We had begun receiving reports of barely noticeable earthquakes in part of Ireland. It was always the same woman complaining and our boss demanded we find out what was going on. I voiced my opinion that she was probably just drunk which resulted in my boss giving me an irritated look.
We arrived at the Giant’s Causeway early on a Friday morning and I couldn’t help but marvel at this natural occurrence that had created something so beautiful.
We were quickly approached by an old woman who stunk of cigarettes and whiskey. She was obviously still drunk as she poked her finger into my chest and demanded that we find out why her house was shaking.
I could see the barely concealed mirth on my colleagues face’s as the woman wandered off, probably to get more drink.
We begun setting up our equipment when the first rumble beneath our feet occured. We all stood there with our mouths hanging agape as we realised the old woman hadn’t been lying.
One of my colleagues Tony suggested we use a submersible and see if there is anything in the water. I was a bit hesitant to do this but was outvoted by the others. We quickly grabbed whatever equipment we may need and made our way over.
I climbed aboard with the others and was sat opposite Chloe who loves to tease me. I am not sure if she is teasing me because she has a crush on me or because she is mean, but I am praying it is the former.
I watch in wonder as the submersible slowly sinks beneath the waves. It is incredible seeing what resides in the ocean as so much of it is unexplored. The driver John kept pointing out random sea creatures and saying how rare it is to see them up close.
We spent the next hour searching up and down the coastline but found nothing of interest. We were about to give up when Tony spotted a small cave ahead of us.
We nimbly maneuvered the submersible inside and entered a narrow tunnel that led downwards. The sides of the submersible were practically scraping the sides so if it was a dead end then there was no chance of turning around.
After what felt like an eternity we exited the tunnel and the submersible began to rise. I could hear the sharp intake of breaths as we breached the surface of the water.
We were now in some immense cavern that stretched as far as the eye could see. It was lit by some natural light that for some reason reminded me of graveyards. We moved the submersible forward until we reached the cavern floor.
I hadn’t time to shout a warning before Tony opened up the hatch and the musky smell of the cavern entered the submersible. I scolded Tony immediately as the air could have been poisonous and he could have killed us all. He barely even noticed as he was climbing out of the hatch and onto the cavern floor.
Thankfully the others were more sensible and grabbed masks and other pieces of equipment as we made our way outside.
We made our way forward and used two large caves in the distance as our reference. It took us almost an hour of walking until we finally reached them.
The entire time we were walking, there was something bothering me but I just couldn’t put my finger on it. The land beneath our feet just felt off somehow and I could see the unease mirrored in my colleagues face’s. The ground beneath our feet was continously shaking and shifting as if it was alive.
It was only as we reached what we had assumed to be two caves that I realised what we were actually standing on. I grabbed a high powered torch from Chloe and begun shining it in all directions.
Comprehension quickly dawned on the other’s as we gazed down at enormous face that we were walking across. What we had mistook for caves were actually nostrils.
Fear quickly spread through the group as the enormity of what we had found began to sink in. This creature was larger than anything else ever discovered.
We were trying to decide what to do when Chloe let out a scream. We all spun around as an enormous bubble seemed to come out of nowhere and quickly engulfed us.
I stared around me in panic as the cavern had vanished and we now stood in a barren lifeless landscape with a green sun overhead. I only had a moment to look around before my lungs began burning from the air.
I quickly grabbed my oxygen mask and threw it on as the others followed suit. I heard a scuffle nearby and saw that Tony was trying to steal Chloe’s mask as the idiot had left his behind in the submersible. Chloe punched him in the face and put it on as Tony sat on the floor with blood streaming from his nose.
Tony rose to his feet as his body began convulsing uncontrollably. Blood was now pouring out of every orifice and his eyes were now popping out of their sockets. I let out a scream as his head suddenly exploded showering me with pieces of his body. I felt something land on my head and I reached up and discovered his eyeball which felt like it was giving me an accusatory look. I quickly discarded it and tried my best not to vomit.
The landscape changed around us and we were suddenly back standing in the cavern. I took off my mask and bent over and threw up my breakfast. The others around me looked shell shocked at what had just happened.
Alan who was one of the youngest members of the crew theorised that the creature beneath us was dreaming and somehow we had entered it’s dream.
It seemed ludicrous but I am standing less than a foot from nostrils that you could drive a car inside, so who am I to argue.
We decided to get back to the submersible as fast as possible. There was a debate on what we should do with Tony’s body but we all agreed to leave it behind as we didn’t want to carry it with us. John cursed us for leaving him like this but he knew it was the sensible thing to do.
We had barely gotten a couple of meters when another bubble enveloped us. We now stood in a jungle with species of trees that no living person had ever seen before. The trees were purple with yellow vines hanging from them.
Alan walked forward and rubbed his hands alo g the tree trunk. He turned his head to say something when the vines shot out and latched onto everyone one of limbs.
I rushed forward to help but the vine’s grip was immense. Alan was now screaming at the top of his lungs as his body was being pulled apart. His screams were silenced as every limb was torn from his body and dragged upwards.
Vines began coming from all directions and were grabbing onto others and dragging them upwards. I prepared for my own death as the vines wrapped around my arms and legs. The pain was unbearable as I felt my body being torn asunder.
The pain vanished and I let out a shout of triumph after discovering we were once again back in the cavern. Chloe and myself were the only one left standing as the Giant’s body was now littered with blood and pieces of bodies. I discarded the vines that still clung to my body.
I heard a voice begging for help and found John lying a short distance away. Both of his legs were missing and the flesh had been torn off his one remaining arm. Chloe walked away as I put John out of his misery.
We began sprinting in the direction of the submersible with Chloe leading and me following. The Giant’s body was shaking beneath us and we were thrown to the floor on multiple occasions.
The submersible had just come into view when another bubble overtook us. We appeared in a desolate version of Dublin with all the store fronts empty. I spotted a newspaper lying on the streer nearby and picked it up. It simply stated “We are all doomed” with no other context.
I got the feeling that we were being watched and I could tell by the evident unease on Chloe’s face that she felt the same.
We huddled together and waited for this dream to end while keeping an eye out in all directions. Chloe squeezed my hand as we heard noises approaching us from all directions.
We began to back away as thousands of spiders appeared. They were yellow with green pus dripping from their bodies. They were the size of cats and advanced towards us.
We had nowhere to run to as we were backed into a corner. Tears streamed down my face as I turned to Chloe and told her that I have had a crush on her since the first day we met.
She opened her mouth to speak when the spiders all suddenly lunged at us. I swung my arms and legs in a bid to fight them off but there were just too many. I could hear someone screaming and discovered the sound was emanating from my own throat.
I was in the process of yanking spiders out of my hair when we reappeared in the cavern. I killed every spider that had followed us through and then turned towards Chloe to help her.
Her face was a mask of confusion as she stood there silently. She opened her mouth to speak to me and a flood of spiders crawled out of her throat. Her body sunk to the floor as a never ending stream of spiders exited her body.
I turned away from her and finally reached the submersible and climbed inside. I started the engine and moved it as quickly as I could.
I felt nothing but despair when the submersible reached the surface. Everyone else was dead and no one will probably believe me. I just pray that the giant never awakens and that his dreams never escape the cavern