Weekly Prompt Writing

I wrote the next four installments at the same Skype meeting, and they all follow the same storyline.

From the top of the staircase, we hadn’t been able to see the bottom. We had been trudging downward for more than three hours now, and there was still no sign of the end. My mind was drifting as my body repeated the motions over and over…down a flight, pivot, down a flight, pivot. When I blinked, the darkness was scarred with zigzags.

I almost lost my footing when someone tapped me on the shoulder. “Do you need some water?” Lam asked.

I shook my head.

“Give him water,” The Elder said without looking back at us.

I took the skin from Lam and winced at the inevitable muttering. “Told you we shouldn’t have brought the kid. Can’t even handle this.”

“No one asked you, Rhynd,” The Elder said. “Fletcher will be a godsend to us later, when we reach the catacombs.”

I whispered a thanks to Lam and peered over the edge of the staircase, careful not to lose my balance. The darkness continued for a seemingly endless distance. When would it start getting difficult to breathe? I looked around at the huge cavern that contained only stairs, as far as I could tell. There was plenty of air to go around. But why would the Ancients have built such an extravagant entrance to their secret chambers?

The monotony was beginning to wear on us. With a swift motion Rhynd ripped a button from his jacket and hurled it down into the abyss. We all froze to listen. Silence. We shifted our feet but dared not move from our places.

A full ten minutes elapsed, and we jumped at a distant plink. A wave of trembling went over us. The Elder gritted his teeth and lifted his torch again. We continued down into the ancient catacombs.