The Battle for Sanctuary: The Titan's Legacy: Vol: 2 (Volume 2) Read Free Page A

itching to push
the rune, but took a moment to calm down and collect his thoughts. It
occurred to him that he should let the others know what he had found
before he did anything else. That's all he needed, he thought wryly;
for Dominic to make smart ass remarks because he had decided to 'take
charge' again. He rolled his eyes, but turned and knelt at the edge
of the basin and looked down at the group far below.
    “ Hey
guys! Can you hear me?” he shouted.
    “ Yeah,
Justin. We hear you!” Aaron called back.
    “ Listen,
I found a rune in the ceiling. I think it's one of those opening
runes we've seen on doors.” Justin paused a moment to let them
absorb the idea, then continued. “Do you think I should try it
or not?”
    He watched the distant
figures mill around for a minute, obviously discussing his
suggestion.
    Finally Aaron shouted
back. “Yeah, of course. I mean, we can't think of any reason
not to. Give it a shot.”
    “ Okay,
I'm going to try it now.”
    Justin turned around,
stood up carefully and reached for the rune. As he touched it, his
hand came in contact with the dark mold that all but covered the
button. It felt a bit...damp? Wait a second, he thought. Why would it
be damp?
    He might have stopped to
think things through, but one of his fingers was touching the rune
and apparently that was all that was needed to activate it.
    Oh well, he thought, as
the rune glowed brightly for a moment and then sank into the stone.
    Justin heard a loud
snapping sound, followed by a shower of mold fragments. He ducked his
head to protect his eyes and then looked up to see a round outline
cut into the rock where the fungus had been, maybe three feet across.
The door or hatchway quivered then dropped slightly. It shook again
and dropped another quarter of an inch.
    Wow, this thing hasn't
moved in forever, he thought.
    Then with a loud thump,
the stone plug dropped straight down and swung to the side. Justin
was fortunate that he had been standing on the opposite side of the
swinging plug. He still stumbled back and fell into a sitting
position on the edge of the basin though. Which saved him again, this
time from being swept off of the basin by the torrent of water which
suddenly poured straight down into the bowl.
    He had a second or two to
gape at the water cascading out of the ceiling before the bowl filled
up and he was pushed out and over the rim.

Chapter 2

    A desperate grab saved
him for a moment and he swung from the edge of the basin. Justin knew
that the lower level was just inches below his feet, but the water
was splashing and flowing so heavily over him now that he was having
trouble breathing and was afraid to even try to drop down to the next
tier. It was like clinging to a rock in the middle of a river.
    He felt his fingers start
to slip and he was trying to catch his breath through the splashing
water. But he was becoming dizzy and he felt his grip beginning to
weaken.
    With a last gasp, he let
go of the basin and was carried into the bowl below. A hard smash on
the stone basin was followed by the force of the water immediately
lifting him up and over the edge before he even had a chance to try
to grab hold of anything. And then he was in mid-air, thrown upwards
by the strength of the cold water.
    Justin could breathe now,
but he didn't care, because he knew he was falling. The only thing in
his mind was Aaron telling him that if he landed on the titanium on
the lowest basin, it would probably kill him.
    The fall seemed to take
forever. All Justin could see was a blur through the water that had
drenched him. He was too breathless to even scream and so, in that
tiny moment before he hit the ground, he found a calm place inside
himself and simply waited for the inevitable crash.
    When he hit the ground,
Justin felt a momentary flash of pain. And then it was gone. But the
force of his impact drove what little breath he had left out of his
body and he bounced and rolled and finally came to a stop. Then he
just