Fed Starving
Active Member
The year was 1937 and I was sent on a mission to search a tract of land in the deep Northwestern wilderness of the United States. There were reports of outlandish bright lights and a crew of forestry surveyors went missing in the area weeks before. They were going to map elevations of the mountain on the land and take wood samples off some of the trees so that their company could find if there was value in purchasing the lot.
A seldom used trucker road cut through the trees several miles away from the site. The road was two lanes and recently paved but because of the location of it not being connected to any particular city the traffic was almost non-existent.
I was given orders to arm myself, so I brought my trusty pistol with me. I was to search for the missing surveyors and note anything out of the ordinary and make a full record of manmade structures. The area was thought to be permanently uninhabited. The land wasn't ever sold and remained in the possession of the U.S. government since the initial claim in 1872. The books showed that other than the surveyors who were granted permission to survey the lot, not once had anyone else before them ever inquired about it and no reference to the area is found within other documents such as travel logs and news articles. The area was thought to be 337 square miles of pristine and untouched wildland. The mountain doesn't even have a name.
I parked my truck at the nearest point of the road to the center of the target location. Behind thick bushes I concealed my vehicle in case the rare motorist would drive along the road. I double checked my firearm to ensure that it worked, firing a shot into the air. I put my gun in the upwards pointing leather harness upon my left shoulder, strategically placed for an easy draw. With my gun harnessed like this I would be able to fire off shots quickly.
There were arial photos taken out of a small plane a few years ago, but they weren't highly detailed. I retrieved them and looked at the landscape. I could see the small mountain directly ahead and the picture showed some grooves in the landscape not far off the road. I determined where I was parked on the picture and plotted my route. The peak of the mountain was approximately ten miles away and the rest of the property lay beyond the mountain, stretching to the north. The picture wasn't sharp enough to determine where exactly the outer edge of the slope of the mountain started. The trees covered the mountain and the surrounding area so well that I relied on the lighting in the picture to decide elevations. The only areas that weren't covered with trees and greenery were the grooves which showed a sort of dirty yellow color to them in the picture. I theorized that these were some sort of limestone deposits. I put the picture away and double checked my supplies. Good to go.
There wasn't much underbrush in the area and that was unusual. Small dry bushes, some rotting logs, patches of ferns. My walk towards the mountain was without obstacles. The dirt beneath my feet was dry and soft like it hadn't rained for weeks.
Soon I reached a ravine that cut into the land. I checked the picture. This was the end of the third groove. I counted eight grooves parallel to each other and if I was going to walk around them I would need to walk a few hours because they appeared to take all the space between the mountain and the road. I put my photo away and pressed ahead. If this route proved to be a dead end then I would return to the entrance and walk around the series of ravines.
The ravine was wide and smooth and the walls gradually turned upward and verticle. Trees grew out of the top of the ravine walls but the low part of the ravine was barren. There was something unnatural feeling, like an otherworldly hand tore into the crust of the Earth. I wandered deeper and deeper and the walls became taller as I went along. The width of the ravine was very consistent and the walls were so evenly verticle it was difficult to see the structure as natural. You would normally anticipate bulges and crevices and a ground littered with stones and boulders but that wasn't so. Cleaner than natural. There wasn't evidence of mining either. "What an odd phenomenon." I thought.
Eventually the ravine would slope upwards and the walls spread apart. Sunlight poured on my head as I neared the ravine's end. I was surprised to find a skinny staircase of stone carved into the end wall of the ravine. I looked directly up and guessed that the staircase was a good hundred or so feet vertical. Weary of heights I wasn't too keen on attempting the climb but if I wanted to reach the mountain before noon then I should take the risk. I took a break before starting the climb. I smoked a cigarette and drank some water. When I was ready I retied my gear to keep my gravitational center low and then went at it.
The steps were nicely done, flat and with a texture of lines carved into them to give them traction on my shoes. The were barely wide enough to walk upon and I found myself trying to lean towards the wall but I was already touching it. There were two landings where the staircase would flip direction but there wasn't much space on the landing that allowed me to do more than glance into the ravine below. The climb was safe enough that I didn't get all that nervous.
