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(Part 1 of this story is located here: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2545084 )
The mine was a confusing collection of labyrinthine passages; all connected by broken train tracks and de-commissioned mine carts. Debris was littered everywhere, possibly fragments of the original explosion back in the 1930’s.
Bellows and Joe pulled out two flashlights. Benton looked surprised.
“That’s very high-tech for you guys.”
“Some of us do go outside the village, even if we have to do so undercover. We only use technology like this on special occasions.” Joe told Benton as he stepped over a broken oil lantern.
“Follow me and stay close. I know the path to their den.” Bellows said.
They walked into a large cavern where the tracks ran across a wooden bridge that spanned about thirty feet off the cave floor. With the help of their flashlights, they could see the glare of the water down below.
“I bet it leads somewhere, but it would take too much time to go down there. I know a better way.” Bellows walked into a corridor. At the end of the passageway a boulder blocked their path.
“This wasn’t here before.” Bellows put down his burlap sack and flashlight. “Come on. Let’s see if we can move it.”
Joe, Bellows, Nightfire, and Benton all put their weight into the rock, heaving with all their might. After about two minutes of determined pushing, they realized it wouldn’t budge.
Joe pointed his flashlight around the area. “We need to find another way through.” His light fell on a small hole in the wall near the boulder. He bent down and peered into it. “This hole leads into another room. We may not have to backtrack after all.”
As soon as he got up, Gent walked up to the hole and sniffed it.
“No, Gent. Stay here.” Benton pleaded.
It didn’t listen. The dog walked right through the hole.
“Gent!” Benton dropped to his hands and knees and crawled after him.
“Benton, here!” Bellows tossed him a flashlight as Benton chased after his dog.
Behind him, he heard talking. “Nightfire, Go with him and make sure he’s okay.”
“I can’t fit through that hole!” was the response.
“We'll find another way around.” Joe told the group.
The crawlspace seemed to go on forever. Benton saw his dog disappear around a corner.
“Gent! Get back here!” he called out, listening to the echo of his voice.
He turned the corner and saw an opening. He struggled to turn his body but managed to twist himself out of the hole.
He stood up and scanned the room with his flashlight. Gent was nowhere in sight.
A splash echoed from his right side. Benton looked down and realized that he was on the bank of a cavern lake.
“Gent?” he called out, rather cautiously. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as he got the distinct feeling that someone was watching him.
He slowly panned the flashlight across the surface of the water and spotted a disturbance in the stillness. Ripples expanded silently over the surface.
Benton felt something brush his jacket as he spun around. A long snake-like object slinked its way up to his eye level. A barb sat on the “head” of the slender moving object. Benton realized that it was a tail. He followed the length of it and saw two slit pupils staring at him from behind a rock. It stood up to face him.
“Ah!” Benton yelled as he backed up.
“Ah!” screamed the mysterious monster withdrawing its tail.
Benton gasped hard as he pointed the flashlight directly at its face. It was reptilian with a long snout and two fangs protruding from its mouth. It almost looked like a dragon, although it was definitely more frightened than Benton was. They simply stared at each other with wide eyes.
Benton decided to communicate with it. He took a deep breath and saw the reptile flinch.
“Who…”
“Ah!” the beast yelled again, raising its barbed tail only inches away from Benton’s face.
“Whoa.” He raised his hands in submission. “I’m not dangerous.”
A gruff voice spoke behind him. “Or so you say.”
Benton didn’t dare take his eyes away from the reptile barb, so he had to talk without looking at the speaker.
“Who are you?” he asked the voice.
“My name is not important. What is important is that you’ll live as long as you don’t give Lancealot here a reason to stab you.”
“Lancealot?” Benton asked, looking at the reptile. It grunted and twitched its tail.
“What are you doing here? The voice asked. Benton could feel the speaker’s breath on his neck.
“I came to meet with some of the cave-dwellers.” He looked at Lancealot, wondering how much more he should say. “I wanted to trade with them.”
“Trade for what?”
He debated to himself. Should he tell the truth or would he get stabbed for it? He peered at the reptile and saw its nervous glance. It didn’t seem vicious. Finally, he decided that honesty would probably inspire a better chance at trade.
“A spirit stone.” He said. He felt the air heat up behind him as the speaker’s breathing became louder.
“So, you’re one of the people who think you can just take what you want?”
“No, I…”
“You thought you could come in here and trade us some useless items for one of our valuable relics?”
