Secret Doors: The Challenge

by Brian D. Meeks

  “I’m Ira, but my middle name is George. I like George better.”

  Stevie whispered, “Stevie here, nice to meet you...”

  “Quiet down, children, you may get to know one another after you enter the caves of death.”

  The other woman gave a wry smile. “She is only kidding. It isn't really called the cave of death...at most it should be called the cave of pain and torture.”

  “I don't think I've properly introduced myself. I'm Alouicious Troon, and please pay no attention to the sisters. They have a wicked sense of humor...and are just now leaving.”

  Abby heard another “harrumph” from one of them as the two ladies scurried back down the hallway and through the mirror.

  Alouicious patted his pants pockets, checked his coat, and looked quite flustered. “It seems I've forgotten my...darn, well, that won't do at all...I remember having it when I was eating breakfast...and lunch…”

  The bored girl asked, “Mr. Troon, what did you lose? Is it important, or can we get on with this?”

  “You must be Cindy. I've heard about you.”

  Cindy Trippington stood 4’ 7”, had shiny blond hair, perfect teeth, and parents who had met forty years earlier in this very octagonal room. She had heard all the stories dozens of times and found them to be dreadfully boring. Cindy had begun objecting to the whole 'calling thing' after her 11th birthday but, despite a year of lobbying, stood there cursing her lack of cell phone coverage. “Did you hear that tomorrow is my birthday? And I'm stuck here with all of you.”

  Abby couldn't help it and said cheerily, “Happy birthday.”

  Everyone joined in. Cindy shook her head and rolled her eyes. “So are we getting started or what?”

  Alouicious was looking through a satchel and looked up briefly. “It's quite simple. Pick a stairway, then all of you climb to the top and go through the door.”

  Stevie asked, “Then what?”

  A pile of books and papers was now forming on the floor next to Alouicious' satchel, a pile that looked much larger than seemed possible. “You must find the bridge of knowledge and make it to the other side.”

  Hovering in the back of the group, the girl with the ratty black hair asked, “Which stairs do we choose?”

  Alouicious had given up and shoveled the books and papers back into the satchel. “That is a question I can't answer.”

  Cindy said, “I thought you said your job was to answer our questions?”

  Alouicious ignored her and said as he wandered out of the room, “I’ll catch up with you later.”

  There was an awkward silence. Cindy was trying in vain to text someone...anyone, George was nervously swaging back and forth, and the dark-haired girl looked unsure about the whole thing. Abby and Stevie looked at the stairs unsure what to do next.

  Abby walked up to the closest staircase and ran her hands across the stone. It looked like marble; it was mostly white and had green streaks in it. Symbols were engraved in the railing. She ran her hand over one of the symbols. It felt cold, but it also sent a tingle up her arm. She drew her arm back with a tiny gasp. Stevie was watching and asked, “What happened?”

  “It shocked me.”

  This got everyone's attention. They all looked at the handrail. Stevie looked at George and said, “Go ahead, give it a try.”

  George's eyes got big. “Why me?”

  Stevie laughed and smacked him on the back. “It's okay, buddy, I was just kidding. I'll go next.” Stevie reached out and traced his finger along the engraving. He didn't pull back, but, when he was done, he rubbed his three fingers together and said, “It feels oily to me but no shock.”

  Abby touched it again. “Nope, it shocks me.”

  Now George was curious, and he walked around Stevie and up a couple of the steps. He tentatively pushed his finger into the glyph. He swirled his finger around and said, “It feels like sand to me. Weird.”

  Abby noticed the dark-haired girl was still standing away from the group. “What's your name?”

  “I’m Jo.”

  “You want to try touching the railing?”

  “Not really.”

  Cindy reached forward and ran her finger across the railing. “It feels like marble to me. Come on, give it a try. Don't be a drag,” she said to Jo.

  Jo gave in and said, “I don't feel anything...just stone.”

