The Legend of Hannah: The Pirate Caves - Part Two

     Fresh water, a coil of rope, a few tools, and a watertight box that contained flint and steel. She went through the items in her head as she gathered the items she would need.

     Once she had every thing she needed, she took the map out of her pocket and let it guide her to the caves. All though, it was near the Academy, Hannah still had difficulty finding it.

     She went over the map again and again, trying to find out where the caves where. Then as she passed the Academy for the third time, something clicked in her mind.

     The water! she thought, anxiously. She dove into the water and swam down, as far as the water would take her.

     She could feel the sand brushing against her face, as she drew nearer to the bottom. Then, once she felt the wet sand on her hands, she let she water push her bushy tail down and she stood up slowly, digging her tail into the sand, not letting herself be drawn to the surface again.

     The murky water made it hard to see where Hannah was going, but she gritted her teeth and trailed forward.

     Hannah's breath was soon to go out, but as she was about to push up from the sand, her foot hit a hard board. She swished her head down to see a few boards stacked together into a door.

     She grabbed one piece of the wood and started to pull, but it was shut tight into the sand. So she shoved one side of her rope into a crack in the wood and took it out another then slowly wrenched it open.

     The wood scattered everywhere, some of it floating to the top. And she hurriedly swam down the hole.

     The small hole started to curve after a few seconds and then went strait. But as Hannah held her breath, she knew she couldn't any longer. She looked around the dark water and saw a small air bubble that had been trapped in a small gap in the sand.

     She got up to it just in time and took a deep breath.

     She shook her head, free of water and pulled out the wet map that had been in her pocket. The book was still in her hand, though she thought it would be no use to her anymore, now that it was soaking wet.

     The map was only of Krawk Island, not of the cave, so she shoved it in the front of the book and paged through the wet book until she reached the part where she had found the first map.

     "None of these are going to help me," she sighed. "Their only of-" Then as she skimmed through the book, she saw a map in the chapter of 'Pirate Caves'. She looked over the map and realized it was a map of the Pirate Caves, even if half of it was torn off.

     She tore the page out and put it in her pocket. Then she took another breath of the muggy air and dove back under the water.

     The thin hole started to slant upwards after a few minutes, so Hannah could walk up the sand. The book in her hand made it hard to swim, also, so she was relieved to walk.

     The water started to get colder as Hannah walked up the sand, but she could also tell she was getting closer to air. And shortly after it got to the cold point, her ears hit the air.

     The ground shifted back to a straight tunnel once she got out of the water. She set the book down on the wet sand and rung out her skirt, annoyed with it hanging at her ankles.

     It was dark and almost impossible to see, but there were unlit torches surrounding each side of the narrow tunnel, so Hannah knew she was in the Pirate Caves.

     She took out her flint and steel and made a small fire on the torch that was nearest to her.

     She pulled the torch out of the rope that held it together with the others. She picked up the book and held the torch close to it, paging through it, trying to find out where to go.

     Then she came across the chapter, 'Treasures', and knew what her goal was. She read through it a little then came to a stop, as she came upon another chapter.

     "'Pirates of the Caves,'" she read, while she started to walk. "'The Caves have been a mystery for years and no one even knows if they exist anymore, or if pirates even still walk the ruggad tunnels of the caves.'" She paused, and grinned, at what she had found, when others didn't know if they existed! "'Though, the Pirates of the Black Dawn are the pirates sure to be living there, unlike any others who-'"

     Just then, an arrow came hurtling towards her, cut her hand and making her drop the book and the torch.

     She didn't mind the pain much, but she couldn't see the book anymore, or the torch. So she moved to her right and put her hand on the muddy wall, and then slowly moving forward.

     The tunnel started to get smaller and smaller as she crept through it. Then after a long time of trailing through mud and water, she saw a small patch of light that meant she was getting somewhere.

     She moved closer to the opening, in the tiny tunnel. Her hands and skirt were wet and covered in mud, though she focused, only on her goal.

     She climbed out of the tunnel and glanced around, remembering the book. So far so good, she thought.

     Then she heard voices coming around the corner of the Caves, walking in the wet mud-Pirates!

     She ducked back into the small tunnel and cornered herself in the shadows. Their crude voices grew closer. She could see them; their laughter and their voices as they walked by the tunnel.

     But even when they turned a corner and were out of sight, Hannah still clung to the shadows, still hearing their voices. But soon they were only echoes and she darted out of the tunnel and headed the way the pirates came.

     Her wet skirt dangled around her ankles as she ran. She stopped at an old latter that led to another level. She climbed up it and stopped in her tracks, amazed at what she was starring at.

     Water rushed over a sliding ridge and fell down into the dark caves. She got on her knees and peered over the edge, wondering where it might lead. Yet the water went to far down and the darkness swallowed it up.

     She took out her map and looked at the directions. 'Sliding Waters', it said in bold ink. All though half of her map was gone, the part that it looked like she needed was there.

     "This is the place," She whispered, gazing down the ridge, once more. She shrugged then grinned and shoved the map back into her pocket. "You only live once," She sighed, then jumped.

     She slid down the cold water of the underground waterfall and passed a moment of darkness, then the light hit Hannah's eyes again. Then the water rushed over her head and she hit ice cold.

     She squeezed her eyes tight and held her breath, not knowing where this would lead her-however, she did see something in the distance before being swept under the water.

     She lunged to the surface and took a few deep breaths, the air being knocked out of her. Then she opened her eyes and saw what she had been looking for.

     There it is! she mouthed. At the bottom of the lake, a tightly locked chest was securely chained to the ground, bearing the seal of the Pirates of the Black Dawn.

     Hannah dove back down into the clear water and took her tools out and worked on breaking the padlock. Her grandfather had taught her how, so it only took a few moments.

     As the lid flew open, air bubbles and golden coins floated to the surface of the water and she grabbed a few, knowing you could never have too much gold.

     Then the real prize caught her sight. She gazed at it for a long time, before taking it into her hands. She reached out to grab it with both hands, still admiring it's beauty.

     The jewel in her hands was an emerald green and it was almost as big as her head. Shaking the thought from her head, she kicked against the water and swam up to the surface.

     When she broke the surface, Hannah took a deep gasp of the cold cavern air, and held the jewel up to her eyes. The dim light didn't make the gem shine as she expected, but she knew what it would look like, once it was brought into sunlight.

     "How many men have lost you?" she asked, as she held the gem up to as much light as she could get. "And how many a man has found you, only to lose you again?" she said, then smiled. "Well, I'm not going to lose you." She wrapped the jewel in some silk that she had. "I promise."

To be continued...