Blackstone

The Pit

Carrie and I fell into a void. A darkness so complete, so total that I couldn't see anything. There was just the awful sensation of falling, plummeting into nothing. Carrie and I screamed in terror. We couldn't help ourselves. I kicked and flayed trying to grab onto something, anything. This was far worse than my first test at the Red Door. At least, there I could see. Here, there was only darkness.

            SPLASH! I fell into a large inky black pool of water and sank down into the depths. I tried to look for Carrie, but I couldn't see anything through the thick liquid that felt like a mixture of oil and water. I kicked for the surface.

            Finally, my lungs burning with the need for air, I broke through. I gulped down air and almost threw up. The most noxious foul smell assaulted my nostrils. It smelled like rotten fruit mixed with spoiled milk.

            Suddenly, Carrie broke through to the surface. She gasped, sputtered, and immediately began gagging on the smell.

            "Glad you could join me. Come on in the water's foul," I said.

            "Is this even water?" Carrie said.

            I kicked and tried to keep my ahead above the liquid. "I don't know."

            "What is this place?" Carrie said.

            Suddenly, I heard the sound of something large splashing toward me. I grabbed for my Razor Phone. I didn't even know if our phones worked here, but I had to try something.

            "Relax, it's just me," Thomas said as he swam into view.

            "Thomas!" Carrie exclaimed and swam towards him and gave him a hug.

            "Are you all right," I asked Thomas.

            He nodded, "I should ask you the same thing. Bloody hell, where did we end up the local sewer? "

            Carrie reached down and came up with her Razor Phone. She tried to access it but nothing came up. She shook it but still nothing happened.

            I yanked out my Razor Phone and tried to access it. Nothing. "Guys, I think we're in trouble."

            "Oh, I was about to tell you. Razors don't work here. That was the first thing, I tried," Thomas said.

            "Great," I snapped and slid my phone back onto my belt. I was about fed up to here with Mr. Z's tricks. I knew this was the work of the little gray alien. If this was his idea of a good time, throwing us into a labyrinth with a wounded Minotaur and then dropping us into a giant size toilet bowl, then he needed to do more studying.

            "This isn't funny, Mr. Z." I raised my head and shouted into the darkness.

            "We still have to find his remote control. Without that, we're never going to pass the test and get out of here," Carrie pointed out.

            "That bloody remote control. If it's somewhere in this sludge then we've got about a snowballs chance in hell of finding it with our phones out," Thomas said.

            Suddenly the familiar sage voice of Mr. Z echoed in our minds. "Don't be so quick to give up my favorite students. Just remember that there is more than one way to skin an elephant."

            Suddenly, directly over our heads, a spotlight shone on a large red switch. Large printing was emblazoned next to it that said OFF/ON.