Sea of the Dead

by Matthew Holmes

  Chapter 17: The Bottom

  The group marched on in the dark tunnel. An occasional drop of briny water landed on Michael’s head, startling him in the dim.

  He looked over at Kai, who had her hood over her head, but not the scarf that hid her face. She walked with her eyes to the ground and her lips pressed together.

  “Kai, what is it?” Michael asked.

  “What?” she asked, quickly looking up at the prince. “You seem troubled. What are you thinking?”

  “It doesn’t make sense. The tunnel was concealed under Aamad and buried, so why would they have taken the time to dig all of these extra tunnels?”

  “Maybe they wanted to confuse any unwanted visitors,” Michael suggested.

  “No, I don’t believe that could be the reason. The writing at the entrance said that only you could open the entrance the first time, so who would they be trying to fool?”

  “I don’t know, the Defre-Lanc have strange ways. They have been forced to be unpredictable for all these years in order to survive. Maybe it is best not to question their motives for now.”

  Suddenly overwhelmed by exhaustion, Michael sat down to rest.

  “Get up,” Reno said, “we don’t have time to rest. We will run out of air down here in no time, I don’t think we should sleep it away.”

  “We should be fine,” Kaitala assured. “We have been down here for hours, and breath is no harder to find than before. There must be an opening somewhere to let air in.”

  “She is right,” Sphergol said.

  “We have been down here for a long time,” Ryan said. “We should rest now and continue later. It should be safe, so nobody will have to keep watch.”

  Examining the walls of the side tunnels, Reno noticed that they were much different than the larger main path. They were scratched and uneven, almost as if they had been dug out afterward. “Who knows what sort of creatures could be lurking in this dim? We keep watch,” Reno said sternly with his hand pressed against the wall.

  After the group was well rested, they continued on their way. Hours passed by with idle conversation and faint warmth touched Michael’s face, slowly growing into a heat. A yellow and orange glow emitted from around a slight bend, reflecting on the damp wall. The heat was almost unbearable.

  As they approached, the group gasped at the sight. Bastian whimpered and hid behind Kai.

  “What is that?” Tristan asked, shielding his nose from the strong fumes.

  “It’s molten rock! That smell is sulfur,” Reno said.

  “That is amazing,” Ryan said.

  “I never thought I would see something like this in my time!” Reno exclaimed, “We must be leagues underground to find something like this.”

  “No,” Kai said as she reached up to feel the stone above their heads, “The ceiling is still cold and damp, which means that the bottom of the sea is right over our heads. At its deepest, the Sea of the Dead is only one hundred feet.”

  “But that would mean…” Reno paused, his face growing concerned; “We have to find a way out of here, and fast.”

  “What is the matter?” Ryan asked.

  “This place is going to turn into a fire hill, and unless we want to become ashes, we have to get out.”

  “Surely it wouldn’t happen that quickly,” Sphergol said.

  “We can’t be sure. We have to get out as soon as possible. Look, the ground is melting around that pool.”

  Sure enough, small pieces of rock broke off the path and fell into the river of magma. The ground trembled gently under their feet.

  “We will have to navigate through one of these side paths,” Kia said.

  “Well, let’s not waste time,” Tristan urged, “We can draw a marker for every time we turn, so we don’t get turned around.”

  “We don’t have any choice,” Michael said, looking at Sphergol.

  “Well, I am not going to go off traipsing through the caverns—I can fly over the molten rock and wait on the other side,” Sphergol said.

  “No, we should stay together. We might not come out at the other side; we might be further than that. Besides, we need a light,” Michael reasoned.

  “So light a torch. I am not a slave,” Sphergol retorted, and then vanished over the bubbling rock.

  “Alright then,” Ryan said with a sigh.

  “We don’t even have torches!” Michael complained.

  “I have five flares that will last an hour or more each,” Kaitala said, “we should be able to catch up with her by then.”