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 . . . and Sara has just started to figure out what it is.
Eve stood back to study the swirling colours of the mosaic. The sequence of colour was much more intricate than she first realized. There was a pattern to it, but every time she thought she figured it out, it seemed to . . . shift.
Repair . . .
Maybe if she replaced the missing stones it would make more sense. Yes, she decided, before she did anything else, she needed to repair the damage. It became imperative to her that she do so.
The small gap in the spiral, maybe she should start with that. Or maybe replace the missing stones in the rest of it. She swayed a bit on her feet. It was all so confusing. She glanced around uneasily. Something wasn’t right. Why was her thinking so muddled?
Her eyes glazed over as the stones in the mosaic began to pulse, almost like a heartbeat. Thump thump. Thump thump. The drumming came from all around her now, she could feel the pulse inside her. Her heart began to beat in time with it.
There was a brief surge of panic, but it was quickly subsumed by the pulsing beat. Her thoughts stilled. The essence that made her “Eve” shoved to the back of her mind. Her consciousness was overshadowed by the task at hand – repair the mosaic. Complete the mosaic.
She had an unshakable feeling that the spiral was crucial to the whole design. Perhaps with the spiral completed, she would be able to figure out the rest of the design. Mindlessly, she picked up one of the stones and pressed it to the slight indentation.
This time there was no blue light, and when she let go of the stone it fell to the ground. Eve frowned. Choosing another at random, she tried again, with the same result. Her breath came out in a huff. Nothing was more important that completing the mural, but how was she supposed to do so if she couldn’t figure out how to attach the stones to the rock of the cave?
How had she got the first one to stick?
with care . . .
She didn’t just pick a stone at random, did she? No, she’d chosen it with care.
Eve squatted down beside the pile of stones. Staring at them intently, she spread them out with her hand. Not just random, but each stone must have purpose. There was light coming from the stones she’d collected, but not from every stone.
She touched one, a little brighter than the rest, and felt a tingle. Her fingers curled around the stone and she rose to her feet. Studying the mural, she stepped forward and pressed the stone to one of the empty spots where a stone had been missing. The blue light flashed, and the stone adhered.
That was more like it. She carefully selected another stone, and placed it in another indentation. Again the blue light flashed and the stone stayed in place. Hours passed. Eve worked slowly and steadily. She felt neither fatigue nor hunger, and when she ran out of energy she simply collapsed where she was.
When she awoke her stomach was cramping. Was it hunger or thirst, she wondered. Did it really matter? With a groan, she pushed herself to her feet and stood swaying. She needed food, and water. But the fungus she’d harvested was gone. She must have eaten it without realizing it.
Her water bottles lay scattered on the ground, empty. How had that happened? She couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a drink, but there lay the evidence she had.
“This isn’t right,” she whispered. Had she really become so obsessed with the mural that she’d couldn’t remember eating or drinking? Glancing up at it she was surprised at how much progress she’d made. How long had she been working in her trance?
She needed to get control of herself. This couldn’t happen again. Perhaps it was her weakened state that was responsible for this. She needed to refuel. Mural forgotten, she staggered down the passage that led to the fissure with the fungus.
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
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, Part Eleven, Part Twelve, Part Thirteen, Part Fourteen, Part Fifteen, Part Sixteen
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