  Stevie went to the next railing. “This looks like it is made of mahogany, and there are symbols in it, too.” He reached out and touched it and then laughed.

  Abby asked, “What's so funny?”

  “The chicken.”

  Everyone looked at him. Abby spoke up. “It felt like a chicken?”

  “No, when I touched it, a chicken started to cluck. You didn't hear it?”

  Jo seemed less distant now and tried the second railing. “I hear seagulls.”

  Abby and Cindy heard lions while George didn't hear anything.

  The third staircase looked like it was made of glass. Every color imaginable swirled across it in tiny threads that wound their way up each step. The railing was clear, though, and also had strange markings. George was the first to try and reported smelling apple pie. Cindy touched the glyph, smiled, and said it reminded her of fresh cut grass. Abby shrieked and lurched back from the glass steps.

  Stevie rushed to her side, “Did it shock you?”

  She fought off the urge to cry. “No, it smelled like wet, burned wood at my parents’ place.”

  Jo didn't bother touching the glass railing and said, “Let's try the next one.” She went over to it and placed her hand on the railing. The fourth staircase seemed to be made of sandstone and looked like it was carved from one singular piece. She stood there for almost a minute then started to walk up each step carefully passing her hand over each successive carving. When she got to the top she sat on the edge of the step and simply said, “This is the one.”

  Nobody moved for a moment. Stevie asked, “What did it do?”

  “Try it,” she said.

  Soon all five of them were at the top step, and they understood that this was the one they should choose. Abby led the way through the door and, when they had all followed, the group stood in a cave. A fire blazed in the middle and, in a circle around the flames, were six backpacks. George spoke up first. “How will the old guy know which one we chose?”

  Cindy grabbed one of the backpacks and said, “Who cares, let's get this over with.”

  Everyone grabbed a backpack except Stevie who took two and put his satchel inside one of them. Abby was curious about what lay in store for them next, and she eased herself out of the mouth of the cave. The sun was just coming up, which struck her as odd. It couldn't be morning already, could it? I'm not even tired, she thought as the others joined her.

  George had his backpack open and was rummaging through the contents. “How long is this supposed to take? I've got food, some water, and a compass.”

  Stevie stood next to Abby and commented, “It's a beautiful sunrise, but it seems like it should still be night.”

  Abby agreed. “It is odd.”

  George said, “It is really odd,” and handed the compass to Stevie.

  Abby asked, “What is?”

  Stevie shook the compass a couple of times, but the needle kept returning to the same spot. “I guess it isn't a sunrise, but a sunset. Look, it's in the west.”

  There was only one path out of the cave, and Cindy was already making her way along the rocky trail. Jo fell in behind her, and the rest followed suit. After fifteen minutes of walking, George said, “It's getting lighter. I think it's a sunrise, but I don't think it is our sun.” He pointed to the fading moon and to another one to its left.

  From the trail they could see a mountain range in the shape of a reverse capital ‘C’ with an expanse of desert filling the center. A barely visible forest seemed to run between the two ends of the mountains. Looking back up the trail, Abby noticed that the mountain they were on was completely barren and smaller than th
e ones on the other side or, at least, that was how it appeared. She could see snowcaps on the tallest peaks and wondered if it was actually two separate ranges. The path switched back and forth and headed lower and lower as the day got brighter and warmer.

  Cindy was well ahead of Abby and Stevie when they noticed she wasn't moving. “It looks like she has stopped,” Stevie said.

  “What do you think her deal is?” Abby asked.

  “She seems like a spoiled brat.?”

  “This is too weird,” Abby said as she adjusted the straps on her backpack. “We just tapped on that little door and...do you think this is all just some bizarre dream?”

  Stevie reached out and pulled a piece of her hair.

  “Ouch,” she said and hit him in the arm.

  “Well, if it is, you still got a good punch.”

  She ran her hand across the back of her head expecting to find the short spot. “My hair!”

