Kachina

by Rada, J. R.

  “Hello?” she called out. “Is anyone else here?”

  No one answered, but she thought she heard a faint scraping sound in the distance.

  Christine could feel the immensity of the room around her, and it disturbed her in the same way large chambers sometimes have a reverse-claustrophobic effect on cavers. She moved toward the door so that she could feel the wall and have some way to orient herself.

  Something moved near her, but in the dark room there was no way to see what it was. The darkness itself seemed to be moving, but there was no breeze that she could feel. The darkness swirled around her feet and tickled her ankles. When she tried to step out of it, it felt like she was stepping out of mud. It seemed to hold onto her refusing to let her move.

  The room no longer felt large. It was small now, very small. Christine reached out to touch one of the walls and something bit her arm. She jerked her arm to her side and backed away.

  Something was in the room with her. Some sort of animal.

  “Don’t scream,” she whispered to herself. “Don’t scream. They’re probably listening to you right now, and a scream is one thing they wouldn’t need a translator to explain.”

  She took a deep breath and sucked on her lower lip.

  The darkness moved up her legs. Suddenly, she felt sharp pains all over her calves and thighs. Gulping down a scream, she tried to run.

  She couldn’t. Her legs were stuck to the floor.

  Christine bent over and tried to push away whatever was attacking her legs, but when she swung her fists, she hit nothing but air. Yet, her legs still hurt.

  Then the bites started on her arms. She stood straight up and screamed, not caring whether they thought she was a coward or not. The bites on her arms continued, though. They moved from her arms up to her shoulders and neck.

  Christine knew she was bleeding. She could feel the blood running down her arms as the bites increased in intensity. Touching her left arm with her right hand, Christine felt the deep gouge that had once been part of her biceps.

  She felt a pain on the side of her neck and screamed again. She clamped her hands to her neck and could feel her blood pulsing between her fingers. She tried to run again, but her legs still felt stuck to the ground.

  As she fell to the floor, she thought to herself, This is what one of Dracula’s victims must feel like.

  Christine prayed she was dying. She thought she wouldn’t be able to live with all her blood pumping out of her neck. How fast was it pumping out? An ounce a minute? Two? How many pints did the average human woman have? Eight? How long would it be before she lost all her blood? Her mind fogged over and she couldn’t concentrate.

  It hadn’t taken these people long to kill her. She was glad that they didn’t have much patience. She was a coward at heart, and she wasn’t sure she would have been able to sustain her resistance through much more pain.

  There were worse places for a caver to die than in a mysterious cave. If she had to die anywhere, she was glad it was underground just like Floyd Collins. Except he had had a nation to mourn his death when he was killed in a cave-in. Who would remember her? The Bow Clan had killed all her friends except Gary and Jared.

  Gary. Gary would remember.

  She felt something ripping open her chest, and she screamed for the last time.

  CHAPTER 52

  Kel´hoya switched on the flashlight he had stolen from the Outlanders and shined it around the chamber. He didn’t recognize this chamber, but he knew if he continued to go forward, he would eventually find the path to Kuskurza. He had chosen to come this way because he didn’t think David would follow him, if he lived, which Kel´hoya doubted. He would not take any chances, though. He was too close to success now. He would find favor with the dark kachinas once again when he presented this woman to be used as a breeder.

  He called to the Bow Clan with his thoughts. Your brother has returned, and I have brought a gift for the dark kachinas, he thought.

  If his thoughts didn’t reach the Bow Clan, he was sure his presence in the caves would be detected, and the dark kachinas would send the Bow Clan to investigate.

  He continued to broadcast his thoughts, but it wasn’t until he climbed a steep pile of rocks that he saw the Bow Clansmen. They had been closer than he thought they would be. There were four of them in full uniform standing at the base of the pile. Kel´hoya stopped walking and waited for them to approach him.

  Brothers, he thought to them. He almost spoke, but he remembered he was of the Bow Clan and the Bow Clan communicated by thought.

  We do not recognize you, one of the Bow Clansmen told Kel´hoya.

  I am Kel´hoya.

  What is the gift you spoke of for the dark kachinas?

  Kel´hoya momentarily forgot his embarrassment and yanked Sarah to her feet beside him. This is a woman from Tu´waqachi. She is strong and will bear many strong warriors for the Bow Clan. She and others like her can replace the women freed by Pahana, Ma´saw, and the Sun Clan.

  We will take her.

  Kel´hoya held up his hand. No. I wish to present her to the dark kachinas when I ask their forgiveness. He started walking down the slope dragging Sarah behind him. She tried to pull away from him, but he was too strong. Let us hurry back to Kuskurza. I miss my world. I have much to tell the dark kachinas about Tu´waqachi.

  Two Bow Clansmen raised their langhers. You will not be returning to Kuskurza. You do not look like an Outlander, but we have been told you are not of the Third World.

  Do I look like an Outlander? I am of the Bow Clan, and I must report to the dark kachinas.

  The two Bow Clansmen fired their weapons at the same time. The electric bolts hit Kel´hoya in his chest and stomach. He screamed out loud and in his mind at the same time. His arms flew out to his sides and he tumbled down the rock slope, dead before he reached the feet of his brothers. The Bow Clansmen standing below clenched their eyes shut as if it would keep out Kel´hoya’s screams.

  Sarah took advantage of their momentary distraction and scrambled back up the hill. At the top of the hill, she could see the lights of the Bow Clan as they raced to catch her. She rolled over the top of the pile and into the darkness beyond. She moved slower in the dark, but she didn’t mind because as long as it was dark, the Bow Clan weren’t near.

  She felt her way along the wall trying to find a deep crevice she could hide inside. A bright light spotlighted her and she tried to sprint out of the light like a scared rabbit. She wasn’t fast enough. No matter which direction she moved in, the light seemed to be there and the edge was always out of her grasp.

  Then she heard the Bow Clan walking towards her.

  As soon as David set foot on the cave floor, he was afraid. It had been one thing to remember what had happened to him from the safety of the kiva. It was quite another to remember it while he was in the caverns. The memories of his five missing weeks rushed at him with such force he was staggered. He saw the Bow Clan firing their langhers at him. They seemed like unstoppable mechanical soldiers. He remembered his blind run through the caverns as he tried to find a way out. He felt his fear of not knowing if anyone was behind him or not. He had forgotten all of it, and now that he remembered it, he wished he hadn’t.

  “Are you all right?” Gary asked him as they moved toward the edge of the chamber.

  David nodded. “Just having some bad memories.”

  “Yeah, I know what you mean. I think I’ll have nightmares for a long time after all of this is over.”

  Sarah saw the pool of water and kicked at the Bow Clansman holding her. she knew they planned on going under the water. She wasn’t sure how long she could hold her breath. She hoped it would be long enough.

  The first two Bow Clansmen dove into the water. Sarah could see a light from their crude flashlights as they moved around below the dark water.

  When their lights disappeared under a rock, the Bow Clansman holding Sarah dragged her into the water. Her mind tried to tell her it must not be far to the s
urface if the Bow Clan could hold their breaths and go through.

  The Bow Clansman pulled her deeper into the water. Sarah kicked one of them in the shin, but he didn’t yell as she expected him to do. He slapped her on the side of face and pushed her into the sump. Sarah tried to keep her head above the water, but she knew it was a useless battle. Just before her head went under, she took the deepest breath she could.

  Once under water, she kept her eyes closed. She doubted she would have been able to see anything in the dark water anyway. She simply let the Bow Clansman guide her through the water. She didn’t struggle because she didn’t want to use up the little air her lungs were holding.

  Her chest wanted to burst as her oxygen was gradually used up. She had once heard that the human body would not allow a person to breathe in water. Drowning victims actually died from suffocation, and then the water entered their lungs. Sarah felt that she was only moments away from finding out if that was the truth or not.

  Her head pounded as her blood rushed through her skull. She wondered if suffocation hurt.

  Then her head broke the surface and she gulped hungrily at the air as she scrambled onto the dry bank.

  Sarah sat with her back against the wall of the tunnel. At least she knew there was one direction she did not have to worry about the Bow Clan coming from.

  The four Bow Clansmen formed a semicircle around her. They stood in various postures staring at her. They looked at each other with odd expressions and laughed, but their stares always returned to her.

  Sarah wanted to cry. This was worse than it had ever been living in the white man’s world. She could feel the tears forming behind her eyes, but she thought that crying would only encourage the Bow Clan. She focused her willpower on herself and ordered herself not to cry. It worked, but she knew her hold on her emotions was fragile and would break at the slightest touch.

  One of the Bow Clansmen stepped forward and reached out to touch Sarah’s black hair. On pure instinct, Sarah slapped his hand away.

  The corner of the Bow Clansman’s lip twisted up in an almost animal-like sneer. He grabbed Sarah by the hair and yanked her to her feet. Sarah screamed, but instead of crying like she thought she would do, she felt anger.

  The Bow Clansman squeezed her breast through her wet blouse and smiled. Then he ripped open the blouse exposing her dark skin. He paused for a moment to stare at her skin.

  Sarah knew she was only seconds away from being raped. She might be able to discourage one man, but if all of them wanted to take part, she wouldn’t be able to stop them. But she could stop some of them. She wouldn’t make it easy for them, especially since she expected they would kill her anyway.

  The Bow Clansman’s hand dropped from her breast and his finger started down her stomach. Sarah jerked her knee up hard hoping all of the Bow Clan’s anatomy was like a normal male’s.

  The Bow Clansman screamed and doubled over. He grabbed his crotch and rolled around on the sandy floor of the cave. He kept his eyes shut, but he couldn’t keep the tears from streaming from the corners.

  The other Bow Clansmen laughed and pointed at the one on the floor. Sarah pulled her blouse together and waited for the other Bow Clansmen to attack her.

  But they didn’t attack. They just continued watching their comrade rolling on the floor in pain. When he finally managed to stand up, he quickly wiped the tears from his eyes. Turning to Sarah, he glared at her.

  Sarah watched him raise his hand and it was almost like she was watching something in slow motion. She saw the fist coming toward her and she was powerless to move out of the its path. The Bow Clansmen hit her on the side of the face knocking her head back against the hard stone wall.

  Sarah tried to fight back the encroaching grayness that threatened to overcome her. She knew it wasn’t the cave’s darkness. She was on the verge of losing consciousness. Her legs went weak and she slid helplessly to the ground.

  The Bow Clansman pulled the odd metal rod from his waistband and pointed it at her. Though Sarah didn’t know what it was, she had seen the same weapons kill the Bow Clansman who had forced her into the caves.

  The three Bow Clansmen who were watching stopped laughing. If Sarah had been able to direct her gaze beyond the end of the metal tube pointed at her face, she would have seen the worried looks on the faces of the other Bow Clansmen.

  They grabbed their companion and raised the arm that held the weapon so that it pointed away from Sarah. He struggled slightly as they pulled him away from her.

  When they released him, he turned and started walking down the tunnel.

  Another Bow Clansman turned to follow him. A third Bow Clansman grabbed Sarah under her right arm and hoisted her to her feet. Then he pushed her through the tunnel in front of him.

  Sarah wanted to run, but she knew that if she did, she would not avoid being killed a second time. She would have to wait and see what they had planned for her.

  CHAPTER 53

  Gary’s flashlight revealed the fifty-foot pool of black water that marked the beginning of the sump. He shuddered when he saw Billy Joe’s and Jared’s bodies lying sprawled on the ground. Gary looked away and tried to concentrate on the sump.

  David unshouldered his pack and walked up to the edge of the water. Gary stayed back from the water. He couldn’t help but remember the Bow Clansmen rising out of the water and the destruction they had brought with them, especially when much of that destruction lay nearby.

  “How far is it to the other side?” David asked.

