It was dark, musty, and cramped within the tunnels, the floors were smoothed and had two parallel grooves etched in them. Duncan used these as guides to walk down the path. His lantern was held out in front of him, the light flickering off the heavily mined walls making the shadows twist and squirm as if they were alive. Duncan stopped after looking around for a moment, shifting his weight he slung the backpack around in front of him. Digging in it for a moment he pulled free a piece of folded parchment, and an old beat up ink pin. Unfolding the parchment it held a crudely drawn map of the mines. Taking the pen Duncan began to scribble on an unfinished path and as he did, the silence of the tunnel grew. Only the sound of Duncan’s breath and the flickering flame filled the area.

  So this tunnel goes farther than the others. I wonder why?

  After several minutes Duncan folded the parchment and placed it and the pen back into his backpack. Slinging it onto his back, he picked up the lantern and continued forward. As he walked along, could feel the temperature rising and pausing for a second. As he glanced behind him, his green eyes failed to pierce the inky black on the perimeter of his lantern. Though only silence greeted him, his flesh was prickled with goosebumps. Turning back, he continued on and something clicked into place for him. Each step he took, three more echoed out behind him. Coming to a dead stop, he looked over his shoulder and the sound of footsteps continued on. Duncan felt his heart rate spike and he quickly licked his thumb and pointer finger, pinching the flame in his lantern out. Within a second of the light vanishing, Duncan crouched low and moved to a side wall. His hand ran over the jagged uneven surface until it hit a large wood beam. A small sigh escaped his lips as he shifted his body and pressed himself against the wall and the beam. Duncan focused on his rapid breathing, fighting to keep it under control as his heart pounded against his chest. With eyes clenched shut, a small prayer echoed in his mind and he fought to ignore the steps getting closer. Focusing on his breathing and fighting the dread and fear that was clawing at his mind, a voice screamed for him to run, but he remained still.

  What felt like an eon passed, or atleast what seemed like one to Duncan. Struggling to contain his breath he didn't realize he was holding, he exhaled. His heart began to race as his mind played scenes in his mind of thunderous footsteps rushing towards him. Yet, after a moment nothing came, and he quickly realized they were no longer near him. Blinking his eyes, he tried to focus in the inky black, but with no light at all it was impossible.

  Reaching out with his hand, he felt the uneven wall and used it as a guide and walked back towards the way he came. Duncan thought to use his lantern once again, but was scared they could be lurking around one of the few bends coming up. If they saw his light before he saw them, it would mean his capture for sure. Shaking his head and clearing the worrying thoughts, he pressed on. The eerie silence was palpable and the humid hot air was suffocating. Duncan began to count in sets of ten, after doing this for five sets he stopped. Crouching down, he traced his hand against the wall until he found a hole that ran along the floor. The hole wasn't very tall, nor wide, it could barely fit a fully grown man. Duncan shifted and removed his backpack. As he leaned forward into the hole, he dropped the bag and his lantern. Both landed with a small soft thud and Duncan gazed around in the darkness, scanning to see if any light was present. Once satisfied, he turned and slid his feet into the hole. Shimmying back into the hole, he bent once he was waist deep. His feet finding purchase once he was three fourths the way in, and with a final twist and duck down, Duncan was in a small cubby on the wall's side. He grabbed his bag but the area was too small for him to wear it, so he held it in front of him.

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  Crawling on his hand and knees while holding his bag, he moved along a narrow path. Several minutes later he came into another pocket, this one a little bigger. Duncan shifted and sat off to the side of the entrance; he began digging into his bag and pulled free some matches and relit the lantern. Now having light to see, Duncan sighed and placed the lantern in the center of the room. Off to the far side was a sleeping bag and small propane cooker. Next to that was a small box of MREs, it was more than half empty and several empty packages were thrown into a small corner.

  “That tunnel was longer than the others.” Duncan said, pulling the hand drawn map free from his bag “But, it wasn’t there three days ago. I checked, it was a dead end, but why has it changed?” Duncan asked, chewing on the end of his pen.

  As Duncan thought and edited his map with strange symbols, a soft breeze blew through. The sudden gust of air not only surprised him but made his lantern flicker, causing strange shadows to appear and dance around the tiny room. Duncan moved over near the sleeping bag, reaching behind it he pulled a thick cloth blanket free. He then quickly pinned it up over the entrance using a few rocks to pin it securely in place. He ate an MRE before crawling into his sleeping bag, moving the lantern closer as he gazed at the covered door until a fitful sleep took him.

  Duncan knew he was dreaming, or what he assumed was a dream. It felt real but it was like a hazy filtered image of the world. He didn't know where he was, but he had been here before, many times actually. This strange place, shrouded in a pale blue light with rocks and crystals of amber gold above head. A sprawling city of sleeping ruins stretched out before him, and the smell of damp earth filled his lungs. Duncan walked the winding streets, a few voices echoed out from the distance. Duncan didn’t know why he kept coming here, but he knew it was where he was meant to be.

  Now standing in a huge plaza, a large fountain of black stone rested in its center. A thick maroon liquid flowed down its features and into the pool at its base. Walking up to the fountain, Duncan began to feel nauseous and dizzy. A strange voice seeped into his mind, filling it with pain as it spoke. Falling to his knees, he began to weep as he clawed at his head. A scream tears forth from a great distance and Duncan violently awakes from his dream, sweat drenching him as he breathed heavily.

  “What is that place…” Duncan asked

  He slowly calmed down and steadied his breath before looking at the entrance. Once he did, his blood ran cold and his heart almost burst from his chest.

  “Where is my blanket?!” Duncan said, gazing at a now open and empty entrance.