At the top of the ravine I paused to get a good view of the terrain that I crossed. The trees obstructed much of my horizontal view some half a mile away. I took a hand towel out and dried the sweat off my forehead. I documented what I saw in a notebook, careful to make accurate observations. Soon I was walking once again towards the mountain peak.
I searched around me as I walked to find traces of habitation, some evidence that other people were either living or visiting the area, maybe a worn footpath or a campsite. Some item left in the absence of mind, some discarded food remains but I didn't find anything. Obviously someone truly was here at one time or another and it was difficult to determine the age of the staircase inside the ravine. Carving a staircase of that size would prove difficult and time consuming. There was surely more to be found.
The smooth slope quickly ended with large boulders and short cliffs stacked on one another, covered in ferns and small trees. I went eastward along the cliffs searching for a passage up the mountain. As I went along the cliff wall the land to the right off me sank away, allowing for a grand view of the land southeast of me. I could see a couple miles at least. If the road was within my line of sight it must have been hidden.
A voice called somewhere around the bend ahead of me. I quickly went hiding behind a tree. I waited and watched. Minutes went before I heard another voice. A man and a woman talking. They were speaking a language that I didn't recognize. I couldn't see anything though. I readied my gun and took a few cautious steps toward the stone outcropping at the bend.
I breathed deep to calm my nerves and then looked through a notch in the stones, trying to blend in. The man and woman were wearing the sort of clothing you would see on someone that lived a millenia ago. White gowns with thick strings to tie them closed. Leather sandals. No buttons or latches or buckles. They both had blue eyes and long hazel hair. The man slid his hand around the woman's waist and they turned and walked away. The wall continued to curve to the left and as they disappeared out of view I followed them.
I came upon an opening through the cliff walls, a cave entrance, except this wasn't a natural cave. There were torches within the cave, lighting the path. I went inside slowly. The path soon ended at an opening into another large cave where I cautiously entered, anticipating someone but once again, empty. This large room had two more torch lighted halls the went in different directions. I took a torch off one of the walls and entered the path on the right.
The path descended and turned at right angles. At turn three I could hear more voices and some lively noise echoing into the hall. Ready to shoot my gun, I enetred the last stretch of hallway that connected to the next room.
A great cavern opened up before me with stone houses and well organized paths. A huge electric light that clung on the ceiling bathed the cavern with a soft luminescence. The entrance that I walked through was somewhat above the small town, a long ramp along the cavern wall descended towards a clearing on the left. I threw the torch into the hall behind me and walked down the ramp, gun still drawn.
A man shouted in the same incoherent language that the couple were speaking earlier. He carried a spear and made a run towards the ramp. His eyes were blue and long hair hazel like the couple I'd seen earlier. I slowly continued to close the distance. The ramp didn't have a rail and it was too high to leap. The man shouted some more and raised his spear in defiance. There were two more men with spears that appeared and they lined up with spear man one. I could see the people in the town below getting roused up. I kept my gun raised and wondered whether any of them even knew what it was.
I yelled, "I come in peace! I am a U.S. government agent here to retrieve some missing people. Three men went missing in the area a few weeks ago. Does anyone understand what I am saying?! Does anyone here speak English?!"
The spear men walked towards me in a line that took the width of the ramp, their spears aimed at neck height.
I yelled once more, "Halt! I will shoot if you get any closer! Bring me your leader! Halt! I warned you!" They didn't halt so I aimed my gun out over the town and fired a round. All three of them halfway ducked in surprise, searching around them. They might not have associated the sound with my gun. I walked toward them once again, firing another round off. They retreated at the same speed as my advance, clenching their spears with a nervous anticipation.
I pressed onward, pushing the spear men off the ramp and across the small clearing. The small clearing was a square lined with stones and covered with an extra thick and massively large rug, made of strong and undyed fibers.
I pointed my gun at the middle man to see if he would react. He didn't appear to fear that I had a gun at all, he must have thought that I made the sound myself. I held my ground, waiting till someone with authority arrived. And eventually someone did.
An old man dressed in gold threaded clothes, held together with the same plain thick strings that held everyone elses' gowns together. He wore golden adornments and a golden crown. Blue eyes, hazel hair lie the others.
