The Walkthrough – Chapter 6

"AAHHHHH!!!!!!!!"

"What are you screaming at?" Cassie heard a voice say and she instantly stopped screaming. Slowly she opened her eyes and standing before her holding a torch was an old man. He was wearing a white toga, although it was rather worn and discoloured.

"Who are you?" Cassie asked, rather confused.

"I am Minotaur." He simply said. Cassie stared at him, with her level of confusion rising quickly.

"You're Minotaur?"

"What were you expecting? A man with a bulls head?" he quipped.

"Actually… yeah," she admitted.

"Everyone comes down here expecting that," he complained. "Sorry to disappoint." He held his hand out to help Cassie off the floor. She took it, and instantly didn't feel anything. 'Well at least he's not a Goa'uld,' she mused.

"So how long have you been down here?" Cassie enquired as she brushed the dirt off her jeans.

"A long time, Cassie," he said. Cassie instantly stood up straight.

"How do you know my name?"

"I know a lot about you."

"That doesn't answer my question. How?"

"The question you should be asking is why are you down here?" he said still avoiding the question.

"Because someone threw me down here! I have the bump to prove it," she said rubbing her forehead.

She had now had time to take in this man's appearance. He was old. Very old in fact, although she was sure he was older than he looked. He was not completely bald yet, with only a few wispy bits of starch white hair folded across his head. He had a long white beard, or at least it would be white if it were not for the dirt and grime that had accumulated making it an off white colour.

His toga was hand made from natural linen, thought to high quality. It was not white per-say. It had white fibres making up most of the cloth, but interwoven were the odd strand of several other colours: blue, green, red, yellow, orange. But you could only tell if you looked close enough. It made her realise that the toga was not discoloured as she initially thought but in fact multicoloured.

"Well my dear child, we better go and sort your hands out," he said looking down at her bloody knuckles.

"I'm fine," Cassie said sticking them in her jeans pocket, which probably wasn't the best idea as her jeans were tight and the material was rubbing against her open wounds causing Cassie a great amount of pain.

"Nevertheless, my dear, I would still like to clean and bind them up," he insisted. Cassie hesitated for a moment. She was always cautious about strangers especially ones that know her name. However, he was the first person she had seen and maybe he knew a way out. The easiest way would be to play along. She knew basic hand to hand combat if she needed it.

"Well, they are stinging a little," she said finally. He smiled and lead her off back down the tunnel she had come. She was lead back to cave with the several tunnel entrances back at the beginning. He turned and headed down a different tunnel. Quickly Cassie picked up a stone and scratched the walls around the entrance. Minotaur turned to her and watched her.

"Just so I don't get lost," she explained.

"There's no need. I know my way round the tunnels extremely well," he reassured her.

"Nevertheless, I want to make sure," she said mocking him. He smiled at her reference to the earlier conversation and continued on.

They walked about half a mile down the tunnel when Minotaur suddenly stopped. He turned to face the solid smooth tunnel wall. He ran his hand over the wall as if looking for something. He seemed to find what he was looking for and pressed his palms against this point and closed his eyes. Suddenly the wall opened up to reveal a doorway to a room.

"Welcome to my abode," Minotaur said inviting her inside.

As she entered this strange little haven, Cassie had this strange feeling of being transported back in time. Around on the walls and make-shift tables, were remnants of the Minoean culture. It was one the topics Daniel had had Cassie researching, but she had not got very far into it's history when she was taken. Frescos were painted with lustrous colours onto the walls, which appeared to dance in the flickering candlelight. She looked at the walls more closely and ran her fingers over a picture of a beautiful temple carved from while marble.

"Ah yes, home. I sorely miss it. It was a beautiful sight, the Soluna Temple glistening in the morning light. Those were the days."

"My dear sweet child, all will become clear, after I have seen to your wounds."

"My hands are fine," Cassie dismissed.

'But those are not your only wounds."

"How do you know about me?" Cassie quizzed him. He remained silent and proceeded to busy himself with getting a bowl, cloth and syrup like substance out.

"You're isolated down here. How did you know about me?" Cassie demanded. "It's just not possible!"

"Not possible or not probable?" he said breaking his silence.

"Both. So explain to me how you know my name?"

"I know a lot about you," he said still not answering her question.

"Apart from my name, what?"

"Like there is a reason why the Escrecan people thought you were possessed."

"I AM NOT POSSESSED!!" Cassie screamed, but the old man didn't even react. "Sorry," she mumbled the apology.

"Maybe not as you know it, but according to their customs you are possessed."

"I don't care what they say. All I want is to get out of here and back home," Cassie said turning back to the frescos.

"Be patient."

"Yeah, like the wisdom of Guinness." The old man cocked his head and raised his eyebrows in confusion. "Good things come to those who wait. It's reference to something on my planet," she apologised realising he would not have got the reference.

"Well, this Guinness is very wise indeed."

"Not if you have too many," Cassie quipped. She looked at the old man who still looked confused. "Never mind."

"Your hands," he said holding his out.

Cassie really didn't trust this guy, but her hands were really starting to hurt her. Cautiously, she walked over to him and slowly put her hands in his. He dipped the cloth into the yellow substance and drained off the excess.

"This may sting."

"I can handle it."

He pressed the cloth on to Cassie's open wounds. Cassie winced as the cold substance came into contact with her open wounds, but she did not pull her hand away. Oddly enough, the substance seemed to act as a local anaesthetic and soothed the pain away. Once he had finished dapping the substance on to her hands, he bandaged up her hands. He poured away what was left of the substance and brought out two cups. He then reached into a crevasse in the cave and brought out a terracotta vase secured at the top by a stone. He poured out a small amount of the drink into the cups and then replaced the bottle to its hiding place.

"Only bring this out on special occasions," he informed her as he handed the cup to her.

"I'm flattered. Cheers," she said and she downed the liquid. It was like pure sugar in a cup, but sugar with a seriously good kick. It made her cough as it hit the back of her throat. Minotaur smiled and drank his too but did not affect him. The drink was strangely refreshing Cassie discovered. One shot was all that was needed to refresh yourself for hours, she thought.

"Good isn't it?"

"Damn good. What is it?" Cassie enquired.

"A delicate mixture of three spirits left to marinate in a pot with herbs for a thousand years."

"A thousand years! Jack gets excited when you buy him a twelve year Scotch," Cassie quipped. The drink had another effect: it seemed to relax Cassie, and she sat down on a stone chair and chatted with Minotaur.

"So exactly how long have you been down here?"

"Many hundreds of years." Cassie was surprised at the answer. OK, he was old she could see that, but not that old!

"How is that possible?"

"Nothing is impossible, only improbable," he cryptically said.

"That's no answer. How?" Cassie insisted.

"For some reason that I am unaware of, being down here seems to extend my life. I do not suffer from the usual ailments normal people do, and although I now suffer from old age, it is long overdue," he explained.

"So you must have seen races and cultures come and go?" Cassie guessed.

"I have."

'Such as the Goa'uld."

"Indeed. It has been many hundreds of years since I last saw them down here."

"The last would be Bes?" Cassie asked, remembering the skeleton.

"Yes, the little fellow. Was frightfully arrogant and rude. Like you, he wished to discover the way out, but would not let me aid him. I found his dead body several days later."

"Sounds about right for a Goa'uld," Cassie said bitterly.

"You have met them before?" he enquired.

"Oh come on, if you know my name you at least know that too. Don't bother to pretend," Cassie told. He shrugged his shoulders.

"But you are so closed off about this subject. Your mind will not allow anyone to see into that part of it."

"And with good reason," Cassie shot back.

"And for what reason would that be?" Minotaur said turning on to her. Cassie crossed her arms and closed up.

"That has nothing to do with this," Cassie dismissed this topic. They were silent for several minutes, until Cassie spoke again.

"You said that Bes would not let you help him?"

"I did."

"Then that must mean you know a way out." He remained silent but Cassie understood that to mean yes. "However, you will not tell me how to get out of here. So there must be something I can do to gain this information."

"You are learning fast, my child."

"So what must I do?" Cassie asked. He looked at her. "It was worth a shot."

"Did the Escrecans say anything to you before they brought you down here?" he asked.

"What? Apart from I'm possessed? No, not a thing. Well, a lad told me to follow my heart but what does he know."

"Landon?" the old man said.

"Yeah that was his name. He was kinda cute too. You know him?"

"Of course I know Landon. He comes to the hole every-so-often to give me the gossip from the town. He's a sweet boy. He also gives me his mother's Sunday lunch once a month. She makes the most amazing roast partridge in the whole of the town," Minotaur said smiling at the thought.

"Sounds delicious," Cassie said. Come to think of it, with the mention of food, Cassie realised how hungry she felt. It had been hours since she last had food, and it was starting to show. He must have noticed as he reached into yet another crevasse and brought out a piece of bread and handed it to Cassie.

"It's not a roast dinner, but it will stop you starving," he apologised.

"Thank you," she said politely and nibbled on the bread. It was a bit stale, god knows how long it had been down here, but it was food.

"So, getting back to my original question, what must I do for you to tell me the way out?" Cassie said getting back to the matter at hand.

"You must work that one out for yourself my dear."

"Thanks a bunch," Cassie mumbled. "You know what?" she said standing up. "I'm going to go back to my original plan. I'll check these caves systematically. I'm sure to find the way out in the end."

"You'll never find the way out that way," he told her.

"Watch me," and she headed out of his cave and back into the tunnels. She returned to the larger cave with the several tunnels leading off it.

She looked around at the scratches already on the walls, and headed back down the one she went down first.

"You're going the wrong way," she heard Minotaur say to her from behind.

"I'm not," Cassie said determined.

However, after walking further and further down the tunnel, she soon came to a dead end. The tunnel had caved in at some point about a few thousand years before by the look of things. There was no way she was going to get through it. She turned round to see Minotaur standing behind her. She had felt his presence the whole way down the tunnel but chose to ignore him. He was standing there with a smirk on his face.

"Don't say it. Just don't say a word," she threatened as she stormed past him back down the tunnel.

He didn't, he just waited for her to pass him, spun on his heels and followed her back down. After that one, she decided to try a different one. She had already scratched the other tunnel where Minotaur lived, so before she got confused she would try that one. She knew deep down that this would also be a dead end, but she was determined to prove him wrong.

She wasn't sure how much time had past since she was thrown down the hole, but she was sure that by now it was dark out and that she had been awake for far too many hours. She was really tired and that one piece of bread was not going to sustain her for very much further. She could hear heavy breathing again and she turned round to face Minotaur.

"Stop it will you. It won't work now," Cassie said irritated.

"I assure you Miss Cassandra, it was not me." Cassie was staring at him frustrated when she heard the noise again, and it was not Minotaur. He did not make a sound or move.

"What's going on?"

"I was trying to explain it to you earlier Cassie," he said as another mixed growl and breathing sound filled the tunnel.

"… We're not the only things down here. There are fouler things than me down here."

A/N – I want to apologise for the lack of updates on this fanfic. Life happened to me and I had not time to sit down and write this. Now at Uni, I seem to have a little time, so here it is. The 6th chapter for you! Remember the little review button must be pushed or this fanfics will explode in 5…4…3…2…