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“Aww, we’re already holding hands,” a new voice snickered to my right.
“Shut up, Nic,” Jake snapped, though there was no bite to his tone. “This can’t be worse than when we got lost in the mines back home.”
So they knew one another. I wished I’d paid more attention to my group before, but it was too late now.
As the tenuous seconds ticked by, a breeze of winter wind whipped at my face. “Anyone else feel cold?”
“I’m sweating through my damned clothes. Probably looks like I just jumped into a lake. Which isn’t a terrible look on me, might I add. The wet look really shows off my abs. As well as my best feature. According to Blake, that is. Oh, and Noah,” Jake said, his fingers squeezing me.
“One-track mind.” Nic snickered. “I bet you’re more pissed no one can see you in all your glory than the fact we’re lost in the dark.”
“Quiet,” Patrick snapped. Instantly, they complied, though I made out a snort from my right.
I grew lost in the rhythm of the trickling water and rush of a stream, though I should have known better than to relax. A minute later, I collided painfully with a solid stretch of unyielding rock, and the others bumped into one another with a chorus of groans.
My hands searched the wall blocking our path, my heart sinking as I realized we were facing a dead end. My mouth had just opened to suggest we go back the way we’d come and find another route when a great rumble shook the walls.
Spiked rocks tumbled from the roof, a sharp cascade of stinging rain. They pierced my scalp, arms, and shoulders. Heat swelled before the pain surfaced, my temples slick with my blood.
Jake let go of my hand, yelping alongside the others. The pattering of stone continued for a good many seconds, my bloodied arms protectively raised above my head as the cavern crumbled.
Silence reigned, all except for the ragged breaths that mingled with hearts pounding so fast I swore I heard them through their chests.
“Everyone all right?” I asked evenly, my jaw rigid from sustaining my air of control.
A wave of ‘yeses’ came at once, though they hardly sounded confident. And because of my earlier feeling, that there was more to this trial than it appeared, I suspected the falling stones were all a part of the plan.
Being here, trapped in this dank place, brought back unpleasant memories.
For a second, I was back in the Pastoria Forest, screaming in pain, my hands ruined. I heard the phantom calls of my father as he scooped me in his arms, blood dripping onto the ground and vanishing into the dark soil of Cila.
My knees wobbled, and unwanted tears burned my eyes. I had to get out of here.Now.
Sweat trickled down my spine as my inner panic reared its head, my anxiety churning viciously. I was about to start frantically pressing on the wall, hoping to find some miraculous way out of this nightmare, when I blinked and everything changed.
And by everything, I meant that I couldsee.
Fear immediately outweighed wonder.
It was as though the walls glimmered with crushed diamonds, and a yellowish hue highlighted the stones, though the light blurred every time I tried to focus on one particular spot.
I can see in the dark.
Or I was suffering from hallucinations. Yes, that felt more likely.
Swiveling around, I made out the path we’d taken, along with the pile of rocks blocking the exit. That yellowish glow continued to waver, and I rubbed at my eyes, wondering if something had gotten into them.
“What’s wrong?” Jake asked at my side. How he sensed the sudden shift in my mood, I wasn’t sure.
“Has it… You can’t see anything, can you?” I whispered, yanking on his hand.
“Nope,” came his reply. “I see only black. That’s the entire point.”
Patrick, Nic, and the unknown recruit agreed.
I twisted around, taking in Jake’s exasperated expression, his dark brows pinched together. The sharp angles of his face were illuminated, though his eyes were cast in shadows. I could make out Patrick’s broad figure hunched over, his hands moving over the loose rocks and seeking purchase.
And the long-haired boy I assumed to be Jake’s friend, Nic, gazed stoically ahead, ghoulish shadows dancing beneath his eyes. The last recruit, skinny and short of stature, bowed his head, his mouth moving inaudibly, likely uttering some misbegotten prayer that wouldn’t be answered.
