Tent World

Chapter Six--Two Brothers

Cheryl awoke and groaned, her shoulders stiff and her back sore. Wendy had slumped onto her chest, and as Cheryl moved her sister aside, she stirred but continued to sleep. Standing, Cheryl stretched, trying to work out the kinks.

A single torch still burned in the large room, and it cast its dim flicker across the expansive rock floor. The room was empty. Even MeOrg was gone.

Several cups filled with drink sat on the table near her. She lifted one to her lips and tasted the liquid. It was the same drink she had the night before, but it was cold and had lost its subtle, warming effect.

"Awake finally," a gruff voice echoed across the hall. As he moved into the dimly lit room, he added: "Sleep comes easily to the weary and food and drink to the hungry."

"I'm a bit stiff," Cheryl complained.

"I shouldn't guess," he said. "You overslept."

"What's going on?" Wendy asked. She sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"The rising bell, I think," Cheryl said.

"Already?" Wendy asked with a groan. "I'm still tired."

As the cliff dweller neared, Cheryl recognized him to be Org.

"I couldn't stay with you last night, but MeOrg's a good one and did well, I trust," he said. "Well, come on. We have a journey ahead of us."

"Where are we going?" Cheryl asked.

"To the Luxor, of course," Org said.

Org led them through many junctions and shafts. Some tunnels were level. Some ascended. None went down. After hours of walking, they came to a large circular opening the size of a small house with six sets of stairs chiseled into the granite face, and they formed a corkscrew pattern as they ascended the shaft.

"One set of stairs wasn't enough," Org explained. "We are many, so we need many paths to the surface."

"Does it go all the way to the top?" Cheryl asked. She craned her neck, searching the darkness at the point the stairs disappeared. She remembered how the cliff had vanished into the clouds.

"It will," Org said.

"That's impossible," Wendy said. "Wind of Land said the cliff couldn't be climbed."

"Your friend is right. It can't be climbed. Our Writings say so. But nothing is said about tunneling to the top. One day we'll break through, and when we do, I'll lead my people to the fire of Tenelet. Then we'll be free, and when we destroy the shaft, we'll be safe. Messema will never be able to reach us. We'll live in peace forever."

Org proceeded up the stairs.

"We're not going up there, are we?" Cheryl asked.

"To the first landing," Org said matter-of-factly.

"I can't do that," Cheryl said. "There are no handrails." Her hands grew moist at the thought of standing on the narrow stairs with nothing to hold onto.

"It doesn't look that bad," Wendy said. "It's like our stairs back home."

"It's nothing like home," Cheryl said angrily.

"I'm afraid you don't have a choice," Org grunted. "This is the only way to the chamber."

They argued for several minutes, but Org wouldn't change his mind.

"I just simply won't go," Cheryl said with finality.

"If you stay, you stay alone," Org said. He started up the steps.

"You can't do that," Cheryl blurted out.

"In a short time, this torch will burn out. If I don't get to the first chamber soon, we'll be in darkness until the shift change."

"That's fine with me," Cheryl said, crossing her arms.

"You won't think so when the rats come out," Org said. "They only come out in the dark."

"Rats?" Cheryl and Wendy chimed together. Impulsively, Cheryl stepped onto the first stair.

"Big ones," Org said. He ascended to the next stair. "As large as kraks."

"What's a krak?" Cheryl asked Wendy in a whisper.

"I don't know," Wendy said, "and I don't want to find out."

They progressed slowly. Cheryl hugged the wall at first, placing both feet on each stair before stepping onto the next. The torch flickered, and it seemed to grow steadily dimmer. Soon the floor was beyond the small circle of light cast by the torch, and they seemed to be ascending a staircase with no beginning and no end.

Org urged them forward, warning them that little fuel remained.

Finally, the platform crept into view. Another dozen steps and Cheryl would be there. With a sputter and hiss, the torch flickered out.

"Oh, no," Cheryl moaned.

"It's okay," Wendy said. "Just stand still."

"I'm near the top," Org said. "I'll get the next torch." His feet quickly padded into the distance.

"What about the rats?" Cheryl called.

No answer.

In the darkness, Cheryl felt a drawing power from the pit. It seemed to grab her by the shoulders and pull her away from the wall. She alternated between feeling that she was falling and feeling reassured by the stone wall at her back. She thought about sitting, but she was afraid that moving even a little would propel her forward into the hole. She resented her sister's bravery. Why couldn't she be less fearful? But more. She resented having to admit her fear.

"A light!" Wendy exclaimed.

"Thank goodness!" Cheryl said.

"This way," a voice said above them.

Cheryl breathed a sigh of relief and slowly turned her head. Above them were two boys--earthlings, she was sure. Their faces reflected the yellow flicker of their torches.

"Hi, my name is Johnny, and this is my brother, Roy."