The cavern the team were in seemed to be a giant bubble blown into the lunar regolith, approximately 50 yds across, with rubble strewn on the curved, dish-like floor, glowing green fungi adhering to the walls and stalactites peppering the ceiling. Water drooled down the walls, and the team could make out two circular openings, one that seemed to provide a path upward, the second a path downward.
Forsyth reasoned that the bridge connecting this side of the chasm with that against which his brother's aethership had crashed was lower down than their current position, and his co-adventurers agreed they should descend rather than travel upward.
The passageway they took connected with a dry cavern devoid of visible water but bearing a dense fungal carpet of mixed green glowing and brown (barely) edible types. Beneath the fungus they could see half a dozen lunar rats, which scuttled away from the earthmen. A fissure in the opposite side of the cavern led downward, and seemed to be the only option vis-a-vis exits in any case, so the party made for it and squeezed through.
The cavern the fissure connected to was dry and pitch dark. Wilhelm lit his lantern and the team could make out a glassy mineral vein of some kind running upward into the ceiling of the spherical chamber. It was, Grant said, as though the rock had foamed in some unthinkably distant past, then hardened before the bubbles could rise to the surface and "pop". The others pondered this as they spotted a second fissure high up on the opposite wall, and a circular portal leading down somewhat off to one side of that. The team made their way to the portal, noting as they crossed the rock-strewn floor that the glassy mineral vein had dark red inclusions deep inside it.
The portal was eventually reached, with only a growing sense of isolation to disturb the travelers Peace of mind. It led downward, and opened into another dry cavern with a carpet of green, glowing fungus and a visible fissure almost directly opposite them. The trip across this cavern was less silent, and rang with the echoing squeals of a considerable crowd of lunar rats as they scurried away from the Earthmen's boots.
The next cavern was dark, dry and featured a fissure up high in the opposite wall, below which a considerable quantity of rock and scree had slumped. There was also a circular portal entrance low down a little further around the cavern. Examination by means of Wilhelm's marvelous lantern showed nothing alive here, but the going was difficult as the floor was also a maze of fallen rock, and by the time the party had crossed to the portal Forsyth and Grant were feeling the effects of fatigue and bruising from countless tiny miscalculations while walking.
The portal opened into yet another bubble-like cavern, but this one was lit by the familiar green glow from the lunar fungi that thickly carpeted the floor and part of the walls. The only exit appeared to be a portal high in the opposite wall, so the team made for it. About halfway across Forsyth and Wilhelm each became suddenly nervous, and, alerted by this sense of looming disaster they spotted a small but deep pit hidden by the fungal carpet. A lucky escape, since someone could easily have turned an ankle in that concealed hazard. Forsyth led the team in the climb to the exit.
The revealed cavern was dry, and exhibited signs of a serious rockfall sometime in the antediluvian lunar past. The crossing to a circular exit low in the wall was tiring and the party became quite dispirited. Forsyth was tormented by thoughts of his poor brother's situation, but managed to pull himself together before he could descend into a funk. Realizing they were now running on sheer willpower the team decided that the connecting tunnel of this portal would make a good camp for the "night".
After the team had rested and slept (fitfully, it has to be admitted), they pushed on into the next cavern, which seemed to have no obvious water supply yet hosted a carpet of mixed green and grey fungi. A fissure had opened high in the wall to one side, and a low circular portal exit offered a chance to descend further, which the team decided to use.
The next cavern brought the team up short. No fungus. No water. A prominent golden mineral vein ran down the wall. But the ceiling was infested by what looked like hundreds of Lunar Bats! Deciding that discretion was the better part of valour our heroes backtracked to the previous cavern and crossed to the fissure.
Climbing up confronted the team with a situation that could very well have demoralized even the hardiest of explorers. The cavern opening off the tunnel accessed via the fissure was flooded. The heroes looked down on a sizable lake. Fungus was growing on the walls, casting the usual wan, green light. The lake had no obvious source, but was draining through a tunnel directly across from the perplexed adventurers.
After Hartwell had taken a dip to clean himself and dried off, the team backtracked once again to the previous cavern, and once again they cross to the portal and return to the cavern with the bats.
The bats seemed to be sleeping, so Grant, rather foolishly, climbed down to the cavern floor, where he immediately lost his footing and fell. The floor, it turned out, was covered with a thick, slimy layer of wet bat guano, which was incredibly slick.
Grant began to complain loudly - rather too loudly for the adventurers' comfort. Wilhelm followed Grant down and managed to keep his feet - just, but slid a good distance on the curved, slick floor. Forsyth threw each a rope and he and Hartwell hauled the stranded pair back to the fissure. Grant was a pitiful sight.
