“Nobody has joined us since last night,” a heavy-set man with a thick grey beard answered. “Mitch and his wife there were the last ones to arrive.”
“Oh, that’s strange. They left well before us. I mean, they were already gone when we woke up. I’m Justin, by the way, and this is my brother Declan.” Both men offered a hand to the bearded man, who took them in a meaty grip and gave a firm shake.
“I’m Zeke, and that right there is my wife, Tilly. I’ll let the others introduce themselves and all, but that’s who we are.” Zeke was a friendly man, contrary to the gruff exterior that was not aided by the rotting skull he had emblazoned across this shirt.
“How high up did you camp?” Tim asked, peering at the pair.
“I don’t know, um …” Justin turned, looking back up the side of the hills, trying to find the spot they had made camp. “I guess that ledge up there was close to where we were. We pitched up a way back from the edge.”
Tim moved over to where Justin and Declan were standing, looking from them, up into the hills and back to them once more before taking a slow breath ahead of speaking. “You say there were two others with you?”
“Yeah, a couple of guys, kind of hipster-looking, but they were cool,” Declan answered. “I expected them to be down here by now.”
“Well, we will wait a few more minutes, there’s enough time,” the park ranger spoke, his gaze set on the ledge above.
Declan raised his head to try and see what was holding the man’s attention so much that it distracted his voice, but saw nothing. Then something moved, disappearing from the edge before his brain had even realized it was there. All he knew was that something had gone.
“Was that them?” he asked, looking at the ranger.
Tim looked at Declan but said nothing. “I need to make a phone call,” he spoke slowly, as if hesitant for something. “Once I get back, we will head off. If those guys aren’t here, that’s their loss. It’s a 45-minute hike up to the caves, and I don’t want to shortchange you all on your time underground.”
Declan watched the ranger walk away, and how he threw another glance up into the hills before grabbing the radio from his belt. Turning to talk to his brother, Declan found himself alone. Justin had joined the group and was busy being introduced to the others.
“Guys, this is my brother, Declan. Declan, this is Joe, Becky, and Tara,” Justin said, leading the introductions, and Declan shook hands with the three people.
“Nice to meet you,” Declan said, smiling at Tara in particular.
At average height with short-cut brown hair and dark brown eyes, it was her caramel complexion that made Declan pause for more. He guessed she was of an Indonesian descent.
“Nice to meet you too. Are you looking forward to the caves?” Tara asked, her voice still holding a trace of an accent that made her words sound that much sweeter to Declan’s ears
“Yeah, I can’t wait. I’ve never been in a cave before,” Declan said, his eyes not moving to the others.
“Me neither. I’m hoping it’s not too cramped. I’m not a big fan of small spaces,” Tara said as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other every few seconds.
“You get used to them,” Declan replied without thinking.
“What do you mean?” Tara asked.
“Nothing, I just mean, I’ve spent a lot of my time in confined spaces, and you get used to them,” Declan answered, trying to think of a follow-up statement and avoid having to bring up the whole prison, murder charge subject.
“Oh, yeah I guess you do.” Tara gave a laugh and took Declan by the hand, leading him away from the group.
“Well, that didn’t take long,” Becky said, her words a little too curt to be coming from anything but bad experiences.
“It could be a record,” Joe said in agreement.
“She does that more often then?” Justin asked, unsure how well the three knew each other.
“As long as I have known her. Too nice for her own good,” Becky said, her irritation clear.
“She’s naïve, that’s all,” Joe said, trying to keep things more civil.
“Well, don’t worry. I can vouch for my brother. He’s one of the good ones,” Justin said, feeling overcome by the sudden urge to be elsewhere.
Looking around, he spotted Zeke and his wife, a petite older lady who wore a pair of jeans, a pale pink checkered blouse, and a pair of cowboy boots. They were talking to another couple and gave Justin the exit he needed.
“Excuse me, I’m going to introduce myself to the others,” Justin said, leaving Joe and Becky, who were watching Declan and their friend like a pair of hawks.
Zeke was a warm and welcoming man, with a character even larger than his gut. Justin stood with him and his wife until the ranger returned, the worried look seemingly set onto his face. As the man started to speak, barking out instructions, Justin looked around for his brother. Declan had disengaged from his conversation with Tara, who herself had wandered back to rejoin her friends.
“That looked like it was going well,” Justin teased his brother.
“You’d think, wouldn’t you? She got the face of an angel, but talk to her for a few minutes and you will see she’s a devil,” Declan said with a strong sigh.
“Really? She looks so sweet.” Justin said.
“Yep, but trust me, she’s got bat-shit crazy written all over her. I’m staying well away.” Declan turned to face the ranger, putting Tara firmly behind him.
“Sorry about the late start, but sometimes the day job still needs to take preference,” Tim spoke, raising his voice so that everybody could hear. “We’ve got about a 45-minute hike up to the caves, an hour at most, so we’ll still have plenty of time, but I’m going to ask you all to stay on the trail. Don’t go wandering off or looking at the scenery. There’s plenty of time for that later on.” The group nodded with various degrees of enthusiasm, but Declan heard the words that were not being spoken.
