Morning all. I had a pretty good night last night. Slept well, no nightmares and only minor profanity when the alarm clock went off. But I didn’t hit the snooze alarm which is sort of progress. So as the coffee brews and part of my brain wonders how anyone could possibly be a morning person, let’s get on with the prompt. Timers ready and off we go.
I like this one. I think the story is going to be about why his group went into the cave as well as what halogens after. Figuring out how to tell it might be interesting. I might have the interview as the trigger to show the before bits, or at least a few. Either was something hinky was going on with the cave trip. I kind of can’t wait to find out what.
Wednesday, September 13th: Tears rolled down his cheeks.
Tears rolled down his cheeks. He barely registered that he was crying. The tears cut tracks through the dust on his face. He stumbled a few paces from the cave entrance, knowing he needed rest but unable to stay near the cave any longer. The sun was just coming over the horizon and bathing the world in soft morning light. After the dimness of the underground it seemed bright and like a miracle. For a moment he couldn’t take his eyes from the sky.
He took a deep breath. The air was clean, freshly scrubbed for the day. It felt glorious on his skin, in his lungs. He took a few more shambling steps away from the cave entrance. The cave in was quick and unexpected. It took them all by surprise. He was separated from the others in the madness as they all tried to get out. They were too far in. Dave took the trail he thought led to the surface, calling for the others as he went.
None followed and part of his trail collapsed under him spilling him into deeper caverns. He might have lost consciousness, he didn’t know. He remembered pulling himself out of the rubble and having to scramble over fallen debris to find any sort of path. He made his way through winding tunnels, some almost too narrow for his body. He found a thread of fresh air thought and pushed himself through the corridors following it. The tiny stream of fresh air was his lifeline.
He didn’t know if the others had that life line and made it out or if they were injured or even dead somewhere in the cavern. As much as he wanted to collapse, he knew he had to send back help. He had to push forward. He took another deep breath and smelled smoke. He shifted his head, eyes scanning the sky. He saw a line of smoke drifting up into the sky. It wasn’t too far away.
The thought of fire made him realize how chilly he was. Dave shivered even as he turned his steps in the direction of the smoke. He had to send back help for the others. He lost track of time in the caves and had no clue how much time they had before rescue simply became recovery. He moved forward mechanically, his body following the line of smoke as it followed the fresh air in the caves.
As he walked he noticed small things. The delicate tracery of frost on the ground that stood in the shadows but melted to nothing as the sun touched it. The leaves that remained shifting from reds, yellows and burnt oranges to crispy brown. The deep green of the pines with their bark almost black in the shade.
The slope was a decline as he moved which helped him out. When he saw the ranger’s cabin in the small clearing, Dave almost cried again. It was small but looked glorious in it’s representation of humanity. The scent of food cooking made his stomach rumble as he moved forward. He ignored it as best as he could.
Dave moved to the door and knocked heavily. A man, wearing the green and browns of the forestry uniform answered the door. He wore socks and had no hat, still getting ready for the day. The scent of fresh coffee puffed out of the door and engulfed him. The man’s initial surprise turned to concern and Dave was ushered in.
He told of the collapse and others inside. Three, he said. The ranger called it in, and sat him down, handing him coffee to warm himself as the rescue mission began.
Ten til Midnight 