“No, that’s not true…”
“You believe we’re some ignorant barbarian tribe?!”
“No!”
“What are we?! Just some useless pack animals?! How dare you…!”
“SHUT UP AND LISTEN!”
Benton finally yelled in frustration. His voice echoed throughout the cave.
Lancealot’s eyes went wide as he instinctively backed off and lowered his barb. His mouth was open in an expression of shock.
Benton continued and didn’t even try to turn around. He was still worried about being stabbed in the back.
“I don’t want one of your blasted stones! I came here because…” he tried his best to find the words without saying that his dog wanted a stone. “…because a friend thought that a stone would inspire me. My life has been less then great and he wanted to help me turn it around.”
After a moment of silence, the voice spoke up. “What would the stone do for you?”
Benton thought for a moment. “I don’t know. I guess my friend was hoping that it would inspire me to become a better painter.”
“You’re an artist?” the voice asked with a degree of interest.
“Yes.” Benton answered plainly.
The voice lowered to a more expressive tone. “I love art.” It said, causing Benton to form an idea.
“What kind of art?” the painter asked.
“I’ve always loved the paintings inside churches, especially Michelangelo’s work on the Sistine Chapel. It’s beautiful. I’ve never seen anything so heavenly.” It said with a form of reverence. Then, anger broke into its voice. “I can’t even see that now because your kind has conquered most of the planet! If it weren’t for the greed of humans, I could get out and see the world!” the voice grew to a crescendo as Benton saw Lancealot raise his barb once more.
Just then, a bark echoed through the cave as Gent appeared. He leapt at Lancealot, causing the reptile to scream and run off.
Benton turned in time to see Joe knock his mystery interrogator into the water. A black soaked form ran off on all fours after the reptile.
“You all right?” Joe asked as Bellows and Nightfire came bounding up on the shore of the cavern lake.
Benton was still thinking about the mystery figure’s words. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“We should go. Your stone will have to wait.” Bellows said.
Nightfire stopped and sniffed the air.
“What is it?” Bellows looked around.
Nightfire’s eyes gleamed of recognition. “I don’t know. I…thought I smelled something familiar.” She looked around. Her eyes became downtrodden. “Nevermind. Let’s go.”
(Continue to Part 10: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2545324/ )
The mine was a confusing collection of labyrinthine passages; all connected by broken train tracks and de-commissioned mine carts. Debris was littered everywhere, possibly fragments of the original explosion back in the 1930’s.
Bellows and Joe pulled out two flashlights. Benton looked surprised.
“That’s very high-tech for you guys.”
“Some of us do go outside the village, even if we have to do so undercover. We only use technology like this on special occasions.” Joe told Benton as he stepped over a broken oil lantern.
“Follow me and stay close. I know the path to their den.” Bellows said.
They walked into a large cavern where the tracks ran across a wooden bridge that spanned about thirty feet off the cave floor. With the help of their flashlights, they could see the glare of the water down below.
“I bet it leads somewhere, but it would take too much time to go down there. I know a better way.” Bellows walked into a corridor. At the end of the passageway a boulder blocked their path.
“This wasn’t here before.” Bellows put down his burlap sack and flashlight. “Come on. Let’s see if we can move it.”
Joe, Bellows, Nightfire, and Benton all put their weight into the rock, heaving with all their might. After about two minutes of determined pushing, they realized it wouldn’t budge.
Joe pointed his flashlight around the area. “We need to find another way through.” His light fell on a small hole in the wall near the boulder. He bent down and peered into it. “This hole leads into another room. We may not have to backtrack after all.”
As soon as he got up, Gent walked up to the hole and sniffed it.
“No, Gent. Stay here.” Benton pleaded.
It didn’t listen. The dog walked right through the hole.
“Gent!” Benton dropped to his hands and knees and crawled after him.
“Benton, here!” Bellows tossed him a flashlight as Benton chased after his dog.
Behind him, he heard talking. “Nightfire, Go with him and make sure he’s okay.”
“I can’t fit through that hole!” was the response.
“We'll find another way around.” Joe told the group.
The crawlspace seemed to go on forever. Benton saw his dog disappear around a corner.
“Gent! Get back here!” he called out, listening to the echo of his voice.
He turned the corner and saw an opening. He struggled to turn his body but managed to twist himself out of the hole.
He stood up and scanned the room with his flashlight. Gent was nowhere in sight.
A splash echoed from his right side. Benton looked down and realized that he was on the bank of a cavern lake.
