Page 72 of The Chosen Fae

Rune studied the one tunnel where she swore a hint of light was peeking through. "I think there's light coming from that tunnel."

Lolita studied it.

Rune said to Iris and Caspian, "We might have found another way out. I see a light coming from one of the tunnels." She wondered if the tunnel would lead to a faster way out. Or take her farther away from the location they needed to be.

"I'm going to take this tunnel." Rune was going to help Lolita climb the rope.

"No, I'm going with you. That way, if you fall into a hole, I can go for help," Lolita said.

"What do the two of you want to do?" Rune asked Caspian and Iris.

"We'll leave the rope for you in case you need to return for it," Iris said. "Caspian and I can continue to navigate the cave and find the way out."

"That sounds good to me." Rune didn't care who won the challenge. She was just glad Caspian and Iris had stayed to help Lolita while she was all alone in the hole.

Then they heard Caspian and Iris move around the hole carefully so they didn't fall in, and Rune and Lolita took off toward the tunnel with the light at the end of it.

"So what happened with you?" Lolita asked.

"Silas and Xena were on the challenge with me. I was way ahead, but when Xena tried to knock me off the rope that I had to navigate across, Silas came up behind her and threw her onto the net way down below it."

"Omigod, yes!" Lolita said.

"Yeah, he fell onto the net too, and he wouldn't let Xena go. She was screaming bloody murder. She threatened to kill him."

Lolita laughed. "I would have loved to have seen that."

"But it shows Silas was telling the truth about helping us win the challenges. The bad part was that I had to climb that rope going back too, and so he was still keeping her from coming after me on the netting. I had hoped I would be going to a different location."

"Do you think he's still keeping her pinned down on the netting?" Lolita asked.

"Maybe, unless someone tells them I won."

"Was it okay for you to leave the flag and come to help me?" Lolita looked worried it might not have been.

"Yeah, I asked the Game Master, and she said yes."

Lolita was sweet. She hadn't wanted Rune to lose her win by coming to assist her.

They shifted into wolves through some of the narrow passages. The light drew them toward it, but it was taking forever to reach where they thought the opening was.

They might be going on a wild goose chase. Or if it opened near where the flag was, Iris and Caspian might reach it first. But Rune was fine with it because they cared enough about Lolita to try to figure out how to help her.

After the challenge was done, no matter who the winner was, Rune had to return for the rope. She still planned to give Silas her gift for helping her with Xena.

She and Lolita turned around a corner in the cave and saw the opening.

"Woohoo!" Lolita said.

Rune wasn't getting excited yet until they knew if they were anywhere near the flag. They could be a mile away, or maybe closer.

They left the cave and started running along a trail, calling out for Iris and Caspian. No one responded.

"I hope we don't have to return through the cave, climb that rope, and go the way Caspian and Iris went," Lolita said.

"I agree. I was thinking the same thing."

"There, on the hill!" Lolita said. "Go get it!"