Chapter 56—Game Changer

The team's spirits lifted with the belief that they were closer to success. One by one they followed Chaz into the narrow opening illuminated by the blue glow. But soon the welcoming light faded and the explorers were once again surrounded by the familiar musty gloom.

Jojo squeezed to the front with Chaz on his heels and Tip and Taylor close behind. Rivulets of water ran down the walls and pooled onto the dirt floor. This cave was narrower and smelled funky—earthy and stale.

Taylor wrinkled her nose. "Eww, smells putrid in here, and it's freezing." She shivered and pulled down her wool hat.

"No kidding," Chaz said, "and hard to breathe. The summer teams have it made compared to us." He could barely find oxygen in the stuffy air and worried if breathing would become more difficult as they went in deeper. Chaz felt a strong urge to turn back.

"Whoa!" Jojo said suddenly and leaned backward. "Hang on mates, my next step went missing." He squatted and moved his hands around inside an empty space. "The floor has gone missing. I'll give it a deeper look." He tugged an LED light out of his pack and swept it around the opening.

"Just as I thought; we've come to a large drop that leads to a lower chamber, possibly twenty feet down, but I see a blue light at the far end below. That could be another marker. We'll need equipment to drop us to the bottom." Jojo was concerned about the limitations of his novice team. It was his responsibility to keep everyone safe. But Kuthumi had said glowworms were a sign, and these were the only ones they had sighted in three days. He turned to the others. "What do you say, mates, are you up for a real caving exploit?"

Chaz and Tip were quiet. What had begun as an adventure in the caves had turned dangerous. Chaz raised his shoulders. "Crawling through these caves like a bunch of rats is creepy and scary, and I'd just as soon go back, but we don't have a choice, do we? If we stop now the quest is doomed, maybe even the planet." He shook his head and folded his arms.

"We could go back, but I'm not sure I'd forgive myself if we didn't try," Taylor said. She lifted her chin. "I say we go on."

Although Tip wasn't feeling brave and was having trouble breathing, he knew he would feel worse—ashamed even—if he were the only one to back out. He looked at Jojo. "Does Kuthumi see any of us getting hurt?"

Jojo held his amulet and closed his eyes. Precious minutes passed. Chaz felt his heart beat like a drum inside his chest. Jojo's eyes opened. "Kuthumi says, 'Push on, all misfortunes will be made right in the end.'"

"Misfortunes," Tip repeated. "What does that mean?"

"He thinks no one will be seriously injured and we'll all make it back," Jojo said. "But the vision isn't clear enough to predict who and how." The group clammed up as the gravity of their situation continued to sink in. Each wondered who would get hurt and how bad it would be.

"No one wants to get hurt," Taylor said finally as sprigs of hair flew around her face. "But Dad says sometimes suffering comes before a big victory. This is getting scary, but we have to go on, don't we?" She grabbed her brother's arm. "The kȏtuku card promised success if we keep the faith, remember? And the tȃwera said we have to go now. I believe we'll be okay, really." She squeezed his arm as if to inoculate him with her belief.

Tip's eyes were barely visible through steamed up glasses. "All right," he said, realizing he had no good argument. "If my sister goes, I go."

Taylor pumped her arm. "Yes!" Jojo slapped Tip on the back, driving him a few steps forward. "Right then, mates," he said. "Let's go over our descent plan."