Zircon took the lead. Behind him, Rick put his own flashlight away and held his rifle ready for use. Scotty, too, was ready. Chahda, crowding Rick's steps, had the big light ready to turn on.
Zircon's beam picked out rocky walls that rose for a hundred feet. He picked his way over tumbled rock, the others following. The way took a sharp turn, then came to a dead end.
"Nothing here." Zircon's light covered the area a foot at a time. There was no opening.
"Maybe we missed it," Scotty suggested. "Let's go back, and examine everything on the way."
They reversed their steps. All of them used lights now, and the combined beams illumined the steep walls brightly.
"Take a look at that," Scotty said suddenly. His light was on a pinnacle of rock that appeared to have some sort of opening behind it. He moved in, cautiously, the others close behind. There was an opening, sure enough, where the pinnacle leaned against the main rock wall. There was just barely room to squeeze through. Zircon almost got stuck.
Once past the opening, a new trail seemed to open up. And at its end an aperture in the rock wall loomed black before them.
"That must be it," Rick said, and his voice echoed hollowly.
Scotty moved ahead to the entrance and flashed his light inside. The beam was lost in the blackness beyond. "It's big," he said, and the words rolled around in the emptiness.
Rick felt a shiver run down his back. "What are we waiting for?" he demanded roughly. "Let's get inside."