by Maggie Marks
“Yes!”
Mason felt a ripple of relief. Asher wasn’t alone. The dolphins were with him. But … how could they be? “Simon and Hungry can’t leave the water,” he said, thinking out loud. “How did they get into the cave, Asher?”
After a pause, Asher responded. “I don’t know! They found me here after I fell. But then there was another rockslide and … now they’re trapped, too.”
Luna chewed her lip. “There must be another way into the cave,” she said to Mason. “How do we find it?”
The answer struck Mason like a lightning bolt. “The bubble column!” he cried. “The dolphins kept swimming toward it, as if leading us down it. Remember?”
Luna nodded slowly.
“So maybe there’s an entrance to the flooded cave at the base of the ravine,” he said. He whirled around so fast, he nearly launched forward into the sinkhole again. “Asher, we’re coming,” he told his brother. “Don’t worry. We’re going to find you.”
Luna was on her feet now, too, pulling potions from her pack. “If we’re going down the bubble column, we have to be ready,” she said.
“I know,” Mason said. “Let’s do it!”
He swallowed the liquid so fast, he almost choked. Then he slid Asher’s pickaxe into his backpack and began to run toward the rocky shore.
* * *
Mason didn’t climb back into the water—he leaped. Could he remember the way back to the bubble column? He wasn’t sure. But the potion of night vision was kicking in now. I just have to look for the magma blocks below, he reminded himself. They’ll glow and light my way.
Luna glided past, and then someone else—or something else—did, too. A dolphin!
Mason recognized Happy, who looked especially happy now that Mason and Luna were back in the water. He heard Squeaky chattering nearby, and then Slugger zoomed by, taking the lead.
Mason didn’t have to search for magma blocks—the dolphins led him straight to the bubble column. Instantly, he felt the tug of the water on his body. And this time, he let it take him.
As he zoomed downward, he imagined he was in the bubble column, heading toward home. But home looked nothing like this. Jagged rock walls stretched upward in all directions. Mason felt trapped, like a zombie in a pit. He fought the panic rising in his chest. Asher is down here, he reminded himself. We have to find Asher. He took a long, steadying breath of cool water.
As the ocean floor rose to greet him, Mason leaped out of the column, swimming sideways to avoid stepping on the hot magma blocks. He glanced back to be sure Luna was following.
She burst out of the bubble column behind him and swam through a clump of sea grass. Then the dolphins were there too, diving down from somewhere up above. As soon as they hit bottom, the dolphins were off, darting along the base of a rock wall.
Mason pushed off from the ocean floor and swam, paddling fiercely through the water. The dolphins knew where Asher was—he could feel it! And they’d reach him soon, very soon.
The dolphins suddenly reversed direction, so quickly that Mason had to paddle backward to avoid running into the gravel wall ahead. Squeaky began squealing, swimming back and forth along the wall. Slugger nosed at a hunk of rock, as if trying to burrow through.
And then Mason knew.
The wall of gravel must have tumbled down from the beach above. That gravel wall was the only thing separating the dolphins from the rest of their pod.
Simon and Hungry were trapped behind that wall of rock.
And Asher was, too.
CHAPTER 11
Mason pulled Asher’s pickaxe from his backpack and began to swing. He whacked at the gravel over and over. Luna was mining, too, tunneling her way through the gravel wall.
Each swing of the axe sent ripples through the water. Mason could barely see the gravel in front of him. Behind, Squeaky chattered nervously, as if to say, Hurry!
I’m trying! Mason couldn’t swing any faster, any harder. Finally, his axe broke through. As rock crumbled away, a small hole formed.
Mason used his hands to clear the opening. Then he half pushed, half pulled himself through. He opened his eyes and was surprised to see light shining through the water above. He swam upward until his head broke free.
He was inside a large sea cave, mostly filled with water. A pile of rock and gravel rose out of the water. Above that, a trickle of moonlight shone through a small slit in the roof of the cave.
Thanks to potion of night vision, Mason could make out a figure crouched on the rocks. “Asher?” Mason rubbed his eyes.
