The Descent

It seemed like a no-brainer. Her visa application to Namibia was finally approved, she had a reliable guide to get her to the abandoned diamond mine in the heart of the Namib desert, and the forecast told her that the weather would be perfect for the expedition. The only thing that caused her any hesitation was travelling alone. The two people Sierra trusted most in the world were nowhere near being ready to go with her, as Declan had already agreed to an expedition to the South Sandwich Islands and Abadu needed a visa to get into Namibia. This wasn’t quite enough to stop her from doing what she had already set out to do.

“Sierra, are you sure you want to do this?” The familiar voice said to her through her phone’s speaker. It had been a while since she last spoke to him, and after their last adventure together she thought she’d never hear from him again.

“I don’t really have a choice, Adu,” she replied. “This is it; I can feel it. Everything I’ve done in the last decade has been for this,” She couldn’t possibly stop now, the idea of finally reaching what she set out for all these years eclipsed any doubt she had. “Besides, I’m already here. I’m not about to hop on a plane back when I can practically smell what I’ve been looking for.”

“It all just seems a little too perfect…” Abadu couldn’t quite shake the feeling that something wasn’t quite right. He wasn’t sure why he felt like he had to talk her out of this but he still made the attempt. “Why can’t you wait until my visa gets approved, or wait for Declan to get back from his expedition. I don’t see why you have to do this alone.”

“Adu, listen. This is my one opportunity, if I don’t do this now then-” The phone beeped, signaling that someone was on the other line. “Look I gotta go. My ride’s here. I’ll call you tonight when I get back.”

The ride she arranged with a local guide through the Namib desert was surprisingly uneventful. The man didn’t speak much English but he was pleasant enough and the sound of the decrepit Jeep rattling through the rocky landscape filled the silence. Once they reached the impassable ridge, she paid the man half of what they agreed on, the other half to be paid once he returns to take her home later that evening.

The worn-out map revealed that she was only 1.4 miles south of the abandoned diamond mine, and the predetermined route she had plotted a week ago seemed straightforward enough. She hoped to reach her destination before 8am, as that would give her ample time to explore before heading back to the pick-up location later that day. The journey wasn’t as easy as she thought it would be, nothing can really prepare you for the sweltering heat and barren landscape of the Namib desert. It made the hour she spent walking seem like a lot longer, each dune reminded her of all the other dunes she passed.

Sierra stood at the top of the largest dune she had climbed yet, and in the distance, she spotted the mine. She couldn’t help but feel giddy at the idea that she was finally here, the point in which her dreams become reality. When she reached the opening of the abandoned mine, she hesitated before going inside. Part of her felt that she wasn’t ready, while another part of her told her that it was pointless and she would never find the answers she was looking for. She pushed those feelings aside and reminded herself that this was her future, there’s no way she could back down now.

Before Sierra went inside, she chewed on a protein bar and looked around for some kind of indication of what she would find once she goes in. No luck. It felt a bit ridiculous to be nervous, but she couldn’t escape the feeling. A mouse scurried out of an empty barrel that had been tipped over a long time ago. Seemingly out of nowhere, a flash of wings appeared in front of Sierra, swooping down elegantly and picking the mouse off the ground with a shrill squeak. It landed on the top of the mine shaft entrance and devoured its prey.

“An owl?” she said to herself. How unusual to see a barn owl during the day, especially in the hot sun. She assumed it was probably desperate for food in this desolate environment, or perhaps creatures just act differently in a place so devoid of human life. A quiet part of her subconscious remembered that owls were omens, and seeing one during the day meant enlightenment or, more nefariously, it could mean great evil.

The barn owl’s eyes seemed to follow Sierra as she stepped foot into the mine. The air felt 10 degrees colder in the darkness of the abandoned mine, and the echoes of the sound she made entering the shaft seemed to fill every corner and cranny in the rock walls. She pulled a glowstick out of her backpack and cracked it, revealing the details in the shadows. Cautious steps were made at first, then more confident ones once it had been decided that the mineshaft wasn’t about to cave in underneath her. You never know with these abandoned diamond mines.

