𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬: 𝐀𝐬𝐩𝐲𝐧 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧 ~ 𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐬

𝐄𝐥 𝐃𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐨

"Son of a bitch!" I gasped, surfacing from the water. Sarah emerged next, followed by John B, all of us coughing and trying to catch our breath.

"You guys okay?" Sarah asked, concern in her voice.

John B nodded. "Yeah."

"Good," I confirmed, pushing my drenched hair out of my eyes.

We found ourselves in a pool of water enclosed by cave walls.

"Okay. We made it," John B said, still catching his breath.

"What is this place?" Sarah questioned, scanning our surroundings.

John B pointed towards something behind us. "Guys, look. There's something over there."

Sarah and I followed his gaze, spotting an opening. "Okay, let's go," Sarah decided, swimming towards it.

It led to a narrow tunnel with water flowing through it. I shined my flashlight ahead before maneuvering through. Sarah and John B followed closely behind.

At the end of the tunnel, we reached a ledge that opened into a cavern. One by one, we cautiously stepped onto the steep rocks. Once situated, we began to venture deeper into the cavern.

"How deep does this cave go?" Sarah questioned, her voice echoing off the damp walls.

"Really fucking deep, apparently," I replied as I carefully navigated the rocky terrain. Just then, my foot caught on a rock, sending me slipping down a pile of loose stones.

"Ah, shit!" I hissed through clenched teeth, slowly pushing myself back up.

"You good, A?" Sarah asked with concern as she and John B hurried over to me.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I dismissed, wiping a trail of blood off my arm with the back of my hand. "We gotta keep going. It looks like there's an opening down there."

Just as we prepared to move forward, John B's flashlight flickered and went out. "And there goes my flashlight," He sighed in frustration.

"Mine broke when I fell," I added, glancing down at the shattered remnants of my own light.

"Well, at least we have mine," Sarah spoke, trying to inject some optimism into the situation. But her optimism was short-lived as her flashlight sputtered and went out as well. "Never mind," She sighed. Now there was nothing but darkness that enveloped us.

"Okay, flares," Sarah said, determination in her voice. "Right now."

I heard John B fumbling for the flares beside me. "I'm on it," He assured, his movements hurried in the blackness.

The sound of John B striking a flare echoed off the cavern walls. As the flare ignited, it cast a flickering red glow, illuminating our path forward.

"Twenty minutes per flare," John B stated, his voice echoing off the cavern walls.

"Three flares. Sixty minutes," I said.

"Thirty minutes in, thirty minutes out," Sarah chimed in.

"Let's go," John B declared, leading the way.