“It’s me!” Asher responded.
Relief tingled from Mason’s head to his toes. He swam toward the rocks, and Asher helped him crawl up and out of the murky water.
Asher’s shirt was torn and dirty. His helmet sat askew, his red hair sticking out from it in every direction. And his eyes drooped, as if he’d been awake for days. But he was alive. Mason nearly hugged him.
“How did you get in?” asked Asher.
“We tunneled our way through the gravel,” Mason said. He pointed down at the water just as Luna’s head broke free.
“Asher!” she cried, nearly choking on his name.
Then a dolphin leaped out of the water beside her. And another. While Squeaky chattered and chirped, Slugger and Happy darted this way and that, as if searching for their pod mates.
“The other dolphins!” Luna said as she climbed out of the water. “Where are Simon and Hungry?”
Asher pointed to the other side of the rock. “There,” he said. “They’re trapped!”
Mason followed Asher’s gaze toward the shallow pool of water, cut off from the rest of the water by the gravel that had fallen from above. Two fins swam back and forth.
Luna glanced around the cave. “I think the water’s rising,” she said. “It’s probably gushing in through the tunnel we made. When it gets high enough, it’ll cover the rock. Then Simon and Hungry will be able to swim free!”
“Yes!” Asher said. “And we will, too—finally.” He clutched his stomach. “Did you bring food? I haven’t eaten in ages.”
Luna unzipped her backpack and pulled out a bag of dried kelp. Asher gobbled down the salty flakes. He dug greedily into the bag of cooked cod that Luna offered him, too.
A few months ago, he wouldn’t touch the stuff, Mason remembered. Asher still wouldn’t eat salmon, but he’d learned to like cod.
“Save some for the rest of us!” Luna scolded. But when Asher glanced at her with hungry eyes, she waved her hand. “Oh, go ahead. You’ve had a rough day.”
Together, they sat on the rock and waited. The water rose, slowly but steadily. Then a noise sounded overhead.
Mason ducked. “What was that?” he cried. “A bat?”
Asher nodded. “They live here. Don’t worry, they won’t bite. I mean, I don’t think they will …” He chewed his lip.
Luna waved her hand. “Bats are harmless.”
But up above, something else was spawning. Mason could almost feel it—the ground shaking with footsteps. Then he heard the groan. “Zombies?” he whispered.
Something grunted in response.
Luna quickly lit a torch and waved it around the cave, searching. “They’re not in here,” she said. “They must be above us.”
Sure enough, footsteps thundered overhead. Mason sucked in his breath. “It sounds like there are a lot of them,” he said.
Stones trickled down through the slit in the roof, and then a steady stream began to splash into the water below.
“Rockslide!” cried Asher. He dove sideways into the shallow pool of water.
Mason dove the other way, accidentally taking Luna with him. He swam lower and lower, feeling the water churn overhead with every dropping stone. Dark shapes darted past—dolphins, who seemed just as anxious as he was.
Finally, the rockslide slowed. Mason waited, treading water, until the water was calm. Then he slowly and carefully made his way back up toward the light.
When
he broke free of the water, his heart sank. A mound of gravel now split the cave in two, and Asher was nowhere in sight.
“Asher!” As Mason called out, a few more stones slid downward. “Asher,” he said more quietly. “Are you okay?”
After a long, terrifying moment, he heard a response. “I’m here!” Asher sounded so far away.
Luna sprang out of the water beside Mason. “Oh, no,” she whispered. “We have to dig him out!”
“Wait!” Mason held up his hand, treading water with the other. “If we try to mine through this, we’ll just bring down more rocks. And Asher might get—” He couldn’t finish the sentence.
He glanced upward, where a smidge of light still shone through the roof of the cave. “We should climb up and out,” he said. “Maybe Asher can do the same from the other side!”
“No!” Asher’s voice sounded louder now—and very firm. “I’m not leaving my dolphins.”
