Amazonia: An Impossible Choice

by Sky Croft

  “If the tunnels keep on splitting...” Amber let out a heavy breath. “We could be down here a while.”

  Shale patted the satchel that Blake carried. “We have the twine to mark our route if needed. But let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”

  Kale stepped forward impatiently. “Let’s get on with it. If the tunnel splits further, or we have to backtrack, we may not have any time to waste. I choose the tunnel on the right.”

  Shale nodded in agreement of the choice.

  “That’s two for right,” Blake said. “Amber?”

  “I honestly have no idea, so I’ll go with the majority.”

  Blake tipped her head. “Right it is.”

  As they started down the right fork, Shale, bringing up the rear once more, whispered into Blake’s ear. “And which would you have chosen?”

  “I can’t tell you that.” Blake smiled furtively over her shoulder. “Because if I say the other, and this tunnel turns out to be the wrong one, I’ll get blamed for not making the decision.”

  Shale chuckled. “It’s a hard life being the queen.”

  The smile became a grin, and green eyes twinkled in the lantern’s light. “My wife makes it bearable.”

  “Is that so?”

  “Mm-hmm. She’s quite a woman.”

  Shale was delighted by Blake’s words. Delighted and touched. She couldn’t wipe the silly smile from her face as she trekked along, and she focused her mind on thinking up ideas to try and change Blake’s mind about sleeping outside. She could kill that snake—if Kale hadn’t already done so—for scaring Blake and putting her firmly off the concept, especially as it was one of Shale’s favorite things to do. Though they had slept outside since the snake, a good few nights in fact, on their journey back here, she still hadn’t managed to convince Blake. Shale had hoped that once the shock had worn off, Blake would again come around to the idea. But it seemed that wasn’t to be. Shale ran through several different notions in her head, but none were special enough to overshadow the incident with the snake. She was struck by a sudden epiphany, and it was so obvious that she was surprised she hadn’t thought of it sooner.

  Shale resolved to carry out her plan on the route back home. A smile crept across her face in anticipation, and it only grew as she thought about the details.

  The tunnel was rather monotonous, and it just kept on going. Lengthening farther and farther, until the exploring Amazons were weary of travel. When it finally opened up into a cave, every woman let out a relieved sigh, though that relief was short lived.

  “I don’t believe this!” Kale thrust her lantern toward every corner of the small cave. “It’s a dead end.”

  “We’ll have to retrace our steps.” Blake sat down heavily, removing her satchel and stretching her legs out before her. “But not until we’ve had a rest.”

  Amber plunked down ungraciously beside Blake. “At least this tunnel didn’t split further. We only have the one route now. Makes things simpler.”

  “Shame we’re not on it though,” Kale muttered as she sat, folding long legs underneath her.

  Shale copied her pose, then unshouldered the heavy rope and dumped it on the hard ground.

  Amber drank thirstily from her water skin, then passed it around. Kale handed out apples from her supply satchel of food, and the group munched in silence for a while.

  As Kale finished her apple, she tossed the core aside. “We’d better find the urn after all this.”

  Blake wearily leaned against Shale, as if for support. “I hope the other tunnel isn’t as long as this one.”

  Shale regarded Blake seriously. “If you’re too tired, we can always head back to the surface when we reach the fork.”

  Kale’s voice lifted in protest. “But then we’ll have to repeat it all tomorrow.” The loud words echoed around the small cave. “We pass by the fork anyway, our goal might be round the very next corner.”

  Shale shrugged. “And it might not.”

  “No, we’ll press on,” Blake said. “But if the tunnels divide any more, we’ll have to try again tomorrow.”

  Kale nodded, seeming to accept that. “Fair enough.”

  FORTUNATELY, THE TUNNELS didn’t divide any further. The women had backtracked and taken the left tunnel, and though it was long, the distance wasn’t half that of the previous passageway.

  Blake held her breath as the tunnel opened up into a mid-sized cavern, though her heart sank when she saw it was another dead end. She felt her temper rise when Kale, who was farther into the cave, started to laugh.

  “I don’t see what’s so funny,” Amber said, her frustration evident. “All this has been for nothing.”

