Free The Battle for Duncragglin by Andrew H. Vanderwal

that Craig's alien theory was the only one that made any sense. He shone his torch higher up the wall and traced over a series of bird carvings. Some of the birds were in flight; others were hopping on the ground.
    He came to a bird with a long thin beak standing poised over what appeared to be a wormhole. It took him a moment to realize where he had seen it before – it was the same bird that was carved on the board he had found on the beach.
    “Hey, guys! Look at me!”
    Alex shone his light in the direction of Craig's voice and spotted his spidery form clinging to the wall. Craig was carefully maneuvering his foot into the head of an ant and reaching for a higher grip on a huge eyelid.
    “Craig! Quit messing about,” Annie said. “It's time we head back.”
    “But this is a great climbing wall!”
    Alex wanted to give it a try. He set his torch on end and slipped off his pack. Gripping the wall as high up as he could, he put his toe into a groove and raised himself up to press flat against the cold stone.
    “You have to be careful,” Craig called down. “Some of the pieces are loose.”
    Alex stepped on a carving and felt it shift. “I see what you mean.” He tried another. It was solid.
    Carefully testing each grip, Alex climbed to the bird with the thin beak. He was convinced it was the same as the one on the board, except it was holding its head up higher. Alex tugged on the top of its head and the bird's whole body swiveled until its thin beak inserted into the wormhole.
There, now it looks just like it does on the board.
    A low rumbling started faintly, with a deep vibration. It grew louder and louder until it shook the cavern walls.
    Sure the cave was collapsing, Alex tried to scamper down the wall, but slipped and fell. He could not see the ground toprepare for impact and hit hard. He quickly rolled onto his stomach and covered the back of his head with his hands.
    Slowly, the rumbling diminished.
    “Alex … look!” Annie called.
    Alex dragged himself up. Dumbfounded, he saw that the huge snake-haired monster-head had lowered into the ground, its top a sloping ramp leading into a dark interior.
    “Wow!” Craig exclaimed. “What happened?”
    “Maybe we triggered it to move when we twisted the carvings,” Alex said. “It could be that they work like a key or a secret combination.”
    Annie shivered and peered into the darkness, her arms wrapped tightly about herself. “What's in there?”
    “Treasure?” Craig suggested eagerly.
    “Craig, don't.” Annie reached for him, but missed. Craig had scampered up the ramp.
    Alex held his breath, but the ramp remained motionless. He let out a sigh. “Wait here, I'll get him.”
    Gingerly Alex stepped onto the top of the head. He jiggled his weight, cautiously at first, then harder. The head did not budge. Slowly Alex climbed up the slope into the black depths. The space above him became smaller. By the time he reached Craig, the ceiling was so low he had to crawl.
    Craig was carefully checking crevices. “There has to be treasure in here somewhere,” he said.
    Alex held up his hand for silence. A low rumbling had started up again. Suddenly, the floor dropped. Annie screamed.
    Alex threw a terrified glance back at Annie and saw that the entrance behind them was closing fast. The ramp wastipping like a seesaw, with the end behind Alex and Craig rising up to close off the way they came. With a thundering boom, it came to a halt tipped the opposite way from where it started. Before them was a new opening.
    Terrified, Alex scrambled off the ramp, stopping just in time to keep from falling off an edge. Panting hard, he clutched his shaking flashlight with two hands. Taking deep breaths, he forced his breathing to slow.
It's alright,
he told himself. He wasn't squished under falling rock; Craig was next to him, also unhurt. Things could be worse.
    He took stock of their surroundings. Below was nothing but blackness as far as his beam could reach. Above, a