The eerie whistling of wind against the entrance was the only sound she could pinpoint; the rest of the cavern was as silent as a cemetery. As Sierra travelled deeper the noises from outside seemed to go away and left her with the feeling that she was on an entirely different planet. Her fingers caressed the walls as she walked on, glowstick illuminating her every move.

Sierra arrived at an impasse, the floor had given away, leaving a deep pit that she couldn’t even see the bottom of. She tossed down her glowstick and waited for it to hit the ground, 2 seconds go by, then 3, now the light from the glowstick isn’t visible. Luckily, she came prepared for this, and pulled out her climbing harness, rope and another glowstick. She ties the rope off to a sturdy looking piece of wood support frame and leans over the edge of the harrowing pit. That’s when she hears it. The sound of footsteps in the distance, echoing through the vast chambers of the cavern that’s been long untouched by human life.

“Hello?” She calls out. “Who-” she begins to say but stops herself. What if it’s marauders? They could be searching for overlooked diamonds or other treasures. But how would they have gotten here? It doesn’t seem likely that others would have come all the way here without leaving any signs on the surface. Or maybe it’s the remoteness of the location that’s allowing her mind to run wild, making her think she’s hearing things that aren’t there. Sierra shook her head and refocused on what she was doing. She climbs down the edge and begins to carefully repel into the abyss.

About 40 ft down, the darkness surrounds her, and she can’t see the edge at the top of the pit anymore. She hears the sound of pebbles tumbling to the ground as she creeps down the wall, this isn’t the first time she’s had to put her climbing skills to the test and hopefully it won’t be her last. That’s when she hears it, again, footsteps. Closer this time, they sound like they are right where she once was, overlooking the same deep pit. Her breath hitched as she tried to listen to whoever was up there. Does she continue on? Or does she climb back up and confront whoever is up there? She has no way of knowing if they have ill-intent and she’s not keen on finding out. Pausing for a moment, she listens to the faint steps above her.

Instincts tell her to run as fast as she can. So, Sierra does the next best thing and starts repelling rapidly. Whoever is up at the top notices, and she can hear their footsteps quicken, then frantic sounds of knife through rope. She’s going as fast as she can but it doesn’t seem quite fast enough as her rope is being tugged from above. All at once, the rope snaps sending her careening to the bottom.

Eyes blinking open, she tries to breathe but her lungs don’t seem to work. She lays there at the bottom of the abyss in a cloud of dust trying desperately not to panic. The dirt stings her eyes and she rubs at them with the back of her hand. She regains the ability to breathe just as quickly as she lost it. Sierra spots the glowstick she threw down earlier only a meter away from her, right next to what appears to be a bone. Slowly, she looks around and takes in her surroundings. Once the dust clears, the cavern in front of her reveals itself, and so does the shrine created from thousands of yellowed bones (much like the one next to her glowstick).

With a sharp breath, Sierra crawls back to the wall she repelled down in shock when she spots him. A man, if you can even call it that, sits with his eyes closed facing the shrine. The sickly green light of the glowstick illuminates one side of him, while the other side is lit by a solitary candle that appears to have been burning for quite some time. The corpse-like man has leathery skin that’s missing in some spots, revealing bone underneath. The hair on his head is matted and dirty. The candle in his hand has nearly reached the bottom, and has covered his open palm in wax drippings. Whoever he is, he’s been here a long time. Sierra stands up, as quietly as she can while not taking her eyes off of it, not even for a second. The pattern on the bottom of her shoe makes marks in the dirt as she walks around the edge of the cavern to get a better look at the man. Out of the corner of her eye she sees the shrine he appears to be worshipping at, words in a language she doesn’t understand are carved into what looks like a skull at the foot of it all. Still focused on the unknown being in front of her, she comes to a stop about an arms length away from it, and reaches to touch its shoulder. Dread creeps in when she notices its head slowly turning away from the shrine, to face her. As his face lands in her direction, his eyes open.