There was nothing for it but to undertake yet another crossing of the previous cavern, return to the lake and clean themselves. Just as they are making camp for the "night" Grant discovers he has lost his canteen.
The next "day" the team once again lowered themselves into the previous cavern, crossed to the cavern with bats where they could clearly see Grant's canteen half buried in the muck on the floor. Grant rigged a rope and climbed down, retrieved his canteen and the others pulled him back up, all without waking the sleeping bats.
Once again the heroes crossed to the fissure, climbed up and returned to the lake, where Grant washed off his canteen. A heated discussion broke out on the subject of options, probably made more heated by the prospect of a seventh crossing of the cavern below them. It was mutually agreed that perhaps a one hour lunch break was called for.
Once again the team retraced their steps to the cavern with the bats, where Wilhelm was about to save the day. After some muttered calculations, Wilhelm tersely instructed the others to gather around him, and he activated his miraculous teleportation device.
The entire team was engulfed in crackling green energy, then with a snap they vanished and a similar display of green lightning erupted at the portal low in the wall of the bat-infested cavern. Everyone was amazed that the noise and light of their journey had not woken these seemingly comatose bats, but the pseudo-bats remained obstinately (and fortunately) asleep throughout.
Walking through the tunnel in which they now found themselves our heroes perhaps wondered why it had taken so long (and so many trips across that blasted cavern that their boots surely could have made the trek without them) to light upon using the teleportation device. In any case, each, for his own reasons, let the matter rest.
Soon the Earthmen's eyes were feasting upon tghe sight of another cavern with no running water yet hosting a carpet of the glowing green fungus. They could hear Lunar Rats scurrying around on the floor, hidden from view, but by now were so familiar with these timid beasts that they felt no qualms about pressing forward. A fissure high up the wall offered a way up, and a portal low in the wall some small distance around the cavern circumference offered the preferred route down.
For the second time the Earthmen found themselves looking at a large lake, but this time with no obvious drain. They decide, with sinking hopes
to backtrack to the previous cavern.Re-traversing the fungal carpet and nervously probing for hidden pitfalls to the sound of skittish lunar rats, they make their wy to the scree slope under the fissure high in the wall, and climb up into it.
The revealed dry cavern showed a broad mineral vein running down its walls in several places, glassy with dark red inclusions. A small pack of lunar rats scurried away from the light cast by Wilhelm's lantern. Only one exit presented itself, a fissure set midway up a wall almost opposite them. The heroes made for this with some groans of fatigue.
Another dry cavern filled with a mixture of green glowing and filthy brown (but edible in extremis) fungus. A circular portal was set low in the wall opposite. While making for this exit. Wilhelm twisted his ankle and the team took this as a sign that they should camp for the "night" after they examined the next cavern, which had a carpet of glowing green fungus. They could see a fissure high in the walls at "three o'clock" and a portal set low at "ten o' clock".
Exhausted, the team soon fell asleep, but Grant was attacked during the night by a giant lunar caterpillar. Fortunately, Hartwell was woken by the sound of its clawing legs attempting to gain purchase on the loose rock in their tunnel campsite, grabbed his trusty pistol and blew it to kingdom come! The adrenaline pumping in each heroes veins was a clarion call for safety procedures, and they set watches. Fortunately, there were no more uninvited visitors to their camp.
The next "day", Wilhelm used his miraculous teleportation device to carry the entire team to the portal, where the team were able to see a dry cavern carpeted with grey fungus, with an exit portal set low in the opposite wall.
Crossing this cavern was uneventful until the team noticed the clear signs of acid burns on their boots and gaiters. Hurrying out of the grey fungus they entered a dry cavern filled with green glowing fungus and were heading for the only other portal set low in the wall some distance away when the team were ambushed by a lunar caterpillar! A furious fight with the unwholesome beast developed, during which the caterpillar was dispatched but not before it had dealt Dr Grant a lethal bite! Wilhelm leapt into action with his marvelous healing machine and somehow managed to revive Grant and heal the grievous injury that had been dealt to him by the monster!1
It was disheartening for the team to be confronted with yet another cavern with only a portal set high in the opposite wall. The mineral vein running down the wall at "three o'clock" was interesting, but the ceiling full of sleeping lunar bats was distinctly problematical.
What would the team do now?
- Professor Wilhelm was certainly proving his worth on this tedious expedition, having managed to carry the team past several hazards unscathed and provided much-needed medical services. Likewise, if not for Hartwell's swift and lethal gunplay the team could well have been killed while they slept. Forsyth was a rock to steady the team despite the worry over his brother's fate, and Dr Grant had, of course, supplied the method of actually landing on the forbidding surface of Luna. Such is the nature of all hazardous expeditions, with each member playing a crucial part, earning his or her food and water rations the hard way.↑
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