  Kale lifted her lantern, raising it high and guiding its glow toward one of the corners. Blake began to laugh herself as the light reflected back off something, and a dazzling golden shine cut through the surrounding shadows, revealing a large mound of treasure.

  “We’ve found it!” Amber happily threw an arm around Kale in celebration.

  “Is Zephyra’s urn there?” Blake rushed forward excitedly, her pace slowing as the approaching lanterns lit up another, more ghastly surprise.

  Dotted all around the cavern, most around the gold, were the remains of bodies, all in a similar skeletal state.

  “By the gods,” Blake said. “What happened here?”

  Amber bent over a skeleton, and tapped a knife that stuck out of its chest. “This one’s been stabbed.”

  Shale squatted next to a different body. “Same here.”

  “This one, too,” Kale said.

  “I think I can guess what happened.” Shale put down her lantern and picked up a sparkling gold chalice. “We already know that they were marauders, thieves. My bet is they got greedy, didn’t want to share. They turned on one another. Killed their compatriots for a larger portion. That man we found with the axe in his side—he must’ve been the last alive. Clearly he was injured in the skirmish, mortally so, but he still made a try for the way out, tugging his stolen gold with him.” Her voice became reflective. “He did well to get so far with such an injury.” Shale paused for a moment, and looked up toward the stone ceiling. “This cave became their tomb.”

  Blake nodded to Shale, impressed with her deduction skills. “That explains why the gold is still here. They never got to spend any of the loot.”

  “It serves them right. They shouldn’t have stolen from our sisters,” Kale said. “Artemis cursed them for their greed, for taking what rightfully belonged to the Amazons.”

  “Perhaps it was Queen Zephyra herself. That would be a fitting justice.” Blake’s own words reminded her of their purpose, and she keenly started to search through the pile of treasure, hunting for the sacred urn. She flicked the light across the gold, her eyes scanning the variety of trinkets, hesitating occasionally when she saw shapes that could be an urn.

  Shale, Kale, and Amber joined in the search, the gold clinking loudly as they dug into it with eager hands. “Blake?” Shale carefully pulled an item out of the pile, smiling in triumph. “I recognize this from the drawing Zayla showed us.”

  “Sappheire’s royal crest!” Blake shook her head wondrously, not quite believing her eyes. “I can’t wait to show mother. She’ll be delighted.” She tucked the crest into the empty bag she carried, one that they’d bought from the marketplace. “We’ll take it with us.”

  With renewed hope that they would indeed find the hallowed, long lost urn of Zephyra, Blake shoveled aside a pail load of gold coins, inhaling sharply as a bejeweled metal urn suddenly revealed itself to her. Tears coursed down Blake’s cheeks at the sight. She would know that urn anywhere. With the utmost reverence, Blake lifted the urn to her lips and kissed it devoutly.

  “Zephyra,” Amber whispered, as she and the twins dropped respectfully to one knee.

  Blake unclipped the lid cautiously, heedful of the contents that she hoped were still tucked safely inside. She peered into the urn and saw gray dust below, then fastened the lid back into
place. “Zephyra’s ashes are still inside.”

  Thrilled exclamations greeted Blake’s words, but no one spoke, each seemingly overwhelmed by the discovery, and what it meant for their tribe.

  Realizing she was monopolizing the urn, Blake passed it on to Shale, who kissed its bejeweled metal surface as Blake had done before her. It went to Kale next, then finally on to Amber.

  Blake was wiping away happy tears as the urn came back to her, and she selected the satchel with the royal crest inside, opened it, and placed the urn carefully alongside it. Once the bag was safely closed, Blake held out both hands, one to each side of her. Shale took the left, Amber, the right. They in turn held out a hand, and Kale linked with them.

  Blake regarded each woman in the circle. They were all connected, all family. She loved them all dearly, and she couldn’t imagine a life without each, and every one of them in it. Committing the moment to memory, she thanked the gods for the blessings bestowed upon her. She was truly grateful.

  Blake smiled, and it outshone all the gold in the cave. “We’re taking you home, Zephyra. Back to the Amazon nation.”

