Freed

by Holly Hook

  “You sure, man?” Shawn asks.

  And he takes off his mask and takes a slow, cautious breath.

  “Sure,” Travis says. He faces me and manages a smile. “Your turn. It's better than the mine we were in, believe me.”

  I remove mine.

  Hot air blows against my face. It's dry, like air being let out of a pent-up desert. But it smells clean. There's not even a trace of smoke.

  “I'll have some of that water,” I say, snatching a canteen out of the backpack. We need to stay hydrated. I can't go into heatstroke down here. There's no help.

  Shawn points to the huge Flamestone vein over our head. It almost seems liquid, it's so alive. I've never seen so much sparkling in my life. It's beautiful. “This is still going down,” he says. “The Dweller things must have been after the mother lode. So were Les's people."

  “What if they died of thirst?” I ask. “Les's people, that is? They would have come down here before Talia would have.”

  “The Dwellers wouldn't bring workers down here just to have them drop dead—would they?” Travis asks. I don't like that. He's forcing me to confront something I might see. Something I'm keeping out of my mind as long as possible.

  “I don't think so,” I say. “They wouldn't.” I pass the canteen to Shawn. I'm just doubting myself. “Since this air is breathable, I think we should go a little farther and see what we can find. I think this cavern's done splitting. And we have the vein here to guide us back.”

  I keep the mask in one hand and the four of us walk further into the cavern. Pit gets up and walks along with us. The breeze blows his ears back. It's helping to cool us off just a little, even if it is like some lava monster trying to breathe on us. What if there is something living down here? That worm was just one creature down in the depths. There could be more.

  The light grows stronger. Yes. It's coming out of the cracks. There's no more Brainstone this far in the ground. We've passed that layer and I'm glad. More of the cracks appear with the Flamestone underneath. How hot is the stuff, anyway? It must have been radiating heat into this place for millions of years and these caves are a system for ventilating all that heat out towards the surface. I don't spot any Dwellers. Maybe it's too hot even for them.

  And then I pass something.

  “Is this another canteen on the floor?” I ask, leaning down to grab it.

  As I do, the crust over the Flamestone shifts a little.

  Almost like there's mud underneath.

  “Whoa!” I say, grabbing for Shawn. He catches my hand. “This doesn't feel completely solid down here.”

  “I agree,” Travis says. “It's almost like we're walking on cracked mud."

  Shawn takes his foot and kicks at the piece of crust. He keeps messing with it. “Let me see,” he says. “Here—I've got it!”

  The piece comes off, revealing pure Flamestone. It's bright. Then he puts the toe of his shoe on it. It indents a little. The stuff's not totally hardened after all.

  Pit backs away from it and looks up at us. He picks up his front paw for a second and then sets it back down. He's barefoot down here and he's not comfortable walking on this.

  “Pit,” I say. “If you need to go back, go.” I point up the hill and into the tunnel. “I don't want your feet burned off.” How much worse is this going to get? I feel like I'm standing in a tunnel of hardening lava.

  But he stays. His expression is steely.

  I pick up the canteen. It's used. Empty. I shake it but there's not a drop of moisture left.

  “There are others down here,” Travis says.

  “Maybe it's Talia,” Shawn says. He sucks in a breath like he wants to say something, but stops himself. “I was going to say—never mind.”

  “That I should go back?” I ask.

  “Well, yes. But we might need that weapon. You never know.”

  “That's more like it,” I say.

  And I kiss him.

  We keep it short. It's too hot down here and we're both sweaty. Shawn manages a smile.

  Pit straightens up.

  Sniffs the canteen.

  Then he turns and points, almost like a hunting dog. Then he looks at me and nods. There's more this way, he says. He's given up all sense of self preservation. Follow me.

  “Has he found something?” Shawn asks.

  “I don't know,” I say. “There's one way to find out.”

  We follow Pit. He leads us even deeper. The ground slopes down and one of the cracks shifts under my feet as if it's the topping to some hot pie. There's so much Flamestone here. More than I could imagine. If we have the chance to do any damage to the Dwellers and the Society, the time is now.

