The Haunted Cave

by Christopher Pike

  “I may have accidentally turned it on while it was in my back pocket,” Sally said. “It doesn’t matter. It wouldn’t have lasted five minutes.”

  Adam paced restlessly. “It does matter. We need only five minutes to save her.”

  “Adam—” Sally tried to speak.

  He threw up his arms in frustration. “We were just sitting here talking and it took her. It moved so fast. I didn’t even get a chance to grab her arm, to fight for her.”

  “You can’t blame yourself,” Sally said.

  “Then who am I supposed to blame? I tell you, we have to go after her. We have to go now.”

  “But we won’t be able to see where we’re going,” Sally protested.

  “It doesn’t matter. We can feel our way along the walls of the cave.”

  “That won’t work for long. There’re forks and side tunnels in this cave. We’ll just end up lost in the dark.”

  “Then what do you think we should do?”

  Sally hesitated. “Nothing.”

  Adam was exasperated. “We can’t do anything! It’ll kill her!”

  Sally put her hand on his shoulder and spoke carefully. “Adam, it’s a big hairy monster. I know this isn’t easy to hear, but it’s probably already killed her. If we try to save Cindy, it will just kill us.”

  Adam was angry. “You just don’t like her. You’re jealous of her. You don’t care if it eats her. In fact, you’re probably happy it grabbed her.”

  Sally spoke patiently. “Earlier tonight I risked my life to save Cindy. I’m sure you haven’t forgotten. Yeah, sure, I yell at her every five minutes. But that doesn’t mean I don’t like her. I yell at you all the time. If I thought there was a chance we could rescue her, I’d take that chance. But there’s no hope. We don’t even know where it took her.”

  Adam pointed down the cave, in the direction they hadn’t gone yet. “They went that way. I’m going that way. I don’t care what you say.”

  “You’ll lose your way in a few minutes,” Sally said.

  Adam looked down at his pile of boards. “Maybe not. Dipped in lava, these boards could work as torches. If we get them burning bright enough, we might even be able to use them as weapons. Most animals are afraid of fire. I bet this creature is, too.”

  Sally considered the idea. “The wood won’t burn for long.”

  “It may not have taken her far.” Adam paused and added reluctantly, “If it’s that hungry.”

  Sally glanced into the volcanic chamber, then nodded wearily. “If you want to try, I’ll go with you. There’s no use in staying here anyway. I’m never going to get that magic door to open. If it is a door.”

  They gathered together their boards. Approaching the boiling pools, they had no trouble soaking the tips of the boards with molten lava. Tiny flames flared around the edges of the lava lumps, but the sticks didn’t burst into flames, which was good. The torches didn’t give off much light, but it appeared they’d last longer than a few minutes. They made only two torches. They figured they could always light the other sticks and transfer the lava when the first boards had burned down.

  They set off at a brisk walk. They were fortunate the creature had left huge tracks in the dirt floor, because they soon came to another fork in the tunnel. The thing had gone to the right so they went to the right. Based on its foot size, Adam figured the creature must be eight feet tall. In the dismal red glow of their torches, he searched for signs of Cindy’s blood on the cave floor. He prayed the whole time. If he saw her blood, he knew he would lose all hope.

  They reached another fork. This time the creature had veered to the left. Making the turn, they felt a sudden drop in temperature. The change was remarkable. But they were soon given a reason for the coolness. Ten minutes along this new path and they came to a cold black river. This last portion of cave had widened considerably. The river flowed along the right side, hugging the wall. They were desperate to save their friend, but they both took a moment to fall to their knees to take a drink. Adam swallowed so much cold water so quickly his tongue momentarily froze and he had trouble speaking. Sally gulped away beside him.

  “I never thought water could taste so good,” she mumbled. “This is better than my morning coffee.”

  Adam grunted. “Good. Hmm.”

  “I wonder where this river leads?”

  Adam looked around. It led in the direction the creature had taken Cindy. He climbed back to his feet, anxious to resume the hunt. He grabbed his dull red torch and worked his tongue in his mouth.

  “We’ll see,” he said. “Let’s go.”

