'Mila, lovey, wake up.'
Mila stirred at Mama's voice and the gentle touch of her hand on her back. She sat up with a jaw-splitting yawn. Blinking, she peered around in confusion.
'Mama, are we still in the caves?'
'Yes, lovey, where else would we be?'
Home, Mila wanted to say but didn't. She nodded to Mama and hugged Papa when he put his arms around her from behind. Mama's face was dirty, but she smiled at Mila, a proper smile. It made waking in the cold dark caves much better.
'I'm hungry, Mama.'
'We all are darling. Here's your breakfast. Eat it slowly, we haven't got much to go around.'
Mila stared in bewilderment at the half slice of rough bread. Normally she ate two whole pieces! It didn't even have butter.
Mama and Papa both stared at her, eyes firm. Mila accepted the bread from Mama, whispering 'Thanks.'
'Good girl.' Papa squeezed her knee teasingly. Mila looked up, meeting his eyes with a tentative smile.
Slowly she chewed on the bread and watched everyone from where she sat, seated between Papa's legs. The bread was tough but the flavor still good. Mama moved around, talking to the adults and offering half pieces of bread to all the children then she stopped by Uncle Gydon, who's droopy blue eyes looked even droopier.
In the low cave space most the adults had to lean. Mila, chewing the final piece of hard crust, examined the cave, tipping her head back against Papa's chest to stare at the ceiling. At the edges of the cave, long skinny pieces of stone pointed sword-like toward the floor of the cave.
'Papa,' Mila patted his knee while swallowing down the final mouthful of hard bread. It hurt, scratching the sides of her throat, making her eyes water.
'Yes, Mila?'
'Papa, those stones, look at them!'
Papa looked where she pointed. 'Ah, those are stalactites.'
'Stal-ac-tites?'
'Yes. And see those small ones forming on the floor beneath them? Those are stalagmites.'
'Why?'
'That's just what they're called, Lea. But a way to remember the difference,' Papa said, and he pointed at the ceiling. 'Remember that stalactites, hold on tight! They hang on to the ceiling.'
Mila laughed. 'Tight! Stalactite!'
Uncle Gydon called out for attention. Papa helped Mila up, and they joined all the others gathered.
'We need to get moving. Keep your eyes open for the Cyqs. Now you all follow Harlon, he knows the way. Keep your light low, the Cyqs have sensitive eyes remember.'
Uncle Harlon, the one who'd led them to the caves had them group, so the children were in the center then the women and then the men. Mila stood holding Mama's hand and Paiga's.
They set off.
A massive heavy rumble that vibrated underfoot made Mila and Paiga twist back in alarm, but Mama reassured them.
'It's just Uncle Gydon, he's pulling down rocks so the DeNagas can't follow us.'
Paiga squeezed Mila's hand and squinted at Mama. 'Why do they want to kill us, Aunty Dan'iss?'
The wavering question stopped all other conversations. No one said a thing while Mama frowned.
Mama stopped walking and crouched to smile at Paiga. She tucked a stray bit of hair behind the girl's ear.
'Paiga, I don't know. But I know the people we saw weren't the people we love. Our DeNaga relatives, those we worked with and played with everyday, they weren't trying to kill us. Those people you saw yesterday, I think something made them sick.'
'But if they're sick shouldn't we help them?' Paiga's sloping eyebrows drew close together, making her look like she was about to cry. Mama gave her a tight hug.
'They don't want our help. We have to respect that. We also have to look after ourselves first.'
'Why didn't they just ask us to leave?' Paiga whispered.
'What's the hold up?' Uncle Gydon called. 'Talk and walk, we need more space between us and them.'
Mama offered her arms to Paiga, lifting the girl onto her hip as they walked. It caused an unexpected pang in Mila's chest. She scowled at the girl.
Mila! None of that. You still have your mama. Paiga doesn't.
Mama's tone made Mila wince. She took the offered hand Paiga's brother extended, walking alongside Mama as she chatted to Paiga.
The caves grew wide then narrow then wide. It felt like been stuck in a strange dream, where nothing made sense. Strange glowing plants grew in clumps and occasionally glowing bugs hovered over them. They walked at a pace that gave Mila the briefest moment to examine them. Papa and Mama and the other adults all told stories as they helped each other through the narrow areas and down big drops. Mila didn't mind the narrow areas, she and Paiga fitted through them fine. But the adults found it tricky.