A chill ran down his spine, and a voice in his head whispered that something was wrong. He laughed it off, cracking a joke with his brother, but as they started to walk, he could not stop from looking deeper into the woods on both sides, expecting to find something standing there, ready to snatch anybody that did not heed the ranger’s warning.
The hike started off easy going one, the train well-worn and carefully chosen. There were several other trails that spawned from theirs, but their pathway was a far steeper one. The only member of the group that showed any sign of exertion was Zeke, but his infectious laugh and unashamed self-deprecating wit carried him through.
By the time they arrived at the cave, they were all sweating. It was unusually hot, and the trees only served to capture the heat and amplify it like a natural sauna, which only served to charge the group’s eagerness to enter the cave, if not only because it would be so much cooler.
The park ranger led them inside, stopping just beneath the cover of the rock but before the darkness grew too much for everybody to be able to see him clearly.
“That’s better,” he said, wiping the sweat from his forehead. “Now, this is the main entrance to the cave system. There are others, but this one gives us the best route and the best views and takes us through the main cavern, where you will be able to see the natural spring that rises up. I’m sure most of you have seen the bottles of water in the store, the one with the shield logo.” Everybody nodded. “Well, that comes from this spring. Not this exact spot, but they share the same source. You will all be allowed to fill one bottle or water canister from the spring.” The ranger continued giving the instructions, but Declan found himself watching the walls of the cave, checking to make sure everything was alright.
He didn’t want to say it to Justin, but the walls were feeling pretty tight around him, and he was still unable to shake the feeling of unease that was surging through his body.
“So, if you all want to grab a helmet from the rack over here, we can get going. I’ll warn you, it can get a little cramped
in places, but nothing that this group can’t handle. I want you all to keep an orderly line. We will stop regularly to take photos, and I will point out the key areas as we go, but please remember, do not fall behind. The walkways are marked and roped off, but nobody wants to get lost in the caves, especially not since what happened to the last family.” The ranger paused for a moment before breaking out into a grin. “Just kidding, we’ve never lost anybody yet.”
The group gave a laugh, all except Declan, who felt more on edge. He stared at the park ranger, and when the man’s eyes locked on his, it was the ranger that quickly averted his gaze.
“Hey, man, do you think there’s something he’s not telling us?” Declan whispered to his brother while the pair grabbed the helmets and strapped them into place.
“What are you talking about?” Justin looked at his brother with no clue as to what he was talking about.
“I mean Trevor and Ben. Didn’t you see his reaction when we told him about where we camped? I’m sure I saw something move up on the ledge where we were.” Declan tried not to sound like a loon as he spoke and made an extra effort to keep his voice a whisper. The latter making the former an ever-greater challenge.
“Are you feeling alright, bro?” Justin looked at Declan and smiled, stifling the laugh. “You’re not going to scare me that easily, dude.”
Justin laughed and slapped his brother on the shoulder before walking back to the group, which were starting to move away, Declan gave a heavy sigh. He cast one last looked back at the cave entrance as they walked. He saw the mouth of the cave, and the first few stalactites that descended from the mouth like stumpy teeth, and there they were, just blindly walking down the gullet of the beast, without thinking twice.
Turning back to the group, Declan saw they had already started to descend, the path making a quick decline, and so he pushed away his reservations and hurried to catch up, almost slipping on this second step.
After the initial sharp descent and a hard-right turn, the path shallowed considerably and widened so that they could walk more as a group than a procession. Even just a few meters in, the gloom of the cave pressed in around them. Their helmets were equipped with mounted lights, and there was also lighting strategically placed along the walk, but not to the point where it detracted from the impression of the cave.
Justin and Declan were towards the rear of the cluster, along with Zeke, his wife, and Tara, who kept stopping to look back towards Justin and Declan, flashing a smile. Ahead of them, the ranger was talking about something and pointing towards the left where the cave floor was still level with them. Mounds of minerals were starting to rise, like the rolling hills that lead into a mountain range further down the road. Each reflected different colors when viewed from different angles and certainly made an impressive start to the tour.
They continued walking and the air grew damp, the odor of water heavy on the air, bringing with it a mildew-laden aftertaste with every breath. The walls were also damp and in some places coated with a thin layer of slime.
The path narrowed for the first time, and murmurs of excitement ran through the group like a shiver traveling down a man’s spine passed the common over to the next cell and the next one until the whole body felt as if an ice cube and been drawn down its length.
The floor beyond the path began to drop and they were soon into the first cavern area. The lighting here was minimal until the park ranger turned on a powerful spotlight. Mounted on a tripod, it reminded Justin of the binoculars the kids had used during their trip to the Grand Canyon that summer. A couple of dollars and the machines spring to life giving them a close-up view of what would have otherwise been too far away to be of any significance.
The light cut through the gloom and lit up the floor below them. The drop was not far, but enough for the darkness to hide it from them completely.
One member of the group gasped as they saw the floor come to life, the powerful beam sending the bugs and insects that lived their lives in darkness scurrying for shelter.
