The Stone of Idris: Confronting Eldrick.

The world was slowly bouncing up and down. It took me a while to figure out I was riding behind the eyes of someone walking.

‘If the progression holds, I must only be inside Eldrick’s head,’ I thought. ‘I wonder if he is aware of me.’

Our shadow was long before us as we walked. We were carrying a rifle.

I moved a little further back in Eldrick’s head. I didn’t want him to become aware of a stranger travelling inside his mind.

“¿Quien va alla? (Who goes there?).” Came a call from behind some rocks.

“It’s just me, you idiot,” Eldrick said. “Your Spanish is a disgrace. We’ve been in this damned country for over a year, and that’s the best you can do? ¿Quien va alla? What the fuck is that? Who goes there? Pfft.”

“Eldrick? Where the hell have you been?” The soldier said, stepping out from behind the rocks.

I wasn’t sure, but I thought this would have to be the American – Spanish war of 1898. Only a short fight after the USS Maine was scuttled in Havana Harbour during The Cuban War of Independence.

“Looking for a way through the mountains and back to our lines. What have you been doing, Stanley? Pulling your dick?” We replied.

“There’s a farmhouse just over the ridge back there. Three sisters who are very accommodating to American soldiers, none of them more than 25 years of age. No need to have a pull.” Stanley smugly informed us.

“Your hands look sweaty, Stanley,” Eldrick told him. “They haven’t given you the pox, have they?”

“Fuck you, Eldrick,” Stanley snarled. “You didn’t give any of the signals. I could have shot you. No one would have cared”

“And I could have cut your damned throat the night you screwed up and got us lost,” Eldrick countered.

Going pale, Stanley asked, “Why are you even here, Eldrick? You couldn’t give a damn about Cuban independence.”

“Plenty of opportunities in war,” Eldrick answered. “Plenty of women grateful to a strong man for saving them from being raped by the enemy.”

“You save them from being raped so you can rape them yourself,” Stanley muttered.

Eldrick smiled evilly, “But I’m not the enemy. There’s a difference.”

“Did you find a way out?” Stanley asked.

“Every pass is guarded, every road blockaded. I did find a series of caves that might lead out. There’s a small stream running along them. It doesn’t seem to pool anywhere, so maybe we can get through to Santiago de Cuba.” Eldrick said.

“I fucking hate caves,” Stanley whined.

“Stay here with your pox-ridden hags then,” Eldrick said, uncaring. “I’m loading up with food and ammunition and having a go at getting back first light tomorrow.

“Now, where is this farmhouse? I need a shit and a bath. Maybe I’ll have a root if those hags aren’t too pox-ridden.”

I muttered in my bed in California, then rolled over to a more comfortable position. When I dozed back off, time had shifted where Eldrick was. I became Eldrick.

It was pitch black, and I couldn’t even see my hand in front of my face. The sound of running water was loud. I was moving through a rock cave. The weight of the mountain above me seemed oppressive.

What I felt was determination. I’d had enough of this island. I wanted to go back to the States.

We came to a dead end. I lit my last torch. I could see the water pooling in its flickering light, but it hadn’t backed up very much. It was escaping somewhere, but where?

Taking my backpack and boots off, I stripped to my T-shirt and boxer shorts. I was going to see if I could find an egress, a way through. Maybe there was only a narrow wall between where I was and the next cave.

Leaving the torch flickering beside the pool, I dove in. I hoped the torch’s light would be visible to guide me back to the edge if I couldn’t find a way out.

I worked my way forward and could feel the insistent pull of flowing water. It was definitely going somewhere. I followed it a bit further. Before I could react, I was sucked into a vortex and wrenched into the maw of a tunnel barely wide enough to fit my shoulders.