Chapter 111: The Abyss
1038words
"We have to find a way down," Dapo whispered, his voice filled with desperation.
Eki nodded fast, her thoughts moving quickly. They are caught; Thorne has them now. But they cannot give up hope.
They checked inside their pockets, hoping to find something helpful. Eki found a small flashlight and switched it on. The light from the torch passed through total darkness. We saw height, and the deep cavern floor seemed very far below us.
"We can't jump," Dapo said, his voice filled with dread.
Eki turned her head to the side. They must go down because staying in the sky forever is not possible.
Eki took one deep breath, then she closed her eyes and let herself feel peace. She started to fall, feeling the wind touch her face. The ground seemed like it was getting closer quickly, and this made her feel scared. Just at the moment she thought she would hit the bottom, something prevented her from falling.
She fell to the ground hard, her body shaking from impact. When she raised her head, she saw a big net had caught her. This net holds her hanging around two or three feet above the cave's ground.
Then Dapo landed, his body suddenly hitting hers. They shook together but were not hurt. Their eyes moved towards the cave's floor, which went directly down into darkness.
"How did we survive that?" Dapo asked, his voice filled with disbelief.
Eki lifted her shoulders, still feeling much confusion in her mind. "I don't know," she said. "But we are alive."
They slowly went down to the cavern floor. The ground was not flat, so they needed to walk carefully on it. The air had a powerful odour, like wet dirt and rotting stuff.
When their eyes adjusted to the darkness, they started looking around inside the cave. The walls had strange symbols and drawings on them, also bones scattered all over the ground. It was a mysterious and dangerous place.
In the centre of the cave, there was a large stone altar. On top of this altar, just one item rested - an orb glowing and softly pulsing with its unique light from another world.
Eki and Dapo gave each other cautious glances. They were not familiar with this object, but it appeared to be the main feature of this place. When they attempted to touch it, a gentle noise spread around the cave.
A very frightening time came when the cave began to crumble. Stones and fragments were falling, and they noticed the ground shaking beneath their feet. Eki and Dapo hold onto each other very close - their fear is obvious in this way. They must run away, and fast.
"We have to find a way out!" Dapo shouted over the chaos.
Eki, her eyes looking at the broken walls, said yes. There must be a way to get out of this place.
They ran into the cave, which began to crumble. They dodged falling rocks and pillars. The ground was not flat, so they stumbled and felt pain in their bodies from running.
Finally, they arrived at a very tiny entrance. It seemed quite risky, but it looked like this was their only choice right now. Both of them entered, experiencing their hearts pounding within them.
The passage was very small and narrow. They could hear noises of things falling getting louder from behind them. There was a hurry to move on.
At last, they exited the passage and entered a small room. It was quite dark inside, but there looked to be the shape of a door visible within it. They dashed towards it with renewed hope.
The door was really heavy, but they used all their power together to push it open. The room filled with daylight quickly, so much bright light that for a short time, they could not see anything at all. When their eyes could see again - wow! They were now in a thick forest.
They were no longer inside the cave but still faced problems. Thorne and his group kept searching for them. They had to find help.
They exited from the forest, and not far away they saw a road. Beside this road, there was a bus stop where some people were standing and waiting for the bus.
Eki and Dapo exchanged glances. It was a significant gamble, but they had exhausted all other options. They had to blend in and disappear within the crowd.
They approached the bus stop, looking very untidy with torn clothes. They looked like a couple who just went through some kind of natural disaster.
They tried to make their hearts calm down, which were beating very fast just before the bus came. At this time, they felt safe; but danger was still around - Thorne and his friends would not stop without fighting back.
In the noisy bus, Eki and Dapo try to sleep but their minds do not rest. They left the cavern already, still, they are not safe yet. Thorne and his team keep going - they will attempt many ways to get the artefacts.
They spoke quietly, discussing what to do next. They needed to find a way to expose Thorne and his group, making them answer for their actions. But they also had to protect themselves and the things they had with them.
Just when they were about to discuss the plan further, a loud noise came from the front of the bus. People started shouting and pointing fingers. Eki's eyes showed concern towards Dapo, and both of them became alert.
They turned their heads to look, hearts beating fast. A man in a dark suit got on the bus. They know his face, but he is not completely identifiable.
The man looked around at the people, and finally, his eyes stopped on Eki and Dapo. They felt very scared, like cold fear inside their heart. That face, they knew it. It was one of Thorne's henchmen.