  Travis grins at us. “Be careful how you step.” And just to illustrate his point, he puts his shoe right on a spot of exposed Flamestone.

  “Travis! Knock it off!” I say.

  His shoe pokes into the Flamestone just a little as he tries to jab it in. “I can't even feel this through my shoe,” He says. “It's hot, but not lava hot or anything. I think it's more like plate out of microwave hot.”

  “I still don't think we should walk on this,” Shawn says. “This stuff almost looks like it's turning to liquid down here.”

  “Antoine would have loved to see this,” I say. He'd only ever seen solid Flamestone as far as I know.

  Pit stands there and waves his head. Come on, he says. He's impatient. Maybe he doesn't want to stand on this longer than necessary. I don't blame him.

  I follow, keeping my hand linked with Shawn's. I keep the empty canteen along with the mask in one hand, and my axe in the other. It scrapes against the strange floor, making a line across the weak black stone. The Deadstone. It's the same stuff used to make spears back in Wompitt. It makes no sense. Flamestone only turns to Deadstone if it burns inside an environment where there's no oxygen. Oxygen's getting down here and blowing through or we wouldn't be breathing. There must be more than one entrance to whatever we're headed to.

  There's someone lying on the floor ahead, on their side.

  “Hey!” Shawn shouts, running for them.

  I follow. My heart leaps in my chest and begs. Shawn leans down. A boot sticks out from a pair of ragged pants. Shawn puts his hand on the neck of the victim. It's skinny. Waxy. “I think this guy's dead,” he says. “It might be one of Les's people who came down here a while ago.”

  I walk up to him. I've never seen a dead person up close before and it's horrible. This man looks like he might have been middle aged when he died. He's got a thick beard and I'm glad I can't see his eyes. He's reaching for the wall and his arm is stiff and stuck out in front of him. His face is waxy. He looks more like a dummy than a real person. It must be one of Les's people. There are no mining tools next to him. He must have succumbed to the heat. Or thirst. The canteen might have been his. Les's people do need to drink, even if they can eat Flamestone.

  I wait for the nausea to come up inside me, but it doesn't.

  This sight isn't bothering me as much as I thought. This man isn't suffering. Not like Crazy had right after Weslie shot her. This man's already at peace. He's out of this cave and out of this nightmare.

  "We'll have to give Les the news,” Travis says. “Maybe we should go back now. There's no way anyone could live down here for very long. And if his buddies came down here weeks ago, they must all be gone.”

  “Wait,” Shawn says. “This guy isn't, you know, ripe or anything.”

  Then I spot the green spiral on his arm. “He's made of Slimestone,” I say. “Maybe their bodies don't rot like ours do. This guy could have been dead for weeks for all we know.”

  “Good point,” Shawn says. “But maybe they take longer to die and there are still more of them down here. These people can live underground much easier than we can. There could even be a source of water down here.”

  “I doubt it,” I say.

  But the rushing sound's still there. It makes hope rise inside of me. If there is water, there could be someone s
till alive in this hole.

  Pit pulls at my pant leg again. Come on. I have something to show you. Hurry.

  We have no choice but to leave the man on the ground. He's gone, anyway. There's nothing we can do for him. That leaves four of Les's people and Talia, along with whoever else the Dwellers might have brought down. I hate the thought of leaving anyone down here, of missing anyone. The Dwellers wouldn't have taken anyone away from this vein, would they?

  The cracks grow brighter. So bright that I don't think we need the lantern for light anymore—just a warning. At least Flamestone doesn't give off any gas. Just heat.

  And then the cavern opens up and the breeze intensifies.

  It's bright. I have to squint. Shawn raises his arm to his face and Pit stops beside me as I cover my eyes, but not before I get a glimpse of a park-sized chamber and light, lots and lots of light. It's not enough to hurt the eyes of Dwellers, but compared to what we've been through, it's a football stadium.

  “What is this?” Travis manages.

  I uncover my eyes, second by second until they adjust.

