Chapter 4: The pyramid: Weathering a fight

Chapter 4

The pyramid:

Weathering a fight

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We eventually came up to something down the stone path, though it still didn’t seem to do us much good. It was a dead end, the hall widened into a circle with a wall in the end of it, making it lead nowhere else. It was like a room, a circular room with a fountain in the center of it. Not a big one, but it had stone edges and spouted water a few feet up and then back down into the bottom of it where it was siphoned back up and started over again.

We were at a loss once more as to where to go. We all took a rest and sat on the edges of the fountain on the bricks. Christina was thirsty and dipped her cupped hands in the fountain for a drink. Although to her painful surprise, she didn’t dip her hands into water, it was some kind of acid. Her screams were ear piercing, and so terrible, it’s impossible to describe.

She pulled her hands out and looked at her steaming hands. They were partially skinless and reddened. It was obvious how much pain she was in. I closed my eyes and concentrated on healing her hands. When I opened my eyes, her hands were fine, completely better. She stopped screaming and her fear turned to shock. She felt no more pain. I guess I had forgotten the powers bestowed on me.

She was silent, but the look on her face showed all her confusion and amazement at what just happened. She immediately turned to me. “I think I did that,” I said with a shrug, “I guess I should be using my abilities more often huh?” They nodded at me like I was stupid. I guess I deserved that one though. “You really do have some special powers Bj, and you need tot use your gift, it may be what saves us.” Jennifer said.

Then we heard a slight rumble. “What was that?” Amanda said. “I don’t know.” I said. Then a huge stone wall fell over where we came in, completing the circle room and enclosing us in it with the acid fountain. “Oh great.” my dad said in frustration. “So were trapped in a room while trapped in a pyramid?” Tj asked. “I guess so. Any ideas again?” I asked. They all just shook their heads and looked down. “Great, I love the enthusiasm.” I said. “Hey, watch the sarcasm there son.” my dad scolded. I stood up and started to pace around the fountain. I couldn’t really thing of anyway out, every time I thought of something my powers wouldn’t do it. So after a few times around to fountain I got tired and went to sit back down. I was on the other side of the fountain.

It was too dark to see so I felt around for the edge. I sat down, but couldn’t see that the brick I sat down on wasn’t the regular tan sand color as the rest, it was actually blue. The brick sunk in on me and we heard all the acid in the fountain drain and stop shooting out the spout. The spout rose up and flipped upside down, then dropped through the hole it broke of from. It went completely through and down it. Then the holes started to suck in the air like a vacuum.

We felt pressure as the air left, and the walls started to cave in, the whole room was imploding! The walls started to crumble and lean in. So we did the only thing we could really do. We jumped into the hole. One by one we just got up on the ledge and went in without further thought to it.

It slid down like it was a huge slide. It twisted and turned and just went on and on, gaining speed as we went with it. Maybe about ten minutes later we slide down and out of a shoot and fell to the ground. One by one we piled up until Tj came out as the last and landed on Jennifer. I landed first on something hard and very cold. It made me cold just from the touch.

We untangled from our pile the chute had dropped us in and stood up with a few groans from pain. I shook my head and my vision came back into focus. I looked around to see why I was so cold. It was snowing, and the ground was covered in snow and ice. It was beautiful. There were a few pine trees scattered around the area and then in the center was a frozen pond. Snow just covered everything.

“Its so beautiful!” Amanda said with giddiness. “Isn’t it?” Jennifer said. We stretched out and then looked around some more. I could see my breath. After we were all set, we started looking around for either some way out or the next thing we needed to do.

This place was like the outdoors; it had everything from ground, tree, and even a sun above! But whenever we would get so far from the pond, we would find the walls disguised as further out land. So in retrospect, we were still inside the pyramid. “So were outside?” Christina asked. “No,” I said, “the walls just look like we are, besides, we live in a little bit hotter place. We wouldn’t be getting snow right now.”

There was no way out, even the chute we came from disappeared. So we looked for what we had to do or answer. It wasn’t too hard to find, after looking on the frozen pond, we found it. Etched into the ice was another riddle for us to answer. “Hey guys!” Christina yelled to us, “ I found something!” We all rushed over as she started to read it:

Here lies a pond so cold

This land here is very old

To leave this place is not too hard

Just answer what we speak of

Just play what is your card

 

A number of course but turned on it side

Means all numbers in a single sign

Likes circle collision a never-ending loop

The power it holds is beyond our metal route

 

Now take the skates and etch it in ice

Be it right or pay the price

 

“Oh great, that doesn’t even make sense!” I said. It didn’t, how could a number be on its side but mean all numbers? And then the thing with the shapes? I don’t know. “Well, I suppose it it’s a number on its side it has to be between zero and nine. That’s all I really have though, we have a ten percent chance if we just guess. But does anyone else have a clue?” Amanda said. If she didn’t have any idea we were really in trouble.

“No.” “Nah.” I got nothing too.” we answered. “Well, how bad can the consequences really be if were wrong?” Amanda said, “Lets just guess then?” We all deliberated on it for a few minutes, and then decided we really didn’t have a choice. “Well, what number do we guess?” We all thought, and then I said, “ how about zero? It’s a loop and circle, it’s our best bet I would say.” “Sure, might as well. Now, who can skate well enough to put that on the ice?” Jennifer said.

