A Pawn of the Devil
Sarah had been hiking in the mountains for over two days now. It was her element. She loved the outdoors and being alone. This area was new to her, however. She followed trails the wildlife left behind, but other than that, there was no real direction. It didn’t matter. Sarah knew how to live off the land.
Up ahead, a small dark space formed just beyond a growth of tall shrubs. If it wasn’t for the sun hitting the area just as she glanced that way, it would have been entirely missed. A foul smell blew in the breeze, causing her to gag. Sarah nearly turned the other way, but something called to her from within the opening. It wasn’t a sound or a voice. It was a feeling. She just had to go inside.
All around, the forest was dead quiet. Not a single animal or bird made a noise. Sarah’s skin prickled with fear. Everything yelled at her to turn away, but she was never one to run. Since she could remember, she climbed the tallest trees and faced off to the meanest bullies in school. As an adult, she spent her free time helping orphans learn to be brave and happy. As a forest ranger, there was no end to the things Sarah had to face.
A sensation of urgency filled her core. Heart racing, she took several more steps in the direction of the cave. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. With a shrug of her shoulder and a cough, Sarah moved forward. Once she got to the shrubs, she brought out her hatched and cut a way through.
With that done, Sarah squatted down and rummaged through her pack. She always came prepared, and this time was no different. She removed her head lamp and a long roll of rope that she proceeded to tie around her waist. The other end was tied to a nearby, sturdy tree. There was nothing to be done about the smell.
The opening was barely large enough to fit her slim figure. She had to stoop so the ceiling wouldn’t knock off her head lamp. Water trickled down both sides from some unknown openings, causing the floor to be pure mud. Once she passed the threshold, it was as if the sun wasn’t allowed inside. Pure darkness engulfed Sarah. Only her lamp beam could show her the way. A very strange, deep feeling of terror shook her bones, but she had made it inside and wasn’t about to turn back.
Sarah sloshed through the mud, letting her rope line out as she went. She wasn’t sure how long she had been walking, but the tunnel grew smaller, forcing her to her knees. This was definitely outside of her comfort zone. Determined to see this through, she crawled forward.
After what seemed like an eternity, Sarah found herself standing upright again and inside an enormous cavern. She moved her head around to try and find the walls but couldn’t. The ceiling was beyond her lamp’s range as well. A small pond of stagnant water filled the center. Some kind of green algae floated on its surface.
Trembling, Sarah walked around a little. She didn’t want to expend her rope unnecessarily in case there was somewhere further she could go. A shuffling sound stopped her in her tracks. With how big the area was, every noise echoed and couldn’t be pinned down to a certain location. When the movement happened again, Sarah decided enough was enough. She grabbed her rope to follow back to where she had entered. It pulled tight, but that had to be from where it was tied to the tree. Finally reaching the wall, she soon realized she was wrong
The rope stopped at the wall but was stuck by a huge boulder blocking Sarah’s path back. Panic rose in her chest. She couldn’t get a deep enough breath. Her hands shook violently as she tried to move the obstacle. It wouldn’t budge. Leaning on it and using her legs didn’t help. Tears started running down her face. She was trapped, and there was something in here with her.
