The Second Chance (Open Novella Contest)

Chapter Three - The Keys

I screamed the whole way down and for several seconds after again. Eva caught a piece of paper that was fluttering down from the roof of the cavern. And GUESS WHAT? The paper had a PARACHUTE! A PARACHUTE! I mean, seriously!

"What does it say?" Eva asked me, ripping off the parachute. I took the paper, my hands shaking like crazy, still trying to get my breathing under control and not faint from absolute terror.

"Um-" I took a deep breath and watched my hands slowly stop shaking. "Alright. It seems like we've all been split up into very temporary alliances of two-"

"Lucky we got each other then." Eva shivered.

"Yeah." I glanced back down. "And we are in a maze-"

"Labrinth." Eva corrected, studying a map on the nearest wall.

"Sure. We have to find some keys-"

"How many?" Eva

"Six."

"Six?"

"Yeah," I gave the paper a shake, "Better hope no-one reaches a key before us."

"Why?" Eva's voice was the dictionary definition of terror.

I felt awful for Eva. "Each time a key is found- a random team vanishes. I don't know where they go- but- I'd rather not find out, would you?"

"No." Eva stammered, "Not really."

"Right. So once you have all six keys, you find a wall with six keyholes. You open it and then - It doesn't say."

"Okay." Eva shook herself, tearing the map off the wall. "This doesn't tell us where the keys are, but it might help us navigate. Can you read maps?"

"No." I said, picking up a compass and studied it for a moment. It had a grey needle, spinning around whenever I turned it. "Can you?"

"Nope!" Eva stuffed the map in her pocket. "Probably going to be useless."

"Mmm," I agreed, "You want a compass too?"

"Why not?" I tossed her the compass, picking up two glass vials. One filled with a milky white liquid titled Lethe, the other a silky midnight black titled Mnemosyne.

"What are these?" I asked Eva.

She glanced over. "Rivers. Lethe forgets, Mnemosyne remembers. Man, that must be a hard word to spell." She looked slightly wistful when she mentioned spelling. I guess she must be wishing she could read. And write.

She jumped up to a ledge a little way above her fingertips and pulled herself up. Her brown and white skits swirled around her ankles for a moment. Eva was silent for a count of three.

"One of the boys back in the cavern where we saw Hades," She began, her voice shaky, "He shook me. I'm not sure why, but if we could avoid him? That sounds good."

I sensed that there was something Eva wasn't telling me, but I didn't press. If she didn't want to share, she didn't have to. "Sure." I said, as non-comititally as I could.

"Thanks," Eva dropped down from the ledge and poofed a strand of blonde hair out of her brown eyes. "Can we get a move on? I don't want anyone to find a key before us."

"Do you reckon they have bathrooms in this maze?" I asked, following her out into a narrow hallway.

"Why?" Eva glanced back.

"Because," I groaned, "I need to go. And I'm not sure how much longer I can hold it."

"Maybe. Let me check the map." Eva pulled the yellowish map out of her pocket. She studied it for a moment. "Don't think so. Did it say how we know if someone finds a key?"

I tried to remember. "I don't think so. Let me check." I reached for my own pocket, but before I got there, a rush of blue light came down the hall.

The pain was instantaneous. I fell to my knees, feeling like every atom in my body was being ripped apart. I saw glowing blue letters dancing like flames on the wall. I saw Eva drop as well, as a scream rang through the maze, though if it was mine or Eva's or someone else's entirely, I didn't know. My mind and vision were spinning, I couldn't get a clear thought in my head except one.

This is it. We're done. I failed.

Then the letters slowly sputtered out and the pain faded. But it was still there. Threating to come back and tear me and my mind to shreds.

"What," I panted, getting to my feet, "Have we gotten ourselves into?"

"And how," Eva agreed, also getting to her feet, "Can we get ourselves out of it?"