"You must be the king." I said respectfully. "I mean you no harm. I am searching for some men that went missing. Does anyone here know the English language?"
The king raised his hand, palm towards me and spoke some more in the incorent language. The three spear men lowered their weapons and fully retreated to the crowd that was forming behind the king. The king turned sideways and waved his hand in a gesture to follow him. I cleared my throat and did so. The crowd parted as we cut through the center of them. I followed him through a skinny road with stone houses lining both sides. We went walking all through to nearly the other end of the cavern. I guessed there might've been at least a few hundred houses down there. Never saw anything like it in my life. They almost looked as finely crafted as modern stone houses, without the windows. The doorway entrances to the houses were the same size as I was accustomed to and most of the doors were made of tree wood but there were no hinges and no locks that I was able to discern. Some doorways were covered with leather flaps.
Our walk lasted several minutes. The king halted at the entrance of a brick building with two guards manning the entrance. When they saw the king they both knelt for a second and when they saw me their faces were stricken with surprise. The king spoke to them and one of the guards removed the wooden door so that we could enter. All the while I kept my gun fast in my hand, ready to shoot. I nervously passed the guards, half expecting that they were going to attack me once inside.
The king reached his hand out, palm up, to direct my attention to the houses' occupants. A wooden table with chairs was against the opposing wall of the house with two men sitting at it, facing each other. They looked up and were immediately relieved to see me there. I said, "You are the surveyors? My name is Matthew and I am here to get you out." One of them said, "Yes, we are. You don't have any idea what you've got yourself into. These people are barbaric savages. They will never let you leave." My gun was still raised and I waved it to make it obvious to the two men, then said, "They won't?"
The king then shouted with his incoherent language and went sprinting through the door. I went right behind him and aimed my gun at the back of his head. One of the guards took a step in the way, taking the shot as I fired it. His head twenched in response when the round richocheted inside his skull and he instantly fell straight down, blood pouring through his nostrils and wetting his lips. I yelled, "Come on!" as I made a leap over the body. Guard two was already thrusting his spear at me as I came flying out of the house. I turned and parried the attack, taking hold of the spear and yanking the guard off his feet. I hit him in his face with my gun as I yanked him toward me and knocked him clean out. I looked all around and saw nobody.
The two men were with me in seconds. I said, "There's an entrance straight ahead down this road, but it's at the other end there. Are there other entrances that you know of?" Both of them said no. "There's a third man, right? Where is he?" I said. "They killed him. We were camping on the northern hills about a mile off the mountain when they caught us off guard. None of us had a gun, didn't think we would need one. So, Randy there, he got out his buoy knife and went at one of those suckers, sliced him open and went at another one but they all were armed with spears and they made short work of him. It was gruesome. Sorry Randy's gone. They sacked our heads so we couldn't see and been here two weeks at least, lost count. Never saw the outside of this building till now." said the taller of the two men.
"Okay," I said, "here's the deal. We're inside a mountain. There's an entrance at the other end there. There might be another. We ain't gonna make it if you don't get yourselves some weapons."
Both of them picked up the spears from the dead guards. The taller man broke his spear in half for improved swinging motion.
"Your names?" I asked.
"Ben" said the taller man. "Evan" said the other man who was the same height as me.
I said, "They are probably getting together and we won't have much time." I reloaded my gun. "Six shots. I got more ammunition but you know it's gonna take time. Here, we'll follow around the wall of the cavern. The ramp starts along the wall, this should be safer than going directly through the middle of their city. Let's go."
Ben and Evan followed me as I led the way towards the ramp at the entrance. We kept our attention to the left of us where the spaces between the houses could hide potential attackers. Another yell up ahead of us. A line of spear weilding men came running full speed. I said, "I knock them down and you reinforce me while I reset my ammunitions, got it?!"
The leader threw his spear and missed. I fired a round and hit. When the spearman tembled I fired at the next one, hitting. When spearman three made his leap over the other two I fired and hit him midair. Then quickly fired round four at the spearman behind him before he was able to make the same leap. There were several more spearmen but they retreated.
