Point of No Return (Part 1)

Point of No Return

"Dont you ever wonder what is out there?" Jay asked Alleandra as they walked together within the gardens. It was quiet this time of the morning; most of the others were not yet awake. The path they walked along consisted of pristine white stones which floated upon the surface of the water that babbled through the gardens. The gardens were lush and green scattered with brightly colored flowers and tinged the air in a sweet fragrance. There was not a weed in sight, and they were kept trimmed to perfection. Alleandra paused a moment as if she did not hear Jay as she turned to a bright red flower and leaned forward to reach out and touch it lightly, though it reared away from her and she drew back. All of the flowers planted here were of the harmless variety but some were still a bit apprehensive she would then at last turn her attention to Jay. "It is best not to think about it. You know we cannot go out, and it is not safe, besides what could be out there that is better what we have here?" Jay would look up a moment to the blue sky seen through the glass of the dome in which they all lived. The dome had been built originally to keep them safe from the virus which had spread. Many believed that the virus was still in the air outside the dome. There was no record of anyone having tried to leave before. Everything a person could need was inside, yet somehow Jay could never be content. A part of him felt guilty about that, as if there was something wrong with him.

"I dont know" he said at first in a bit of despair about it as he began to walk forward once more though his attention was not really with the gardens now, his thoughts were wandering elsewhere. "It is not about better, just about something more, something different. I know everything is perfect here, but maybe that is the problem. I just feel there might be something more out there. Something new." Alleandra has had this conversation with her brother before; it seemed he was always dreaming about the outside. He always seemed to be searching for something, but he never knew what it was. She tried to understand but it was difficult for her, she had always been content here, but it was always like this when they were kids. He was always the one getting into trouble and looking for adventure. It amazed her that as twins they could be so different. He worried her sometimes with all this talk. Their parents were killed in the virus, he was all she had left she did not know what she would do without him. "Sometimes I wonder if you will ever by happy, even if you did manage to get out there somehow, it would not be enough. You would just keep going, always telling yourself there is something more over that hill, or across that lake."  Jay would ponder this a moment, what if she was right? Had he ever been content where he was? If he was destined to always seek more then wasnt just staying here as good as anything? "Maybe you are right, but I will never know if I do not try" He was left stunned by his own words, he had made the decision then in that moment without even knowing he intended to do so. "What do you mean?" Alleandra asked feeling a stirring of panic. "I am going out, I have to. I need to know." He answered her. She stood dumbfounded though a part of her had always feared this day would come, now that it was here she was lost. She could not bare the thought of loosing him. "How are you going to do that, there is no way out." She said in a last desperate intent. "I found a way, the water we use here, it comes from the outside, there is a special room it goes into to be treated just in case it is contaminated, but I can go out the same way the water comes in." She should have known he would have a plan, a part of her did, but she could not help but to be hopeful. She could say nothing; she knew nothing would convince him. "I am leaving tonight."

            Alleandra stepped into Jays room he was busy packing. His backpack was on the bed and clothes and supplies were scattered all over as he stuffed them in his bag. "I am coming with you." He looked up as she spoke and at first just stared and her awestruck but then he would shake his head to her. "No, you cannot, you belong here, you are happy here. And besides what if it is true what they say about the virus?" She swallowed a bit as he said this, though it had been in the back of her mind. She was unsure about all of this and she did not really want to leave, but how could she live parted from him? She had to go. "You think that might be true, but if it is that means"¦." She could not finish the rest of the sentence. "Yes I know," he said a bit mournfully, as much as he needed to do this, he did not want to leave her, but for her own safety he thought it best she not come with him. He stepped to her and placed a hand upon her shoulder. "I wont forget you, and I will try to comeback." A part of him did not believe that last part, but he thought she needed it. "You wont have to," she said with a determination surprising even her. "I already made up my mind, I am coming with you, I already packed. I cant let you go out there alone, what if something should happen and no one is there to help you?"

            Jay knew that she could be stubborn but he never had seen her quite like this before, and he did not know what to say. A selfish part of him wanted to just say yes, but another part of him told him he should discourage her for her own good, and prevent her from coming, but he had to admit she was not a child anymore then he was, and she was capable of making her own decisions and she would hate him if he did that to her, and as much as he had to leave, a part of him knew he needed her. "Alright, you can come." Though he gave in a bit begrudgingly he was aware of a small spark of joy that he would not be alone. Alleandra was not sure what to feel, she was scared, though she knew even if he had stood up to her she would not let him talk her out of going. A part of her was relived that he had given in so quickly so she would not have to fight him. A part of her feared that she might have weakened if he was too resistant, but she knew it would never be the same here if he was gone, not for her.