Now that Paiga walked with her, Mila found it easy to forget the horrible night. She skipped where she could, the two of them laughing at the funny looking orange lizards that scarpered on sight of the group.
But it felt strange when she twisted to look for Nanny, to show her.
'Mila?' Mama smiled at her, a question in her eyes.
Mila rolled her lips together, shrugging before darting around a funny rock with a hole in it. Paiga poked her head through, making a face at Mila.
When the group came across a river, they stopped. After a careful taste test, dipping a crystal necklace in to check the quality, everyone was allowed to drink.
Mila and Paiga wrinkled their noses at the odd smell. Like a cup of nellor left out for too long.
'It won't hurt you, girls,' Papa said with a smile as he squatted to scoop water to his mouth. 'Drink up.'
The two girls' sipped water from their cupped hands, giggling as it spilled out. The adults conversed as the two of them had fun flicking water at each other.
An odd sound like a cough made Mila look up, Paiga too.
Both girls gasped, stumbling back from the river.
'Mila? What's wro-' Mama broke off as she looked up too.
Uncle Harlon made a funning clicking noise.
The strange looking person that clung to the ceiling with three others responded with clicks and whistles.
Mama beckoned Mila and Paiga, and the two girls scampered to her side.
'Mama, who are they?' Mila whispered, Paiga crowding close to hear the answer.
'These are the Cyqs, lovey. The people who live in the caves.'
'They look funny.'
'They think the same of you,' Mama said with a smile. 'See their eyes, how big they are? They're very sensitive to light, that's why no one has their energy too bright.'
'How do they stick to the rock?' Paiga asked, Mila nodding.
'They have special skin that helps them to stick to it,' Mama said.
The conversation between Uncle Harlon and the Cyq stretched to minutes. Mila sighed, leaning back against Mama's legs, Paiga too. All the adults seemed to listen, but Mila couldn't make sense of a single word.
Papa stood beside Mama and Mila turned her head to him, whispering, 'Papa, what are they saying?'
'They're asking why we are here.'
'Are they scared of the DeNagas too?'
Papa said nothing, looking back to the ceiling.
The conversation continued. Mila's head bobbed with tiredness. It was hard to keep her eyes open in the semi darkness. Mama shifted, making Mila jolt awake.
The Cyqs had gone.
'Mama, where'd they go?' Mila tugged Mama's skirt but got a distracted swat on the hand. The adults were talking. Mila looked at Paiga, who stared back with tired eyes that seemed scared.
'They've had at least four family members vanish after the last DeNaga visit,' Uncle Harlon said.
'Not seen since?' Uncle Gydon asked.
'No. No bodies either.'
Papa asked, 'How long out?'
Everyone seemed to tense then.
Uncle Harlon hesitated before he spoke. 'There is a short-cut that will take a week.'
'A week!'
'Fantastic!'
'Wait,' Uncle Harlon lifted a hand, causing the excited exclamations to halt. 'It's treacherous. And not a little. When the Cyqs say it's dangerous, they mean it.'
'How long the normal way?' asked an aunty.
'A month.'
The adults exchanged looks while a sense of worry leached into the air, making Mila and Paiga stand close and hold hands as they watched them all.
'We could,' Uncle Gydon said the words slowly. 'We could use the between.'
The gasps of horror by some were shushed with obvious glances at Mila, Paiga, and the other few children in the group.
'Where did the Cyqs go?' Paiga blurted the question out. It made the pressure amongst the adults vanish.
'To get their family, they are going to share a meal with us,' Uncle Harlon smiled at her. 'Would you like that?'
Mila's tummy grumbled loudly and everyone laughed. Paiga nodded at Uncle Harlon.
The strange conversation from before almost stopped, but not quite. As the adults all fussed around the space, using the river to clean their faces and then clean the faces of the children, they talked quietly to each other. Mila listened, wanting to know more about this 'between'.
'Shouldn't even consider it,' muttered an older cousin to another. 'We'd freeze.'
'Harlon's done it before. Got a group through. Had them in it for four days.'
'Four days is not a week.'