I yelled, "Come on! Let's go! Right up ahead!" I reset my ammunitions as we hastened towards the ramp. The four spearmen were writhing in anguish as we passed them. Evan took up a knife that one of them was wearing in his waistband. I was bursting with adrenaline and was sure that we weren't going to make it. As we neared the ramp a spear came flying through between two of the houses, aimed at my head but it missed and hit the stone wall.
Halfway up the ramp I looked down at the town below and saw that all of the townspeople were actually retreating to another entrance a quarter of the way around the cavern. There was an identicle entrance with a ramp much like the ramp we were on. There was a second crowd of townspeople, most of them guards, hiding behind the building at the edge of the clearing at the end of the ramp.
We made it out of there alive and without wounds.
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There were no more defiant guards on our way through the halls that led to the cliffs of the mountainside, but that didn't mean they weren't going to track us or cut us off up ahead. I said to Ben and Evan, "We need to hurry double-time, they might have some secret passages that would take them ahead of us and we can't risk that. That other entrance that we saw them going through isn't far either, right up there around that bend." I pointed. "We need to get, now."
We hurried with our greatest speed, constantly fearing a spear in the back. No spear came.
We made it to my truck at around 3pm. We caught our breath. I gave Ben and Evan some much needed water and we paused to chat.
"What in the world was going on in there?" I asked. "Who were those poeple?"
Evan said, "I don't know, they seem like some sort of lost Scandinavian tribe but how they made their way out here is anyone's guess."
Ben said, "They kept us locked up in that building and had to relieve ourselves into a bucket. No water. Some hard tack bread. Think they were playing around with some unconventional technology. We would hear these huge cracklin' bursts of lightning like they were blowing something up and then these rumbling surges would made your muscles vibrate and your vision go white, I swear there was something not right at all about that place."
"Oh really?" I said, "What do you suppose they were doing in there?"
Evan said, "They were using a machine, I'm sure of it. There would be this huge zap of electricity then a humming sound that fluctuated like weak to strong repeatedly. Make you go deaf and silence everything. Then the other day when they did this we heard some sort of huge animal like a bear or a lion, whatever it was, they killed it. Heard that thing squeal and scream like an elephant with a nail in its foot. Very unsettling. Don't know what they were doing but it wasn't normal."
"Get in the truck." I said, "Let's get out of here."
A seldom used trucker road cut through the trees several miles away from the site. The road was two lanes and recently paved but because of the location of it not being connected to any particular city the traffic was almost non-existent.
I was given orders to arm myself, so I brought my trusty pistol with me. I was to search for the missing surveyors and note anything out of the ordinary and make a full record of manmade structures. The area was thought to be permanently uninhabited. The land wasn't ever sold and remained in the possession of the U.S. government since the initial claim in 1872. The books showed that other than the surveyors who were granted permission to survey the lot, not once had anyone else before them ever inquired about it and no reference to the area is found within other documents such as travel logs and news articles. The area was thought to be 337 square miles of pristine and untouched wildland. The mountain doesn't even have a name.
I parked my truck at the nearest point of the road to the center of the target location. Behind thick bushes I concealed my vehicle in case the rare motorist would drive along the road. I double checked my firearm to ensure that it worked, firing a shot into the air. I put my gun in the upwards pointing leather harness upon my left shoulder, strategically placed for an easy draw. With my gun harnessed like this I would be able to fire off shots quickly.
There were arial photos taken out of a small plane a few years ago, but they weren't highly detailed. I retrieved them and looked at the landscape. I could see the small mountain directly ahead and the picture showed some grooves in the landscape not far off the road. I determined where I was parked on the picture and plotted my route. The peak of the mountain was approximately ten miles away and the rest of the property lay beyond the mountain, stretching to the north. The picture wasn't sharp enough to determine where exactly the outer edge of the slope of the mountain started. The trees covered the mountain and the surrounding area so well that I relied on the lighting in the picture to decide elevations. The only areas that weren't covered with trees and greenery were the grooves which showed a sort of dirty yellow color to them in the picture. I theorized that these were some sort of limestone deposits. I put the picture away and double checked my supplies. Good to go.
