The Cave – Part Eleven

To quickly recap: Friends Eve and Sara were rock climbing and stumbled across a large cave with primitive drawings on its walls. A rock slide traps them inside. Having little choice, they go deeper into the cave, hoping to find another exit. The cave system seems to be a mixture of natural and man-made and the further into it they go, the stranger Eve starts acting. Just as Sara thinks they’re getting close to a way out, Eve shoves her off of a ledge into a chasm. Now they must each find their way. But there's something else going on as well . . .

The trembling of the earth woke Eve from the trance she’d been in. How long had she been standing in front of the mural, hours? Days?

The quake didn’t last long, and the rumbling was no worse than the sound of a mild thunder storm. Eve felt like she’d could have stood there forever if she hadn’t been jarred back to her senses. She was no longer thirsty, but hunger ate away at her.

Her back pack was at her feet, rocks spilling out of it. Why had she picked up so many rocks? It didn’t make any sense. Nothing was making any sense. Eve rubbed her forehead, swaying on her feet. She was so confused. She needed something to eat.

Maybe there was something they’d overlooked in the first cave. They? What was she thinking. There was no “they,” there was only her. Leaving her back pack behind, Eve retraced her steps back to the cave with the paintings.

She’d only taken a few steps down the passage when she stopped. There was a large crack in the wall. Funny, she didn’t remember there being a crack here before. Maybe there had been but they were just too focused on their footing to notice it.

There was that “they” again. What was the matter with her?

Not being able to help herself, Eve raised her light to better examine the crack. It was bigger than she realized, more fissure than crack. Big enough for a person to slip through.

Curiosity getting the better of her, she squeezed through the crack, finding herself in a narrow corridor. It was a tight fit, but not too tight to deter her. It was a good thing she wasn’t claustrophobic.

She followed it for several uncomfortable yards before it widened up. The air grew damp and dank, and what was that smell?

The corridor came to an abrupt end in a cul-de-sac. No, not quite a cul-de-sac she realized, raising the light. The corridor continued on the other side, but the opening was too small even for her.

Despite the dampness, the little chamber wasn’t cool, like she would expect it to be. In fact, it was rather warm, which didn’t make any sense. Caves generally stayed the same temperature the further in you went, they didn’t usually get warmer or colder.

With a shrug, she turned to go back the way she’d come, and spotted the source of the odor.

There was fungus growing on either side of the walls framing the entrance to the chamber. But why here and nowhere else?

It probably had something to do with the damp heat. She knew it was possible for certain types of fungi or plants to grow underground. But was it safe to eat?

Eat.

Eve looked at the pale white fungus growing on the wall and along the edges of the floor. She went hiking with a group once that was big on foraging for their meals, and those meals had included a variety of edible mushrooms and fungi. Too bad she hadn’t paid attention to which ones were safe.

Eve looked at the fungus, all but salivating. It would solve a lot of her problems, keep her from starving to death. Reaching out, she stroked the smooth, white flesh.

Eat.

On the other hand, it could be poisonous. If she bit into that spongy flesh, would it make her sick, make her hallucinate? Would it kill her?

If only she had a way of determining whether this bounty was her salvation or her end.

Eat.

The voice whispered through her mind. Was it her hunger talking, or something else altogether? Eve sighed.

Eat.

The voice was right. She should just suck it up and eat. What’s the worst that could happen?

She could die, that’s what. But at least it would be a quicker end than slowly starving to death. At least she hoped it would be.

Eat.

Eve broke off a piece of the fungus. And ate.

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

Missed an installment? Catch up here: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six, Part Seven, Part Eight,  Part Nine, Part Ten