  It's a huge chamber, all right.

  We stand on a cliff side. The walls of the chamber are still black, but the cracks are huge here and it looks as if the Flamestone underneath is ready to pour out. The orange glow covers everything and the black Deadstone reflects it everywhere. It's all so orange. So sparkly. I can't stop staring at it. It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen.

  And there's a waterfall on the other side of the chamber. It falls out of a cave very high above us, reflecting gold and fire. The water rushes down and steam flies everywhere out of the giant hole that's just beyond our feet. My hair blows back in the breeze. I back away from the edge. This is the source of the roar.

  I dare to glance down. Someone's placed a row of rocks on the edge of the cliff as if to warn us not to go over the edge. I'm dizzy just thinking of the fact that we're so high up. What's down there, anyway?

  Shawn looks first. “Whoa,” he says. “Elaine...look at this.”

  “Is it another chasm?” I ask.

  “No. Weirder.”

  I swallow and walk closer to the cliff side, making sure not to step over the crude guardrail. And I look down.

  It's Flamestone at the bottom. Everywhere.

  It's a lake of Flamestone. A liquid lake.

  There's no black crust here. It's all orange light. Flamestone bubbles and seethes, many feet below us. It's fluid, all right. It sloshes against the black, crusty stone around it. Little fires erupt when it does, then go out again in the open air. Huge veins of solid Flamestone grow out of the liquid and upwards towards the surface. Some vanish into other cave openings. Others just go up and up and grow right through the solid rock and out of sight. One vein climbs up beside the waterfall and it's black and crusty from the steam hitting it. This is a place of almost pure energy.

  It's the Heart of Flamestone. Antoine was right, even if he never knew it would be liquid.

  “This is it,” I say.

  “This?” Shawn asks.

  I manage to find the words. “Antoine mentioned that there was a Heart of Flamestone where all this ore comes from. This has got to be it. He also said that if we managed to light this on fire, it'll burn through all the Flamestone in this world and the Dwellers will have no reason to keep slaves anymore.”

  “Really?” Travis asks. “How are we supposed to set this on fire? It looks like the lake's doing that itself.”

  “Flamestone burns away completely if there's no oxygen near it,” I say. “Problem—there's plenty of air in here.” I face all the caves. This place is like the inside of some beehive, there are so many holes. There's no way we can cut off oxygen to this lake. The waterfall can't even do it. I follow the water and watch the billowing steam below us. It drifts out of the way for a second and I see. The waterfall's going all the way down to the fiery lake. Where the water touches, there's a thick black crust and a small canyon that's venting the water out into another cave. The Flamestone underneath the water has already burned up and turned to Deadstone in the lack of air.

  “Now what?” Travis asks. “Wait. I think this trail spirals down.”

  He points. He's right. The steam clears again and I can see it. This path arches downward along the edge of this chamber, getting closer and closer to the lake. There are more rocks on the edge. Someone's been down here. Someone's spent quite a bit of time down here.

  We're not at the end yet.

  “Look!” Shawn yells.

  A huge plume of steam clears, revealing the end of the trail. It's right next to the waterfall and the cave that's taking the river away from here. And right next to the edge of the Flamestone lake.

  There's a body lying on the ground, face-down.

  A girl's body. She lifts one hand and slaps the black stone. She's almost gone. Dying. Dying from the oppressive heat. It's like she's trying to reach for the water that's falling only feet away from her, desperate for a drink.

  And she's wearing a hot pink bow and a ragged black shirt that has a skull on the back.

  “Talia!” I shout.

  She lifts her head just a little as if she's listening for something, then lets her face fall to the floor again. Her hair's in her face. There's no pickaxe next to her. She's down here with nothing. Garrett and the Dwellers sent her down here to die.

  “That's her!” Travis says. “We've got to get down there. Get her out of this heat.”

  He's right. “The trail,” I say. She must have heatstroke. Extreme hunger. She can't even get up.

  Shawn rolls up his sleeves. “We drag her up here and get her water. Up here must be better than down there by a long shot.” Sweat drips down his face.