There wasn't much underbrush in the area and that was unusual. Small dry bushes, some rotting logs, patches of ferns. My walk towards the mountain was without obstacles. The dirt beneath my feet was dry and soft like it hadn't rained for weeks.
Soon I reached a ravine that cut into the land. I checked the picture. This was the end of the third groove. I counted eight grooves parallel to each other and if I was going to walk around them I would need to walk a few hours because they appeared to take all the space between the mountain and the road. I put my photo away and pressed ahead. If this route proved to be a dead end then I would return to the entrance and walk around the series of ravines.
The ravine was wide and smooth and the walls gradually turned upward and verticle. Trees grew out of the top of the ravine walls but the low part of the ravine was barren. There was something unnatural feeling, like an otherworldly hand tore into the crust of the Earth. I wandered deeper and deeper and the walls became taller as I went along. The width of the ravine was very consistent and the walls were so evenly verticle it was difficult to see the structure as natural. You would normally anticipate bulges and crevices and a ground littered with stones and boulders but that wasn't so. Cleaner than natural. There wasn't evidence of mining either. "What an odd phenomenon." I thought.
Eventually the ravine would slope upwards and the walls spread apart. Sunlight poured on my head as I neared the ravine's end. I was surprised to find a skinny staircase of stone carved into the end wall of the ravine. I looked directly up and guessed that the staircase was a good hundred or so feet vertical. Weary of heights I wasn't too keen on attempting the climb but if I wanted to reach the mountain before noon then I should take the risk. I took a break before starting the climb. I smoked a cigarette and drank some water. When I was ready I retied my gear to keep my gravitational center low and then went at it.
The steps were nicely done, flat and with a texture of lines carved into them to give them traction on my shoes. The were barely wide enough to walk upon and I found myself trying to lean towards the wall but I was already touching it. There were two landings where the staircase would flip direction but there wasn't much space on the landing that allowed me to do more than glance into the ravine below. The climb was safe enough that I didn't get all that nervous.
At the top of the ravine I paused to get a good view of the terrain that I crossed. The trees obstructed much of my horizontal view some half a mile away. I took a hand towel out and dried the sweat off my forehead. I documented what I saw in a notebook, careful to make accurate observations. Soon I was walking once again towards the mountain peak.
I searched around me as I walked to find traces of habitation, some evidence that other people were either living or visiting the area, maybe a worn footpath or a campsite. Some item left in the absence of mind, some discarded food remains but I didn't find anything. Obviously someone truly was here at one time or another and it was difficult to determine the age of the staircase inside the ravine. Carving a staircase of that size would prove difficult and time consuming. There was surely more to be found.
The smooth slope quickly ended with large boulders and short cliffs stacked on one another, covered in ferns and small trees. I went eastward along the cliffs searching for a passage up the mountain. As I went along the cliff wall the land to the right off me sank away, allowing for a grand view of the land southeast of me. I could see a couple miles at least. If the road was within my line of sight it must have been hidden.
A voice called somewhere around the bend ahead of me. I quickly went hiding behind a tree. I waited and watched. Minutes went before I heard another voice. A man and a woman talking. They were speaking a language that I didn't recognize. I couldn't see anything though. I readied my gun and took a few cautious steps toward the stone outcropping at the bend.
I breathed deep to calm my nerves and then looked through a notch in the stones, trying to blend in. The man and woman were wearing the sort of clothing you would see on someone that lived a millenia ago. White gowns with thick strings to tie them closed. Leather sandals. No buttons or latches or buckles. They both had blue eyes and long hazel hair. The man slid his hand around the woman's waist and they turned and walked away. The wall continued to curve to the left and as they disappeared out of view I followed them.
I came upon an opening through the cliff walls, a cave entrance, except this wasn't a natural cave. There were torches within the cave, lighting the path. I went inside slowly. The path soon ended at an opening into another large cave where I cautiously entered, anticipating someone but once again, empty. This large room had two more torch lighted halls the went in different directions. I took a torch off one of the walls and entered the path on the right.
The path descended and turned at right angles. At turn three I could hear more voices and some lively noise echoing into the hall. Ready to shoot my gun, I enetred the last stretch of hallway that connected to the next room.
