The deep, dark depths shor tstory

The deepest, darkest depths

Chapter One

The sun shone brightly as the waves thundered around the green topped cliffs, flowing into the murky caves below them as sea birds flocked around in the air, searching for some food. The shrieking of the birds filled the caves, echoing to the deepest, darkest, most secret depths.

Deep within one of these caves, deeper than any light could see, resided the greatest secret the world has to hide. Twenty feet long, snake like but amphibious. Its jaws were big enough to swallow a cow full and its scales were harder than diamonds. That is what the legends said, that is why I was there.

I ask myself ‘Why did I go when I knew what I was against?’ Perhaps the answer is gallantry, a duty I needed to do to save the world, but I doubt it. I care not for those that are too scared to seek power and those that are too week to gain it. I thought I could tame the beast, bend it to my will, show the world that it could be done…

I fell down towards the cave, passing the swirls of red and brown in the cliff face before landing softly upon the sea and despite the heat, I shivered. It was a warning I ignored and a mistake I paid dearly for. I ducked under the cliff as I entered the cave, stalagmites jutted out from the floor to join the rock above. The columns they formed were beautiful, carved by the hand of Mother Nature herself; they formed the entrance hall to this palace of the beast.

It appears from time to time. Comes out from the gloomy depths to seek a women or a child, sometimes it is hungry; often it just wants to play with its food. These encounters are the source of the legends, the source of unquestionable terror that lays siege to the fortress of your mind until it breaks through. Then all is lost.

As I moved deeper into the cave, the light and the heat, my only connections to the outside world faded until they dissolved into the stale air that filled this ancient place. I had tried to light my way, to warm the air with a simple spell but each time I would shudder and it just faded into a shower of sparks. God, if there is such a thing, has decided that I must remain cold and blind within this desolate place.

As I travelled further into the cave my fear grew steadily and was only just below my greed. I needed to find the beast, I needed to. If I failed then my life would have been for nothing. Everything I have done for nothing, the thought was terrible and it forced me to fight the fear, to lock it deep inside my cold heart. I shivered again.

Finding my way I the dark was not easy, but I persevered, I forced myself on until I came to a new chamber. This chamber was different from the rest, it was more open and their was a smell of rotting flesh about the place, accompanied by an instinctual fear, I knew death was ahead. I was not wrong.

The bodies lay around the room filling it with a reek that made me throw up. The sight of the bodies was repulsive, yet I was intrigued. They all showed a mixture of fear and anger on their faces, perhaps a hint of surprise. The way the were killed worried me for it was not a physical bite or crush, but wicked magic and strongly cast. Now it was my turn to be worried, if a mage had already passed this way then perhaps they had tamed the beast, perhaps they were waiting, ready to kill me. I tried to summon the strongest light spell I could, yet I still faltered. Then my heart stopped.

I had heard something. Something different. The sound of the sea birds long lost, I could hear something disturbing the silence, the sound of someone trying to walk as quietly as possible. I spun around, my eyes wide, searching. Surely it could not walk, the legends would have said. For the first time it occurred to me that the legends could be wrong, that the strength and abilities of the beast were misunderstood. I realised my mistake too late.

Once again I heard footsteps but they were getting louder, as if the thing causing them was closer. I still could not see it. The footsteps suddenly stopped, followed by a blood curdling scream that filled the cavern and echoed long after the scream had stopped, and then I lost control. I ran like I have never run before, faster and faster I ran, forgetting my magical traits. I had to get away from the sound and more importantly what had caused it.

I had no idea where I was running; my conscience had retreated into its fortress and my body was on autopilot. I ran until my mind began to shutdown for need of oxygen and my muscles began to ache, finally at a moment that was not of my choosing I stopped, flying through the air my head hit something and then everything went even blacker.


Chapter Two

I woke up a few hours later confused and aching. As my vision returned to normality I started to remember. Entering the cave, the stalagmites, the darkness and the cold and the scream. I did not want to remember that and forced it deep inside my mind. I tried to stand up and look around but swayed as I stood and then collapsed into a heap on the ground. It did not seem like I would be going anywhere soon I thought grimly as my hand traced my body checking for broken bones, nothing major just cuts and bruises I decided. I took another look around before conjuring some food in front of me, that magic was hard to call up and for a moment I thought I would fail. Then exhaustion claimed me again and I fell into a deep sleep.




As you can probalby tell this is my first public story and the first story i have actually continued from a few lines. This is still in the proess of being written however i thought i would post it anyway. Please let me know your thoughts and constructive critisism