William and Betty prepared to make their way into the Sacred Cavern of Jade alone. Priest Quisac and Teshna decided to wait at the entrance, atop the vine-covered hill. The Serpent Priest thought it best to stay outside with bloodstone; he worried that the energy in the cavern could weaken the stone further. Teshna also wanted to remain behind, telling William that he should see Betty off on his own… or at least that was her excuse for not going in. The uneasy look in her eyes indicated that those caves gave her the creeps.
After lowering the alien dive gear down the steep entrance with the guide rope, William paused in a moment of doubt, wondering if sending Betty back was the right decision.
“Is something wrong?” Betty asked William, noticing his look of concern.
“You don’t have to go back just for my sake… to tell my mom. You know you can stay here, if you would rather.”
Betty laughed. “I think I’ve had enough adventure to last me the rest of my life, Will.”
Yet William was still troubled. He feared Betty might also face danger in the future, at the end of the Mayan calendar in 2012. He regarded the Serpent Priest with a serious face. “You spoke of a cataclysm at the end of the Great Cycle. That’s where Betty is going. What will happen to the people in the future, Priest Quisac?”
The Serpent Priest moved in close, his silver eyes scanning between William and Betty as he spoke, “The foretold cataclysm is not something that Man can prevent. For our world to evolve, a cleansing is required, to remove negative energies, and to promote healing. However, if Man can embrace the final underworld-during the last days of the cosmic plan-and evolve to a higher consciousness… this cleansing may be a positive change, and we may finally live in balance with the land. Yet there will be much death and destruction during this transformative time.”
“What kind of cleansing are you talking about?” William asked.
“The cleansing will come from the heavens, as the cosmic plan exerts its final push-to transform our world into a higher state of vibration. The energy from this event will increase the frequency and strength of natural disasters. But there will be survivors… as there always are. They will inherit the new world.”
Betty understood a little of what was being said, and after William filled in the gaps, she let loose a big grin.
“Hey, those disasters have already been happening and I’m still here.” She pretended to knock on wood. “Whatever will be, will be… I’ll roll the dice and see what happens.”
Betty was right, of course. Natural disasters had been occurring with more frequency; he only had to think back on recent news reports of earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, and tornados that had killed thousands in the years before they left. Yet according to Priest Quisac, even more destruction was on the way-at the end of the Great Cycle-possibly worse than his modern world had ever seen. However, Betty knew the risks, and she still wanted to return.
William stepped through the circular opening and headed down; the sacred flashlight illuminated the way. Partway along, he paused, waiting for Betty to finish saying her farewells to Priest Quisac and Teshna. A moment later, he saw Betty’s hand clutch the rope. She climbed through, looking a bit teary-eyed, and followed behind him. When they reached the bottom of the tunnel, Betty had the same flabbergasted look as William did when he had first seen the immense chamber of the crashed spaceship. But on this day, William noticed something different; yellow and red sparks flickered within the green triangular crystals on the walls, creating a strobe light effect in the chamber.
They carried the litter with their equipment through the passages until they came to the ledge overlooking the cenote. Ropes had been secured in place from years before, which extended the distance to the base of the underground cavern. After they lowered their gear, they climbed down using a rope that had been tied with knots for a better grip. Water from the creek above trickled over the limestone walls, making it a slippery trek down.
When they reached the bottom, they dressed in their rubbery suits-being careful to not tear the material against the jagged rocks along the shore. The light from the sacred flashlight emphasized the milky yellow colors of the stalactites and stalagmites, in comparison to their first visit when the dim greenish glow of the fluorescent algae lit the area in gloomy hues.
“Are you sure this is the right day?” Betty asked, while pulling her arms through the sleeves. The suit was a little too long for her body and bunched up around her elbows.
“Priest Quisac says it’s the winter solstice today,” William said. “I’m sure he would know. Besides, didn’t you see how the green stones in the jade cavern sparkled? They only do that on the solstice days.”
They had practiced getting geared up a few times before, and followed the same routine to finalize their pre-dive preparations. After their suits were on, he tied the flashlight to the disk-shaped sacred item.
“What’s that for?” Betty asked.
“It’s an anti-gravity device,” William said. “It can help you to move heavy objects… or it can propel you in the water. I tested it in the cenote last week. It really works! After I send you on below, I don’t want to get sucked through the Serpent Passage too. So I’ll use it like an underwater scooter to come back.”
While William adjusted the breathing container on Betty’s back, he sighed. “It’s hard to believe that after all we’ve been through, you’ll be gone in just a few minutes.”
Betty turned back and gave William a hug. “I’ll miss you too,” she said, with tears in her eyes. She forced a smile. “But now that you have this suit, you can come for a visit any time, right? I’ll just be on the other side of this tunnel.”
William smiled. It was a comforting thought to know that each year he would have the option to go back home, if he ever wanted to. He finished connecting the tubes to her helmet and gave her a serious look. “Remember what we agreed, Betty? You can only tell my mom about all this.”
Betty held up her hand like she was saying a pledge. “I know… I promise. I won’t tell anyone else about the Serpent Passage. They would think I was crazy, anyway. I’ll just say I hit my head… that I had amnesia all this time.”
“Do you have my letter?” William asked. It had taken him a while to write the note to his mom, painting words on the thick bark paper that they used in those days. He discarded several initial drafts until he found the fewest words to capture his story-what he wanted to tell his mom on just a few pages.
Betty patted her stomach, hitting a firm object inside her suit. “Right here,” she said.
William held the edge of Betty’s helmet just over her head, looking one last time into her green eyes. He tried to memorize the contours of her face, realizing it was likely the last time he would see her. “I guess this is goodbye,” he said.
“You take care of yourself, William.”
“I will.” He lowered her helmet, locked it into place along her shoulders, and pressed a button on the side of the breathing container on her back-initiating the airflow system. Betty helped William with his final connections and turned his air on as well.
He picked up the anti-gravity device-with the flashlight secured beneath it-and moved down the rocky shore. Betty followed behind him, and they descended to the bottom of the cenote.
William already knew which way to go. He headed straight to the entrance of the Serpent Passage, where the ghoulish carving of an angry serpent greeted him. A flash of red light beamed out of the serpent’s mouth, providing William with a final assurance that the passage was awake. He maneuvered through the entrance and grabbed Betty’s hand, helping her in. A current pulled them forward, and he locked his arm around a stalagmite; he didn’t want to risk going any further.