  “I didn't pull it that hard.”

  “No, it has grown back. I had to cut the gum out and now it's back. This is so strange,” she said.

  Stevie chuckled, “That's what you find amazing? Traveling through a door that is smaller than your hand, meeting an owl man, and watching the sun rise in the west…”

  “Yes, those things are cool, too.” Her mood had suddenly changed to one of delight. “Come on, let's see why she stopped.” Abby broke into a jog, and Stevie lumbered after her carrying all his stuff.

  Cindy stood at a point where the trail ran around the corner of a huge outcrop of stone. The little area was just large enough for them to see the problem. A crevasse cut back into the mountain and sheer rock led down into darkness. George looked over the edge, “Wow, that is a long ways down. I can't see the bottom. Did we take a wrong turn?”

  Cindy said indignantly, “No, this is the ONLY path. Look, there used to be a bridge across.”

  They could see the carved rock remnants of the last bridge. Stevie stepped forward and picked up a handful of rocks and dirt and said with confidence, “It’s a test. I got this! Remember this whole thing is a test. I've seen this one in Indiana Jones. It is an optical illusion.” He threw the stones out over the space where the bridge used to be.

  Everyone laughed as the rocks plummeted into the depths of the opening. They stopped laughing when there wasn't any sound of them hitting the bottom. George picked up another heavier stone and chucked it. The silence that followed was chilling.

  Chapter Six

  Stevie sat on a big boulder that jutted from the mountainside. George joined him and asked, “How long do you think this will take to figure out?”

  Stevie wanted to say something like “How would I know?” but he knew George was just trying to be friendly and strike up a conversation. Stevie sort of shrugged. “I’m not sure, but there must be a way across.”

  “Maybe we picked the wrong stairs?”

  Stevie hadn't considered this and whispered so the girls wouldn't hear. “Well, you might be right. Maybe we should just try chucking Cindy across to the other side.”

  George smiled and took a sip of his water.

  The girls were all standing near the edge of the canyon and talking. Abby said, “There has to be a solution.”

  Jo agreed. “They wouldn't make our first test impossible; that would just be dumb.”

  Cindy, shaking her phone, said, “I can't believe this stupid thing doesn't get a signal.”

  Jo looked disgusted. “I don't think there are any towers here.”

  Cindy glared at her. “Yes, much like there isn't any shampoo or conditioner where you live.”

  Jo cowered a bit, and Abby stepped between them. She said, “Let's look for a handle or something.”

  Cindy muttered, “You look for a handle. I'm going back.” She stormed off along the trail and gave George and Stevie a dirty look as she blew past them.

  Abby set her backpack down carefully and away from the edge of the crevasse. She got down on her hands and knees and crept up to the edge. The drop off was sheer, and she ran her hand across the side. “I don't feel anything.”

  Abby stood up and said, “I guess I was wrong.”

  Abby looked behind them. The path ran into the mountain a few meters, and there was a corresponding path on the other side. It was as if someone had sliced out a wedge. The gap at the point where the path ended was only slightly thinner than at the edge of the mountain but was still much too wide to try jumping.

  George saw the two girls disappear into the gap and said, “Hey, maybe they found something.”

  Stevie said, “Let's go look.”

  They found Abby and Jo running their hands over the edge of the mountain side. Stevie asked, “What are you looking for?”

  Jo replied, “Maybe there is a handle or latch or something?”

  Abby said, “See, it is a smooth wall hidden under the dirt. Somebody carved and polished it.”

  It took almost twenty minutes, but the four of them wiped away all the grime as best they could. Stevie, the tallest, stood on his tiptoes and wiped away dust as high as he could reach. Just before he got to the end there was a rock about the size of a basketball. He stood on it to get every last bit of grime. It was then that he felt the groove. “Hey, look at this!”

  “Can you reach any higher?” Abby asked, excitedly.

  George yelped and offered Jo a high five. She sheepishly declined.

