Finding the Cave
The trees seemed to part magically as the boys turned the next bend. Suddenly, a single beam of moonlight broke through the dark clouds and illuminated a large boulder that rested up against a sheer cliff of granite. Moving closer, they noticed there was a narrow space between the boulder and the cliff wall. The opening was just wide enough for someone small to squeeze through—and that was all the room Archibald needed!
As he watched his brother disappear between the boulder and the cliff, Jockabeb was left stunned and speechless, unable to move. Moments later, he heard a muffled voice echo below. “Jockabeb, come here. I’ve found a door, but it’s stuck and I need your help to open it.”
Although Jockabeb had no desire to enter the dark crevice, he was even more frightened to stay outside alone. So drawing in a deep breath, he overcame his paralysis and slowly wiggled through the narrow opening—to yet another place he was certain he did not want to be.
When he emerged from the cramped passageway, Jockabeb saw his brother shining the flashlight on an old wooden door set into the side of the cliff. Archibald had pulled down the door’s latch, but clearly needed help to push it open. Now side by side, the two brothers leaned into the door, which creaked loudly and then slowly swung free on its rusty hinges. To their amazement, just beyond the door was a stone staircase that curved steeply downward and out of sight.
“Oh, no you don’t!” Jockabeb shouted. “We’re not going down there. We don’t know what’s at the bottom of those stairs, and I’m really scared. You promised me that if something like this happened we could turn around. Well, now it has, and I want to go home!”
Well aware that he’d made that promise, Archibald pleaded, “I know I did—but we’re already here! Just a little longer and then we’ll head back. And look, something’s glowing down there.”
Jockabeb could see that there was in fact a dim, green luminescent light reflecting off the walls of the staircase. While the unearthly glow made it easier to see, it also reinforced his feeling that something very dangerous lay directly beneath him. Almost certain that his instincts about impending danger would once again prove to be right, he stuck close to his brother as they went through the door and took their first steps below ground.
Creeping down the circular staircase—apparently chiseled out of solid rock—the boys had to be careful since the steps were slick from the damp air. Halfway down, a foul smell began to seep from behind the slimy rock walls. Suddenly the silence was broken as the horrible sounds they’d heard earlier that night echoed from every direction—“Caw, Caw, Caw!”
This time, the red eyes peering out at them were tucked deep inside dark fissures within the staircase walls. The strange birds—if they really were birds—seemed to be sending their unwanted guests a second clear warning. Even so, the boys continued downward, with every step taking them farther from the cave’s entrance—and much, much farther from the safety of home!
When the stairs ended, the two brothers found themselves standing at the bottom of the cave, and their eyes filled with wonder at the dreamlike sight stretching out in front of them.
The ground was covered in black sand, and the dark beach ran up to the edge of a large, pale-green underground lake that was flat and still as glass. The water’s eerie glow seemed to come from some ghostly source deep below the surface. This hidden cove was like nothing they’d ever seen before—a truly magical scene!
Sitting at the water’s edge was a small, moss-covered wooden rowboat that looked as though it hadn’t been used for a very long time. As the boys walked toward it, they both noticed a change taking place in the lake a ways out from shore. The water, which had been perfectly still just moments before, was now swirling in a menacing way. As if he was on some maniacal quest to explore and conquer the unknown, Archibald started to sprint toward the lake, yelling over his shoulder, “Let’s row out there so we can see what’s happening!”
Every bone in his body was telling Jockabeb to turn around and run, but he knew Archibald was going out on the lake one way or another. With that disturbing thought in mind, he followed his headstrong older brother to the water’s edge and then on board the tiny boat.
“Okay, now what?” Jockabeb said reluctantly as he sat down on an old wooden seat.
“Just do what I say and we’ll be fine,” Archibald answered back in a confident tone. “Grab those oars.”
Giving directions as though he were the boat’s captain, Archibald kept his arm pointed toward the swirling water as his younger brother rowed. It didn’t take the boys long to reach their destination. As the boat glided over the last bit of choppy water, the underground lake suddenly turned deathly still.
Jockabeb, who at the moment just happened to look up, shouted at the top of his lungs, “They’re back!”
Archibald’s eyes darted up and his mouth dropped open in amazement—there, circling high overhead, were three giant black crows. Even from a distance, the boys could tell that the giant birds flying overhead had a wing span of at least four feet. With their menacing hooked beaks open wide, the crows’ all-too-familiar, bloodcurdling screech ricocheted off the cave walls and water below—“Caw, Caw, Caw!”
Suddenly, the tiny boat started to shake violently as the lake once again began to churn and bubble. When the startled boys looked into the murky water, they could see something very large and very dark moving directly beneath them—and it seemed to be making a slow ascent to the surface! Gripping the oars, Jockabeb screamed, “Archibald, what’s happening?”
