At the bottom is a
small square space lighted by a tiny lamp. Leading off from the space is
an opening to a narrow passageway.
Stobey doesn't wait. She enters the narrow passageway, followed by the
others. They advance only a short distance and, again, the weird screech
bursts out, this time from up ahead and much louder. A booming,
rasping noise follows the screech. It sounds like heavy chains being
dragged across rocks.
'Be careful,' Slutter warns from behind Stobey.
'Yes,' Chug says, 'let's all be careful.'
'Light up ahead,' Stobey announces.
The light is far off, but as they get close it brightens. The passageway
by now is well lit. Up ahead the passageway bends.
They turn the bend. They're in a large cavern. The floor is covered with
dust and stones, and in the center is what appears to be an enormous
black boulder.
Suddenly, from above, erupts the same screech they heard before, wild
and shrill. Our friends leap back away as their eyes dart up.
There, standing on top of the rock, looking down at them is an eye,
round and staring. Around the eye are spikes, long and sharp, and
directly above the eye is a mouth, wide and open, and from out of the
mouth, bursts another screech.
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