            They stood just before the glass doors which looked into the room that the water was purified in when it entered into the dome. Along the walls of the room there were air purifiers to cleanse the any air which might come in from the outside through the same cannel which allowed the water in, to prevent any possible remaining virus from getting into the dome and causing total annihilation of the last remaining people, or such was what they assumed not knowing of any other survivors. "How are we going to get in?" Alleandra asked, trying to hide the faintest hope that perhaps this would be it, the thing that foiled their plans, but her heart sunk just a little bit as Jay began to rummage through his pack before pulling out the pass key. "With this," he said grinning and walked over to slide the key through the slot and waited for it to scan before the doors opened and a voice spoke. "Welcome Rolland" Alleandra watched in dismay as she followed close behind so she did not get shut out. "How did you get that?" A part of her was not sure she wanted to know. He slipped the card away once they were inside and the door slid closed behind him and he gave a mischievous glance to his sister. "I found it one day when I was out walking, I figured someone had dropped it, I meant to give it back but then I forgot about it, or some part of me told myself I should hold onto it though I did not understand why." He gave shrug and began to walk toward where the water gained entrance. There was a cannel which flowed through the room and emptied out in a large vat where it was then treated and pumped throughout the dome. He followed the cannel to the far wall the only way out would be to get into the water and swim out through it. "This water has not been treated yet." Alleandra said with a bit of uncertainty as she could see what Jay was thinking. He looked to her and nodded not seeming as concerned as she was. "I know, but if the disease is still in the air then I guess it wont matter what is in the water right? And well if it is not true, if the virus died out there then the water should be fine shouldnt it?" Alleandra nodded her head as she supposed it made sense enough though she was not at all certain about this, and she did not like to see Jays hesitancy, could it be that underneath deep inside he was just as afraid as her of what they might find? She knew even if he was his mind was made up now and he would not turn back, and she was determined to stay with him, so as he began to ease into the waters she followed in right after him. He looked up to her a moment and then nodded his head as if in signal and dove down to swim under the gates which bared across the archway that led to the outside. She supposed the gates were there to keep anything that might be out there from coming in. That thought made her shudder, she did not like to think what might be out there, but she gave one last look around thinking briefly she still had a chance to turn back now if she wanted but she knew she couldnt so she dove down and swam just behind Jay.

It was a little while when they surfaced again and neither one of them could quite believe what they were seeing. It was like a jungle outside full of thick green vegetation. They could not even see the sky the canopy was so thick and kept everything cast in a cool shade. Jay began to swim for the shore and climbed out of the water taking in a deep breath as if to test the air he then reached down to take Alleandras hand and helped her out of the water along beside him. "Well everything seems fine." With all this life around them Alleandra did find it hard to believe that the virus could still be thriving, she half expected they would step out into some open barren land. "Yes, but we wont really know if we have the virus for a few days." Jay looked to her and gave a shake of his head. "Always the cheerful one" He began to make his way through the jungle, it was not easy going as he had to forge his own pathway through all the thick greenery. Alleandra followed just behind him, though she did not know why he was in such a hurry, it is not as if he knew where he was going. She hung back a bit, but did not let him get out of sight, as she was so fascinated with everything. She wanted a chance to study some of the plants.

She moved to take another step forward when she felt a tug backward and something tightened around her ankle she looked down and saw the thick green vine circled around her ankle and she gave a scream as she looked around when her eyes fell upon a flower that was larger then her, and that she was certain she did not see there before. She felt it trying to drag her back as she struggled to pull away and shake it off. Jay heard the scream and froze spinning around he saw his sister in trouble and sprinted back to her, as he ran to reach her he dug through his pack and pulled out a black baton looking device, he pointed it at the vine which held Alleandra and pushed the button along the side. A bolt of electricity shot out and severed the vine freeing Alleandra. The plant seemed to shriek as its broken limb flopped about upon the ground before the flower pulled back to retreat into the woods. Jay helped his sister up to her feet and tucked the device in his back pocket. "Are you alright?" She pressed close to him a bit shaky at first from the whole experience. "Yes I think so." As they began to walk again she was sure this time not to fall behind and stayed close to his side. They would walk now with greater care watching the things around them suspiciously for any unusual movement.

They would walk along together for sometime without further incident it would seem when Jay came to halt all of the sudden and gave a glance to Alleandra. "Did you hear that?" She felt a leap of fear in his words as her eyes scanned, though at first she saw nothing and then movement then came to her gaze through the trees. She could not make out what it was. She grabbed Jays arm and tugged in the direction as she pointed. "There I saw something." By the time he turned around it was gone. They stood puzzled a moment but then began to walk once more when all of the sudden a figure leapt out of the trees at them. Alleandras first thought was that it was a man, but there was something not quite right about it. It was wild and moved almost like an animal. What could it be?

