

Julien smiled but Jimin could see the light pink traveling to his ears as well. She laughed again before picking up Isadora.

"Casper!" Emmalynn whined, "How much longer?"

"Did she just get more whiny? What happened to the 'I'm going to kill you' attitude?" Jimin raises an eyebrow.

"Don't worry. That was just an act. If she feels comfortable around you, she's just a big baby," Riley said shaking her head in disapproval.

Emmalynn pouted to which Varun held onto her tighter. She wasn't only clinging onto his side—she was hanging on like a koala!

Casper, watching all of this smiled at the childish nature. They were all so young, definitely younger than him by far. Especially the little one. Emmalynn was it? He knew what they were about to face, but he also knew that most of them could probably endure it. Jimin seemed mentally stronger than most of them. Julien was like a guardian who'd risk his life for her. Varun, although his leg still hadn't healed, was doing just fine. Maria, was definitely the strongest, physically. The others didn't seem like they had a lot of fight in them, but given the chance, they'd probably be just as strong. It was as if Casper had met a small army of fighters. Each carrying their own role in the group. If he had to guess he leader, he'd go with Heiwa. She had a motherly—but definitely strong minded—approach and could get the job done. Casper stopped for a second to make sure the group was still behind him.

"We've almost reached!" He hollered.

"That wasn't too long, was it?" Varun asked.

"I guess not, but last night, I was trudging through more than just fallen snow. Plus the cold kinda made it hard to keep track of time..."

"That's true, I guess."

"Well if we're almost there, let's go!" Maria threw her fist in the air.

Casper began walking again and led the group to a small tunnel.

"It's like someone deliberately made this...it doesn't look natural," Riley said nervously.

"Of course it's not natural! People made this and the snow and hail made the hole deeper," Casper said.

"Well then, shall we?" Jimin asked the group.

They nodded and started to walk in. It wasn't too wide so they had to walk single file. Isadora was the first to go. She bounded towards the entrance shocking Jimin and the others, who'd expected Isadora to stay in safe hands. Jimin, without hesitation, went in next. Julien followed quickly. Casper motioned for the others to go. Varun and Maria went through next, both trying to get ahead of each other and catch up to Jimin and Julien first. Riley and Emmalynn disappeared after them, leaving Heiwa and Casper outside.

"I seriously gotta thank you," Heiwa's smiles reached her eyes.

"What for?" Casper asked.

"You helped us get this far!" Heiwa said laughing.

"You're too kind."

"Trust me. With what we're going up against, this is a lot of help to get us a head start."

Casper smiled at the eldest. She was probably in her early twenties if not 18 or 19 in age. She seemed sweet and pure. She did not belong in this situation. Casper tan his fingers through his air before sighing loudly. He followed Heiwa into the passage and caught up to the group.

"Now what?" Maria asked.

Jimin looked around to see where they were. It was hard to see with the minimal light, but it seemed like a small room. The passageway they had come through was narrow for even one person, but it opened up to a size big enough for everyone to collapse on the cool, dusty floor. Jimin looked in the opposite direction of the entrance and noticed that there were three doors. She made a mental note to figure out where they led. For now, they needed to figure out their next course of action.

"Well, now we walk! For a while too," Casper shrugged.

"So how long is this gonna take? Because I'm exhausted," Julien groaned.

"You weren't exhausted before," Varun said.

"Hey, I finally got to relax, so now I can feel how tired I am!" Julien countered from the ground.

"Stop being gay!" Maria complained.

"I think she forgot what it means..." Varun and Julien simultaneously said, causing an eruption of laughter throughout the small space they were crammed into.