A great cavern opened up before me with stone houses and well organized paths. A huge electric light that clung on the ceiling bathed the cavern with a soft luminescence. The entrance that I walked through was somewhat above the small town, a long ramp along the cavern wall descended towards a clearing on the left. I threw the torch into the hall behind me and walked down the ramp, gun still drawn.
A man shouted in the same incoherent language that the couple were speaking earlier. He carried a spear and made a run towards the ramp. His eyes were blue and long hair hazel like the couple I'd seen earlier. I slowly continued to close the distance. The ramp didn't have a rail and it was too high to leap. The man shouted some more and raised his spear in defiance. There were two more men with spears that appeared and they lined up with spear man one. I could see the people in the town below getting roused up. I kept my gun raised and wondered whether any of them even knew what it was.
I yelled, "I come in peace! I am a U.S. government agent here to retrieve some missing people. Three men went missing in the area a few weeks ago. Does anyone understand what I am saying?! Does anyone here speak English?!"
The spear men walked towards me in a line that took the width of the ramp, their spears aimed at neck height.
I yelled once more, "Halt! I will shoot if you get any closer! Bring me your leader! Halt! I warned you!" They didn't halt so I aimed my gun out over the town and fired a round. All three of them halfway ducked in surprise, searching around them. They might not have associated the sound with my gun. I walked toward them once again, firing another round off. They retreated at the same speed as my advance, clenching their spears with a nervous anticipation.
I pressed onward, pushing the spear men off the ramp and across the small clearing. The small clearing was a square lined with stones and covered with an extra thick and massively large rug, made of strong and undyed fibers.
I pointed my gun at the middle man to see if he would react. He didn't appear to fear that I had a gun at all, he must have thought that I made the sound myself. I held my ground, waiting till someone with authority arrived. And eventually someone did.
An old man dressed in gold threaded clothes, held together with the same plain thick strings that held everyone elses' gowns together. He wore golden adornments and a golden crown. Blue eyes, hazel hair lie the others.
"You must be the king." I said respectfully. "I mean you no harm. I am searching for some men that went missing. Does anyone here know the English language?"
The king raised his hand, palm towards me and spoke some more in the incorent language. The three spear men lowered their weapons and fully retreated to the crowd that was forming behind the king. The king turned sideways and waved his hand in a gesture to follow him. I cleared my throat and did so. The crowd parted as we cut through the center of them. I followed him through a skinny road with stone houses lining both sides. We went walking all through to nearly the other end of the cavern. I guessed there might've been at least a few hundred houses down there. Never saw anything like it in my life. They almost looked as finely crafted as modern stone houses, without the windows. The doorway entrances to the houses were the same size as I was accustomed to and most of the doors were made of tree wood but there were no hinges and no locks that I was able to discern. Some doorways were covered with leather flaps.
Our walk lasted several minutes. The king halted at the entrance of a brick building with two guards manning the entrance. When they saw the king they both knelt for a second and when they saw me their faces were stricken with surprise. The king spoke to them and one of the guards removed the wooden door so that we could enter. All the while I kept my gun fast in my hand, ready to shoot. I nervously passed the guards, half expecting that they were going to attack me once inside.
The king reached his hand out, palm up, to direct my attention to the houses' occupants. A wooden table with chairs was against the opposing wall of the house with two men sitting at it, facing each other. They looked up and were immediately relieved to see me there. I said, "You are the surveyors? My name is Matthew and I am here to get you out." One of them said, "Yes, we are. You don't have any idea what you've got yourself into. These people are barbaric savages. They will never let you leave." My gun was still raised and I waved it to make it obvious to the two men, then said, "They won't?"
The king then shouted with his incoherent language and went sprinting through the door. I went right behind him and aimed my gun at the back of his head. One of the guards took a step in the way, taking the shot as I fired it. His head twenched in response when the round richocheted inside his skull and he instantly fell straight down, blood pouring through his nostrils and wetting his lips. I yelled, "Come on!" as I made a leap over the body. Guard two was already thrusting his spear at me as I came flying out of the house. I turned and parried the attack, taking hold of the spear and yanking the guard off his feet. I hit him in his face with my gun as I yanked him toward me and knocked him clean out. I looked all around and saw nobody.