Jay reached back and removed the baton and was about to point and fire when it was knocked out of his hand into the brush out of sight, before he had chance to think or react after that Alleandra screamed as another of the man-beast creatures grabbed her by the shoulders and as soon as Jay turned his head to look the one before him grabbed hold of him and began to drag them through the trees as much as they fought and struggled it was no use.

They were brought into what appeared to be a small colony of the strange creatures. They did look like people. Alleandra thought, only they were hairier, and though they walked on two legs they stayed hunched over slightly. She huddled close to Jay as they found themselves encircled by the beasts. When one of them drew close to them it spoke in a rasp. "You are from the inside." Jays heart froze, and he reached protectively for his sister. They knew about the dome, but what did they want? What did he get them into, how could he do this to Alleandra. He did not know what to say as he felt Alleandra tremble close to him. There was no where they could run.

The ape like man crouched close to them so that his face was nearly touching Jays as he tried his best to push Alleandra behind him more so to try and protect her ae best he could. His nose quivered as the hot pungent breath of the creature washed over his face. He swallowed hard; he still did not know what to say. His throat felt dry. The others were standing back in a circle just watching them, as if they were waiting for something to happen, or perhaps waiting for some sort of command. The one before them would speak again in that same rasp. "What are you doing outside?" Surprisingly it was Alleandra who mustered up the courage first to speak, though she could not keep her voice from shaking, and as she spoke her hands gripped tightly to Jay. Such that is was almost painful, but he gritted his teeth against it saying nothing. "We"¦j-just"¦.w-wanted..t"¦.t"¦to see"¦"¦w-what"¦..there was"¦out..h..h"¦here." The creatures considered this for a moment, as if pondering whether or not to believe them, and Jay thought he would do his best in persuading them that they were telling the truth. "It is true"¦..It was my idea"¦.I just wanted to explore"¦.we dont mean any harm"¦.we did not know you were." His voice was more steady then his sisters, but not for lack of fear, he was emboldened a bit by his desire to protect his sister.

The ape man would draw back from them and amble over to the others as they all huddled up together and seemed to be conferring with each other about something. They spoke in a strange language with grunts and clicks, and Jay could not make out what was being said, but he was not sure he wanted to wait around to find out. He turned to look to Alleandra; this was there chance, perhaps the only one they would have. He tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention, and placed a finger against his lips to tell her to be quite then he nodded to the woods and slowly began to stand up. Alleandra understood just what he meant to do and she would raise along side him, keeping her eyes upon the creatures. She knew one little mistake could be their ruin. They only had once chance. Slowly and quietly they began to back away toward the trees until they got close to the woods and turned breaking into a run. Behind them they heard a loud shriek and the pounding of feet upon the ground. His heart leapt in his throat as he clasped Alleandra by the hand and ran for all he was worth with her. He did note know where he was going, but he did not care now. He just needed to get away, but they were fast and more adapted to this terrain. It semed hopeless but he had to try.

She felt Jays hand holding hers tightly and painfully but she could not worry about that now as her legs pumped as fast as she could and her feet thudded against the ground while she ran just along side her brother. She had to resist the urge to look back, the last thing she needed was to not pay attention and trip, taking them both down. But they could not just keep running like this forever, and the others were catching up. Her eyes scanned looking for a way they could hide or get away somehow. Anything really. 

            Jay suddenly became aware that something was wrong, but at first he could not understand what was happening. The very ground seemed to be disappearing under them, falling away. Then before he knew it the two of them were suspended in air with nothing beneath their feet and falling downward. It all happened so fast, he did not understand. At first he thought it was some sort of trap, or maybe he had been dreaming all this and was now waking up. He struggled to keep hold of his sisters hand and was faintly aware of hearing her scream, but it was so terribly black he could not make out anything. He could feel a sudden coolness in the air. After a time which felt like an eternity, he was jolted by earth, it was soft like soil but not enough to really cushion the fall, and it was not their final stop. The fall did force his hand to slip away from Alleandras as they both began to tumble down what seemed to be some sort of slope.

            Alleandra felt the ground cave under her and she was falling into darkness, she could not help but to wonder if this was some sort of endless pit and she fought to keep the connection to her brother at least, but she could not see him, she could not see anything. A part of her wished she had never came, that she stayed behind, but no, she could not have left her brother go through this alone. She could not say how long the fall lasted before at least she felt ground at last, but it was jarring and painful and she could not catch her balance or footing but continued to tumble downward still. "Jay" She called out the moment she felt his hand yanked from her grasp and scrambled to regain hold but it was no use, he was out of her reach. Down and down they seemed to go before at last they were stopped with a splash as they landed into a pool of water below. It was shockingly cold, but at least the pain in her body seemed to numb a bit. She looked around, but still could not see a thing, the sky above, the hole they fell through was not visible from here, and it seemed some deep underground well. "Jay" She called out desperately, she thought she heard another splash somewhere near and looked around the best she could afraid to move.

