it.
Motioning for Miko to help him, he takes one end of the boat while Miko takes the other and together they gently lift it off the rack, setting it slowly upon the platform.
Miko leans close to James so he’ll be able to be heard over the thunder of the falls and asks, “Think it’ll float?”
“I sure hope so,” he replies. “I really don’t fancy getting in the water and swimming through that tunnel.”
“What do we do if it sinks?” Miko asks worriedly.
“Stay afloat and swim as best we can, I guess,” James says. “But the wood looks sound, even if it has been down here for a long time.” He whacks the side of the boat with his hand, showing Miko that it still has some strength and durability left in it.
Miko looks dubious, but holds his tongue.
James removes the two oars from the wall and places them inside the boat. Then he grabs his backpack and places it inside as well.
Miko follows suit and places his bags inside and then they slowly work the boat over to the edge of the platform. The end of the platform gently slopes downward until it is only a few inches from the top of the flowing water. James eases the boat into the water, all the while maintaining a firm hold to keep it from being pulled out onto the water and through the tunnel. He signals with a jerk of his head for Miko to get in.
Miko shouts “Don’t let go!” and climbs into the boat, sitting down in the rear of the two bench seats.
James concentrates on the glowing orb and it floats over and takes position at the stern of the boat. He looks at Miko and hollers, “Now, when I get in we’ll each take an oar, and use them to keep us away from the walls and anything else that may pop up in front of us.” James waits until Miko gives him a nod, indicating that he understands and then pushes the boat out and jumps in yelling, “Stay down and watch your head!”
The boat moves out from the platform a little as James settles into the front seat and takes an oar. Then the current grabs hold of them and shoots them toward the tunnel, picking up speed rapidly. They begin going faster and faster until they pass from the cavern and into the tunnel. The ceiling is only about six inches from the tops of their heads. James places the oar back into the bottom of the boat as he quickly realizes that if he were to use it against the sides of the tunnel, at the speed they are going, it would be ripped out of his hands.
They both scrunch down as far as they can and hold on for dear life. Luckily the current is keeping them a comfortable distance from the sides of the tunnel, so they have little worry about hitting it. The walls of the tunnel rush past in a blur and James can hear faint sounds coming from Miko but he’s not sure if he’s crying or laughing.
James is scared to death and loving every minute of it. This sure beats the hell out of any log ride I’ve ever been on! Letting out a cry of enjoyment, he grips the sides tightly and rides on. Rushing headlong into the unknown, the possibility of being killed at any moment, is an exhilarating rush for him.
From up ahead they begin to hear a change in the sound of the water, it’s getting slightly louder and the tunnel seems to be growing narrower, causing the boat to increase in speed. Fortunately the tunnel is still sufficiently wide to accommodate the boat. Then all of a sudden the ceiling of the tunnel opens up and the river suddenly goes over a steep, ten foot drop.
At the speed they are going, the boat flies out over the waterfall, becoming airborne. A scream of terror comes from the back of the boat as they sail through the air, but James dares not look back to see if Miko’s okay, for fear of falling out. Unable to contain his excitement, he lets out a scream of his own, “Yeeeeee Haaaaaa!”
Wham!
The boat slams against the surface of the water, almost knocking them out of the boat. James tries to regain his breath after it had been knocked out of him from when they hit the water. The boat slowly begins reducing speed as it floats upon the placid water. He looks around and realizes that they are upon an underground lake.
Turning to Miko, James says excitedly, “My god! Was that some ride or what?”
“Yeah,” says Miko miserably. “It was great.”
“Oh come on!” James exclaims. “Where I come from people would pay top dollar to go through that, again and again.”
Miko just looks at him like he’s insane and shakes his head.
His lack of enthusiasm somewhat dampens James’, but he can still feel the thrill of it when they went sailing over the waterfall and landed on the lake. Grabbing the oars, he begins to row in the direction the boat is currently going.
To Miko he says, “Keep a lookout behind me and make sure I don’t run into anything.”
Miko just nods his head and keeps an eye out for anything in the lake ahead of them.
After rowing for a few minutes, Miko points behind James and says, “There’s something in the lake ahead.”
He glances over his shoulder and sees a small island poking out of the surface of the water directly in their path. He turns the boat a little to the right and they sail around the island, which isn’t very large, and continue on their way. For a brief moment he has visions of riddles and rings.
He continues rowing for a little longer before Miko suddenly exclaims excitedly, “James, there’s light coming from up ahead!”
Looking over his shoulder, he can see a small patch of light in the distance ahead of them. He angles the boat toward the light and rows harder. “Maybe it’s the way out?” he says.
“I hope so,” Miko replies. “I want to get out of here!”
Pulling on the oars with renewed vigor, he rows toward the patch of light, which continues to grow as they approach. When they’re closer, they can see that it’s an opening in the cavern wall, allowing a small stream wide enough to accommodate the boat to flow through.
“Should we take it?” James asks, knowing the answer even before he hears it.
“Yes!” exclaims Miko.
James heads for the opening and as they get closer, begins to see trees and bushes on the other side. Excited, Miko gives a whoop and holler as they enter the sunlit world, leaving the underworld behind them.
The stream flows through a tangle of trees and undergrowth, flowing steadily and smoothly. As it turns out, the stream is barely deep enough for the boat to keep from scraping the bottom. Twice, they become stuck when the boat runs aground where the stream becomes too shallow. Using the oars, they push off from the bottom until they are once more in deeper water and the boat is able to float free.
It isn’t far until the trees open up and they realize that they are now at the bottom of the gorge. Through the trees ahead they can see where the stream will be joining the river as it flows on its way into Madoc. Having no more need of the glowing orb, James cancels the spell.
As they join the main river, they look up and can barely make out the road that they had been on earlier in the day, way up the side of the mountain. “Hard to believe that we were way up there just a few hours ago,” Miko says.
James looks at the shadows on the mountain and realizes that they had been in there far longer than a few hours. “I think that we were in there most of the day,” James corrects him. “Gauging by the shadows the sun is casting on the mountain, it’s more likely early evening. We left the way stop just after sunup.”
“Guess that’s why I’m so hungry,” Miko says, looking at James.
“Let’s find a good spot for a brief camp and we’ll see what we can do about that.” He maneuvers the boat to the center of the river and doesn’t worry too much about rowing, except in maneuvering them around obstacles, the current here is fairly fast. He sits back a bit and rests his arms, which have been growing tired from all the unaccustomed rowing.
The river makes a turn up ahead and on the inner bend of the turn, there’s an open area, a sandbar really. As likely a spot as any to make camp, James uses the oars to bring them closer. When they get near and are about to be carried past by the current, he signals to Miko and they both leap from the boat. James keeps hold of the side until he’s regained his balance.
Miko on the other hand didn’t fare nearly as well. For when he jumps from the boat, his foot slips on a submerged rock and falls into the icy, cold water. He starts splashing and yells, “James! Help me!”
James looks over as he steadies himself and says, “Its not deep, just stand up.”
Miko’s thrashing begins to calm down and with a face red with embarrassment, he stands up and realizes he