  “No, that is as high as I can get.”

  George said, “We could build some steps; there are plenty of rocks and stuff.”

  Abby tapped Stevie on the shoulder and said, “Let me get on your shoulders.”

  Stevie crouched down, and Abby crawled up. When he stood, she could easily wipe away more dust and grime. About a third of the way back a symbol had been carved into the smooth wall. Abby ran her hand over it and said, “It feels warm. Anything happen?”

  George, with a heavy sigh, said, “Nope. Keep wiping.”

  Stevie continued a step at a time with Abby knocking dust all over the place. She came to another symbol and reported, “It feels cold. Much colder than the rest of the stone.”

  Jo asked, “Can you reach them both?”

  Abby tried but her arms weren't long enough. “No.”

  Stevie, coughing, said, “George, help Jo reach the other one.”

  Jo said, “I don't like heights, maybe Cindy…”

  George said, “It is okay. I'm stronger than I look. I won't drop you.”

  Jo replied, “I really think that Cindy would be better.”

  Cindy, having noticed that nobody followed her back up the mountain, reappeared around the corner. “Cindy would be better for what? Fashion tips?” she smirked at Jo.

  Jo said, “We need someone to get on George's shoulders to reach…”

  Cindy exclaimed, “I’m not getting on doughboy's shoulders. Are you kidding me?!”

  “Okay, I'll do it,” Jo said, sounding unsure.

  Stevie said, “It'll be okay; George is stronger than he looks.” He held out a fist for George to bump.

  George let Jo climb aboard, and, when she touched the glyph, an opening in the mountain appeared. George and Stevie helped their riders get down, and Abby said, “Look, there is another opening on the other side.”

  Jo went back and picked up her pack. She avoided looking at Cindy who breezed past and into the tunnel. Everyone else got their stuff and followed behind, letting Cindy lead.

  The trail hugged the mountain for a long while then turned back and continued its decent. It was starting to get hot when they arrived at the mouth of another cave. It was dark inside, and Cindy waited for the rest of the group. When they got there, she said, “Stevie, go see if it's okay.”

  Stevie just shook his head and walked inside. Cobwebs covered the tunnel. After he made it three meters inside, he noticed that the path turned to the right sharply. He used the extra backpack to swat away the cobwebs and, when he reached the corner, saw that there was a long straight tunnel with a faint l
ight in the distance. “It's okay; come on.”

  Cindy complained, “I’m not going in there. Cobwebs equals spiders.”

  George said, “Fine, stay.”

  The tunnel was cut through the mountain and had a smooth floor but the walls were rough. Even Stevie couldn't reach the ceiling, and they sensed that it was probably best they couldn't see what was up there. Cindy hated being alone more than she hated spiders and fell in behind George. Then George had an idea. “Hey, Cindy, give Stevie your phone.”

  “No,” she gasped.

  George said, “Listen, it has a light. If he can see where we are going, we can get through this spider-infested cavern more quickly.”

  Abby and Jo giggled. Cindy handed the phone to George who passed it along.

  Stevie took the phone and found the flashlight app. “Thanks, Cindy,” he said, trying to be sincere though not really hitting the mark. His eyes had adjusted to the darkness, but the light from the phone made it easier to follow the path. When he got to the faint light, it turned out to be a strange, glowing rock. From a distance, he had thought it was an opening, but it was, instead, a fork in the road. “There are two paths now.”

  The hallways were too thin for the others to see, so Stevie said, “I can see a green glow and a red glow. What do you think?”

  Jo said meekly, “Green is for go.”

  Cindy said, “Yes, unless it is a trap.”

  Stevie headed off towards the green light. When he got there he saw four paths all heading off like spokes in a bike wheel. “Now we have four to chose from.”

  Abby asked, “Are there more lights?”

  “Yes; blue, white, yellow, and purple.”

  Abby said “white” without hesitation.