            He was shocked by the water as he sunk down a moment taking in a mouthful then bobbed back up to the surface and began to sputter and spurt, coughing up the water. It was painfully cold and incredibly dark. Where were they? At least they seemed to have escaped, if this was any better. At least he hoped those things would not come down after them in here. He heard his name and felt sudden relief and began to ward it. "Alleandra? I am here, keeping talking. Just keep calling me." He moved through the water following the repeated sound of his sisters voice until he and reached out grabbing hold of her. The last thing he wanted was for them to be separated.

            Alleandra was relived when she felt her brother grab on to her and she wrapped her arms around him as she looked around in the darkness. Above them somewhere she could hear the sounds being carried down from the strange creatures, as they seemed to be hooting, hollering, and howling, probably in frustration. But what were they going to do now in this strange place? Was there way out? She had a mix of fear and relief. She was not sure which death would be better. Possibly being torn apart of even eaten by those things above or starving and freezing to death down here? She tried not to think so negatively. "Come on I am going to try and find a way out of here." Jay said as he reached over and took her hand in his own and then began through the waters. It was difficult to tell just how deep they were, but they were not very wide and they appeared to be surrounded on all sides by solid slick rock. The opening they fell through was a tunnel, sort of like a shoot too far up to reach from the water, and of course that would take them back to the beasts. "What are we going to do" Alleandra asked, trying not to sound like a scared little girl again. Jay thought a moment. "Maybe under water there is some sort of passage that can take us out. You stay right here, I am going to just swim down below and see what I find. Ok?" Alleandra did not like the thought of being left alone, but she liked even less the thought of going under these unknown waters and she nodded her head slowly. "Yes, ok, just be quick."  Jay smiled and kissed the top of her head and then dropped down into the water and out of sight.

            It was almost impossible to see under the water, it was so murkey and dark so he had to rely only on his sense of touch to try and navigate, he was surprised at first to realize just how deep the water was, and he wondered if it would even be possible without equipment for a person to swim down that far. He began to swim towrd one of the walls in search of some tunnel perhaps. His hand brushed against something slimy and cool to the touch and he drew back dismissing it as algae perhaps. Maybe it was a fish or a snake. He would shake it off and continue to look around. Feeling with his hands and fingers for some opening.

            It was not too long after Jay went down that Alleandra felt something brush against her legs. "That is not funny" She yelled out thinking Jay was just trying to be cute and she kicked her legs out hopping she might catch him but it seemed he had already moved out of the way. She would feel it again as it nudged against her body. "Cut it out I mean it." She said a bit louder as she lashed out again with her foot when she felt something cold and soft against her skin and she let out a scream as she tried not to panic. Something was in the water was all she could think about. She did not know what to do. She would stay perfectly still as her heart pounded in her chest.

            Jay had just found something which looked promising as his fingers worked around the edge of the rock. It was loose he could tell, but still heavy. Perhaps behind it there was a passage that could take them out of here. He swam down a bit slower and grabbed hold of the rock and tried to pull it free. He wiggled it back and forth and felt it moving but it would not yet come out. He looked up a moment when he thought he heard a muffled sound above him, and he was starting to run out of air. He thought he should go back up, maybe with Alleandras help they could get it out together. He swam up to the surface and would come up on the opposite side of the well as her. His eyes at least had somewhat adjusted to the dark and he could just make out her form. Something was wrong he could feel it.

He began to make his way toward her when he felt a ripple in the water and was thrown back by a sudden wave his eyes grew wide as the creature suddenly emerged shooting its head and neck straight up between him and his sister. That must have been what he felt he thought at first and then gulped at the idea that he had actually touched that thing. It was huge. And resembled a serpent of sorts, though he remembered to the touch it felt slimier then snakes did. It felt more like a fish, or an eel he thought. Could it be a giant eel? He was not sure he liked that idea. He did notice that unlike a snake it did not really have any scales.

The creature bellowed suddenly, it was an eerie sound, almost like a howl, but nothing like he had ever heard before. The noise seemed to vibrate throughout the space, as it did so a hood flared up around its face which made it look even more frightening. They had to get out of here he knew. But how? The only choice was to work that rock free and pray for the best, but he could not get to his sister. He would have to try to get around the creature to reach her.

