The Secret of Spellshadow Manor 5 by Bella Forrest (best biographies to read TXT) 📗

“Can you get it to work?” Ellabell asked.

“There is a release mechanism here, sticking out of the rock face next to this bar, but there appear to be some pieces missing. If we can find those pieces, it should make whatever is being held back—a bridge, perhaps—shoot out over to the other side of the pit,” Lintz explained, showing them a circular clockwork arm with a handle that evidently had to be turned once all the pieces were in place. “The only problem is, where might these pieces be?”

“It’s impossible to know how far down this pit goes, or if there even is a way down,” muttered Alex, sticking his head below the surface of the illusion to see the gaping void of the pit below. Although it was lit with the same glowing light as above, it eventually gave way to a darkness that prevented him from seeing the bottom. “Besides, it’s too steep down there—how are we going to find anything?”

“Wait, there’s something written here,” Aamir said, leaning precariously over the edge.

Alex stepped beside him. “What does it say?”

“‘Courage.’”

“What does that even mean?” Alex asked, realizing how much the vagueness of these words was going to annoy him, if it was going to be a recurring theme throughout the tasks.

“I imagine it means we have to have courage,” Ellabell replied, half teasing.

Lintz shook his head. “No, no, it is the first virtue of the great philosopher Orpheus—courage.”

The knowledge of its origin didn’t make the task any easier as the group set about trying to find some sort of clue as to where the missing pieces might be hiding. All there seemed to be was cold, damp rock and a sheer drop into unknown depths, hidden by the illusion of solid ground.

“There’s something over here,” Ellabell shouted, her voice reverberating around the cavernous room.

Alex wandered over to where she was sitting, her legs dangling over the edge. Lintz and Aamir followed, gathering around Ellabell to see what she had found.

“I think there’s a handhold down here, and I’m pretty sure there are more, disappearing down into the cavern,” she said eagerly, showing the deep groove she had discovered in the sheer rock face. “I think it might be possible to climb down. I’m going to go—I’ll see what’s down there.” She chewed her lip nervously, but there was a determination on her face that concerned Alex. The prospect of seeing her clamber down the side of a pit, into the unknown, wasn’t exactly a comforting one, given that they didn’t know what might be at the bottom. Descending into unfathomable depths wasn’t exactly his favorite thing either, but that didn’t mean he was about to let her go in his place.

“No, I’ll go,” said Alex firmly, resting his hand on Ellabell’s arm.

She turned, flashing him a look of annoyance. “It’s fine. I’m good at climbing,” she insisted. “I’ll go. I’ve been rock-climbing all my life.”

“No, it’s okay. I’ll go. Besides, it might be dark down there, and we don’t know what could be lurking. I’ll do it,” Alex replied. The only things he’d ever climbed were the beams of the railway bridge at home, and a motorized climbing wall at a friend’s birthday party when he was eleven. Still, he was happy to do it, if it meant Ellabell didn’t have to.

“Alex, I’ve got this, honestly,” Ellabell said sternly. “I’m not trying to be a hero—I’m being pragmatic. I can climb. I’m the best equipped for this.”

“Let me,” Alex implored, still unable to bear the idea of her disappearing down into the ravine, in case she never came out again.

Ellabell let out an exasperated sigh. “Fine, but if you get stuck or you slip, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

She got up, brushing off her legs in a gesture of irritation, and Alex sat down in the spot where she had been sitting. Taking a deep breath, he shuffled toward the ravine edge, before turning around and dropping his legs down, feeling around with his toes for the deep grooves he knew were there. His heart was thundering in his chest, knowing he could slip at any moment, but his grip remained steady, and the grooves seemed strong enough to hold him as he began the slow descent into the void below.

Gathering confidence, he climbed quickly downward, using the handholds. The light prevailed, guiding his way. However, as he got farther down, he discovered the years of grime and neglect had made the walls slippery, the rock covered in slick moisture and damp patches of slimy moss.

“Whoa!” he yelped, losing his grip with one hand as his body lurched backward. The other hand held fast, to his relief.

He took a moment, allowing his heart rate to slow, before continuing the descent into the abyss, the light fading with every step he took downward. It wasn’t the last time he would slip, and his voice rang out in surprise with each misplaced hand and foot. The slimy rocks were perilous, and it was all Alex could do not to think of himself being squashed flat after falling from such a height.

“How are you doing?” Ellabell shouted.

“I’m fine!” he lied, not wishing to alarm anyone, and definitely not wishing to prove her right. The lower he got, the slimier the walls became.

Suddenly, the handholds stopped, and so did the light, but he still hadn’t reached the bottom—well, as far as he could see, he hadn’t. The undetermined depth of the pit still yawning below him sent a tremor of fear through his body.

I’m going to have to jump, Alex realized, as the meaning of the word written on the golden bar began to make horrifying sense. He was going to have to make a leap of courage, and jump from the side of the rock into whatever lay underneath.

Here goes nothing, he thought, trying to steady his nerves as he prepared to push off. It wasn’t easy, forcing himself to make the jump, and yet