Read [Part I] of this story here.
In a dark cave surrounded by dry bones and skulls, I knew we were in danger. Something terrifying must have happened to the people whose skulls were lying around. It was time to talk some sense to Aadhira.
"Princess, look at me," I said curtly. She raised her head to look at me with wide, fearful eyes. I could feel her shaking. "This does not look good. This place is not safe. It was madness coming out here in the first place. Let's go back now."
Aadhira nodded vigorously. "Yes. But how do we find our way out of here?" She asked, looking around the dusty cave.
I glanced back to where we came from. It was completely dark and stifling, the torch casting a blurry glow around the princess and me.
I waved my torch, the darkness was like black smoke and it swirled around the flame. This was no ordinary darkness.
The hairs on the back of my neck stood straight as I watched Aadhira's skin bubble with goosebumps. She whimpered into the crook of my arms, afraid to stare into the darkness. Sweat dripped down my head into my eyes. I had to think of a way to get her out of the cave fast.
Then the lightest whispers reached my ears as a light breeze touched us before my torch went out. Aadhira screamed. We held onto each other in the dark when I felt something approaching in the air. My ears had been trained to pick up the slightest sound in tense situations and I was sure it was arrows or a light spear approaching.
"Down!" I shouted and pulled Aadhira down with me. Then I felt a sharp pain on the left side of my chest. An arrow pierced through. I growled in pain just as Aadhira screamed. I fell into her arms on the ground.
"No, no! Viraj?" My chest and head were on fire. A screeching sound shook the dark cave at the same time. Instantly a torch on the wall lit up in flame. A few distances away from us stood a hideous, creature-like person trudging towards us. It looked like a man but extremely tall with two horns on its head. The ground trembled as it trudged to us.
More screams from Aadhira gave me the boost I needed to ignore the pain and pull myself up. I dragged the Princess with me and we ran deeper into the cave. I could smell the scent of spring water. Could the information the Princess received be true? We could hear the shower and splashing of water from a distance in the cave.
"Viraj, look!" Aadhira drew my attention to a diverging path in the cave. "This way!"
"Princess, I smell the water…it's right ahead…"
"Viraj! I don't care about the water. Maybe this path will lead us out of this hell. Let's go!"
Another screeching sound behind us was the catalyst I needed. We took the path and ran down to burst out into a wide field, the cave was in the middle. I could not see the cemetery anymore. Standing beside the cave were seven tall men dressed in red, hooded kasaya like monks. Their heads were bald, their faces stern.
Another obstacle in our path of escape?
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