He looked up to the creature as it to reread before him out of the water and he wondered how much of it was still coiled under the dark murky surface. He knew that if he attempted to go to Alleandra it would see him and what it would do he did not know. The only hope was for Alleandra to come to him, as the creatures back was to her. He thought as hard as he could hoping she would understand and know what he wanted, afraid if he called out the creature would turn to her. In the mean time he would try and distract it so it did not hear or feel her coming around to him. Let this work. He prayed to himself as he began to wave his arms up and down, almost like doing jumping jacks, just to keep the monster focused on him and maybe confused.

Alleandra saw something come up to the surface of the water and was thankful to see her brother again, especially after she had an encounter with something in the water. She was about to call out to him when the water broke again and the vile beast reared up before her dividing her from her brother. It was all she could do not to scream aloud. She pressed back against the stone wall her eyes glued on the beast. She almost felt sick knowing that thing had been touching her. Jay! She suddenly realized that is where it was looking. What was she going to do? She was too petrified to move until she felt something urge her, and she felt compelled to move forward. She heard her name called, but not aloud, it was in her mind. Jay, he was calling to her she knew suddenly. She had to get to him somehow. Slowly she moved forward through the water as she would start to inch around the creature. He must be distracting it for me, she thought as she moved slowly through the darkness. Her heart thundered against her chest but she pressed on and began to move around toward the front of the creature. Close as she was now she could make out Jays form as he flailed his arms to try and keep the thing focused on him, but as soon as she came around and began to make her way to her brother the creatures head whipped around to look down to her. She froze in place and felt the blood run out of her.

Jay saw its attention suddenly turn, and he knew before he looked that it was his sister. He was both relived and fearful, glad she got his message and that she came to him and they were together again, but now what? He did not have much time to think he saw the creature start to dive down, driving its head and its open mouth of pointed teeth toward his sister and he leapt forward in the water wrapping his arms around Alleandra he dove down into the water pulling her down with him as he did so. Giving her a slight push in front of him and pointing in the direction he wanted her to swim. He did not have time to spare as the creatures head broke surface in the water just behind him and he felt a sharp pain as it had caught hold of his leg. He spun around in the water and lounged forward as he hit as hard as he could with the waters resistance in the snout. That seemed to stun the creature just enough to cause it to release his leg and he kicked away from it.

Alleandra hoped he had found a way out and that was what he was coming up to tell her, she swam down eagerly with hopes of finding passage when she turned her head back and her eyes grew wide as she saw Jay struggle with the beast. A part of her wanted to go back and help him, but then what could she really do? She would continue to swim where he had directed her only to meet with disappointment when she came against only rock. Were they truly trapped? But then where was Jay sending her? Her hands felt around when she noticed it. A loose rock, but it was so heavy, maybe, if they could get it free they would find a way out. That must be what Jay was thinking. Alleandra gripped the rock as best she could and began to try and wiggle and push the rock free, though it moved a little in her hands she could not quite get it to budge open. She needed Jay to help her, but how was that possible with that thing after them? She looked back as she could see Jay was doing his best to keep it distracted and find a way to get free and join her. Let it be soon, she would not be able to hold her breath much longer.

Jay dove away from the creature, but he knew he could not get back to Alleandra not just yet. He had to first think of something to do about this monster, but what? It continued to charge after him and he swam past its coils making it double back on itself, he did not have a seconds time to think but an idea came to him that had to work surely. He swam as quickly as he could to the wall opposite where he sent his sister as it was just on his heels. He kicked back catching it on the snout with his foot, stinging it just enough to keep it from catching hold of him again and give him the spilt second head start he needed. He came against the stone of the wall and then turned around, it was coming at him fast, just what he hoped for, and just before it reached him he dove to the side, waiting for the last possible second. The giant eel was unable to stop itself in time and collided head on with the stone wall giving a loud shriek from the pain. It was just what Jay planned, but how long it would last he did not know. He was partly hoping the creature would be knocked out, he would not give it a moments chance to recover before he quickly doubled back to return to where he sent Alleandra, he only hoped they would have enough time. His lung burned with the need for air but he could not spare the time to go back up, he had to press on and only hoped he did not pass out and drown leaving his sister at the mercy of the beast.

He would reach his sister at last and would join her in trying to wiggle and pry the boulder free, it moved under their working hands and he could hear the rock scraping. It was starting to come out he just knew it. They exchanged hopeful looks and put all their effort and energy into working the rock out. It scraped forward inch by inch and became looser until at last it was removed and they swam back out of the way as it began to fall down to the endless depths below. They shared a knowing look and both began to swim up. They had no idea what lay in the passage or how long it was. They would need to take in as much air as they could before they swam through. Their heads broke surface at the same time as they gasped for air.

