Casimir was already being pulled under, only his hand now visible. Ava clawed at the shifting granules, trying to reach him, the sand now up to her chest.
A vine appeared, someone attempting to pull her out. She tried to grasp it but the trap sucked her under quicker than she could move.
Then the earth swallowed her whole.
40
“Cas!” Raine bellowed as his two closest friends disappeared into the sand trap below.
No, no, no. He wasn’t going to let them die. Refused. He had to do something.
The quake had stopped, the canyon now filled with panicked shouts.
But Raine didn’t even acknowledge them as he said to Maeryn, “Get everyone else across.”
Her plea of warning was the last thing he heard as he leaped from the bridge.
What are you doing?Sabriel shouted as he hit the sand, allowing himself to be sucked below.
“I’m going to get them out.”
You really are going to kill me from stress.
With a sharp inhale, he held his breath and closed his eyes, the force of the sand pressing heavily against his body. The trap continued to pull him lower, far into the depths of the canyon. The pressure released and he fell into nothing, arms flailing as he opened his eyes and tried to grasp onto something.
He hit the ground with a thud and a gasp.
“What are you doing?” Ava’s panicked voice echoed in the dark.
Raine groaned and pushed to his feet. “Coming after you two. What does it look like?”
Maeryn just jumped in after you.
“Shit,” Raine said.
“What?”
“Maeryn just jumped.”
“What in the five hells is wrong with you two?” Casimir yelled.
“Well, you started it by falling in the first place,” Raine retorted, brushing the sand from his clothes. “I wasn’t going to leave you. And obviously, neither was Maeryn.”
Casimir growled in the dark. “What a mess.”
“Light please,” Raine ordered.
A dim light flared as Casimir made a ball of starlight in his hand, raising it to hover nearby. Raine kept his eyes fixed to the ceiling where a trickle of sand indicated what must be the entrance to this strange trap.
Within seconds, Maeryn fell through with a yelp. Raine took a step forward and caught her in his arms.
“Why are you down here, boss?”
“Well, if you’ll put me down, I’ll explain.”
“What if I don’t want to?”
“So, we are to fight a monster or find our way out while you carry me the entire time?”
