396 CCCXCVI. The Groan (1/2)
Walking, he noticed that the lowest point of that vertical and almost a hundred meters deep cave, was a circumference similar to the breach on the surface, but smaller, the diameter of which was only a few tens of meters.
The walls seemed to close the circle and on them, apart from the large statue of the wolf Fenrir, there was nothing else.
Just when he believed that getting off to that point had been completely useless, Dag saw a tunnel entering the curved wall.
”You've found the passage, there it is!” Gridd said, keeping the tone of her voice low.
”I don't like... I don't like it at all, I have a bad feeling! It's very dark down here, but it looks even worse in there! Are you sure you want to get in that gloomy tunnel?!” Karl said, finally drawing the attention of Dag, who turned to him, with a slightly annoyed air.
”I have a mission for you, my friend...”
”A mission? I thought I was already on a mission... what is it?”
”You have to go back to the surface and tell others that they can come down because this area is safe. In the meantime, Gridd and I will inspect the interior of the cave, which is the only passage that leads here.”
”What? Do I have to go up alone? What about you? What will you do if you are attacked and there is no one ready to heal you? What if... if...”
”Karl, that's enough! This is an order from your Captain! Climb to the top of the cave and tell the Masters that they can descend by paying attention to the rough path. Go!” Dag replied in a stern tone, giving Karl a shock, who was not proving very cooperative.
The young healer nodded his head and with the torch pointed in front of him, began to walk, retracing the uphill path in reverse, moving at a quick pace to feel less cold.
”Let's go... on this side, Thalos” Dag called, uttering a brief whistle, which drew the wolf, who, holding his head down, entered with the two warriors in that dark tunnel.
”You told him to come with us... you knew already his character, you could imagine he didn't have the temper for this kind of thing” Gridd said, looking at Dag, focused on the mission.
”I thought he was a little more cooperative and that he would help us... or at least that he'd been quiet! His endless chatter clouds my mind and doesn't make me think lucidly! Sending him up there, I did both of us a favor, believe me.”
”Shhh! I heard something!” Gridd replied, stopping immediately and pulling out one of her swords, holding up the torch.
Dag immediately began to look forward, but he could not see anything and focused on the sound, distinguishing a heavy breath, which did not seem to belong to a wolf, but to a human being.
The light of the torch illuminated the corridor about three meters wide and dug into the rock, through a cone of light, which as Dag and Gridd advanced, allowed them to see an inch of ground at a time.
The sound of their footsteps, however hard they could strive, was impossible to hide, because of the rocky and slippery terrain under their feet.