“There are bugs down here?” a shocked voice rose from within the group, one of the younger members, who neither Justin or Declan had been officially introduced to.
Silence was the only answer that she received, with nobody wanting to dignify it with a response.
The ranger swept the beam over the floor, showing two particularly large stalagmites that rose from the base of the cave like the flowing humps on the back of a camel. They rose almost to the same height as the walkway they were standing on. The torch rose, illuminating the wall beyond and up to the cave ceiling where smaller formations hung down like teeth. The descending tentacles of washed-away rock and minerals had much sharper points than their rising brethren and held a much more sinister appearance as a result.
Justin watched as a large creature that looked like a centipede rushed across the wall, disappearing from the searchlight with haste. Its body moved swiftly, with a fluid-like ease, but even in the brief view he had, it made him think of the soft toys he and Declan had been ridiculing at the mall.
“Are those what I think they are?” Zeke asked, his voice booming even when kept to a whisper.
“Yep, bats. This cave is home to one of the largest bat colonies in the country. We regularly get scientists coming through to study them.”
The light swept along the rows of animals, all huddled close together, their wings wrapped around them as if trying to keep warm in the cool air of the cave.
“Okay, follow me, the path splits into two up here, but because we are a small group, we will keep together. We will take a right-hand fork and walk around what we call the central column to the larger chamber and the spring,” Ranger Tim instructed, and everybody listened like a congregation to its minister. “There is a deep drop as we pass the central column, and the path is fenced off as a result. Please do not lean over the fence.”
It didn’t take more than a minute before someone leaned over the fencing and stroked the central pillar, claiming excitedly that it was as wet as it looked. Justin shook his head and paused to stare at the giant column. Zeke and his wife stopped also, while Tara stood back against the opposite wall, clearly unenthused with the idea of getting any closer to the large drop the ranger had mentioned.
“It’s quite remarkable, isn’t it?” Zeke spoke, his voice filled with wonder.
Justin looked at the column, and the longer he did, the more he came to realize that Zeke was right. The column appeared to have no connection with either side of the cave, rising up above their heads where it was consumed with darkness, while continuing to plunge deeper beneath their feet, with a similar detachment to all other parts of the cave.
“Nobody knows how the column was formed, but there are many who believe it was not a purely natural process,” Tim spoke, stressing all the right words to add more intrigue to his story.
“You mean like the supernatural?” the same voice that was shocked by the presence of the bugs in the cave spoke up.
“No, you dolt, he means man-made,” one of the girl’s friends interrupted, causing a titter of amusement to flit through the group.
“Oh,” the voice answered, blissfully unaware of the sarcasm threaded through the words.
“Is there any record of mining going on in these caves?” someone asked.
“Nothing official, but the history of these caves is surrounded by a little more mystery than most. The entrance we came through was, shall we say, assisted with its development. Originally, there was only one known main entrance to the caves and that was kept on private property owned by a very wealthy family from the area. It was only after they handed the land over to the state that the true depths of the mines were discovered.” The offering of a local legend with just enough enunciation to imply some sort of dark secret got the attention of the group, who turned towards the ranger eager to hear more.
“How deep does it go?” a young boy asked. He couldn’t have been long into double figures and was the youngest member of the gro
up by some way, his parents standing protectively either side of him.
“A lot deeper than we are going to go,” Tim answered.
“But how deep? Have you seen the bottom, or does it go on forever?” The boy was not going to be dismissed with such an answer.
“Nothing goes on forever. I’ve never seen the bottom, but I know it has one.” Tim shuffled on the spot, turning to lead them further before anybody else had the chance to answer questions, or before the inquisitive nature of boys on an adventure rose once more.
The path continued to descend, drawing closer to the floor, and the feeling of being underground truly impressed itself upon the group. The temperature dropped, and they could almost feel the weight of the rocks sitting around and above them. The walls were jagged and untouched, formed by nature, and as a result, they needed to be cautious with where they walked. On several occasions, the sharp sound of a helmet hitting a jutting section of the cave rang out, including Declan, whose attention had been taken by a mark on the wall that looked like a cave painting of some early sort. He didn’t get a chance to study the image in any way because the group was moving through the narrow passage without pausing to enjoy where they were. Everybody was focused on reaching the next cavern rather than looking at what was immediately around them.
“You alright?” Justin asked, dropping back to help his brother readjust his helmet.
“Yeah, just wasn’t paying attention. Did you see those markings back there?” Declan asked, looking back the way they had come.
“Markings?”
“I’ll take that as a no,” Declan said, turning his head back towards his brother. “Come and take a look at this quickly.”
Declan grabbed his brother’s arm and pulled him back the few meters before he had a chance to argue.
“We should keep up with the group,” Justin said.
“It’s right here, look.” Declan focused the lamp from his helmet on the wall. The image was not as clear on a second, closer viewing than he had thought, but it was clearly a drawing of some sort; a human figure with short, squat body and a large head. It was standing over another similar figure, although the second figure lacked a lot of detail compared to the first.
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