  “Come on!” I yell. I break into a run. Pit runs beside me.

  There are mine cart tracks here. This place has been known to the Dwellers for a while. It's a fountain of food. No wonder they're sending people down here. But there are no Dwellers here. They don't need to guard these people. The toxic gas above will keep them here just fine.

  We're getting closer to that pool. That lake. It must be the size of the park I used to play in with Talia back home. Sweat threatens to drip into my eyes. We pass another body, slumped against the wall as if trying to escape the heat from below. It's getting hotter.

  This body's another man and he's way dead. Bony, almost. I hold my breath against the stench and jump over his legs. There's nothing we can do for him. Still no Dwellers. Pit shakes himself out like he's trying to stay cool. We won't last long in here.

  We run behind the waterfall. She's below us now. There's one more circle around the chamber, and we're there. My pulse races. Shawn catches up to me and passes.

  “Talia!” I round the curve again and she comes into sight. Steam billows over her from the waterfall. There's a rainbow right above her that's filtering the orange light. She tries to lift her head, then sets it back down. She's weak. Barely conscious. But alive.

  We got here just in time.

  Shawn bolts in front of me, panting. We round the giant lake and my sides threaten to split. This place is huge. I dodge around another Flamestone vein that's heading up to the surface like it wants to escape. Talia takes up everything. Why is she lying there, so close to the lake? Why didn't she try to crawl away from it? Flamestone laps at the shore where she lies. It might spill over and touch her. Will it burn on contact or is it more like melted wax? Will she burst into flame if it touches her? Her being here makes no sense.

  And at last, Shawn reaches her.

  “Talia!” he shouts, leaning down. “We're here. Hold on. We'll get you out of here.”

  She lifts her head. “Shawn.”

  She sounds more awake than I expected. I kneel next to her. Talia manages to look up at me with wide eyes. They're red. Red from the heat in here and red from tears. Her hair's wet from the falling water vapor. Next to us, water flows and roars down its Deadstone channel and into the dark tunnel, escaping the heat of the ro
om.

  “Why are you lying here?” Travis asks. “I would have found a better place to collapse.”

  She stares at us. “Elaine? Travis?” She's not comprehending. “How did you get here?”

  “We came to get you out of here,” I say. I'm so happy to see her that I don't care that we still don't know where a gateway back to Earth is. “Get up. We can at least get to the surface. I have to warn you, though. You're not where you think you are.”

  Talia says nothing. She should be hugging me. Squealing with delight. This isn't like her. But she's fully awake, all right. It doesn't seem right that she's here, lying down next to this lake when she could get up and walk away. I check her legs. No blood. Her jeans are dusty, but not ripped. I see no signs of crooked legs or broken bones.

  “You're not hurt, are you?” I ask.

  Talia lifts her head all the way. “Oh, my God. This is why he told me to...to...” Her gaze flicks to the side, towards the cave that's swallowing all the water.

  And then it hits me.

  “Grab her,” I say. “We need to leave as soon as we--”

  “Can't,” someone finishes for us.

  I straighten up and Talia drops her face back to the ground. Travis holds up his lantern.

  Standing right inside the river channel is someone I never wanted to see again.

  Garrett.

  By himself, and holding another gun.

  “Well,” he says. “I think I still know you enough, Elaine, after all. I knew you would come looking for your little friend. And now, we're going to resolve this once and for all.”

  Chapter Eight

  Fire

  I back away. The heat of the Flamestone lake bites in through my jeans. I'm way too close to it. All I have is my axe. I don't remember if Shawn or Travis has the gun. And it doesn't matter. Neither one of them has the weapon out and if they try, Garrett's going to open fire.

  He came down here. He actually came down here after he got stuck in that cave in and waited for us the whole time. He's the man the worker in the gas mask mentioned.

  Behind Garrett, Dwellers skitter in the dark of the river channel. They won't come out into the lantern light. They brought him here. Brought him safely through the gas layer and right into this Heart of Flamestone. He must have known about this place all along. How could be not? He knows what we can do to it.