  “About two-hundred feet. I laid out a guide line we could follow when I made my first dive a couple of days ago, but your Bow Clansmen must have cut it from the other side when they went under,” Gary said as he held up the frayed end of the guide line he had pulled from the water.

  “Will that stop us from getting to the other side?”

  Gary shook his head. “It won’t stop us, but it will slow us down a little bit.”

  “Once we go through here, we might not be able to get back,” David commented.

  “What do you mean? We don’t even need the tanks. We can hold our breath and make it through.”

  “The Sun Clan told me that the dark kachinas can close and open the passages to keep the Sun Clan from reaching the surface.”

  Gary shook his head. “You’re talking about major geologic events. How powerful are these kachinas?”

  “More powerful than you or I, but they are not all powerful. They have their weak points,” David said.

  “If they don’t want the Sun Clan to reach the surface, why even keep an open passage?”

  “The Bow Clan still needs to breathe air and the only way to do that is to have two open passages to allow air to flow through their world.” David pointed to the sump. “Anyway, if we swim through the sump, they may close the passage behind us and we would be stuck just like the Sun Clan. So if you don’t want to go, you don’t have to. I can make it myself from here.”

  Gary was tempted to stay behind because he had no desire to meet up something that could open and close cave passages. Thinking about the Bow Clan was bad enough, but this was almost too much for him to handle. Yet, the only way he could help Christine was to accompany David to the end of the caves and hope he would come back out.

  “I’ll understand if you don’t want to go on,” David said. “I was hoping we would find Sarah before we reached this point. They were only an hour or so ahead of us. They must have run the whole way.”

  “Well, obviously, they did beat us here,” Gary said waving the cable.

  “We’re going to have to go into the water after them,” David noted.

  Gary shook his head. “It’s not that easy, David. Cave diving is dangerous. Very dangerous. The diving caves in Florida kill about eighteen people a year. It’s not something that amateur cavers should do.”

  “I’m not a amateur. I’ve been diving in Lake Powell,” David said.

  “But...” Gary started to explain.

  David grab
bed Gary by the shoulder. “Don’t argue. I’m not holding you responsible for my safety. Just tell me how to get through to the other side, and you can go back and warn the sheriff. Every minute I waste gives them another minute longer to get to Kuskurza, and I have no desire to see that place again. I want this over before then.”

  “If you get hurt...,” Gary started to say.

  “Then I get hurt. I’m going through one way or the other. Either you can tell me how or I can find out for myself.”

  David let go of Gary and stripped to the waist. The cool cave air instantly raised the goosebumps on his skin. He checked the submersible pressure gauge on a set of twin eighty-cubic-foot tanks. There was still enough air for a short dive and the return trip. He strapped the tanks onto his back.

  Gary sighed and checked the gauges on another set of tanks.

  “I told you you don’t have to go,” David said.

  “I know. Shut up before I change my mind. You’re not the only one going after someone he cares about. Besides, while you may know about Kuskurza, you don’t know about caves,” Gary told David.

  “Well then, don’t preach to me. Let’s go. I’ve got to find Sarah,” David said as he inserted his mouthpiece.

  David pulled his mask down over his face. He looked at the underwater caving helmets sitting on the ground. He picked up one with a pair of waterproof flashlights mounted to it.

  With a disgusted grunt, Gary took off his shirt and put on a buoyancy-compensator jacket. Then he hefted his own pair of tanks onto his back.

  David looked at Gary and smiled.

  “Don’t be so smug about it,” Gary said. “I still don’t think you should go, but I also think we need to stay together.”

  When they had suited up, Gary said, “Okay. Here’s what we need to do. This is going to be a short dive, nothing fancy. Keep one hand on me at all times. I’ll lead. If you have any problems, communicate by grip. Pressing forward means go. Squeezing means stop. Pulling means come back. Try and stay as far away from the bottom as you can. There’s plenty of silt down there and we don’t want to stir it up. There’s also a narrow pass down there, and I don’t want our visibility obstructed. It’s going to be a tight enough fit even when we can see the widest spot to fit through. Got it?” David nodded. “Okay. Let’s get this over with.”