Written by Yumna (Year 7)
I was tumbling, down into a pit of darkness, and then I knew no more.
I awoke, stretching my stiff and sore joints. The heat around me was suffocating and engulfed my body in waves of fire. How long had I been out for? My older sister, Lana, was lying down too and I suddenly remembered what had happened. I had slipped and then fallen down a deep hole whilst on a forest walk. My sister Lana had tried to catch me but instead had been pulled down with me. I lifted my head to look at my surroundings. I gasped. We were in a desert.
The desert was vast; enveloped with golden sand, painted red by the sun’s rays. Towering dunes, whose peaks seemed to brush the sky, gave the only shade. There was nothing else around. I slowly stood up and walked a few steps wearily. The blinding beams of the sun also carried waves of heat on our fragile bodies.
‘What are we going to do now?’ I queried. ‘How are we going to get home?’
‘We will have to explore – the most important thing is to try to find some water’ replied Lana.
We both realised that we did not have much time before the heat and thirst became too much. We started to walk in the direction of a giant sand dune.
By the time we reached the dune, I felt I had walked many miles and my legs were aching. My lips were dry and chapped since Lana had nothing to soothe our parched throats. I stumbled back on the surface of the dune behind me, exhausted. Suddenly, the dune shuddered, sending sand particles flying through the air, bringing sharp pain into my eyes. I looked around in surprise. On the dune was a glowing blue circle, pulsing gently.
‘It is some type of magic,’ Lana said quietly, ‘This place is bewitched’.
I stepped forward.
‘No Lily, don’t go near that circle!’ Lana cried.
But I didn’t listen and my legs seemed to have a will of their own. I came close to the circle and I could hear a whisper coming from inside, like the withered tongue of the ancient language. It seemed like the voice was boring into my soul. My finger was moving without me telling it to. I pressed the circle.
‘No!’ exclaimed Lana. Her voice faded away and suddenly I felt that I was pushed through a slim channel, squeezed into a long string. The pressure compressed my body and it was like I was being cut into millions of tiny pieces. The pain! My body felt on fire, and it was like I was being torn apart. I could feel a compelling wind rushing around me and it felt like time had fast-forwarded. After what seemed a long time, things slowly came back to focus. I was in the middle of a dark, small room.
‘Lana!’ I cried.
There was no answer. I sank to my knees. What had I done? I felt upset and exhausted. I curled up on the stone-cold floor and passed into unconsciousness.
When I awoke, for a moment I thought I was back home but I soon remembered what happened. In one corner of the room was a smooth marble tablet, engraved with strange characters. I traced it with my finger and it glowed blue, suddenly revealing words I could understand:
‘Welcome to the Egyptian Labyrinth.’
I gasped. I felt terrified, completely lost, and all alone. I wished Lana was with me. The whisper was back now, drawing me close to the wall. I pulled back just in time before I hit it. Backing away, I realised that this whisper meant me harm. It was dangerous.
I noticed a narrow crack in the wall and by moving a table out the way, I realised it was a hidden door. Pushing the door open, I entered a dark hallway. It was frightfully cold and I was shivering, both from the lack of warmth and my terror. Every time I tentatively stepped forward, a noise louder than my footstep echoed mysteriously. I shone my torch on the wall. It was tiled and blanketed in cobwebs, with more strange figures etched on to it. I carried on through the hallway until I came to another door that was ajar. I stopped and listened. I could hear more noises, like a deep thronging and roaring. I was so scared and I felt myself shaking as I entered the room.
All I could see was a sea of blackness, but I felt the air go a notch colder. Stumbling, I slipped and my foot crashed into something. I looked down with my torch. I had tripped on something sleek and shiny. It was a sword. I stared at the sword, fascinated. It was long and intricate designs were etched on to it. I carefully picked up the sword and somehow felt more strength coming into my body and I felt less cold than before. Cautiously, I began to edge forward. A faint hum now filled the room. I gulped. I could sense something dark and evil around. I took one more step and I felt myself plummeting down with the sword in my hand before I could scream….