  But then Sally suddenly grabbed his arm.

  “Adam!” she screamed, pointing. “A horrible fish monster is coming out of the river! Look!”

  Adam turned to see a big white object struggling in the stream. It seemed to have emerged from just under the far wall. Since their torches gave off as much light as a fat cigar, neither of them could make out its shape right away. But it seemed—Adam stopped and rubbed his eyes—to be wearing glasses.

  “Watch?” Adam gasped. “Is that you?”

  The terrible monster grabbed the bank of the river and peered up at them through thick lenses. It was gasping for breath and shivering uncontrollably.

  “Yeah, it’s me,” he whispered. “Is that you, Adam?”

  “Yeah. Sally and I are both here. I’ll give you a hand.” They pulled Watch from the water. He was as cold as a Popsicle. He couldn’t even stand at first, he was so numb. He lay on the floor of the cave, trying to catch his breath and wiping the water off his glasses.

  “I’m glad these didn’t fall off,” he said. “Can’t see a thing without them.”

  Adam and Sally knelt by his side. They tried rubbing his arms and legs to restore his circulation. His shivering began to lessen.

  “But where did you come from?” Adam asked.

  Watch sat up with effort. “Mrs. Robinson’s backyard,” he said.

  “Who’s Mrs. Robinson?” Adam asked.

  Sally made a face. “I know her. She’s a creepy old woman who never leaves her house. Ten years ago she poisoned her husband and didn’t even have the decency to attend his funeral.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Watch said. “But she’s got a deep well in the middle of her backyard.” Watch went on to give them a brief explanation of what he had done since they last saw him. He even related what the witch had said. Adam found it all very fascinating, but he was still anxious to go after Cindy. He helped Watch to his feet.

  “How long were you underwater?” Adam asked.

  Watch coughed. “Just a couple of minutes. But it was a long two minutes.”

  Adam noticed he was carrying a flashlight. “Does your light work?”

  Watch tried it. Nothing. “I guess the water got to the batteries.”

  “You wouldn’t happen to have a high-powered pistol in your pocket?” Sally asked.

  “No.” Watch blinked. “Where’s Cindy?”

  “An ape creature grabbed her,” Adam explained. “It’s been about twenty minutes since she disappeared.” He pointed to the floor. “We’re following these tracks. Are you strong enough to walk?”

  Watch nodded. “I think it would warm me up. But I have to warn you guys about these creatures. They’re called Hyeets and they’re supposed to take no prisoners.”

  “Then we’d better hurry,” Adam said. “Come on.”

  14

  The cave forked another three times, but the footprints remained clear. Fifteen minutes after finding Watch, Adam heard sounds up ahead. He raised his hand, cautioning the others to slow their pace. He could hear a faint growling—that was clear enough. But he also thought he heard Cindy’s voice.

  “What’s going on here?” he whispered aloud.

  “Maybe they’re saying grace together before dinner,” Sally suggested. “Maybe Cindy doesn’t realize she is the main course.”

  “I have water in my ears,” Watch apologized. “I can’t hear anything.” />
  “Maybe you two should wait here,” Adam said. “There’s no sense in all of us being killed.”

  “Nonsense,” Sally said. “If we have to fight the monster, we’ll fight it together. That way we might stand a chance.”

  Adam agreed with her logic. They crept forward cautiously. Another hundred feet and it was clear both Cindy and the Hyeet were making noise. The weird thing was, Cindy didn’t act hysterical.

  They reached another turn. Adam made them stop.

  Cindy and the Hyeet appeared to be just around the corner.

  “This is it,” Adam whispered. “We fight to the death.”

  “We don’t take prisoners either,” Sally agreed.

  “I can’t believe I let myself get mixed up in this,” Watch remarked.

  They raised their torches and ran around the corner.

  They stopped dead in their tracks.

  Cindy looked over at them. “Hi, guys. Glad you could make it.”

