Searching for Darkness

by Leah Ward

  “I can show you the way to the cave, but I can’t help you or protect you from whatever it is.” Lena said. Edwin’s body filled with excitement at the thought that his journey would continue. Of course, the fear that everyone else died trying was a bit intimidating as well.

  “Let me show you where you will be sleeping, we still have a journey ahead of us.” Lena said, motioning Edwin towards what he assumed was the living room, although the rooms seemed to blend together as one due to space issues. “Here, a cot with a blanket will have to do. We will leave in the morning, try to get some rest.” And with that, she went up the winding staircase until she reached the top of the loft. The stairs led directly to her bedroom.

  Edwin lay down in the cot and wrapped himself in the blanket resembling a cocoon. Lying on the ground the past night had tensed his body, yet laying on the cot under the warm blanket relaxed every muscle, calming him. With a sense of serenity and content falling asleep quickly in his dirty, ragged, and slightly wet clothes, he dreamed sweetly.

  When Edwin awoke the next morning, sunlight filled the room through the one window. Outside the forest looked peaceful, and remarkably beautiful. He felt refreshed, as if he was given a fresh start to his journey. Surprisingly Lena was in the kitchen. Considering how close the kitchen was to his cot, he was shocked that he hadn’t heard her come down.

  “I have breakfast ready for us. Your clothes are dry, oh and by the way, I would suggest changing because yours are starting to stink… No offense.” She said, blatantly offending him. Still, a small smile came across his face. “Gee, thanks!” Edwin said with sarcasm. “What is for breakfast? And how do you find food out here anyway?”

  “I hunt, and I find and gather fruit. I’ve been doing this quite a while so I’m used to it by now.” Lena told him. Edwin changed his clothes quickly while Lena had her back turned in the kitchen. He went over to the table and there was a wooden plate of berries like the kind he had found, an apple, and a strange meat of some sort. He didn’t want to ask and sound rude, considering she didn’t have to share any of her food with him in the first place. He held it up and examined it first; it looked like steak for the most part, yet a little stringy. Slowly he brought the brown meat to his face and took a small bite. Hey it’s not half bad, he thought. Once he tried it, realizing it was actually rather tasty; his plate was empty in a matter of minutes.

  After breakfast he went to grab his backpack, and noticed that it was full. It had apples, berries, a knife, and a random array of different survival items.

  “Oh yeah, I already packed your bag with stuff we will need, I mean it was empty anyway so at least we can get some use out of the old thing.” Lena said.

  She was right. On the way out she grabbed a weapon that resembled a bow and arrow, except it didn’t have arrows like Edwin had ever seen. They were extremely sharp, like a needle, made out of wood. The bow was made from something that seemed similar to vines, yet had a magnificent spring. She slung the arrow container over her shoulder and under the other. The arrows were so thin that the container held at least a hundred of them packed tightly together.

  Edwin threw his backpack over his shoulder and headed towards the door. When they walked out of the house, he was surprised to be stepping on large flat roots. As he looked up and turned around, his eyes met the most fascinating piece of architectural design that they had ever seen.

  “Your house is… inside a tree?” Edwin said with his voice full of amazement. The door was wooden and looked like a normal door, except it led into a disguised tree house. That would explain why the inside was circular, he thought.

  “Yes, it is neat, isn’t it?” Lena responded.

  They walked away from the tree and back into the forest, except Edwin had no clue where he was. He didn’t know how far away the river was, or exactly where she had drug him to.

  “So, where do we head first?” Edwin asked. “We need to walk towards that mountain. You can see it in the distance, way over there…” Where she proceeded to point to what Edwin saw was a volcano. “The volcano?” Edwin asked, wondering if her eyes didn’t see what his did. “It’s a volcano? Wow! I wonder if I could see it erupt then? If so, it hasn’t ever erupted before when I passed it.” Lena said.

  “Well I think that is a good thing…” Edwin said, unsure if it really was or not.

  They were both silent for quite a few seconds until Edwin broke the tension. “Well, how far away is that?” He asked.