Even when the two girls sat on a jersey spread on the cold rock, the hushed conversations continued.
'A month, that's too long. We have no supplies.'
'It'd give the DeNagas plenty of time to wait at the other side.'
'True.'
Uncle Gydon caught everyone's attention when he called out, 'Welcome friends!'
Looking up, Mila and Paiga made excited sounds as a large group of Cyqs crawled into the cave. Some crawled on the ceiling, others the walls, and some across the floor. They made it look easy. Their thin pale bodies caught the little light the adults kept up for seeing by. All of them carried pouches that hung around their necks, keeping their hands free.
Uncle Harlon made the funny noises again, clicking and whistling. The Cyqs all responded. Mila and Paiga grinned at each other, pressing shoulders as they listened away.
After the greetings, the Cqys all clambered over to where the group sat, slotting themselves in amongst them all. A small one sat next to Mila and Paiga, staring at them.
'Girls, this is Ery. She's your age. Say hello.' Uncle Harlon nodded at Ery.
'Helloo,' Mila and Paiga chorused.
The conversation attempts ended there. Silence stretched as Ery studied them, and they her. Then Ery appeared to notice the adults removing their pouches, so unfastened hers and spread it before them.
The array of strange items made Mila and Paiga lean close.
Clusters of glowing berries, things that looked like mushrooms but sparked with light if you touched them. A piece of cooked flesh that smelled fresh with an underlying touch of the smell of the water. A tied bunch of glowing wiggling worms made Mila point and shiver. Ery made a coughing sound that turned both girls heads to her. She made motions, gesturing her mouth then pointing at the worms.
'Eewww!' squealed Mila with a giggle. 'No, really?'
Ery coughed again, hands flapping at Mila.
'She's laughing at you,' Paiga said with a giggle.
The conversation seemed easy after that.
Ery showed the girls' how to swallow the worms whole. Mila screwed her nose up, grabbing her arms and shaking her head. 'No no no!'
Paiga tried it. With a grimace, both Mila and Ery watching close, she plucked a wriggling worm up then dropped it in her mouth. Her eyes squeezed shut as she gulped the worm down in one swallow.
She opened her eyes and stared at Mila and Ery. 'It tasted good!'
'Really?'
'Yes, sweet.'
Mila shook her head when Ery offered her the last one, motioning it to her. 'No, you have it.'
The mushrooms were yum, and the sparks continued as you swallowed it. It was impressive on Ery with her fine almost translucent skin. Mila and Paiga gasped as the sparks flashed in her throat before another dim flash in her tummy. It made all three of them laugh, the two girls giggling away while Ery coughed her laughter.
Next was the flesh and berries. Ery showed them how to peel a piece of flesh away from the main then mush the berries on top. The expression of pleasure when she ate it urged both girls on.
'It's fish,' Mila exclaimed as she peeled some off.
'Ooo, the berries are sour!' Paiga made faces, sticking her tongue out after trying a berry by itself. Ery made a clicking sound, shaking her head at them and motioned at them to squash the fruit on the fish.
'Oooo,' Paiga said when she tried her first mouthful. Mila, mouth full, nodded with a smile.
'Hmmm.'
It filled them up and when they finished they followed Ery to the river for a drink. She stared as they cupped their hands to scoop water. Then she crept forward and drank, lapping the water up. It fascinated Mila and Paiga, who both tried and ended up with water all down their fronts, making Ery laugh.
The adults conversed with the Cyqs, Uncle Harlon acting as translator. The girls ignored the ominous conversation, having much more fun with Ery.
Ery motioned them close and slowly lifted a rock in the river. A burst of sand rose then settled, revealing a tiny creature underneath it. A moment later and it flashed away, zipping under another rock.
'It swam backward!' squealed Paiga in laughter. 'Funny!'
They set to checking all the rocks, trying not to disturb the little water creatures. Most the rocks had them hiding under.
'Girls.' Mama's voice made them both turn. She motioned them over while smiling at Ery. 'Come here.'
When they reached her side she crouched, eyes worried though she smiled. 'Having fun?'
'Lots!' Mila said, Paiga chiming in 'Lots 'nd lots!'
'Good. Now, I want you to put more clothes on.'
Mila shook her head. 'I'm not cold, Mama, I promise.'