The two men were with me in seconds. I said, "There's an entrance straight ahead down this road, but it's at the other end there. Are there other entrances that you know of?" Both of them said no. "There's a third man, right? Where is he?" I said. "They killed him. We were camping on the northern hills about a mile off the mountain when they caught us off guard. None of us had a gun, didn't think we would need one. So, Randy there, he got out his buoy knife and went at one of those suckers, sliced him open and went at another one but they all were armed with spears and they made short work of him. It was gruesome. Sorry Randy's gone. They sacked our heads so we couldn't see and been here two weeks at least, lost count. Never saw the outside of this building till now." said the taller of the two men.
"Okay," I said, "here's the deal. We're inside a mountain. There's an entrance at the other end there. There might be another. We ain't gonna make it if you don't get yourselves some weapons."
Both of them picked up the spears from the dead guards. The taller man broke his spear in half for improved swinging motion.
"Your names?" I asked.
"Ben" said the taller man. "Evan" said the other man who was the same height as me.
I said, "They are probably getting together and we won't have much time." I reloaded my gun. "Six shots. I got more ammunition but you know it's gonna take time. Here, we'll follow around the wall of the cavern. The ramp starts along the wall, this should be safer than going directly through the middle of their city. Let's go."
Ben and Evan followed me as I led the way towards the ramp at the entrance. We kept our attention to the left of us where the spaces between the houses could hide potential attackers. Another yell up ahead of us. A line of spear weilding men came running full speed. I said, "I knock them down and you reinforce me while I reset my ammunitions, got it?!"
The leader threw his spear and missed. I fired a round and hit. When the spearman tembled I fired at the next one, hitting. When spearman three made his leap over the other two I fired and hit him midair. Then quickly fired round four at the spearman behind him before he was able to make the same leap. There were several more spearmen but they retreated.
I yelled, "Come on! Let's go! Right up ahead!" I reset my ammunitions as we hastened towards the ramp. The four spearmen were writhing in anguish as we passed them. Evan took up a knife that one of them was wearing in his waistband. I was bursting with adrenaline and was sure that we weren't going to make it. As we neared the ramp a spear came flying through between two of the houses, aimed at my head but it missed and hit the stone wall.
Halfway up the ramp I looked down at the town below and saw that all of the townspeople were actually retreating to another entrance a quarter of the way around the cavern. There was an identicle entrance with a ramp much like the ramp we were on. There was a second crowd of townspeople, most of them guards, hiding behind the building at the edge of the clearing at the end of the ramp.
We made it out of there alive and without wounds.
***************************************************************************************************
There were no more defiant guards on our way through the halls that led to the cliffs of the mountainside, but that didn't mean they weren't going to track us or cut us off up ahead. I said to Ben and Evan, "We need to hurry double-time, they might have some secret passages that would take them ahead of us and we can't risk that. That other entrance that we saw them going through isn't far either, right up there around that bend." I pointed. "We need to get, now."
We hurried with our greatest speed, constantly fearing a spear in the back. No spear came.
We made it to my truck at around 3pm. We caught our breath. I gave Ben and Evan some much needed water and we paused to chat.
"What in the world was going on in there?" I asked. "Who were those poeple?"
Evan said, "I don't know, they seem like some sort of lost Scandinavian tribe but how they made their way out here is anyone's guess."
Ben said, "They kept us locked up in that building and had to relieve ourselves into a bucket. No water. Some hard tack bread. Think they were playing around with some unconventional technology. We would hear these huge cracklin' bursts of lightning like they were blowing something up and then these rumbling surges would made your muscles vibrate and your vision go white, I swear there was something not right at all about that place."
"Oh really?" I said, "What do you suppose they were doing in there?"
Evan said, "They were using a machine, I'm sure of it. There would be this huge zap of electricity then a humming sound that fluctuated like weak to strong repeatedly. Make you go deaf and silence everything. Then the other day when they did this we heard some sort of huge animal like a bear or a lion, whatever it was, they killed it. Heard that thing squeal and scream like an elephant with a nail in its foot. Very unsettling. Don't know what they were doing but it wasn't normal."
"Get in the truck." I said, "Let's get out of here."