“Gent?” he called out, rather cautiously. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as he got the distinct feeling that someone was watching him.
He slowly panned the flashlight across the surface of the water and spotted a disturbance in the stillness. Ripples expanded silently over the surface.
Benton felt something brush his jacket as he spun around. A long snake-like object slinked its way up to his eye level. A barb sat on the “head” of the slender moving object. Benton realized that it was a tail. He followed the length of it and saw two slit pupils staring at him from behind a rock. It stood up to face him.
“Ah!” Benton yelled as he backed up.
“Ah!” screamed the mysterious monster withdrawing its tail.
Benton gasped hard as he pointed the flashlight directly at its face. It was reptilian with a long snout and two fangs protruding from its mouth. It almost looked like a dragon, although it was definitely more frightened than Benton was. They simply stared at each other with wide eyes.
Benton decided to communicate with it. He took a deep breath and saw the reptile flinch.
“Who…”
“Ah!” the beast yelled again, raising its barbed tail only inches away from Benton’s face.
“Whoa.” He raised his hands in submission. “I’m not dangerous.”
A gruff voice spoke behind him. “Or so you say.”
Benton didn’t dare take his eyes away from the reptile barb, so he had to talk without looking at the speaker.
“Who are you?” he asked the voice.
“My name is not important. What is important is that you’ll live as long as you don’t give Lancealot here a reason to stab you.”
“Lancealot?” Benton asked, looking at the reptile. It grunted and twitched its tail.
“What are you doing here? The voice asked. Benton could feel the speaker’s breath on his neck.
“I came to meet with some of the cave-dwellers.” He looked at Lancealot, wondering how much more he should say. “I wanted to trade with them.”
“Trade for what?”
He debated to himself. Should he tell the truth or would he get stabbed for it? He peered at the reptile and saw its nervous glance. It didn’t seem vicious. Finally, he decided that honesty would probably inspire a better chance at trade.
“A spirit stone.” He said. He felt the air heat up behind him as the speaker’s breathing became louder.
“So, you’re one of the people who think you can just take what you want?”
“No, I…”
“You thought you could come in here and trade us some useless items for one of our valuable relics?”
“No, that’s not true…”
“You believe we’re some ignorant barbarian tribe?!”
“No!”
“What are we?! Just some useless pack animals?! How dare you…!”
“SHUT UP AND LISTEN!”
Benton finally yelled in frustration. His voice echoed throughout the cave.
Lancealot’s eyes went wide as he instinctively backed off and lowered his barb. His mouth was open in an expression of shock.
Benton continued and didn’t even try to turn around. He was still worried about being stabbed in the back.
“I don’t want one of your blasted stones! I came here because…” he tried his best to find the words without saying that his dog wanted a stone. “…because a friend thought that a stone would inspire me. My life has been less then great and he wanted to help me turn it around.”
After a moment of silence, the voice spoke up. “What would the stone do for you?”
Benton thought for a moment. “I don’t know. I guess my friend was hoping that it would inspire me to become a better painter.”
“You’re an artist?” the voice asked with a degree of interest.
“Yes.” Benton answered plainly.
The voice lowered to a more expressive tone. “I love art.” It said, causing Benton to form an idea.
“What kind of art?” the painter asked.
“I’ve always loved the paintings inside churches, especially Michelangelo’s work on the Sistine Chapel. It’s beautiful. I’ve never seen anything so heavenly.” It said with a form of reverence. Then, anger broke into its voice. “I can’t even see that now because your kind has conquered most of the planet! If it weren’t for the greed of humans, I could get out and see the world!” the voice grew to a crescendo as Benton saw Lancealot raise his barb once more.
Just then, a bark echoed through the cave as Gent appeared. He leapt at Lancealot, causing the reptile to scream and run off.
Benton turned in time to see Joe knock his mystery interrogator into the water. A black soaked form ran off on all fours after the reptile.
“You all right?” Joe asked as Bellows and Nightfire came bounding up on the shore of the cavern lake.
Benton was still thinking about the mystery figure’s words. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“We should go. Your stone will have to wait.” Bellows said.
Nightfire stopped and sniffed the air.
“What is it?” Bellows looked around.
Nightfire’s eyes gleamed of recognition. “I don’t know. I…thought I smelled something familiar.” She looked around. Her eyes became downtrodden. “Nevermind. Let’s go.”
(Continue to Part 10: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2545324/ )
Category Story / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 120 x 120px
File Size 16.3 kB
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