Chapter 3 The Boy, the Cave and the Dare (2/2)
”My dad's a knight. I don't have to go if I don't want to,” Diggory stated haughtily.
Rassa shook his head, it was the most ridiculous excuse he'd heard so far. Something was wrong, and in the state that Diggory was in, there was little chance that Rassa could reason with him.
”Fine, Dig,” Rassa sighed, ”I'll get the rabbit then we can all go back to the village together”.
Rassa didn't wait for a reply, turning and marching towards the entrance of the cave.
Diggory couldn't believe Rassa had actually done it. While he wouldn't admit it, Diggory was sure as well that there had not been a cave here previously. None of the hunters ever reported seeing a cave here, and if there was it was unlikely they would have put the boundary line so close to it. Still, Diggory didn't speak up as Rassa approached the cave. He paused outside of it for a moment, and then he entered. Diggory's expression turned somber. He couldn't see Rassa at all.
”Rassa?” asked Diggory, beginning to regret issuing the dare. The last thing he wanted was for his friend to get hurt.
There was no reply.
Inside the cave, Rassa couldn't see anything, it was pitch black. He felt along a wall, trying to steady his breathing as fear started to imbed itself in the young boy. Rassa had walked no further than ten metres when he felt something soft and furry at his feet. Slowly, Rassa bent down and felt the creature at his feet. Small, fluffy, and with two long ears. The rabbit!
But something was clearly wrong. What wild rabbit in its right mind would sit and wait to be picked up? Rassa used his hands to pick it up, but as he did, he felt something wet and sticky beneath it. Rassa paused, then very slowly lifted up his wet fingers to smell them.
It smelt metallic...blood. A deep rumble disturbed the eerie silence of the cave, and Rassa shot to his feet. A chill came up his spine. Turning, Rassa sprinted towards the exit of the cave, fear encompassing his being.
He tripped and scraped his knee, and elbows, then scrambled to his feet again, running for the entrance.
Only he couldn't see the entrance. That was impossible, he was barely twenty steps inside the cave. Suddenly, Rassa hit a barrier of some kind he bounced back onto the ground, then looked up in panic. He leaned forward again, putting his hand against the barrier. The darkness rippled where he touched it, but nothing else. Rassa gasped.
”Oh no,” he whimpered, ”No, no no!”
He stood, pounding against the barrier with his little fists.
”Let me out!” he yelled, ”Let me out! I swear I won't come back, let me out!”
Behind him, a deep dark chuckle echoed.
Outside the cave, the dark chuckle was heard too. Diggory stepped back, terrified.
What had he done?
”Rassa!” he yelled.
The darkness at the entrance of the cave seemed to ripple and move, and diggory's eyes widened, ”Rassa!”
He ran to the cave entrance, but bounced back off of the darkness. What was happening? He'd seen Rassa disappear inside not a moment before. Diggory stood, then pounded on the barrier.
”Rassa!”
A feint shout could be heard, and Diggory paused to listen.
”Le...me...ut!”
It was feint, but Diggory could tell it was Rassa.
”Rassa?! Are you okay? I can't get inside!”
”Le...e...ut!”
”I can't, there's a barrier, Rassa!”
Diggory looked at the paniced ripples on the barrier, and somehow knew it was Rassa.
”I'm going to get help Rassa!” called Diggory, ”Stay here!”
Then Diggory turned and sprinted back towards the village.
Inside the cave, Rassa again heard the dark chuckle, though this time it was much closer than before. Rassa felt something coiling around his feet and up his legs.
”Let go, no!”
”Oh little one...you've barely had a chance to be welcomed...please, come on in”.
Rassa felt himself being jolted back deeper into the cave through the air, and he screamed.