“Oh! I can! I can!” Tj yelled out, so he went over and put on the skates set out for us. He jumped out onto the ice and started to form the circle of a zero, after he did, he twirled once and then came back to us and slipped the skates off. We all watched the pond to see what happened. A laser shot down from of the ceiling somewhere and starting etching something deep into the ice. When it was finished it read like this:

 

WRONG

The answer was the infinity sign,

An 8 turned sideways

Yeah, I was guessing that that wasn’t good. We waited for something to happen. Nothing. Then a box started to descend down to us. It floated lightly and landed down in front of us all. It was marked in big bold read letters on the side: UNTOLD SECRETS. What was so bad about that?

So we opened it up and found what was so bad about it. In the box were six smaller separate boxes. Each one had one of our names on it: Jennifer, Tj, Christina, Amanda, me, and my dad. We all opened our boxes to find something we had been trying to hide. We put them together and all looked at what we had, though that may not have been such a good idea after all.

Christina’s box had her criminal records in it, and it wasn’t too empty either. Tj’s box contained his birth certificate, showing he lied about his age. He wasn’t eight years old, he was actually thirteen! My dads box contained secret records of him stealing another scientist’s idea. Jennifer’s box contained her school records. Between the terrible grades and stunts she pulled, that was enough. Amanda’s box, well, I don’t want to explain that, but she had a rough past, but different than Christina. And as m=for my box, it was actually empty, which was really weird.

“Why did you guys all hide this stuff? That’s a bit dishonest.” my dad said. “Looks who talking with stealing someone’s idea, you’re no better!” Jennifer said back. “Well your half retarded apparently!” Amanda said to her. “Shut up!” Tj said, “your messed up from years ago! Who are you to talk.” “I’m the one who didn’t lie about his age little boy.” she said back. Then the fighting really began.

“Amanda! Apologize to him!” my dad said. “No! Why should I? You did that terrible deed just as much as me! Making you no better!” They fought on and on about what they had done and the secrets they had hidden. It was getting tough. Now I see why the situation was so bad when we couldn’t cooperate to get out. I guess the price was our trust in each other, a huge thing to pay.

They started getting a little more physical, they shoved and Tj went out and fell on the ice and they all followed. It was getting really bad. They started shoving more, and then Tj pushed me out on the ice and followed me on it. And of all things, they were mad at me for my box being empty! I guess nothing still made them angry. The one to set this all up knew what they were doing.

I got angry, and just imagined lighting and the sound drowning our there yelling and screaming. Then clouds formed above us and started to glow. Finally a streak of lighting struck a tree on the side of the pond and spliced it in half down the center. It darkened in there as the clouds blocked the sun and more lighting stuck and thunders sounded. Everyone stopped arguing.

“That is enough!” I yelled, “ This is ridiculous! So what if we all have some blemishes on our pasts, its nothing to fight over like this! Especially in our situation. In case you forgot, were still trapped. Now, just stop.” I said in frustration.

They all looked down with guilt in disgust in themselves. “I’m sorry.” someone said, and that started the chain of apologies for there foolish actions. It was not the time to be fighting over past things. What was done was done, that was enough. The stormed settled and our consequence was done and over.

We started to search for a way out again. Nothing opened for us since we were wrong. Nothing still, though at one point I tripped on something and fell. I shook off the snow and looked to what I tripped on. After pushing some snow behind I saw it was something frozen into a huge block of ice. I peered into it and saw it was a zombie. I was shocked to see one and crawled back a bit while thinking on it.

That made me realize how unarmed and helpless we were. We had no weapons, no communication, and no one to help us if we got into serious trouble. But then a voice crawled into my head and told me this: “Bj! Why do you worry? You hold powers beyond belief, and they are you to use even for protection. I gave them to you for a reason. And look how you cleared that fight, just one example! Remember you have them. And I will always be watching over you.”

He was right, I had nothing to fear, and really everything evil should have feared me! Apparently the others all heard it too. “He is right! We just need to believe in Bj and everything should be ok. I love you, and I know everyone else does to, and we all know you can do it, right?” Amanda said. Everyone nodded at that speech.

But before we could do anything else, the frozen zombie started melting very fast. He sat up and stretched with a moan and then stood up and staggered slowly towards us. I remembered what the voice had said. So I raised my hand in the air and made the signal to stop. The zombie stopped in his tracks. Then I did something that is still funny even still today. I put my hands together and then slowly pulled them apart, and as I did, the zombie grew fatter and fatter until he weighed near a ton.

Then I lifted my hand up and over, and then slammed it down. The fat zombie rose up, then hovered over to above the pond, and then slammed him down into the ice, shattering his way through. He sunk all the way down! We laughed and laughed until our throats were hurting and dry.

We all walked over to see where it was through the hole while trying to catch our breath. We carefully stepped out on the ice and looked through the hole he had made. There was no water underneath. All that was there was a dark hole; it looked like it went really deep too. We looked in it with amazement; we wondered where our little friend had gone. The pond was an illusion I was sure. But instead of being a real pond, it was actually the way to where we needed to go next! I leaned for a little better look and ended up slipping on the ice and falling backwards. I slid a little forward towards the hole from the force of the fall.

No one noticed me sliding into the hole until after I had fallen though. A few gasped and the others were still amazed by the pond illusion. It was too late for them to get me, so instead they all did the stupid thing of jumping in with me, no, not after me, but with me!

One by one they jumped in. But this one wasn’t a fun little slide; it was a pitch-black drop down to who knew where. All we knew for sure was it was the way to whatever we had to face next. All we could do was hope for the best with it. It wasn’t long before we saw a light growing bigger through the darkness…..