Mama smiled a small smile. 'I know, lovey. But this isn't about how you feel now. We're going to go between for a while. It gets very, very cold there. So we want you both as warmly dressed as possible.'
The feelings of fun and excitement drained away.
'But we can't,' whispered Paiga. 'We'll freeze to death.'
Mila nodded, casting looks at the adults. 'We heard.'
Mama shook her head and tsked. 'Don't listen to conversations you aren't part of, you'll always mishear.'
Around them all the adults were layering with what they could. Mila saw a shirt of Papa's on another man, and one of her aunties wore another of Mama's skirts.
Mama kept layering the clothes onto Mila and Paiga, tugging their hands through the sleeves and easing the fabric over. It left Mila feeling stiff and awkward.
'Here,' Uncle Gydon appeared at Mama's side. In his hands he held two lengths of rope. Mila stared at it, wondering why he offered it to Mama.
'Zayck?' Mama called in a quiet voice.
Papa appeared too, smiling at the girls. 'Now! Who comes with me and who comes with Mama?'
'Me!' Mila shouted, getting shushed by her parents. 'I come with you, Papa.'
'I come with you, Aunty Dan'iss,' Paiga said.
Paiga's brother stood near, his eyes on them. Mama smiled at him and motioned him closer.
'Come, Lucai. You'll be with us too.'
With Lucai helping, Mama strapped Mila to Papa, chest to chest. Mila giggled at the strangeness of it and stretched her neck up, just managing to place a kiss on Papa's chin. He looked down at her with a smile.
'Thank you, Lea.'
It got more awkward as Papa helped Mama strap Paiga to her chest, both girls giggling and squealing when they got tipped and squashed. Finally Mama wore Paiga just like Papa had Mila.
All the adults, and Lucai, wove rope around their waists before joining it to each other, till they formed a long line, all linked together.
'Aunty Dan'iss, why does the rope glow?' Paiga asked, Mila nodding. In the dim light with the Cyqs moving amongst them, checking all the knots, the glowing ropes stood out, almost appearing to float.
'It's rope made by the Cyqs. Good and strong. It will keep us safe.'
'Mama, will we wake up?'
'Of course, Mila!' Mama reached for her, stroking her hair back from her face then smiled down at Paiga who frowned. 'We do all this to keep you safe. We will wake up, Mila.'
The words might have been reassuring if the heavy hum of anxiety didn't echo through the caves. At the head of the group of adults Uncle Harlon stood with two Cyqs, talking quietly. At the back of the group, Uncle Gydon stood, waiting.
'Who is leading us?' Lucai asked, looking to Mama and Papa.
'Uncle Harlon. He and the Cyqs will help move us through the caves. Uncle Gydon will be at the back, making sure we all get through.'
'How? How will they move us?'
Papa spoke, his voice rumbling through his chest beneath Mila's ear. 'We will all link with them, and they will use our energy to let us drift in the between. It means our bodies will float here. Making it easy to guide us through the difficult passage.'
Lucia nodded, staring at the ground. A flush stained his jawline. 'People die in the between.'
Paiga gasped and Mila stiffened. A glimmer of annoyance flashed in Mama's eyes before she reached for Lucai.
'Yes, they have. But we won't. We're tied together. We will go in together and come out. You have to trust in us Lucia. We need your energy too, please keep the right thoughts in your mind.'
Lucia swallowed, throat convulsing. He nodded. 'Yes, Aunty Dan'iss.'
'Listen up everyone!'
Uncle Harlon's shout made Mila jolt.
'Hush, Mila,' Papa joggled her in the sling. 'You're going to be fine, I'm right here.' He wrapped his arms around her. Heart pounding with nerves, Mila pressed her cheek to Papa's chest, listening as Uncle Harlon gave the instructions.
A glimmer of eyes appeared by Papa and a moment later she felt the brief touch of Ery's hand to her head.
'Bye Ery,' she whispered.
The air within the cave started to hum with energy, all the adults calling theirs up. It made the space warm and comforting. Mila started to doze off.
'Hold on,' Uncle Harlon called out. 'Here we go!'
The warmth dissipated, dragging them under, pulling them into the blackest space. Mila's eyes went wide, mouth open in a horrified gasp when the air around them vanished.