He hesitated. “We’re not in a rainy season, so we should be fine.”
“Shouldbe fine? You’re not helping your cause any.”
A cacophony of growls and snarls began echoing from the tunnel they’d taken, as well as one high up on the cavern wall. Seconds later several Volvix emerged up above, staring down at them with undisguised hunger.
“We have to go.Now,” Zepharos said, quickly making sure the packs were secure then smacking the Llamalians on the rear. “Get going!” he urged, then jumped in, the animals happy to follow as the deadly beasts hurried closer.
“Damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” Maria grumbled, then inhaled a deep breath and took the plunge.
The water was, surprisingly, not too cold, she was pleased to find. And it was fresh. Tasty, even, and mildly carbonated, which she learned thanks to an unexpected gulp.
Spring water. Of course. I’m swimming in Perrier.
The Volvix snarled and yowled, but they came nowhere near the water.He was right. Now let’s just hope he was right about the not drowning part.
They swooshed into the hole in the wall, sucked in quickly as the diameter narrowed from the much wider cavern. But the walls were not jagged and sharp, but rather smooth as a mechanically drilled tube, the stone worn perfectly even by thousands of years of water slowly wearing it away.
It’s almost like a water slide,she marveled.This is almost fu?—“
Maria’s momentary enjoyment shifted abruptly as she plummeted down at a steep angle, the water speeding her to whatever waited below. It wasn’t a sheer drop. That much she could tell by her placement in the water. And while the descent went on and on long and fast enough to make her ears pop, it wasn’t vertical. But it sure felt like it.
She abruptly hit the bottom with a splash, much like at the end of one of those water slides she’d compared the experience to just moments earlier. Maria struggled up to the surface, sucking in air in the nearly dark pool.
“Zeph!” she called out.
“Over here.”
“Wait, I can see you. Why can I see you? Your flashlight’s off.”
“I know,” he said, swimming to her with a childlike grin. “Wasn’t that amazing?”
“You knew it was going to do that.”
“Didn’t I tell you?”
She slugged him in the arm—the uninjured one. “You son of a bitch! No, you didn’t tell me!”
“Oh. Sorry. They said it took us down, but I didn’t know justhow far, or how fast. And now, since you asked, we have our way out.”
“What do you mean? We’re in a cave.”
“Yes, but the light. Look over there.”
She followed his gesture, the water naturally pulling them closer to where he pointed anyway as it flowed.
“It’s glowing,” she marveled, dazzled by the brilliant blue water’s sparkle.
“It’s an exit.”
“How? Is it some kind of portal?”
“Nothing so fascinating. Just the angle of the sun at this hour, the rays hitting the white sand on the bottom, illuminating it from below.”
“It’s beautiful.”
“The ancients thought it was enchanted.”
“I can see why. But I don’t see a way out.”