  “It’s about a five mile hike. It shouldn’t take that long, we may get there around early lunch.” Lena confirmed.

  The two walked and talked together about their very different lifestyles. Edwin hadn’t talked to someone his age in what seemed a lifetime. He found it fascinating to know she lived in the woods, amongst the creatures that had savagely tried to destroy him for the past few days.

  A mile or two in, Lena suddenly froze. “What are you doing?” Edwin asked worriedly. She didn’t answer him; instead she crouched down, as if to get a better look at something. He stood there, and didn’t move a muscle. “I thought I heard something following us.” She finally spoke in a whisper. Edwin was somewhat relieved, perhaps because she only thought someone was, instead of knowing that they were.

  They continued on and Lena stopped several times to crouch and listen. After a few false alarms, Edwin just accepted the fact that she was paranoid.

  At the base of the volcano, looking up, Edwin had never been more frightened. The sky above was dark, and the clouds were smoky black. Lava looked as if it was boiling and would soon be bubbling over the top. Lena didn’t seem worried in the least amount. Then Edwin realized, she couldn’t see it – she couldn’t see the lava, or the angry volcano.

  “What is happening?” She asked, she must have realized it herself due to Edwin’s expression. “Nothing, but it looks angry, I think it’s going to blow soon.” Edwin told her.

  “Where do we go next?” He asked quickly. “Well, the ones who made it past the mountain – uh, I mean volcano – they would follow this path that goes around the edge of the base, and then to that tunnel that leads underground.” Lena told him.

  “Underground? Is that safe?” Edwin said, watching the volcano occasionally spit out small amounts of lava.

  “Yes, I’ve been in there before,” Lena told him. Suddenly a loud burst came from the mouth of the volcano, hurting both of their ears.

  “What was that?!” Lena screamed, covering her ears. Edwin desperately grabbed his, and looked up. Lena’s answer was written across Edwin’s face.

  “Oh no…” She said, staring at Edwin. He grabbed her hand, pulled her with him and screamed, “Run!” The two took off, hurdling over rocks and spots of molten lava. Pieces of rock would fly out of the volcano’s top and come crashing down around them. Constantly, Edwin had to keep an eye out so that he could pull Lena’s arm in order for her to get out of harm’s way.

  One close call after the other, the two of them screamed. Edwin for what he saw and Lena for what she couldn’t see.

  The rocks stopped, and what came out was much more intimidating – piping hot lava. They were less than five hundred feet away from the tunnel entrance now, as they continued to sprint along the trail. Lava poured out of the mouth, cruising its way down the side of the volcano. It rushed like water; gravity pulled it closer and closer to Edwin and Lena.

  Two hundred feet left and they would be in the tunnel, but what then? The lava would enter the tunnel just as easily as they would.

  No time to think, Edwin thought.

  Darting towards the entrance, Edwin noticed that Lena could actually run faster than he could, and he was having trouble keeping up. At first he was pulling her, and now it seemed she was pulling him. A hundred feet away, they were going to make it.

  Fifty, twenty, ten… Finally they were in the tunnel’s entrance. Inside was completely dark and Edwin didn’t want to go in without a light source, what if they got lost? Hesitant he slowed down, and just as he did
lava hit right beside him and splashed onto his arm. He flung his arm in the air and cried out in pain. Lena grabbed his other arm and pulled him farther into the tunnel. The lava glowed bright orange and lit the walls of the tunnel surrounding them.

  Lena turned right and the lava followed and splashed against the wall. Part of the flowing lava split and went left, filling the entire tunnel.

  “Is this the right way?” Edwin asked but knew his answer when they came to a dead end. “No, but I couldn’t think! I second guessed myself!” Lena admitted.

  Lava rushed close to their feet, entrapping them.

  “Edwin if you can throw fire you might be able to throw ice. I’ve heard of a Seer who could. So try!” Lena yelled to Edwin. “I… I can’t! I don’t know how to control it!” Edwin screamed with frustration in his voice.

