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The Night of Fire & Light (Part 5) |
| Written by Dave Bottoms | |
| Tuesday, 01 April 2008 | |
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Share it:      Soon they were deep within the trees, and both had to push branches from one side then the other to clear the way. Above them their view of the sky was now obscured by an overlay of branches that hung menacingly like a huge spider's web; and a new darkness: blacker, denser, enveloped them, gently squeezing cold fear from every pore. Without lantern and flashlight, they'd have surely gotten lost in the woods that now surrounded them. An owl spoke up from a distant black limb, causing Barney to jump with fright. "What was that?" "It's just an old owl, Barn'." "Well I don't like the sound of it." "Don't worry," Andy said, "he don't like the sound of you either." Up ahead through the trees, they could see the faintest illumination reflected off the higher branches. The ridge was not far now, not far at all. Andy broke through the trees first, finding himself overlooking a steep slope into a wide valley. The pines ended on the ridge, replaced by tall grass that raked back and forth in the cool autumn breeze. Above, the sky opened again revealing a million points of light. I bet this would be a beautiful spot on a Sunday afternoon, Andy thought. I'll have to remember to tell Helen about it when we get back. Andy scanned the valley below, and it didn't take any time to find what they'd come for. "There it is, Barney," he said, pointing to it with his flashlight. Barney looked on in amazement, his jaw slack. Out there, in the middle of the valley, was a large hole in the ground. Coming out of the center of that hole was a pale orange glow, just bright enough to light the sides of earth that had been gouged out by the impact of the meteor. From where they stood, the crater appeared to be about as large as a house, and then some. Andy started down the slope, flashlight in hand. "Be careful, you'll break a leg if you take a bad fall," he warned. "Don't you worry about me, I'm wiry," said Barney, while hoisting his gun belt higher up on his slim waist. "We Fife's, that's what we're known for, being wiry." Andy shook his head and smiled; Barney didn't see him. They waded through the tall grass among the cries of a million crickets. Barney took out his gun once, then returned it to its holster. A few steps later he took it out again and checked that he'd put in his bullet. He had. Andy played with the jailhouse keys in his left pocket, turning them over and over in his hand. Once, he looked back to see if Barney was okay, and Barney acknowledged him with a nod. They were both afraid, but neither said a word as they walked. Finally, they reached the outer edge of the crater. The earth around the perimeter was jagged and broken; scorched black. Large clumps of dirt and rock lay scattered about, thrown by the energy of a mammoth impact. Barney stood with his lantern at his side, thinking he wished he had a bigger lantern, while Andy peered over with his flashlight pointed into the pit. "Looks pretty deep; an easy thirty feet, I'd say. You can't even see the bottom where that light's coming from," Andy said. "Yeah, it's pretty deep all right. Want us to go back and get help?" Andy didn't say anything for a while. He stood there looking over the edge, wondering what was making that orange pulsing glow. He had seen some strange things in his time: a two-headed calf born from a cow that had grazed a field under a set of electrical lines; a man who got up and phoned the Jailhouse after being shot accidentally through the eye by his five-year-old daughter; a wolf in the woods near Little Rock Cavern that was running around with a human arm in its mouth, an arm that to this day still lay unclaimed at the City Morgue in Mt.Pilot, but this was a first. Should've brought the camera, Andy thought. Have to think to bring it tomorrow. Then he turned to Barney, his brow creased in curiosity, "Listen. You hear that?" Barney tensed up, the lantern shaking in his hand. "Hear what? There's nothing to hear. Don't be playing tricks on me now, Andy, not tonight of all nights!" "No, listen! Just pipe down a minute and listen." Together they watched the soft glow and listened. The dim light lapped the sides of the crater like waves rolling up on a sandy beach. The tinny noises rippled quietly, floating up to their ears. Almost calling to us, Barney thought for a moment before dismissing it with a shiver. Finally Barney turned to Andy and said, "That sounds like voices down there. And some kind of strange music too. "He turned around to see if maybe the noises were coming from somewhere outside the hole, but they weren't. Below them, hauntingly eerie sounds, like the highest keys of a piano far out of tune, rose from the depths in hollow cries. "I don't like this, Andy, not one bit." "Me neither, Barn', but it's our job. I think we better get down there and check it out. Maybe someone's hurt," he said solemnly. "But that's all the more reason to go back to town and get some backup. We might need Morgan to get his ambulance out here," Barney pleaded. "Out where? We're in the middle of nowhere, Barn'. Morgan can't get past Jed's front yard." "Yeah...Well I still say a little extra help wouldn't hurt. Who knows what's down there." Andy looked around. Even with all the stars overhead it seemed mighty dark out tonight. Darker than he could remember it. No moon, that's the problem. This couldn't have happened when we had a full moon to brighten things up some, now could it. He ran his hand through his thick hair, thinking that maybe Barney was right, maybe they should head back and get help. But Mayberry was his town. He'd been Sheriff too long to let a little crater scare him off, and besides, someone could really be hurt down there. Didn't he owe it to them to get them out as quick as possible. He thought of Opey, his boy, and how afraid he would be if he was trapped in this pit. Copyright 2008 Dave Bottoms |
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