great creature perpetually holding its breath. She checked the time, then without a second thought, proceeded inside. Her ears were filled with the silence, and she could see at first very little, then nothing, feeling her way with fingertips lightly tracing the wall. Had she possessed any hint of her sister’s claustrophobia, this venture would have come to an abrupt halt long ago. As it was, she continued on without the slightest hint of reservation. It was likely, she reasoned, that it did not go on for much longer, and she wished to know just how extensive it was. Perhaps she could bring Aspen here with flashlights someday. Directly after this thought followed another. “What in the heck are you even doing? This could be, you know, slightly dangerous.” She shook her head, ushering Aspen’s nervous voice quickly out of her mind. Pressing on, she felt light condensation on the walls, the stone growing gradually more smooth as she went. She very suddenly became aware of small lights twinkling ahead of her. They were all along the sides of the cave, so dense, in fact, that she could nearly discern the structure of the stone they sat upon. Or rather, reflected off of? This must be the case, she thought. There had to be a hole in the ceiling up ahead and the stones were catching moonlight from it. This seemed a logical answer, and although logic usually reassured her immediately, she still felt a gentle touch of unease even after reaching this conclusion. It was not enough to make her go back, though, as she determined that it would now be easier to just climb out of the hole that she must be approaching. “Certainly a hole in the roof,” she told herself firmly, ignoring the heavy thrum of her pulse. She could not be sure what brought it to her attention, but all at once she was acutely aware of the lights flickering rather systematically. Like a million tiny eyes, they danced in and out of her vision, and with an intense, frigid beat of her heart, she noticed they were doing so in pairs. Almost in the same instant that she noticed this, the whispers began. They tingled against her skin, entangling themselves with the darkness. Subtle at first, she tried to pass them off as a small gust of wind, somehow having found its way through a crack in the wall. This theory, unfortunately, was quickly dismissed, as individual voices began breaking away from the general murmur. “What are you doing here?” “What an odd choice you’ve made.” “Are you doubting yourself now?” “Very wise.” Each had a slightly different sound to it, and yet all were somehow Page 60
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