  The Hyeet, the loathsome evil monster, was indeed eight feet tall. Clearly it was a cross between a man and an ape—the fabled missing link. Except for around its eyes, nose, and mouth, it was covered with black hair. Its nose was wide; the nostrils flared as it drew in hungry breaths. It had massive hands, large feet. But it was its eyes that were the most peculiar. They were bigger than those of a human, but were an eerie green. They seemed to glow in the dark. Whirling at the sudden intrusion of three small humans, it looked as if its eyes might burst from its head. It scampered backward and hugged its midsection with its hands. Cindy had been sitting down with her back to a wall, but she jumped to her feet and held up her own hands.

  “Don’t scare it,” she pleaded.

  “Don’t scare it?” Sally asked. “We’re here to kill it.”

  Cindy shook her head. “No. We had it all wrong. This creature means us no harm. In fact, I think it’s more afraid of us than we are of it.”

  “If that’s true,” Adam said—although he was relieved to see Cindy all in one piece—“why did it grab you and carry you off?”

  He asked the question angrily because he couldn’t help noticing that their only working flashlight lay broken on the ground. Perhaps it had fallen from her hands while she was being carried by the creature. Perhaps the light had scared the creature, and it had broken it deliberately. It didn’t really matter, the flashlight wasn’t going to work anymore. The batteries themselves appeared damaged.

  “Because it’s desperate,” Cindy said. “I think it needs our help.”

  “Our help with what?” Sally asked. “Preparing vampire bats for dinner?”

  Cindy glanced at the creature, which continued to hug the far wall. Adam noticed that it was trembling. It may even have been weeping; its green eyes were moist. It was no longer growling, now it was whimpering. And it looked to Cindy to defend it, even though it was five times her size.

  “I don’t know what it needs,” Cindy said. “It’s been trying to communicate with me using sign language.”

  Sally frowned. “Is it deaf?”

  Cindy was annoyed. “No. But it doesn’t speak English.”

  “Well, if it wants to live in Spooksville it should learn,” Sally said.

  Adam lowered his torch. He’d had experience talking to strange creatures. Why, the previous week he had talked down a ghost from an astral rage. He thought he might be able to handle the Hyeet. As he took a step toward it, it pushed itself against the wall.

  “We won’t hurt you,” he said in a gentle voice. “We want to help you. We want you to help us. What is it you need?” Adam pointed at it and smiled. “You,” he said again.

  The Hyeet seemed to relax slightly. It gestured to them with one of its hairy paws. “Rrrrlllloooo,” it said.

  Sally glanced at Watch. “Did the witch teach you what that meant?”

  “She only taught me two words in Reeksvar,” Watch replied. “One for open, the other for close.”

  “Reeksvars,” Adam said to the creature, nodding his head. “Reeksvars?”

  The creature nodded. “Reekssss,” it said.

  “I think we’re making progress,” Adam remarked.

  “You could have fooled me,” Sally said. “Find out what the beast wants and ask it the way out of here. Then I’ll be impressed.”

  “I have received the impression this creature is alone here in these caves,” Cindy said. “The way it hugs itself, and shakes back and forth, it’s like it has lost all its friends and family. Once it started communicating with me, it got all excited.”

  “You could tell all that by its gestures?” Adam asked, impressed.

  Cindy shook her head. “I think it can understand more of what we’re saying than we can understand of what it’s saying.” She paused. “I wonder if it can read our minds. Not clearly, I mean, but that it can pick up on the sense of what we’re saying.”

  “It might simply be smarter than we are,” Watch said.

  “Speak for yourself,” Sally said.

  “If it has lost its friends,” Adam said. “We have to ask ourselves where it lost them?”

  “The bats might have got them,” Cindy suggested.

  “I don’t think so,” Adam said. “Bats and spiders probably don’t bother the Hyeet one bit. It is used to living underground.” He glanced at Sally. “Do you have any theories on where the other Hyeets might have gone?”

  Realization dawned on Sally. “Through the mysterious doorway!” she exclaimed. Then she paused. “Wait a second. Why would this one have been left behind? And even if it was left behind, why would it be unable to open the door by itself?”

