The night ended without incident. The four ate a quick breakfast, packed, and were soon marching again. Before long, they had left the mountains and rocks behind and found themselves walking on soft, spongy ground. Small pools of water appeared first, followed by larger ponds. The vegetation grew thicker and larger, ranging from reeds to thick bushes. They passed a few cypress trees growing out of the water and occasionally spotted a willow and black ash.

The marsh eventually transitioned to a swamp, with many more large cypress trees. The thick canopy mostly blocked the sky. Soon, Caleb had to slow to pick a dry path through the expanding muck. They each had their share of accidental stepping into mud or water. The swamp was thicker and mostly water to the west. Spence recalled the map Tom had made on the cave floor. This was yet another impassable border—keeping them from reaching the side of the dome or whatever substance enclosed Nibiru. The swamp gradually forced them further south and east, which wasn’t as thick and watery.

The four reached a dead end after a narrow trail they followed south ended on a small peninsula, surrounded by black water on the other three sides. Spence surveyed his surroundings. This swamp section was primarily devoid of trees and consisted of fairly open water with several islands and patches of growth. The air hung thick with the smell of rotting vegetation. The temperature was getting hot, and when they caught glimpses of it, the sky was bright, despite the sun not being visible. The humidity was much higher, too, similar to a greenhouse or the rainforest habitat in a zoo. They didn’t encounter bugs or mosquitos, though, and they also hadn’t seen snakes, alligators, or crocodiles. In fact, they hadn’t seen any wildlife.

“Well, this place sucks,” Caleb said. “But we might as well stop here for lunch.”

The others agreed, and they soon sat in the middle of the circular patch of land at the end of the peninsula. With having to feed an extra mouth, most of the dwarven food was gone. Hopefully, they would go home soon, or the Draconians would provide more.

“It will be hard to go much farther without wading or swimming,” Caleb said.

“Um, I vote no,” Morgan said.

“Then you can stay here,” Caleb replied.

They heard a splash in the water to the east, and all four heads swiveled together. There was an expanding circle of ripples on the surface but no sign of what had caused the splash. “I have a bad feeling we’re fighting a giant gator or croc,” Caleb said.

“Or snake,” Spence replied.

“What the heck?” Tom stood and grabbed his bow off his back. He stared intently at another patch of water where the ripples still expanded.

The others stood and turned to stare too. “What did you see?” Caleb asked.

“Something moving through the water—something long and black,” Tom answered.

Spence stared intently at the water but saw nothing but the ripples. He clutched his staff tightly.

“Over there!” Morgan shouted. She pointed to the south side of the peninsula.

Spence spun in time to see something black disappear below the surface. Ripples spread in that section too. He instinctively turned to the west. In a moment, he saw the object appear on that side. It was a long, black ridge, undoubtedly the back of something huge. “Over here,” he said. Then it disappeared again. The strip of land that led to the island was behind them, so he knew the creature couldn’t completely circle them.

“Watch the south,” Spence said, turning to that side. Sure enough, the object appeared again. This time they all saw it, and it lingered above the surface longer. It was at least ten feet wide, and the portion they could see was twenty feet long. It disappeared yet again.

Caleb drew his sword, and Morgan and Tom both nocked arrows on their bowstrings. They all turned to the east side. The black shape appeared again. This time it rose even further out of the water, revealing its body was indeed ten feet wide and shaped like a tube. It disappeared again.

“What is that thing?” Caleb asked.

“It looks like a whale’s back,” Spence said. He struck his staff on the ground, the orb illuminating.

“Or a giant black snake,” Morgan added.

They looked to the south, but nothing appeared. They then turned together to the west—still nothing. The four spun to the front again.

“Maybe it was just a swim-by, and it moved on,” Morgan said.

Suddenly, the water exploded in front of them. A giant, black cylindrical shape stretched high out of the water until it towered thirty feet above them. Its skin was solid black and shiny like a seal. The four stood frozen in shock. Then the creature began folding toward them. The head tilted down until they saw a vast, gaping round mouth, lined with jagged teeth, descending toward them.

Spence stumbled backward, not even having time to press one of the buttons on his staff. He continued backpedaling even as he was falling. Lord, please give us the strength and wisdom to survive another battle. He fell hard onto his butt and quickly looked up to see if he was out of the path of the enormous monster’s mouth. Morgan and Tom had scattered to both sides, out of harm’s way. Caleb retreated, heading between Spence and Morgan as he held his shield and sword stretched out above him. The giant worm’s teeth missed Caleb, but the top of the mouth struck his shield and sword. Luckily, the blow only sent him sprawling past Spence, and he wasn’t crushed beneath the massive weight of the beast.

Spence watched in amazement as the worm’s mouth struck the ground, shaking the peninsula and denting the surface. Then it slowly slid into the water. He clambered to his feet and rushed over to Caleb. Caleb had come to rest flat on his back. He stared up, obviously dazed. Spence helped him to his feet.

Caleb leaned over, with his shield braced on his left knee and sword tip pressed into the ground. He inhaled several deep breaths, shook his head, and stood straight. “Everyone spread out! If it comes after you, get out of the way. Everyone else attacks. Spence, we can use some techno-magic on this thing.”

“Well, that’s random. It looks like a giant worm or leech,” Morgan said.

“Something created in the gods’ lab, I’m sure,” Tom replied.

Spence stood near the rear of the peninsula, hoping he would be free to fire a lightning bolt. Morgan stood to his right, Caleb in front, and Tom to his left. They all waited, bodies tensed and barely daring to breathe. The water was calm, with no signs of the earlier ripples or the black back of the worm. But Spence knew it would return; it was only a matter of when and where.

The water erupted in front of Caleb. This time, instead of soaring high into the air, the worm launched straight out of the water toward him. Spence could only see the massive gaping mouth and rows of huge white teeth. Caleb managed to take two steps and dive headfirst toward Tom. The outside of the worm’s mouth only grazed the bottom of his boots. Morgan and Tom both shot arrows into the side of the beast’s head. Spence lowered his staff and depressed the first button. Come on! The lightning surged forth as the monster began sliding back into the water. The lightning struck just as its monstrous mouth disappeared into the depths.

After the thunderclap roared, Caleb leaped to his feet. “Did you kill it?”

“I hit it. But just a quick hit before it disappeared into the water,” Spence said. His staff had gone dark, and the compartment closed shut.

“What about the arrows?”

“Mine hit, but I doubt it did anything. I mean, look at the size of it,” Tom called out.

“Same here,” Morgan said.

“Maybe Spence fried it,” Caleb replied.

A giant splash debunked the theory. This time the worm came at Tom. Tom paused to fire an arrow into the dark mouth and then tried to roll away to the side. He wasn’t quite quick enough, though. The right side of the beast’s mouth crashed across his legs. Tom screamed but nocked another arrow and fired it point-blank into the side of its head. The worm lifted its mouth and then lowered it on top of Tom, totally enveloping him. Spence saw the mouth close together from all sides, sealing completely to resemble a typical worm’s head.