Trials and tribulations

You continued to move for several hundred more steps, each of them taken with an utmost care. You didn't know what might happen. Shadows created by your torch light danced on the walls until you saw an entrance to a big room made out of bricks.

Someone built this room in cave on purpose, and you had a bad feeling about it. It was about thirty feet long and like half that size wide. The floor was made out of square plates, each carrying a carved symbol on it. You tried making any sense of those symbols, but nothing came to your mind except for the fact that it must have been some sort of language.

You knew what all of that that meant though. You saw enough Indiana Jones and Tomb Raider movies to know what might happen next.

You came back to the tunnel and picked up a bunch of rocks from the ground. Entering again into the room, you threw first one at the plate next to entrance.

Nothing happened.

Cautiously you moved your leg on it pushing more and more weight onto it until you finally moved the rest of your body and stuff there.

Great, you thought. Only fourteen more in a straight line to go.

You placed a second pebble in front, or at least tried to when the plate disappear right before your very eyes. Instead it showed the a hole filled with complete darkness which made you lose your balance for a second.

You now knew what surprises this room presented.

With care, taking your time and marking each solid plate with a stone you were moving forward, left and right. A few times, when it seemed like you could go just forward because you got lucky with last few plates, you almost got too cocky, and were close to losing yourself in one of those holes. It took you about half hour to get to the other side with this method of trial and error and finally you did it.

Without looking back, or taking a break, you continued through a brick tunnel, watching your every step on the way. You knew you were on timer. Your friends life depended on it.

Another fifty or so steps later you noticed a strange thing, like you were going down deeper into the cave, and the tunnel itself was shrinking. Finally all you could see in front of you was a solid wall. On the floor was only some sort of sticky substance, nothing else. You tried touching this thing with your torch but it didn't make any effect. Maybe you got lost?

You knew you didn't take the wrong way, there was no wrong way, this cave was straight forward, and not built like a labirynth. You sat on the ground and massaged your legs, relieving some tension from your tense muscles. It has been a long day and you were close to a breaking point. You were only wandering what would get to you first, exhaustion or despair.

"No, it can't end that way!" You shouted, the echo of your words hitting back your ears several times. You grew angry with all of this, you were completely pissed at your fate that put that man on your path. At your recklessness when you decided to enter his camp. At your irresponsible choice when you allowed three monster girls to follow you and possibly led them to their doom.

You were on your knees, had no idea what to do. In a short moment of weakness you raised your fist and punched the ground.

It hurt. Good. Pain restored your senses

You looked at your injured hand, blood dripping on the ground.

A cracking sound. You heard it before you could see it.

The floor was moving.