  “Please!” Lena begged as Lava touched the tip of her shoe. It slowly melted a hole in the shoe’s material and made its way towards her toe. She yelled with pain. She couldn’t see the lava but she could certainly feel its burn. Edwin’s face grew pale; he had no idea how to control it. His stomach was one ginormous knot and he was sweating so bad that he felt he might pass out from dehydration. Hearing Lena scream sent chills down his spine.

  He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, held out his scarred hand, and out of frustration let out a final scream. It was so loud that Lena covered her ears and the tunnel walls shook, making dirt bits fall from the ceiling…

  CHAPTER 9

  Edwin peeked one eye open to see Lena standing in front of him, her mouth open in wonder. “You did it! Wow! You actually did it!” She screamed as she grabbed Edwin’s shoulders, squeezing them tighter than she realized.

  His mouth was hung so far open that it probably could have touched the ground if he was a little shorter. “I… I did this?” He said.

  The lava was frozen over, all the way through the tunnel. It still lit the walls because of its glowing orange nature, and it created a beautiful walkway. Even though she couldn’t see the lava, she was able to see the ice Edwin made. They stepped onto the ice carefully; in case it wasn’t completely frozen they didn’t want it to crack, increasing their chance of falling. They couldn’t afford any more injuries. Looking down at his arm his skin had bubbled making nasty blisters. The pain was almost unbearable.

  “Ouch, it really got your arm huh?” Lena said as she turned him around and reached into the backpack. She pulled out a small flashlight, and a bandage. Bandaging the burned arm was almost more painful than being burned in the first place. To show his masculinity, he tried his hardest not to cry in front of Lena, even though he really wanted to burst into full-blown tears.

  They continued their journey through the tunnels using the light from the frozen lava, and the dim small flashlight. Once the intensity of the lava had passed, Edwin had the chance to actually take in the details of the tunnel. It stunk as if something had died and started to rot, on top of other animals that were in the process of rotting. The walls of the tunnel were barely wide enough for the two of them to walk side by side, and the height was just a few inches above Edwin’s head.

  As they walked over the lava, Lena steered them in the right direction – opposite of the way she had gone earlier. Once they turned the corner, the frozen lava ended and their only light source was that of the flashlight. Edwin hoped with everything in him that the batteries wouldn’t suddenly die out and that they would last until the tunnel’s end.

  “How long do we have to walk in here? It’s creepy.” Edwin said with a frail voice. “There are only a few corners to turn, but that doesn’t mean the straightaways aren’t forever long. So, like an hour or two, I think,” Lena answered. Oh boy, Edwin thought, only an hour or two in the frightening darkness.

  After some time the silence seemed to make the journey scarier, so Edwin spoke up. “Who did you know that could throw ice?” He asked Lena. She didn’t answer right away. “Just a Seer I once knew. That’s all.” She finally replied.

  Edwin took that as a hint that either they really weren’t that important to her, or she didn’t feel like telling him the truth. Either way he changed the subject. “I’m getting kind of hungry, it’s lunchtime ya know? What do we have to eat?” He asked her. She reached into his backpack and pulled out fruit and bread, along with a few pieces of dry meat. Again, he didn’t ask what kind it was, and ate it happily.

  She pulled the same amount out for herself, and quickly stuffed it down. Along the way they talked sparsely, mostly about the directions and how much longer they had until they were out of the tunnel. A few conversations came up that were of interest to Edwin but he could tell that she wasn’t too keen on telling him her life story.

  An hour or so into the tunnel, it became smaller and more compact. They could no longer walk side by side, only in a line. Edwin let her lead the way, which he claimed was because she knew the tunnel, not because he felt safer with her in front. Suddenly they heard a terrible screech coming from behind them… extremely close behind them. It was followed by a loud distinct howl, one that was all too familiar to Edwin. They looked at each other and then flashed the light towards the way they heard the howls.