“But …” Mason glanced at Luna, who shrugged. She wouldn’t leave the dolphins behind either—Mason was sure of that. Since Luna and Asher had been granted Dolphin’s Grace, it was as if they had become members of the pod.
Mason sighed. “Then we’ll have to find another way.” He began to swim laps, thinking.
We can’t go up because dolphins can’t climb. We can’t go through the gravel wall, because more rocks will fall. But maybe …
He popped out of the water beside Luna. “Can we tunnel around the gravel?” he asked. He pointed toward the wall of the cave.
Luna shrugged. “It’s worth a shot.” She pulled the pickaxe from her backpack, and Mason slid Asher’s axe from his own.
Together, they dove just below the water’s surface and began to mine—more carefully this time, so as not to disturb the rocks. Slugger helped, nosing the mined blocks away with his snout.
They tunneled three blocks into the wall, and veered left. But how far left should they tunnel? Mason wasn’t sure. If they mined too far, they’d miss Asher completely. But if we don’t go far enough, we’ll tunnel our way right into the gravel wall—and cause another rockslide! Mason swallowed hard and kept mining.
Finally, he stopped swinging and gazed left. Something in his gut told him this was far enough. He hoped his gut was right.
He glanced at Luna, who nodded. He swung his axe.
Clink, clink! One block popped out.
Clink, clink, clink! Luna tunneled through another.
Mason held his breath as he whacked the last block. As it dislodged from the wall, he could see straight through to the watery cavern on the other side. A freckled face appeared in the mined hole—and grinned.
Yes!
Mason helped his brother swim into the tunnel. But would the dolphins follow? He held his breath and waited.
Hungry nosed at the hole with his long snout, but quickly darted away. Simon has to lead him, Mason realized. C’mon, Simon!
But the lead dolphin wouldn’t swim through. He swam past, left and right, his scarred side appearing for just a moment before disappearing again.
Mason glanced at his brother, who hovered near the hole. His mouth was set in a grim line. The glow of his enchanted helmet had begun to dim. Would he run out of oxygen soon?
I have to get him out of here! thought Mason. But another realization followed close behind. We have to get the dolphins to follow us. Because if they won’t go …
… Asher won’t either.
CHAPTER 12
Asher left his dolphins only long enough to drink Luna’s potions of water breathing and night vision.
“How are we going to get them out?” he asked, wiping a dribble of potion off his chin.
“I don’t know,” said Mason. But as he watched Luna zip up her pack, a torch flickered to life in his mind, as if powered by redstone. “The cod!” he said, pointing at Luna’s pack. “Could we use it to lure Simon and Hungry out of the hole?”
Luna pursed her lips and glanced at Asher, whose face fell. “I sort of ate it all,” he confessed.
“Oh.” Mason’s stomach sank.
“I didn’t know the dolphins would need it!” Asher said. “But now … they do. I’m sorry.” He sighed. Then he slipped back into the water and started swimming toward the tunnel in the wall.
“Asher, wait!” Mason called, hoping to stall his brother. Could he convince him to leave the dolphins behind?
Can I even leave them behind? Mason wondered. He slowly nodded. If it meant saving his brother, he could—and he would. So he asked Asher the one thing that could take his brother’s mind off of Simon and Hungry, at least for a moment. “Did you find the buried treasure?”
Asher stopped swimming and started treading water. His face spread into a smile. “Yeah,” he said. “I found it—just before the rockslide took me down. The treasure chest fell into the cave with me. It’s back there, on the other side of the gravel.” He pointed, and his eyes lit up. He stuck his fist in the air. “That’s it!”
He took off swimming so fast, Mason sucked in his breath. “What happened?” he asked Luna. “What did I say?”
She shrugged and dove into the water, following Asher. So Mason did, too.
Through the dark tunnel they swam, one by one, until they’d reached the pool of water on the other end. Mason searched the shallow pool for Asher, and saw his legs dangling in the water from the rocks up above. Mason quickly climbed out and found his brother sitting beside a treasure chest. The wooden chest was splintered and swollen with water.