They both took in a deep breath and filled their lungs. Jay still did not know just how bad off he left the creature and how long it would take to recover. They had little time and so they both dove into the waters and began to swim back to the newly uncovered hole. Neither having any idea where it would lead, but it was the only thing they had. Jay gave a look around and did not see any sign of the creature around and thought just maybe he had scared it off but he would not wait around to find out.

When they reached the entrance of the passage he would urge Alleandra to go in ahead of him, it was too narrow for them to fit side by side, and this way he could keep a better eye upon her. After she was in he came right after her as they swam down the long dark tunnel. A part of him was aware they may find no way out and just run out of air and drown, but perhaps that would be better then staying to be eaten. He tried to keep those thoughts at bay. There was really no way to see ahead of them, and the only thing to do was follow where the tunnel led them.

Alleandra was hesitant to enter the dark unknown place after what they had just encountered but she could not spare the time to dill dally and would suck it up and slide within. She tried not to think about what other things in the darkness they might encounter here where there really was no room to run, and even if they could double back she knew what lay in wait. If something happened they would truly be trapped. She could not let herself think that way. She had to calm herself to help conserve precious air, and she had to keep a steady pace. She would only tire herself out and run out of breath if she let her fear egg her own to go faster.

Worry began to fill Jay, as they continued down the dark narrow passage without any change occurring. Would it ever end? He could feel the first stirrings of panic and tried to fight it off and take some relief in the fact that it did not seem the eel beast was chasing after them or surely it would have caught up by now. He did not know how much longer he could hold his breath. Both their lungs were already weakened from the earlier excretion. He could feel the burning and the desperate need for air starting to form when luck would prevail upon them and they would swim into an air pocket. It was a slightly widened area where they could come up to surface but it provided no escape from the water. Jay took a deep gasping breath filling his lungs as much as possible.

Alleandra would come upon the pocket first being just in front of Jay and gratefully surfaced as she gulped down the air then let her eyes scan around until she saw her brother come up shortly after her. He looked to be in about the same condition as her. From here she knew they had no way of knowing how much longer or father the tunnel would go and if there would be any other relief such as this offered. For now she took the opportunity she had to fill her lungs up.

Alleandra made her way to the side of the air pocket and braced herself against the rocks so she would not have to expend the extra energy in keeping herself afloat, in order to conserve more air. Jay just bobbed up and down in the water; neither of them spoke in order to save all the air they could for what they would have to face.

About 5 minutes had passed since they first arrived in the air pocket, and they were still there trying to store up extra air now that their hearts began to slow and what they had lost had been caught, when the water would begin to stir. Jay would notice it first as Alleandra was still up against the wall. He felt his heart sink as he looked around silently hoping he had imagined it but he felt something move under him.

Alleandra turned her attention to her brother seeing the change in his behavior; she then noticed the ripples just along the surface of the water. "No" she said to herself in a sharp inward breath. Jay caught his sisters eye and they exchanged worried looks and both looked to the water. It almost seemed as if it was waiting for them to panic and try to run so it would have them trapped where they had no escape. He could feel it circling under him.

He wondered how long it would wait before it came up after them, he looked back to his sister; he had to do something he knew. He had to get her out of here and away from that monster, but he couldnt let it go after her. He would have to keep it distracted, though how he would get away he did not know. It was better then just sitting here and waiting for their doom and he could not resign Alleandra to that fate. "I am going to distract it and I want you to get out of here."

Alleandra did not know what to do, but the last thing she wanted was to leave him here alone with that creature, but what could she do if she stayed? He would never be able to forgive himself if something happened to her she knew, and he blamed himself for all this, as if he could have stopped her from coming some how if he tried harder, so in the end she would agree as much as it pained her. She would wait, if she went too soon it might see her and go after her ruining his plan. She had to wait until she was sure he had its attention.

Jay knew that she would do as he asked, he saw it in her eyes and felt it, he could not delay any longer and he would dive down under the water after the beast. He had at least a split moment of surprise upon his side; it never expected them to come after it.. He came down just over its head and would grab onto whatever he could find and held tight digging his fingers in. The beast let out a loud shriek and thrashed its head up, but from where he was he was safe from the jaws, though the movement nearly threw him and he had to struggle to keep his hold. How long he could keep this up or what he was going to do he did not know. Eventually he would need air again, but surely it would nab him before he got to the surface. For now he tried not to think of that and only focused on keeping Alleandra safe.

He hooked his legs around it to try and help keep his hold as it was very slick and slippery, pain rocked through his body as it thrashed to the side and plowed him against the rocky cave walls, at least the water acted as resistance so the blow did not have its full force. With his legs around it his hands at least could be freed up and he reached down to jam his fingers into his eyes. The creature made an ear splitting sound and then shot up out of the water, it was even harder to keep hold when he found himself dangling from its head above the waters surface, but he would not let himself fall.

