Chapter 18
HE HAD SMELLED THEearthiness of it long before they saw it, but he just hadn’t thought a worm could be the size of a public transport bus.
They’d obviously surprised it because the minute they’d both reacted with a curse, it roared to life, opening its maw, showing off a mouthful of grinding type teeth, more utilitarian than dangerous. But a scary sight indeed.
“What is that thing?”
“My guess is the one who made the path we’re on.”
She looked around to confirm his suspicions. “So, we’re the creepy crawlies then.”
“Exactly.”
“What do we do?”
Kai looked for another tunnel and thought there actually might be one back a little and to the worms right. It even looked like the worm might have emerged from that particular tunnel. If they could just get it to back up, they might be able to make a run past it. How did they get it to move?
“Maybe you could try singing to it?”
Hollyn looked at him like he was crazy. “Is that your answer to every dangerous thing we come across?”
“Do you have a better idea?”
She shrugged and pulled a deep breath into her lungs. When she sang the first notes of her melody, the worm seemed to calm. It recoiled a little, especially when she increased the vibrato in her voice. Every time she dropped to a lower register, the worm seemed to grow restless.
Kai urged her to sing more, but he said, “It’s lived its entire life underground. I don’t think it can see or hear. It’s picking up the vibrations from your voice.”
Hollyn dropped to a lower register, and as what he took for the head of the worm got close to the mouth of the other tunnel, Kai thought it might be working.
When the song came to an end, Kai said, “Again! Again! Louder.”
“What if someone else hears?”
“We’re almost through.”
But a sudden rumble shook the cave, loosening rocks and dust all around them. Kai grabbed Hollyn and shielded her body with his own until the small quake stopped.
The worm roared once more and charged forcefully toward Kai and Hollyn. They turned to run back the way they came.
“What was that?”
“Hopefully, not a bigger worm.”
They ran, but the worm moved over the debris of the cave like silk, using the damp walls to slide ever closer, its large mouth open, teeth grinding in a spinning pattern as it moved. Clearly, it was an efficient maker of caves.
Their breathing became heavy as they ran uphill, back toward the entrance and whatever awaited them there.
Hollyn called out, “Can’t run much longer. Another plan?”
“Can you sing again?”
“I don’t think it will matter. How about you? Any chance you can talk to worms?”
Kai thought that might be the craziest idea he’d ever heard. Yet, it couldn’t hurt to try. Of course, the worm didn’t likely have ears that actually heard sounds, so he’d have to talk through vibrations.
As he ran, he scooped up two hand-sized blocks of stone. He slammed them together several times in a row, and he noticed the worm slow behind them. He banged the rocks together a few more times in quick succession, and the worm stopped completely, giving Kai and Hollyn a second to catch their breath.