When Asher cracked opened the lid, Mason scooted over to see what was inside. His brother pulled out a red and white block of TNT and set it on a flat rock.
“What—?” Mason started to ask. Was Asher going to blow his way out of the cave? That would never work! It would only cause an even bigger and more dangerous landslide.
But Asher had moved on, digging deeper into the chest. He scooped out a few turquoise prismarine crystals, which made Mason smile. “Just what you were hoping for,” he joked. “Now you can help me make a sea lantern and finish the conduit!”
The conduit. The underwater village and their home felt so far away. It’s too soon to think about that, thought Mason, shaking his head. We have a long way to go before we get there.
As Asher tucked the crystals into his pocket, Mason stared back into the treasure chest. Something glittered from the bottom. A diamond!
“Asher, you found real treasure!” Luna said. She had climbed onto the rocks and now stood over the chest, water dripping from her hair and clothes onto the treasures below.
Asher barely seemed to notice her. He pushed the diamond aside as if it were a lump of coal, and reached for something beneath it.
The smell hit Mason first—the scent of the fishiest fish. Salmon. Asher lifted a hunk of cooked salmon with his fingertips, as if the fish was the most disgusting thing he’d ever touched. He scrunched up his nose. But his eyes lit up as he asked, “Will the dolphins eat this? Could we use it to lure them into the tunnel?”
As if in response, Hungry leaped out of the water, inches away from the salmon. Asher pulled it back toward his chest.
“I think you just got your answer!” Mason said, laughing. “But break it into little pieces. We’re going to have to make it last.”
Asher tore the hunk of fish into four or five pieces. Then he slipped back into the water, leaving the treasure chest on the rocks with the lid wide open.
Mason watched, holding his breath. If Asher’s plan worked, they could be out of the cave in no time, heading back toward safety. Back toward home.
Asher swam a couple of feet into the tunnel. Then he spun around and held out the hunk of salmon, using it like a lure. When Hungry darted toward it, Asher turned and swam away. Would Hungry follow?
Go after it! Mason wanted to shout.
Hungry didn’t. He darted away from the tunnel entrance and swam back and forth, squeaking with frustration. The dolphin wanted that fish—he really did.
So why won’t he go after it
? Mason wondered.
Asher appeared at the tunnel entrance again, dangling the fish like a prize. This time, Hungry didn’t go for the treat at all. But someone else did.
Simon, the fearless leader, swam toward Asher, nosing the fish with his snout. Asher let him eat it and instantly held out another hunk. But before Simon could eat it, Asher turned and led the dolphin down the tunnel.
Mason watched, barely moving a muscle, as Hungry swam slowly after Simon. The dolphin hesitated at the tunnel entrance for just a moment before darting inside and disappearing.
Yes! Mason’s heart leaped in his chest.
Luna spun around and gave him a thumbs-up. “Our turn to go,” she said, diving into the water.
Mason slid off the rocks behind her and swam toward the hole. He followed the murky shapes ahead, knowing Asher was leading the dolphins to safety. When he heard the chatter on the other end of the tunnel, he knew they’d been reunited with the rest of their pod. At last!
When Mason broke free of the tunnel, he swam upward, hoping for a breath of fresh air. He could still see the moonlight above. But was it glowing green?
He followed Luna’s kicking feet and finally reached the surface. But as soon as his head popped out of the water, he shaded his eyes against the bright green glow. It bounced off the cave walls. Where was it coming from?
Then he saw.
Something had spawned in the cavern while they were on the other side.
Something wet. Something squishy.
Slime!
CHAPTER 13
Mason dove quickly underwater, inhaling water instead of air. He drew his trident carefully, trying not to hit the dolphins—or Luna or Asher—as he got ready to fight the slime.
But the water around him had grown so dim. My potion of night vision is wearing off! he realized.
He squinted, trying to make out the shapes in the murky water. A dolphin darted past, and was that a slime floating above? Mason gripped his trident, preparing to swing. But what if he hit another dolphin? He couldn’t chance it!