The Sorcerer's Game

4. Adventure begins

Azriel groaned again when the stalactite above his head poked him. 'Damn it,' He hissed, rubbing his head. "How far are we along, Mr. Glenn?" He queried, following the man, who was in high spirits since the time they had set out on the excursion. 

Azriel had picked up Michael and Dhara from the hotel, and after driving for more than two hours, they had reached the site of the excursion. Although the place was a site of importance, there was nothing but ruins that greeted them. The place was completed deserted. Not even a guard was present to take care of the place, and Azriel realized how much of a mistake it was to come here.

Unlike him, who did not want to proceed with the adventure, the two people with him seemed to have a different reaction. There was obvious excitement on their faces, and Michael was even grinning as they stopped the car. As dusk settled, the light fading slowly, the place seemed all the eerie, and Azriel was now certain that he was doomed.

"Mr. Glenn, maybe we can start at dawn. I am not sure if we will be able to find anything we want here at this time of the day, especially when the night is about to fall soon." He suggested, hoping for the old man to accept it. However, all his words fell on deaf ears.

Micheal had not uttered a word and had started to walk towards the caves that screamed of danger. Having no other choice, Azriel pulled his backpack from the car and followed the two people. And, now here they were inching closer towards the third cave, after covering the first two caves.

"We have just started, Inspector Ryker. Are you already exhausted? We still have a long way to go before we will be resting for the night." Micheal commented with a chuckle, and Azriel rolled his eyes, frustrated by the predicament he was in. 

"When will the week end?" Azriel groused, his voice echoing through the cave, much to his horror. However, to his surprise, neither Michael nor Dhara chose to retaliate, and they brushed it off with a laugh.

The trio continued with their adventure, with Michael at the front and Azriel at the back. "By the way, Sir." Azriel started again when the silence in the dark cave started to creep him out. Though they had torches with them, it was still spookily dark, and as they delved deeper inside, the temperature dropped significantly. Azriel was glad he had a jacket with him, keeping him warm. "Could you please tell me what we are looking for?"

"I am not sure myself, Inspector. But whatever it is, I promise, will fascinate you more than us." His mysterious words made Azriel halt in his place, and he glared at the old man, who continued to walk further.

'Could you please talk in a language I can understand? And what did he mean by I would be more fascinated? There is no way something would fascinate me here.' 

Dhara stopped when she did not sense the man behind her. She turned around only to find him frozen in his spot a few steps away from them. "Inspector Ryker?" Her voice reverberated through the place, and Azriel snapped out of his thoughts at once.

"Ahh, yes?"

"Are you thinking of stopping there for the night?" She queried, amusement dancing in her eyes. But Azriel missed it completely in the dark place. Rolling his eyes at her sarcasm, Azriel walked towards her without another word, and the trio started with their adventure once again.

The moment they finished exploring the third cave, they faced two caves adjacent to each other, each stretching in different directions. "Now, the adventure starts." Michael beamed, seeing the twin caves.

"Wait, what was it until now?" Azriel frowned, looking back from where they had come.

"That was nothing, Mr. Ryker. The true danger lies ahead of us."

"What do you mean?" Azriel's frown deepened, not liking where this was going. 'What danger was Michael talking about, and why does he sound so thrilled?'

"From here onwards, we need to be careful. The caves ahead are filled with poisonous animals, and there are high chances we might not be returning home if we are not careful." Although the man warned him about it, Azriel completely missed the underlying meaning in his words. 

'What the hell!!' Azriel cursed in his mind. 'Poisonous animals?? Am I going to be having a blind date with them? Here?' Azriel shook his head, thinking about what might happen to him if he was not on alert. 'No way. No way old man. I love my life, and I don't want to die this soon. I...'

His eyes widened when the two people, he had slowly started to hate, moved towards the cave on the right. "Mr. Glenn, listen to me, Mr. Glenn." His desperate voice echoed through the voice, and even before he knew it, he had trailed behind them inside the cave.

Neither Michael nor Dhara stopped hearing his voice as they progressed further inside their fourth cave. "Can't we do this in the morning, Mr. Glenn? By then, the sun would have risen, and we could easily avoid the lethal animals."

Michael chortled hearing the suggestion. "Mr. Ryker, look around you. Do you think the place we are in will ever receive sunlight?" Azriel's gaped at the man, who seemed to ignore him. "There is no day or night here, Inspector. All that matters is time."

"But.. but..." Azriel was rendered speechless, and his mind refused to form any coherent reasoning. 

"No buts, Mr. Ryker. We will cover as many caves as possible before we rest for the night." Micheal deadpanned. "I am sure by then, we will find what we are looking for."

His last words caught Azriel's attention, and he bolted towards them, his torch creating monstrous shadows on the walls cave due to his action. "Does that mean we will be leaving if we find whatever we are looking for soon?" Azriel asked hopefully, for he was already tired of the place.

"Oh, we will. We will for sure. But we will not be returning home." Michael mumbled. But the young man heard it loud and clear. Before he could question further about it, there was a rustling sound behind him, startling the three people. They stopped in their tracks, confusion and fear taking over them. They had barely made it to the fourth cave, and they had already faced danger.

While Michael and Dhara stared at each other in confusion and trepidation, Azriel's countenance changed altogether. He took out his gun from his holster and pointed in the direction from where they had heard the sound. "Mr. Glenn, someone is following us." He muttered, making sure to keep his voice low. 

"But..." Michael did not know what to speak, given the circumstance they were in.

Azriel took slow, careful steps, keeping his eyes focused on his path, illuminated by Dhara's torch, while his ears tried to pick up any sound. Just then, a shadow fell on the ground in front of them, and it increased as seconds ticked by.

"Azriel, are you there?"

Azriel was just about the close in on the intruder when he heard a voice he was all too familiar with. He frowned in confusion, wondering if he was hearing voices now. However, his confusion vanished when the man showed himself before him, shocking him completely.