“There were far fewer humans on Earth in those days. Some have suggested that all modern people here may share blood.”
“An unappealing thought. Regardless, their generations pass quickly. By this time, it would be too diluted to matter.”
“Uhm,” Simon said, “what are we talking about?”
“I don’t know, but I’m not sure whether it’s better when they’re talking in their language or not,” I said. My curiosity wanted to hear anything they would share, but I couldn’t let go of my earlier thought that if they were letting us hear all this, maybe they didn’t intend for us to leave this cavern.
“Give him the sword,” Jakatra ordered.
I turned it as he’d done, careful not to touch the edge-I didn’t have to peer close to see how sharp it was-, and extended the hilt toward Alektryon. He leaned the spear against the wall-he still hadn’t left his alcove-and grasped it. For a few seconds, nothing happened, then the blade started to glow. It was a faint glow compared to the luminous emission the sword had given off in Jakatra’s hand, but it was more than I’d gotten.
Alektryon wasn’t watching the glow-he was considering Jakatra, or perhaps considering that his “enemy” no longer carried a weapon. Calculation glittered in his dark eyes. I stepped back a couple of paces, not wanting to get in the way if he decided to try something. I wouldn’t be sad to see Jakatra disappear, but I remembered his inhuman speed and didn’t know if the sword by itself would provide enough of an advantage for Alektryon to best him. Jakatra was watching him right back, and his stance seemed to say, “Come on, kid. Try me.”
Alektryon considered the confines of his alcove again, and his face grew bleak. He must believe he risked being locked up for another eternity if his attack failed. He flipped the weapon in his grip and tossed it to Jakatra who caught it with one hand.
Alektryon said something in his own language, but I struggled to translate it. I held up the tablet again, hoping he’d be willing to try writing on it. Sure, the technology would be bizarre to him, but all he had to do was drag his finger around on the screen.
He considered it for a moment, glanced at Jakatra again, then stared into my eyes. Did he think I was trying to distract him so the others could attack or catch him off guard for some nefarious purpose? I returned his gaze and hoped I looked trustworthy. His eyes were wary, but there was more than that in their depths. Pain? Sorrow? Had he already decided he believed me and parsed what I’d said? Did he realize that everything and everyone he’d known was gone?
He broke eye contact, and I blinked a few times, feeling oddly like I’d lost something. Alektryon checked on Jakatra and Eleriss again, then took the pad. The screen had turned off, and I eased forward to push the button to bring it back to life again. Behind me, Simon shuffled uneasily. Alektryon didn’t do anything though, not until I stepped back. Then he drew letters on the pad and held it up, as he’d seen me do.
“I will not be your slave again,” I translated.
“We do not wish to be your masters,” Eleriss said, then apparently realizing he wasn’t using a tongue the Spartan could know, spoke in his own language.
Guessing it to be a repeat of what he’d said in English, I tried to make note of the words and what they meant.
Eleriss continued on. I harumphed in frustration because he wasn’t bothering with an English translation. Alektryon was listening to him, though he continued to give no indication as to whether he understood or not. Eleriss gave his comrade an exasperated look.
“Let us leave this place to discuss it further,” Jakatra said. “If we act swiftly, perhaps we can find a way to trap the jibtab down here.”
Another groan came from the depths of the cavern.
“Or it’s going to trap us down here,” Temi said. She’d left the wall to join Simon and me. She addressed me: “I’m sure you’re finding this all fascinating, but we should leave if they’ll let us.”
I thought there might be condemnation in her words-did she think I’d spent too much time talking to the Spartan when we were in danger down here? — but perhaps not. Perhaps simply some plain wisdom. Those noises were ominous.
I was on the verge of asking Simon if he’d found anything useful in the bigger alcove, but a tremor coursed through the stone beneath our feet. The lighting I’d been taking for granted flickered and went out. Though Jakatra’s sword still glowed in his grip, the contrast was distinct, with most of the chamber thrust into shadows. I snatched the flashlight from my belt, but I’d no more than flipped the switch when the overhead lamp came back on.
“I’m ready to leave now too,” Simon announced. “Any charitable elves want to burn a hole up to the surface?”
Eleriss and Jakatra weren’t paying attention. They were staring at the last alcove. It was empty.
I turned three hundred and sixty degrees, searching for Alektryon. He’d disappeared with all of his weapons.
My shoulders drooped.
“He took my tablet?” Simon protested.
A thunderous crack sounded above our heads. A portion of the ceiling caved in, and a waterfall gushed into our chamber.
CHAPTER 27
The lamp disappeared in the flow, and darkness crushed the chamber. By the light of the glowing sword, we saw the hundreds of gallons of water pouring into the chamber, but that light didn’t last long. The deluge crashed in right on top of Jakatra’s head. As fast as he was, he couldn’t avoid the gush. I scrambled toward the alcoves, thinking to grab onto the solid support columns, but not before seeing him swept from his feet and into the flow. I thought I heard a clang over the roar of the water, but I wasn’t certain until the light of his sword disappeared. He’d let go. Or it’d been torn from his hands by the power of the surge. Either way, we were plunged into darkness.
“Jakatra!” Eleriss cried, followed by words in his own language.
“Temi? Simon?” I yelled as soon as I’d gotten a grip on one of the columns. The damp stone wasn’t as reassuring as I’d hoped-its girth was too great for me to lock my arms around, and the exterior wasn’t as rough as I’d guessed, so it offered few handholds.
“Up here,” Temi called back, her voice barely audible over the roaring water.
“Simon?”
“Here, but-” His words were cut off in a gargled choking.
I fumbled at my belt for the flashlight. The chamber was filling fast, with the water already creeping up to my thighs. We’d need to climb back up to the other alcove room-it was at a higher elevation-but I had to round everyone up first.
I swept my flashlight beam toward Simon, glad we’d shelled out the bucks for waterproof tools. He’d been swept halfway through the chamber, toward the pool at the back end. The pool’s borders had been buried beneath the deluge, and now water covered most of the chamber. Simon was clinging to the bottom of a stalactite, his legs stretched out behind him, the water threatening to carry him away. Away where, I didn’t know, but a strong current sucked at my legs.
A second beam of light joined mine-Temi’s. She’d also found a column, hers at the first alcove. The water only reached her knees.
“We need to go in that direction,” I called to Simon and pointed at her.
“No problem,” he sputtered, “if you’ll just turn off the faucet…”
I patted my belt, relieved to find the bullwhip hadn’t been torn away by the encroaching water. “Give me a second. I have an idea.”
“Jakatra!” Eleriss called again, panic in his voice. It was the first time I’d heard concern or any intense emotion at all from him. Even when the creature had been attacking Jakatra, he’d remained calm.
He produced a light of his own, his beam thinner than ours and brighter, as if he had the sun harnessed in whatever tool he was using. It hardly mattered. All it showed was the chamber filling up. Jakatra was gone, sucked down into some drainage hole at the base of that pool.