  BLAKE TOOK ONE last look around the cave. A large pile of treasure remained, but they were taking the important items, and plenty more besides.

  “Are you sure we shouldn’t take anything else, Blake? Shale and I are more than capable of carrying the weight in those bags.”

  “I don’t want the bags to split, Kale. And we still have a long trek home. Such a burden will take its toll.”

  “Well, what about the rest?”

  “I’ll send a group back, with a escort of guards of course. In fact, given the strength needed, the group will likely be made up of warriors.”

  Blake looked to Shale for her opinion. “I was thinking the best way would be for the tunnels to be split into sections, and a person designated to each part. Then they could pass the gold along that way.”

  Shale nodded. “Like the formed line we used for putting out Nephele’s cabin fire.”

  “Exactly. Though the people who are designated around the problematic areas, like the river, will have to be swapped around quite frequently as they’ll have the hardest task.”

  Kale shook her dark hair. “I’ll tell you who’ll have the hardest task—the poor soul who has to heave it all up the entrance shaft.”

  “So you’re not volunteering for it then?” Blake raised a taunting eyebrow. “You’re always boasting about your strength. I thought you’d relish the opportunity to show it, Kale.”

  “It’s not that I couldn’t do it,” Kale said quickly. “For, of course, I could. Actually, now that you mention it, Shale and I together would be best suited to such a vital position.”

  Shale’s voice lifted in protest. “Don’t drag me into it.”

  Amber began to chuckle. “Nicely played, Blake. Kale doesn’t even realize you goaded her into doing such a task.”

  “What? Blake didn’t...” Kale scowled as the realization seemed to sink in, and her glower darkened as Shale smacked her in annoyance.

  “Thanks a lot, Kale.”

  “You should be thanking me,” Kale said. “Because we’ll be up on the surface, instead of being stuck below in these cold tunnels.”

  Shale looked heartened by the news. “That’s true... All right, I’m in.”

  Kale slapped Shale on the back, though Blake suspected it was more to repay Shale’s hit than it was for approval.

  “Let’s get moving.” Blake started toward the tunnel. “We’ll leave all the ropes in place, including those we have to rig on the way out to assist with the gold. The only rope we’ll take away is the rope at the entrance shaft. We don’t want anyone to stumble across it.”

  “It’ll save us carrying the ropes home.” Amber sounded pleased at the prospect. “And it’ll save the next group from bringing them back.”

  Blake heard the relief in Amber’s tone, and was glad she’d insisted that Amber be burden free of the gold. Her collarbone was clearly still hurting, and the last thing Blake wanted was to add stress to the wound.

  Shale and Kale carried a bag of gold each, though the bags weren’t fully packed. Blake carried the lighter satchel, which contained only two items: the crest and urn. When they reached the surface, Blake knew they would still have their own traveling supplies to carry, and given the distance they had to cover to reach their village, it was wise not to overload themselves.

  They all trudged down the tunnel with renewed energy, filled with the buoyant triumph of success. Oddly, the journey back didn’t seem as long, the elation they felt adding a spring to everyone’s step.

  The rope was still in place over the hole where the tunnel had collapsed, and Shale, then Blake climbed across to the other side. Kale and Amber remained at the far side of the hole, to send across the bags of gold.

  Shale unshouldered her rope and threw one end of it to Kale, who caught it easily and tied it around a satchel’s carry strap.

  Shale looked to Blake. “The bag will jerk the line when it hits the wall. When it stops swinging, we’ll reel it in.”

  Blake sat down so as not to be pulled forward by the weight of the gold. Shale sat in front of her, taking the rope between her hands.

  “Ready?” Kale called out.

  Shale gave a nod. “Swing it.”

  As Kale pushed the bag off the edge, Blake watched it swing in an arc across the void. It collided solidly with the wall, but nothing inside seemed to fall out—Kale had clearly fastened the bag tight.

  “Actually, Blake,” Kale shouted. “It’s a good thing we didn’t fill the bags so they were full. Some objects may have been dislodged with the impact.” She made a show of peering into the black void below. “Never to be seen again.”

