Chapter 4: Dominoes

One of the things I was worried about that I knew I would run into sooner or later was the information my grandpa had given me being outdated. It had been many years since grandpa had travelled at all, and so it was to be expected that some information may not stand the test of time. For example, like this entrance point that was submerged in rocks I couldn't hope to gain entrance through here, so I would need to find an alternate route inside the cave system. I sighed it was times like these I missed Noland he would laugh and say "Can't trust those old dusty maps looks like I will handle getting us inside." No use complaining about it. I figured I would follow the side of the mountain west, and hope that I came across another entrance.

I started on my way west as I walked. I felt the heat hitting my head. I thought that I had been pretty fortunate these past two days. It hadn't rained, and the clouds were blocking my head from direct rays. One of the things I hadn't prepared for was rainy weather, and hot weather. I would need to find a permanent solution to both of these issues if I was gonna survive. I found a water hole as I walked. It seemed that this water was fresh, so I filled both my cantees with the freshwater. I didn't know when I would find water again, so this was a much needed stroke of luck. Something caught my eyes as I walked along the west side of the mountain. I spotted some small animals gathering near what looked like a clearing near the side of the mountain.

Another great stroke of luck that I spotted which put a smile on my face. It seemed like there was a clearing that led inside the cave system grandpa had mentioned. I walked over to the clearing, and sure enough it led inside I headed into the clearing. Inside the cave it was damp, and dark the further you went in which I decided to take out my matchbox. I lit one of the matches for light. I could properly guide myself along the walls of the cave. There were many paths one could take, and many splits that lead in different directions. I took out my compass, and tried to take paths that would lead me north inside the cave system.

I had travelled for a little over an hour when I started hearing the sound of sloshing almost like the sound of water. Worried I proceeded with caution slowly walking along the sound proceeded to get louder. I thought about turning around, but decided that I would need to travel this way, so I proceeded onwards with doubts crossing my mind. In all honesty I was pretty weak in a fight in fact Noland used to tell me that even toddlers could fight better than me. My greatest asset was my good communication skills, but this would mean that creatures that cannot be reasoned with would be my downfall. I had hoped to form a group with others to combat this issue of mine, but right now I was alone. Once I saw what was in front of me terror overcame me, and my worst fears came to the surface. In front of me were 10 small slimes I took out my weapon, but quickly realized that was flawed thinking I could barely handle one let alone 10 of them. For most people this obstacle would barely warrant a second thought, but for me this was a very real danger that I was not ready for.

The second thing I was confident in was my ability to run away when I needed to, and that was exactly what I planned to do. For a second the slimes didn't move, but I knew this would not last, so I backed up and faced the way I had come from. I started running as fast as my legs could carry me. In truth this may have been overkill since slimes couldn't move very fast, but I didn't care that I was in fear. I took any path I saw if it meant I could be further away from the slimes one thing that truly stuck fear into me was creatures I had no chance of speaking to. I ran for what seemed like forever, and finally stopped once my mind had finally calmed down, and I realized the stupidity of what I was doing.

I could feel my heart bursting out of my chest, and I began to drink some of my water to calm myself down. I was sweating, and shaking, but most of all I felt pathetic for running away from the slimes. I had used the majority of my matches in the hour that I had been in the cave, so I had been walking in the dark feeling my way along. The darkness coupled with my depressive mood made the slow walk in the dark that much worse. After about 30 mins I saw light again, but seeing light again didn't help make myself feel any less pathetic, however at least I wasn't walking in the dark anymore. A special type of fluorescent fungus that grew near cave walls dimly lit the path in front of me as I walked.

I decided that was a good sign to change gears, and stay optimistic going forward beating myself up wasn't going to get me out of this cave. I hoped my good luck continued, and this natural light kept going as I walked along. I walked along noting the various insects that would make a home out of this fungus that grew along the walls. I had enough water to survive the trip through the mountains most likely, but I may have to eat some of these bugs to get the essential protein that I needed. The only thing I had eaten was the bread from earlier, so my stomach was getting hunger pains which made me uncomfortable as I walked.

I would not resort to eating insects yet I would try to find some type of food along the way instead if I could help it. I had also hoped to fill my backpack with goods that I could take with me through the cave, but I have had a hard enough time with getting even the most basic essentials as is. Finding something to sell seemed like a pipe dream at this point, so instead I focused on other more basic things. One being that I would also need to find a good place to sleep, and soon since my feet had started hurting since I had been walking for what felt like a day. It was impossible to keep track of time in this cave though, so what might have felt like a day might've only been a few hours in reality.

The lights had started to dim the more I walked. I feared I may be coming to the end of the light that had guided my path north. I decided that now was the time to lay out my makeshift bed, so I picked a spot in a little crevice that was off the main path. I laid down as usual, putting both blankets down, and my backpack making sure that it felt comfortable enough. I laid down on the bed which was obviously very uncomfortable since I was laying on a cave floor. I can only imagine what kind of unbelievable back pains I would encounter once I woke up. I closed my eyes and fell asleep, and for once I started dreaming. I dreamt about the time Noland and I were sparring in the old barn that we played in as kids.

In the dream Noland was beating me as usual, but he never had any harsh words to say to me even if I never gave him much of a challenge. He would often talk about how he wanted to collect great treasure, and sell it for money, so that he could give back to the town that raised him. Noland thought a great deal about the town, and often bragged that he would be the one that would contribute the most to its future. I laughed, and would retort by telling him that I wouldn't stop at Middleton, but would help out every town like this one, so that they would also get a fair chance. Noland excitedly was just about to explain to me what exactly he would be doing with the money he would get on his travelling when I jolted out of bed.

My eyes snapped open in a haze, I could feel my backpack being lifted by someone, or something this made my heartbeat in my chest. I yelled out in fear "WHAT THE HELL" the backpack dropped with a loud slam, my head hurt from the impact. A woman's voice from what I could hear in her mid twenties spoke up in a surprised tone "Oh you were alive what a shame." This was spoken in elvish tongue, but not traditional elvish it was more sinister, and gave me goosebumps. I knew this language, and repeated "what the hell is going on" It was just my luck that I happened upon someone like this in a cave that spanned miles, and miles. I got up from my backpack, and glanced at what appeared to be a dark elf I shuddered as this was the worst news since the start of my journey.