Looking dubious at the prospect of handling another item of such power, Miko gives in and goes over to the chest.
“Dave!” hollers James again, now becoming visibly agitated with worry. “Where are you?” His voice reverberates throughout the chamber but no reply from Dave is forthcoming.
“It’s gone!” cries Miko.
Everyone turns at his exclamation and James rushes forward. “What do you mean it’s gone?”
“Look for yourself,” Miko says, standing aside.
James comes forward and looks inside the chest only to find the velvet cushion. The Star is gone!
“I’ll kill him!” exclaims Jiron. A knife flashes in his hand as he races for the bridge spanning the chasm. He’s soon over it and through the door.
James comes to the same unfathomable conclusion as had Jiron. If the Star is missing, and Dave is missing, then Dave took it. But why? “Jiron!” he screams as he races in pursuit. The others run after him.
Increasing the brilliance of the orb, he races through the door and into the cavern. Ahead of him he sees the back of Jiron as he flies around the stalagmites and pools of water.
“No!” he hears Jiron yell as he somehow starts running even faster. In but a few seconds he realizes what made Jiron yell. The other door, the one that was opened by placing the cubes in the recesses is closed.
Jiron hits the hidden door but it withstands the impact and doesn’t budge. “Dave I’ll kill you!” he screams through the fissure.
James comes up to him and skids to a stop. Shoving Jiron aside he puts his mouth to the fissure and yells, “Dave!”
From the other side he can hear Dave’s voice, “Sorry James.” His voice is full of sadness and regret. “I…I have to.”
“Dave,” he says, trying to get his anger and hurt under control, “open the door.”
“You don’t understand,” Dave says. “My master needs this. H…he said I must bring it to him.”
“Dave, we’ve been friends a long time,” James says in a clam, soothing voice. “I can’t believe you will leave me here to die.”
Dave’s voice grows fainter as if he’s moving away from the door. “I…I gotta go. They’ll be here any minute.” A moment’s silence and then he says almost so quietly James can’t make out the words, “Remember, you said you would always be my friend. No matter what.”
“Dave!” James cries out. When there’s no response he screams for all he’s worth, “DAVE!” When only silence comes from the other side, anger boils up inside him and he tells everyone, “Stand back.”
Everyone scrambles back, Fifer grabs the miner when he doesn’t move fast enough and jerks him away from the door. Summoning the magic, James lashes out at the door and it explodes outward into the other room.
For a brief moment he can see the light emanating from the Star ahead in the narrow passage leading from the room to the stairs. Sobbing can be heard as Dave races up the stairs.
Jiron flies past James and enters the passage in pursuit. Rushing behind, James and the others follow. James no sooner enters the passage than he feels the tingling sensation of someone doing magic. Then it suddenly spikes and the ground begins to tremble.
“Back!” he yells coming to a stop. Turning around, he and the others beat a hasty retreat back to the room with the cubes. Barely able to keep on their feet due to the shaking of the ground, they race out of the passage and cross the rubble strewn room and make their way into the cavern.
“Jiron, get back here!” James cries as he pauses where the secret door had stood for a moment.
Then all hell breaks loose. The ground shakes even more and stones start falling from the ceiling. A loud roar and then a belch of dust explodes outward from the passage. “Jiron!” cries out James as the sound of a massive cave-in reaches them.
The rumbling continues for a few more seconds then all becomes quiet.
Chapter Thirty Two
“Jiron!” cries out Miko once the rumbling subsides.
Coughing, James begins working his way back through the room toward the collapsed passage. “Jiron!” he cries out. “Dave!” He increases the luminosity of his orb and the light manages to cut through the dust.
“Nothing could have survived that,” states Uther as the passage leading out is revealed. Choked with rubble and large stones, it doesn’t look like they could have survived.
“Maybe they made it through to the other side?” Miko asks hopefully.
“Let’s hope so,” says Fifer.
James works his way through the room to the passage and is able to move several feet into it before being forced to stop. “Jiron! Dave!” he cries.
From somewhere within the passage, a muffled, “Here!” can be heard.
“Someone’s in there!” he cries and begins removing the rubble.
Coming to help him, Miko says, “It must be Jiron.”
“He was in the rear,” agrees Uther.
As Miko and James remove the rubble, the others take the stones and pile them further back in the room away from the opening. Slowly, the rubble is removed from the passage. Fortunately it’s only the smaller blocks of stone which made it this far and so between them, they are able to move them out of the way.
“Are you okay?” asks James.
This time the unmistakable voice of Jiron replies, “My leg’s trapped under a block of stone. I think it’s broken.”
“Sit tight, we’ll get you out of there,” Miko hollers.
“Is Dave with you?” James asks.
“No,” he replies. “Saw him make it out before the ceiling caved in.”
Dave on the loose with the Star, and from what he said on the way to the Empire’s forces to hand it over. He just can’t believe Dave would do such a thing. What did they do to him?
“I see your light,” Jiron tells them after another ten minutes of digging.
James quickens his pace and removes several more stones and climbs to the top of the remaining rubble. Holding his light so it shines beyond, he looks down and finds Jiron lying upon the stairs. A massive stone rests just above him and seems to have given him some shelter against the falling rubble. His left leg looks to be wedged under another large stone.
To the others James says, “Hurry up, we’re almost there.”
Moving back down, they continue to clear away the rest of the smaller stones. They’re forced to leave a couple big slabs as they are simply too heavy for them to lift. When at last they have all the loose rubble cleared away, James backs away and lets Fifer and Qyrll through to see about getting that large slab off him.
“Miko, lend us a hand,” Fifer hollers out. “Help Jiron get his foot out when we lift the rock.
Moving in close, he says, “Alright.” He moves in next to Jiron and takes his leg.
“Take it easy now,” Jiron tells him.
Giving him a reassuring grin, Miko says, “Of course.”
Qyrll and Fifer get in position to lift the stone. “On three,” says Fifer. “One…two…three!” Lifting with all their might, he and Qyrll strain against the weight of the stone. They manage to lift it an inch and Miko quickly pulls Jiron’s leg free.
“He’s out!” exclaims Miko.
They carefully set the stone back down and then move to help Jiron to his feet. Miko scrambles out of the way as they help him back out of the passage and into the cube room.
“Set him down over here,” James tells them, indicating a spot on the far side of the room. He doesn’t want a sudden collapse by the rubble in the passage to possibly cause more damage.
They bring him over and set him on the floor. “Easy!” he says as pain courses through his leg. When they finally have him seated comfortably with his back against the wall, he looks to James. “You’re friend has left us here to die.”
