"Further in!" his voice echoed from outside the tunnel. "But sir, it's more dangerous! The walls aren't stable!"
"Got it!"
I continued deeper.
Loose stones under my feet kept sliding, making scraping sounds.
About fifty meters in, I saw it.
A perfect piece of lazurite, embedded in the wall.
Fist-sized, deep blue throughout, with evenly distributed golden pyrite flecks that glittered under my headlamp.
"That's it..."
I pulled out chisel and hammer, carefully starting to chip away.
One strike, two, three...
Each hit had to be controlled—too light wouldn't work, too hard might crack the stone.
Sweat ran down my face. In this freezing mine, I was burning up like I was in a furnace.
"Crack—"
The stone finally loosened.
Just then—
A massive explosion, the whole tunnel shaking violently.
"What the hell?"
"No!" Abdullah's face went white. "That's blasting! Must be the next tunnel over! Get out!"
Before he finished speaking, rocks started falling from the ceiling.
"Run!"
I spun around, but it was too late.
A huge boulder slammed down right in front of me, blocking the exit.
"Shit!"
Dust filled the air, choking me.
"Sir! Sir!" Abdullah's voice came from the other side. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine!" I shouted back.
"I'm outside!" he said. "Sir, don't move! I'll get help!"
Footsteps faded away, leaving me alone in the tunnel. Dark, cold,dead silent. I leaned against the wall, gasping. The thin air made my head spin again.
"Damn it!" My oxygen tank had been punctured by falling rocks. Was I going to die here? In some foreign mine shaft?
"No..."