Alleandra knew if she was ever going to go, it had to be now, and she dove into the waters and shot down the tunnel to swim into the unknown, though in the back of her mind she knew she still should pace herself to help conserve air. She had no idea how long she would be going or if there would be another chance to get air again any time soon, but it was hard to conquer the desire to get as far away from that creature as she possibly could. How she longed for dry land above anything else.

Jay wrapped one of his arms just around the neck of the creature and locked as tight as he could on the slick smooth surface. Taking the beast in almost a head lock as he kept his legs locked around it and dug his heels into its soft body hoping to cause it some discomfort. With his other hand he began to repeatedly strike the creature about the head, nose and eyes. The creature thrashed in pain and anger back and forth as it tried to shake him off but he would not budge and it would thrust its head back and slammed him against the rock walls of the air pocket. Without the resistance of the water to cushion the blow this time pain rocked through his body and he cried out. Everything seemed to scream on fire but this was a matter of life and death and instead of letting go he only clung on more tightly. He was just lucky his head did not strike or that might have been the end of it. He continued his assault and the beast dove down into the water plunging him under the surface yet he still clung on tightly the effect of his blow would be softened now.

Once under the water the creature began to spiral in place, as its whole body just began to spin around and around with incredible speed. Jay had to wrap both his arms around the creature to try and hold on, but he could feel it starting to slip away from him as it twisted under his body, and his head began to spin making it difficult to concentrate. First his legs began to untangle and slip away and he only hung on by his arms, but he could feel that hold weakening, and he did not want to be rendered useless with sickness so he had no choice but to release and fall away from the beast. The giant eel whipped around and charged at him and it was only by a thin hair he was able to dive just out of the way and avoid the jaws and sharp teeth.

He knew he could not keep running away from it, he could not keep this up forever, eventually he would start to slow down and wear out and it would get him, and he did not know how much longer he could hold his breath. He needed to give himself some time as the creature rounded around to charge at him again, he would hold his ground, though he was nervous having no idea if this would work. It was the only chance he had. He waited and watched as it came at him, then instead of diving away he leapt toward it within the water and brought up his elbow and then drove it down against the top of the creatures head, just as it was about to try and take another bite from him. The creature shrieked and drew back shaking its head. It seemed stunned at least and Jay took this time to shoot up to the top and break surface to take in a gasp of air.

He looked around a moment as he began to get an idea and he reached up with one hand and grasped hold of one of the rocks that made up the wall of the air pocket and he began to pull himself up and scrambled with his feet to find foot holds to help brace himself as he pulled himself up out of the water fully, climbing along the rock wall. His body still screamed with every movement from being slammed against the rocks, and his heart thudded against his ribs. His breath was harsh and fast and his lungs burned but he had to do it, he pushed himself on. It was not easy going, everything was already sore and tired, not to mention wet and slippery. At on point his foot slipped and he felt himself falling. He cried out and scrambled to catch himself, a new flash of pain rocked though his body along with a sudden warm gush along his arm as he cut himself along the forearm along one of the rocks but managed to keep himself from falling back into the water. He would take a moment and just clung to the wall breathing deeply before he would start to push himself up higher once more. He would stop when he was right at the point where the wall began to curve into the ceiling and he was well out of the water. Looking back over his shoulder he would wait.

It would not be much longer when the creatures head burst up through the surface and swung back and forth looking around, though it could probably have leapt up enough to pick him right off the rocks, it appeared to be confused and did not realize where he had gone. Jay did not want to stall long for fear the creature would take off down the passage that Alleandra went and he waited until the creature looked away so it would not see him and then he pushed off the wall and dove down to collide against the beast wrapping his arms and legs around it quickly and tightly, though the momentum of his body caused him to slide down slightly before he stopped. The creature shirked in confused surprised and its body was pushed forward with the weight of Jay suddenly coming down upon it, and it was rammed against the rocks. The sharp edges pieced its skin and a strange dark substance leaked out from the wounds. The beast cried in pain and then dove back under the water, as it began to go down Jay leapt off it and splashed under water shortly before the beast completely submerged.

With the beast still dazed he swam swiftly down to grab hold of the end of the tail the beast spun its head around and darted toward him, he waited for as long as he could before he dodged just out of the way, still holding the end of the tail so he pulled it within the path of the beast and caused it to clamp down upon itself, the water turned dark with the same substance which leaked from the wounds, and the tail barely hung still attached. The beast yowled in pain and dove down into the water and began to swim back the way it had come. Jay heaved a sigh and floated up to the top and began to take a few deep breaths.