  Blake’s eyebrows lifted—it was rare for Kale to acknowledge she was wrong. Blake got on with the task, reeling in the rope in sync with Shale. As the strap rose over the edge, Shale grabbed it and heaved the bag upward, smiling at Blake as she turned and dumped it before her.

  “That was easy.”

  Blake was pleasantly surprised herself. She put the bounty behind her, next to the two lanterns and her other satchel, all piled off to one side so they were out of the way.

  Shale stood to throw the rope back, then sat once more as Kale began to fasten on the next bag. As Blake’s arms encircled her waist from behind, Shale said, “Are you trying to distract me?” Shale amusedly peeked over her shoulder. “Because it’s working.”

  Blake innocently batted her eyelashes. “I’m merely making sure you’re warm enough. In case you hadn’t noticed, it’s cold down here.”

  “Oh, I’ve noticed. But the exertion’s keeping me from getting too cold.”

  “Does that mean you don’t need my body heat?”

  “I didn’t say that.” Shale leaned back into Blake’s touch, and released a sigh as Blake kissed the side of her neck.

  “When you two are quite finished...” Across the void, Kale was shaking her head. “We do have work to do, you know.”

  Blake giggled and scooted backward, taking up the rope once more. “Ready.”

  The next bag was swung across, and the rope tried to jump free of their grasp as the gold impacted with the rock and its weight pulled on the line. This bag was slightly heavier than the previous, so was more taxing to pull upward. It was fortunate that solid gold didn’t break easily, or the trinkets would not have survived the swing.

  The bag’s rise abruptly halted, as if caught on something.

  “Stop!” Amber called out. “The bag’s snagged on an outcrop of rock.”

  “Let the rope out a bit,” Kale said, clearly able to see the problem from her vantage point opposite, whereas Blake and Shale couldn’t. “Right, try again.”

  As the satchel rose, the outcome was the same, it still got stuck.

  “Should I give it a yank?” Shale asked.

  “No, you may rip the bag. It’s wedged tight underneath the outcrop.”

  Kale paused, as if
thinking up a plan. “You need to let the rope out again and swing it from side to side. When the bag’s at full swing, if it’s reeled in quick enough, it should jump past the outcrop.”

  Shale nodded. “All right. Tell us when to pull.”

  As Blake and Shale let out the rope, one of the lanterns behind them flickered, then went out.

  Now considerably dimmer, Blake glanced to the remaining light. She saw the issue instantly. “Hold up. The candles are about to go out.” She made the logical assumption that all of the lanterns were in an identical state, since the candles inside had all been used for a similar amount of time.

  As if to verify her words, the lantern beside Kale and Amber began to stutter.

  “Who has the candles?” Amber’s panicked voice echoed around them.

  Blake couldn’t blame her, she herself was fighting the same rising fear. They’d be in deep trouble if all the lights went out. It would be pitch black without them. It couldn’t possibly happen in a worse place either, next to a gaping pit.

  “I have them.” Blake looked behind to her bag. “Shale, can you...”

  “I’ve got the rope.”

  Blake didn’t hesitate and scrambled to her satchel, cursing as the third candle started to shudder. She found the flint easily, and her hands dug deeper into the bag, straining to reach the spare candles.

  As if in league with one another, both remaining lanterns winked out.

  “Nobody move.” Shale’s voice rang out into the sudden, all-consuming darkness.

  Blake closed her eyes and reopened them—she was blind either way. Blackness didn’t accurately describe the lack of visibility, it was as if the void below had reached out and sucked every single trace of light from the world.

  Blake fumbled frantically through her bag, having no choice but to go by feel. She found the blanket, the twine, a hammer, a chisel, other tools, but no candles. She kept a tight hold on the flint, knowing that if she were to drop it she would have great difficulty finding it again. She was annoyed with herself for not keeping an eye on the height of the candles. It was a careless oversight on all their parts, they’d gotten too caught up in the thrill of their find. And though they’d all achieved a remarkable feat, Blake knew that this mistake could have proven quite costly—it still could if she didn’t find a spare candle.