A cringe went through me as I made the only reasonable decision. The best I could do was touch it as little as possible. I hoped whatever lived here knew how much I didn’t want to do this.
I threw my leg over the bones acting as a protective barrier, straddling the poor gator that was sentenced to this life. When I tried to bring my leg over, the fabric on my pants snagged on a bone sticking out.
Even after shaking my leg, I couldn’t get free. I leaned down to rip the fabric away and stumbled from the awkward stance.
My hands went to steady me before I could even think it through. The warm bone sent a small shock through my fingertips, zinging up my arms, and made its way to my heart.
I could swear something alive settled into my chest and melded with me. A breath of relief left me in a giant whooshthat made me tired, but I didn’t dare let the laziness suddenly washing over me win.
I’d gotten out of the worst of this situation. I refused to lay down here to be eaten by who knows what.
The bone beneath me was smeared with blood from my injured nails. It blended with the rest of the gore, but an animal would smell the difference. That I left my mark.
I hurried over and focused on walking across the expanse. Each step was like moving through wet cement. Heavy, as if the ground was a toddler clinging to me. It made crossing the nest take longer than it should have.
Once I finally made it to the other side, there was just enough sense left in me to put a mini camera from my rucksack nestled into the bones. I had to figure out what lived here. I refused to live my life without knowing what glorious creature made such a marvel.
I straddled the bone wall to get out the same way I got in. My outside foot froze inches above the ground.
A magnetic pull threatened to tug me by the arm back into the safety of the nest, as if it was made just for me.
The thought of leaving made my breathing hitch in a way that didn’t make sense. The only bad thing that would happen to me was if I stayed.
I forcefully put my foot down and climbed out the other side, ignoring the sense that something vital was being ripped away from me.
A low hum that I hadn’t realized was rattling in my chest stopped, leaving a silence echoing inside me that made tears prick my eyes.
Once both feet were outside the nest, a terrifying roar echoed from above the cavern. A deep sound that resonated through my bones and made my entire body shake.
It wasn’t just me. The entire cavern shook, sending rocks raining down around me.
Fuck that.
The urge to run made every step too rushed. If an animal saw me barreling towards the mouth of the tunnel, it would chase me. I crawled through the small tunnel, focusing on moving forward as quickly as possible without announcing I was prey.
Something slithered across my hand, and I let out a high pitch squeal before I realized it was just a lizard. My heart thundered in my ears painfully as I tried to calm myself.
Get out. Get out!
Chapter 5:
Ifollowedthelightuntil I was finally back outside. The entrance was a den, but that didn’t help me figure out what creature lived there. The water was only a few feet away from the entrance. I was still too close.
Now that I was outside, I could moderate my steps into a calm pace. The small amount of distance and sunlight did wonders in returning my heart rate to a steadier pace.
But even then, the feeling of being near the water made my fingers tremble.
My eyes scanned the area, looking for the creature that would have made that nest.
It took my brain too long to realize what was wrong. Right in front of me, about three yards away, two red eyes glowed from beneath the surface. The eyes were bright enough to see them through the opaque water.
My breath caught, and I froze in place.
Whatever that was, it wasn’t a native creature, but trying to reason what it could be was like thinking through sludge. It wasimpossible to form any theories with the intense eye contact that refused to look away.
A rumbling growl was muffled by the water and bubbles blew over the eyes, breaking the surface,
I forced a deep breath. Oxygen. I needed oxygen if I wanted to make it out of this alive.