  “There could be a thousand answers to those questions,” Adam said. “But it’s curious Ms. Templeton taught Watch the two words that she did. You say she’s a witch. I don’t know if that’s true. But I do know she’s got power. Last time I ran into her, she told me something that was going to happen later in the day. And it did happen—I met Bum and passed through the Secret Path. She might be able to see into the future. She might have given Watch those two words because they can be used to control the mysterious doorway.”

  “It might have been the Reeksvars who cut this doorway into the wall you’re talking about,” Watch suggested.

  “You haven’t even seen it,” Sally protested.

  Watch shrugged. “I’d like to—if it leads out of this place.”

  “You only just got here,” Sally said. “Try being here all night.”

  “Try watching Bum eat an eight-course meal,” Watch replied.

  “But even if these special words open the doorway,” Sally said. “There’s no guarantee that it will lead us back to the surface. From the sound of things, it probably just leads to more Hyeets. I mean no offense, but this guy needs a bath. If I have to live with a whole herd of them for the rest of my life, I will go mental.”

  Adam nodded. “It’s possible we’ll help this creature and still be trapped here. But we have to give it a try. Besides, we don’t have anything else we can do right now to help ourselves.”

  Adam turned to the Hyeet and pointed back in the direction of the volcanic chamber. Then he gestured to the lava at the tip of his torch. The creature could very well have been telepathic. The Hyeet seemed to understand. It nodded vigorously. It wanted them to return to that place with it. To Adam’s amazement, it offered Adam its big hairy hand.

  “I think you’ve made a friend,” Sally said sweetly.

  Adam took the Hyeet’s hand and looked up into its weird green eyes. They were like large phosphorescent marbles. Adam had to smile; the creature appeared anxious for them to like it. The Hyeet tried to grin, but the expression ended up resembling something an ape would do while stuffing its face with bananas. The Hyeet accidentally drooled on Adam’s arm. Afraid to offend it, Adam didn’t immediately wipe off the mess.

  “You never know who you’re going to meet when you wake up in the morning,” Adam said.

  15

  The strange rectangular shape stood etched
in the black wall before them. Only twenty feet at their backs, the lava pools bubbled and hissed. The Hyeet stared at the shape with something like reverence, mixed with sorrow. Clearly the creature had come here many times in the past and gazed hungrily at the markings on the wall. Adam worried that if the special words Watch had brought from Ann Templeton failed, the Hyeet would have a nervous breakdown. It continued to look at them with such hope. Adam had to take his hand back. The Hyeet seemed afraid to let go of him. Adam coughed and cleared his throat. The fumes were as bad as before. Watch had already told Adam of Bela—open—and Nela—close.

  “We don’t know what will happen when we say these words,” Adam said. “The rest of you should stand back.”

  Sally reluctantly agreed. “Just don’t let yourself get sucked into a prehistoric zoo,” she warned.

  A moment later Adam was left alone with the Hyeet before what they hoped was a secret doorway. The others bunched together at the entrance to the chamber. Adam turned and patted the Hyeet on the back. Again the creature tried to smile. It shouldn’t have bothered; it just ended up drooling more on Adam.

  “Don’t eat me if this doesn’t work,” Adam said.

  The Hyeet’s eyes moistened again.

  It would never do such a thing it seemed to want to say.

  Adam turned back to the etchings and took a deep breath.

  “Beta!” he shouted.

  Nothing happened. For three seconds.

  Then many things happened at once.

  The wall inside the deeply carved lines began to glow. It took on a blue radiance. The bright color was at complete odds with the sober red of the volcanic pit. The light quickly grew in intensity. Adam had to shield his eyes with his hand. But peeking between his fingers, he saw that not only was the wall glowing, it was becoming transparent. It was as if the black stone was turning to clear glass.

  The window began to open.

  The scenery that lay beyond was staggering.

  Adam glimpsed endless rolling green fields, jungles with trees as tall as mountains, lakes where turtles as large as bears swam. The sky was a brilliant blue. The sun that shone in it seemed twice as big as normal, ten times as bright. Adam briefly wondered if he was looking at the world as it had appeared millions of years ago. Or maybe the doorway opened into another dimension or into another solar system.