Andy’s Woodsy Adventure – Chapter 3

Q: Why did the can-crusher quit his job?

A: Because it was soda pressing!

Hey there people! It’s time for another entry in my ongoing adventure story! I hope all of you had a great Christmas and got lots of cool presents! Andrew was a Bah Humbug this year and didn’t buy me anything! Can you believe it?! Oh well, Mr. Beanpole is alright I guess because he gives me lots of gifts year round, which is kind of how it should be right? Anyway, here’s Chapter 3 of Andy’s Woodsy Adventure. And in case you might not have read the first two yet, here’s the links to each.

https://thetwelfthstep.com/2014/12/10/andys-woodsy-adventure-chapter-1/
https://thetwelfthstep.com/2014/12/18/andys-woodsy-adventure-chapter-2/

Andy’s Woodsy Adventure – Chapter 3

“AHHHHHHH!”

“AHHHHHHH!”

“AHHHHHHH!”

I screamed at the top of my lungs several times hoping that each might do something, anything, like possibly reopen the entrance to the cave. But nothing happened of course, except for me growing hoarse, and my heart racing quite a bit more. I became totally frozen in fear half expecting to suddenly feel some warm heavy breathing on my cheek.

Note to self. STOP WATCHING SCARY MOVIES IF I EVER MAKE IT OUT OF HERE ALIVE!!!

I frantically fumbled in my pocket for my small flashlight only to hear it crash to the floor due to my hands shaking so badly. Now I had no way of seeing anything other than the thick blackness around me. A few tears dripped from the corner of my eyes as I began to wonder whether I was going to perish in this dark prison. But then I remembered the numbers of the floor and how they lit up in purple each time I had stepped on one of them. Maybe if I just slowly moved in one direction, I’ll walk on one again making it re-light?

My left foot slowly crept forward in the direction of where I thought the room’s opening had once been. Then I moved my right foot. And then the left again. Surprisingly, a very dim purple glow abruptly appeared. I looked down to see it was the number “8” relit again, which helped me to breathe a small sigh of relief.

While there was still a considerable amount of blackness surrounding me, I was at least able to see my small flashlight lying nearby. I quickly grabbed it and turned it on, grateful not to see any weird creatures staring and snarling at me anywhere in the large cavernous room. After taking a few deep breaths hoping it would stop my heart from feeling like it was going to jump out of my chest, I pondered what to do next.

Somehow these numbers on the floor are a puzzle. But how do they work?

Ugh! I never really liked puzzles much. They always hurt my brain. I fondly remembered one time taking an old Rubik’s cube that I had grown tired of trying to solve and peeling its colors off just so that I could put them all back together on each respective side. A smile briefly lit up my face with the thought, and with it thankfully came a spark of inspiration.

Scurrying over to the closest number nearby, I illuminated a “16” after placing my foot upon it. I rapidly then jumped onto the “19” again, which was still only a few feet away as well. Now both were lit up causing the room to mostly be visible again in that bright purplish color. This time I didn’t extinguish the light from my flashlight though as I stepped on the “77” once more. One by one the lights of each of the numbers disappeared again descending the room back into the same darkness as before with the exception of the small light still emitting from my flashlight.

“8-16-1977” I said aloud. Like anyone was really listening to me…

“1-8-1977” I repeated the other number combination aloud as well hoping desperately to find some type of connection. I got they were dates. But what kind of dates?

“I REALLY HATE PUZZLES!” I screamed at the top of my lungs hoping the cave would understand my frustration and help me out.

Dates. Dates. Famous dates? Dates of…UGH! I don’t know!!!

“WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE A STUPID PUZZLE?” I shouted angrily at the cave. I half expected it was going to talk back to me. It didn’t of course.

“Birth dates???” I mumbled to myself.

Hmmm…Birth dates…I moved my flashlight around the room and thought about my own birthdate. It couldn’t be that easy…could it?

Looking around I saw the “6” not too far away and stepped on it watching as it began to emit that eerie purple glow. The “11” was on the other side of the room though, which forced me to tiptoe around a bunch of other numbers to get there. After doing the same on my way back to get to the “19” again, I observed how most of the cave and myself were basking once again in that almost soothing purplish color.

But where is the number 72???

I panicked for a moment and then I saw it…tucked away almost all by itself in one of the far corners of my current prison. After reaching it in somewhat of a weird movement to get there without touching any other number, I slowly placed my right foot down upon it, causing it to burn purple like the rest of the numbers I had already pressed.

At first I thought nothing was going to happen other than them all going out again, but then…

I began to hear separate noises from two different locations around me. Both were similar to each other and similar to something I had heard not too long before. It actually sounded as if large rocks were grinding and crunching against each other. Relief started to set in as I watched the granite door reopen to the cave, emitting a very dim light from way above. And then I saw it…the source of the other similar noise.

A clear crystal pedestal, about the height of one you would see in a church for baptism, slowly emerged from the floor, directly in the middle of the cavern. And directly in its center was a much tinier crystal pedestal several inches high and wide. At its top lay a brightly glowing purple crystal. It was slightly larger than the size of a golf ball and shaped with many sides positioned in weird angles.

As the pedestal came to a complete rest at its full height, the enchanting radiance of the purple crystal beckoned me to come closer…

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson