Cave 7
Thank you for your reviews. Castle is about to undertake the biggest challenge yet.

It wasn't the steepness of the hill that Castle found difficult, but the rockiness of it. Some of the rocks were loose and he would slip. He would try to rest at times but the formations were so pointed it was too uncomfortable. He began grunting and panting which brought Montgomery's spirit back.

"You okay Castle? You sound terrible."

Castle would have shrugged if he hadn't been working so hard trying to scale the hill. He gritted his teeth instead.

Montgomery went on. "Seriously Castle, I think if you just stop again—"

"If I stop again, I may not be able to start up, and these rocks are too uncomfortable …" The sweat on his face made his eyes burn. It was growing harder to wipe away the sweat. His shirt had grown quite dirty and he had to be careful not to end up with mud in his eyes.

However, now that he was close to the top, Castle paused. Having silenced most of his movements, he heard a sound, a familiar sound.

Forgetting about his sweat, Castle asked. "Do I hear water?"

He could almost hear the smile on Montgomery's face. "I thought that might cheer you up."

With a new found energy, Castle worked to get up the last part of the hill. Yet again he found the top was narrow and he had to squeeze himself through, but emerging he realized he was only feet away from a river.

"Oh my God!" He wouldn't have been any happier even if he came across a room of gold. The ceiling was low, only about four feet, but Castle didn't mind crawling to close the distance to get to the water.

Of course it wasn't actually a river, more like a stream. The water looked fairly clear and setting the flashlight away he reached down and sunk his upper torso into it. It was cool and refreshing and the greatest relief he'd ever felt.

Drinking, Castle came up for air. The water was delicious anyway, but it was a bit too much and he started to cough.

Montgomery chuckled, "You're just like a kid. You practically dive in and nearly drown yourself while drinking. Pace yourself, the water isn't going to suddenly dry up."

"I wouldn't be surprised if it did," he replied, still shocked at his discovery. "It hasn't been quite my week."

Montgomery remained silent as Castle continued to rehydrate himself. Castle's mind went to Kate, imagining telling her this part of his journey through the cave. The thought was bittersweet, since it just reminded him that in all likelihood he may never see her again.

"How long have I been down here? It feels like it's been a year."

Roy gave his friend a sympathetic look. "I know, Castle, but look how far you've come! To be honest, I wouldn't have thought you would have made it this far."

Castle nodded. "Neither would I. Alexis would be shocked, too. She basically pushed me through when we did that cave experience thing."

"Well, you can't stop now, right?"

Castle grabbed the flashlight. Roy was right, and the rejuvenation of the water gave Castle some new energy, though he felt uneasy.

At least, it was obvious which direction to go. The water looked to be coming out of the wall to their right and it would be impossible to go that way. Heading downstream, Castle crawled, glad at least the ground was smoother and softer.

Images of his previous cave experience were now fresh in Castle's mind. There wasn't anything like this in Cumberland Caverns, at least not on the tour they took. The light coming from the flashlight bounced off the water lighting up their way much further away than he was used to. It seemed like maybe things really were improving. Could he be finding a way out soon?

He crawled for a long time, though occasionally he would stop and get some water or splash it over his head to keep cool. Castle knew the average distance a man could walk per hour: 4 miles. What he didn't know was what the average crawling distance per hour was. He swore if he got out of there, he would look it up. And if nothing was found, he would post an official count. He was an expert by now.

Unfortunately Castle's luck began to slow down. After hours of crawling, his arms were about to give out, and Castle realized he was coming to the end of this road.

"No, no, no!" Castle said when he couldn't crawl no more. The water was still going but it appeared to be going under the wall. He had hoped when he got to this part there would be another hole or a ledge he could climb. There was nothing.

"Dammit!" Anger fumed through his body. "I knew this was too good to be true! I shouldn't have come this way, now I'm stuck."

Montgomery was facing Castle, still on the dry side of the tunnel. "You had no choice, and you probably didn't realize how dehydrated you were. You needed this!"

"But what good does it do me now, if I can't leave it?" Castle sat down, leaning up against the rock. "I kept telling myself just beyond that hill, or through that hole, or over this ledge and I'd find some way out. But what if I should have just stayed where I was? For all I know, Kate has already found where Brown dumped me at the beginning of all this!"

Roy shook his head. "Oh, Castle. Don't begin doubting yourself. Not when you've gotten this far."

Castle sarcastically laughed. "Yeah, I'm quite the explorer. 'Look Alexis! Your father has found a dead end!' oh and emphasis on 'dead' is soon to come!"

"Castle …" Roy said.

Castle didn't respond. He glared at the water.

"Castle. You know it's not a dead end."

"How do I know that?" He snorted.

"Because the water is going somewhere."

Castle's face changed. Sitting up, Castle leaned over the ledge, peering the light down. He hadn't thought f swimming but it could be suicide… literally. "We have no idea where that goes!"

Montgomery shrugged. "That's true of every direction you took! Why let this stop you?"

"Because," Castle said, stating the obvious, "I had air before and if this doesn't let me come up for it, I'll be dead within…"

"Three minutes?" Roy said, his eyebrows raising.

Castle glared at him. He had said that to Royce, not Montgomery, so these spirits pushing him along could have been his mind playing tricks. Listening to this advice was even dumber than climbing a cave wall.

"I don't think so."

Roy now looked mad. Getting into "captain" mood, he folded his arms, "Oh, so I guess you'll just sit here and wait for what exactly? Kate to come find you?"

"If I hadn't moved to begin with—"

"Look, Castle, don't go over the what if's. Believe me, they will kill you faster than this cave. You know this is your only option, so jump in and start swimming." He said it so emphatically Castle almost wondered if he suppressed a memory of Roy ordering the team to go take swimming lessons.

Trying to stare the spirit down, Castle eventually said. "How will I be able I see?"

"Take the flashlight. It's waterproof!"

"How do you know that?" Castle asked, now looking at it.

Montgomery came closer. "I used to have one like that myself. Came in very handy when the basement flooded and I had to cut electricity."

Sighing, Castle stared down into the water. This was crazy. The water wasn't going super fast, but if he went only a little way and couldn't get through he would never be able to swim back upstream.

But surviving would be a great story. So of course he was going to do it.

Roy, sensing Castle had made his decision, began bucking him up. "Okay, now, get in the water so you can get used to the current. Don't fight it. Use it to help you swim faster."

Grumbling, Castle did as he was told. It was good advice. The cold water felt so good but he was so nervous he was shaking, or it could be that it was too cold. He practiced taking some breaths at first, and verified the flashlight worked. And the current would help him swim faster, so at least he had that in his favor. He just needed to not think about how it would keep him from coming back.

"Good luck, Castle." The author looked up at Montgomery and even if he was just a dream, it actually felt good seeing him again. Of course, if this was a hallucination, then he was tricking himself into doing the most stupid thing he'd ever done, and that was saying something. Nodding at what he really hoped was Roy's spirit, Castle took the deepest breath he could handle, and dove under the water.

Thoughts?