He was eager to return to his sister and he would wait until he thought his lungs were filled enough before he dove down into the water and swam through the passage, wondering where Alleandra was now, and how far along she had gotten, and if she found some exit, though worry also began to fill his mind, what if that eel monster was not the only creature within the waters and the cave. He could not afford to think of it at the time, but now he started wonder, could she have encountered something else? He tried not to let his imagination get away from him that would waste energy and he had to conserve air as much as possible.

Alleandra began to wonder if the passage would ever end as she continued to swim her way through it. She could hear the sounds muffled carrying in the water and wondered what was going on. She began to regret having left, she should have stayed with him, if they were doomed it would have been better at least that they died together. No, she had to stop herself from thinking like that, and concentrate on the task at hand, but she was growing tired and starting to strain more with her air running out. When she saw something suddenly ahead, it looked like an opening of some sort. Another air pocket perhaps? She pushed faster as the hope and need for air drove her on, and she could not have been more surprised by what she found as she surfaced and took a huge gulp of air she found herself within what appeared to be a full sized cave. Dry land at last she though with silent celebration and she quickly climbed out of the water onto the stone floor of the cave. It was dark and she moved toward one of the walls to try and feel her way around, wondering if she could find an exit to the outside. When she placed her hand upon the wall she felt something come under her hand, it did not feel like the rocks and she thought it moved, she gave a short cry and drew back quickly, straining to see. Her eyes would begin to adjust and she could just make it out crawling along the walls, it appeared to be a spider of sorts, but it almost resembled a crab in some ways. As she looked she began to realize there were more of them crawling along the walls and she felt momentarily faint as she backed farther away from the wall and finally resigned to sit down upon a rock after first doing her best to inspect it in the dark. She hoped Jay got here soon.

            Dejectedly she began to wonder, just how long should she wait for him before she assumed and accepted that the worst had happened, then what would she do? Where would she be without him? She was not as resourceful as he, she was not an adventure, and she would not know how to survive or where to go. She felt panic began to rise before she was able to calm herself. No, she would know if something happened to him, surely she would know. He must still be alive, he must be alright. She closed her eyes and began to concentrate focusing all her thoughts on him.

            Jay gave momentary pause and looked around, as much as he could within the passage, he heard his name, he was certain that he did. Alleandra he thought to himself, she must have found safety. His heart glimmered with a mix of hope, relief, and eagerness as her silent call pushed him onward, despite the weariness of his muscles, the shortness of his breath, and the pain that still throbbed through his body. For her he had to keep going. I am coming he thought, and it became a mantra that he repeated over and over to urge him to continue and to block everything else out. Alleandra nearly jumped to her feet and cried out aloud with joy as she heard the message her brother had sent her, she felt a new lightness wash over her, and a sense everything would be ok, he was alive, and he was on his way to her.

            It would be a moment longer before Jay came into view, entering the cave he looked around a moment and slowly began to climb out of the water and collapsed exhausted upon the ground breathing deeply. His body ached and he did not think that could move another muscle. His chest heaved as his lungs burned. He was just thankful to be safe and out of the water.

            Alleandra gave a small cry of job at first seeing her bother, though upon glancing at his condition worry filled her and she quickly made her way to his side and kneeled before him. "Are you alright?" She looked him over the best she could for any visible sign of injury. His clothing was torn and tattered, and she could see where he was bruised, and cut here and there, though she did not see anything that appearing serious or life threatening.

            Jay looked up to Alleandra and could not help but to give a small smile seeing her well and seeing her worry and fret over him. He would slowly start to push himself up to his feet with some effort and staggered a moment before catching himself. Alleandra had put a hand upon his shoulder to help for fear he would fall. He took a final heaving breath before finally he felt able to speak. "Its alright, its over now"¦.I will be fine"¦just need to rest."  She watched him as he began to rise staying close to him to make sure he would be ok. It appeared he would be fine and she felt relief wash over her, but she was still concerned about him. "Then sit down, dont push yourself. I am just glad to see you again. I did not know what I would do if anything happened to you. I should never have left you." Jay reached up one of his hands and placed his fingers just against her lips to silence her as he gave her a small grin and shook his head slowly. "No, you did the right thing, everything will be fine. Now, I say we get out of this abysmal place." Alleandra would not have argued with that for the world, how she longed for fresh air, but the question was how? Was there even a way out? With all that had happened she had completely forgotten about the others, the strange ape like people. "Just sit here and rest, I will explore and see if I can find any passage out. I wont stray far and I will call you if I find anything. But you should not waste your energy."

2:02 PM - 1/11/2007 - post comment

Quote of the Week: Wherever a man may happen to turn, whatever a man may undertake, he will always end up returning to that path which nature has marked out for him --Johann Wolfgang von Gothe

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