  “What do you think that was?” Edwin asked, knowing it was wolves but more so wondering what they had attacked and why they were in the tunnels. “Wolves... We need to hurry.” Lena said frantically. Edwin felt inclined to inform her that these were not just ordinary wolves. “They are much bigger than what you are used to; they are ginormous and can rip an animal limb from limb without breaking a sweat!” Edwin said, warning the girl that they were much more dangerous than anything she had probably seen before. “I know that! That’s why we really need to get out of here! They are merciless!” Lena said, quickening her pace to a fast walk, preparing to run.

  “Wait, how do you know about the wolves?” Edwin said, hurrying to keep up with her. “What do you mean?” She asked, pretending to be confused. “They are only visible to a Seer! How have you seen them?” Edwin demanded. A deafening howl interrupted them, and only became louder, as if the wolf was traveling faster than its howl.

  Suddenly Lena took off in a full sprint down the tunnel. Edwin chased after her, desperate to keep up with the light source. Randomly he would look behind him, not sure what he thought he would actually see considering the wolves he had seen before were black as night, and the tunnel was too.

  Their fast panting was the only thing that could be heard after a few minutes. They slowed, just enough to walk backwards and point the flashlight behind them. Nothing but darkness.

  Out of nowhere a wolf came running towards them, entering the light, heading directly for Edwin. Lena, without thinking, jumped in front of him and in one motion had her arrow cocked in the bow. In the second motion it was flying through the air with unbelievable speed and precision, hitting the wolf directly in the neck. The wolf whimpered and froze, but for only a moment. Shaking its head to rid itself of the pain she had caused, it lunged forward again, more angrily now. It was heading directly for Lena.

  Edwin had a surge of adrenaline rush through his veins. He held his hand up, and out came a fiery blaze. The blast of fire hit the wolf and encompassed his entire body, making it burst into flames. The force of the blast threw the animal against the tunnel wall. Its back slammed so hard that it made a crunching sound as he sank into the wall like he had been thrown into molding clay. Dirt fell from the wall almost covering the wolf completely, putting out the fire. It moaned from pain, and patches of his fur were singed.

  “…Thanks Edwin.” Lena said, her voice shaking at what she just witnessed. “Uh, don’t mention it…” Edwin responded. He still had no idea how to control his powers, but he was somehow learning the skill quickly, as long as he had adrenaline pumping through him.

  Standing in the tunnel, still in shock at what just happened they heard a small rumble. Dirt slowly started to crumble above them, and soon it was falling all around them, like the ceiling was actually raining dirt. The
tunnel shook furiously, making them lose their balance. “I think it’s going to cave!” Lena screamed, barely above the rumbling.

  Right before they took off running, the part of the tunnel the wolf had been thrown into came crashing down on top of him. The dirt kept falling, more heavily now, and quickly started to make its way toward Edwin and Lena; they were going to be buried alive if they stayed much longer.

  Lena grabbed Edwin’s arm and pointed the flashlight in front of them, where they bolted down the tunnel. The dirt caving in from the ceiling made the light even more dim and difficult to see. It was a race to see which would happen first; the tunnel would swallow them whole, or they would narrowly escape beforehand.

  “Do you know if you’re going the right way?!” Edwin shouted at Lena. She couldn’t hear him over the rumbling of the tunnel, and her facial expression gave him no comfort.

  Suddenly she yelled, “There’s the end!” With every ounce of energy left in them, they sprinted towards the dimming light at the end of the tunnel. Just as the cool, fresh air filled Edwin’s face, they used the mounds of dirt collecting towards the exit to explode off of and bound forward.

  As they tumbled to the ground, so did the walls of the tunnel. It was completely caved in, with no way to ever enter again. “I wonder how we are going to get back home now…” Edwin said worriedly.

  “Well, I’m sure there has to be another way, we will just have to find it on the way back and worry about it then.” Lena assured him.

  Picking themselves up, they brushed their dirt-covered clothes off. Just as Edwin was going to ask what next, he looked up to see the forest in a form he never had before. He saw vibrant, luscious green sky-high trees, thick vines hanging down, and flowers every color of the rainbow. He didn’t understand how; but, small pieces of land were floating above the trees, resembling a Mario game he had heard people talk about from the past. With tiny islands in the sky, he wondered how any creature could get up there.