"I suppose a little birdie told you that?" Jack grinned at her, his eyes sparkled with laughter.

"That's right, big boy. You wanna make something of it?" Nicole grinned wickedly at him.

"Okay, I'm a certified diver, why don't I swim down there and take a quick look around, then we can decide what our best option is." Jack offered, stuffing the last morsel of lamb in his mouth.

"I'm with Jack." Nicole declared rising. "But there's something we haven't considered. There could be . . . complications."

The others rose and stared silently at her, waiting for her to continue. ''I can safely vouch for the lack of piranha or were you thinking more along the line of a seven-headed monster?"

Jack shook his head and moved toward the bubbling pool. "Let's get on with it."

"How can you be so sure Nicole isn't right?" Sarah followed him.

"Well for one thing, if there was some sort of beast about, the horses wouldn't be so relaxed." Jack called back to her. "And if there was a sea serpent, Nicole would have located it and sung it to sleep by now."

"No one hears a crocodile swimming toward them under the water." The calmness of Nicole's voice stopped Jack in his tracks.

"I'm not a wildebeest, I'm an accomplished swimmer." Jack turned to stare at her and added, "With a knife." He flashed a brilliant smile, sat on the glistening white stone at the edge of the pond and removed his dark leather vest. Dropping his sword on the side of the bank, Jack pulled off his boots and dove into the water.

Gathering at the edge, the others watched as he disappeared into the dark waters below. Jack swam easily to the bottom in the cool water. It felt good to be back in his element. This was his main reason for all those getaways. He strongly felt a great sense of freedom under the cool water. The entrance to the cave was evident from his vantage point at the center of the pool. Unfortunately the force of the pounding current kept Jack at bay. His lungs strained for air and Jack pushed off the rock bottom and fought to the surface, releasing what little air was left in his lungs. Gasping, he broke the surface of, the water, sullenly realizing the impossibility of their task.

"There is a cave down there." He explained, climbing out of the water and trying to catch his breath. "The current is wicked. The cave is directly below the falls. Unless I stay low, it could pull me in and roll me. I'd be out of the game before I got close enough to see inside. The force of the water is just too great."

"We have to divert the flow." Sarah frowned, glancing up at the water tumbling over the cliff.

"That's impossible." Jack sighed, "There's too much water."

"We need to slow it down, Just enough to allow Jack access to the cave." Sarah explained, "Something temporary."

"Then what?" Hopper stared into the water shaking his head. "If whatever it is isn't right inside the entrance, whoever went in would drown searching for it."

"He's right, Sarah. It took everything I had just to get a look at the entrance."

Jack agreed. "Our friendly psychologist is making this too hard."

"No, we're just not looking at it from the right perspective." Nicole corrected, coming forward. "What the Sorceress said earlier makes more sense. We need diving equipment."

"That's easy, just tell me where the nearest dive shop is and I just skip right down there in a jiffy." Jack snapped at her.

"I've got a better idea." It was Nicole's turn to flash the brilliant smile. "Sarah and Hopper you work on the falls. Jack, come with me."

Chapter Five.

"One more boulder and we're finished," Sarah hollered from the edge of the cliff.

"My back is killing me!" Hopper growled as he chose another ma.s.sive rock and lifted it onto his broad, hairy shoulders then started up the steep hill.

"I'll give you a ma.s.sage before we go to bed" Sarah smiled at her large, disfigured boyfriend.

"Bed, huh that'd be a neat trick." Hopper grumbled under his breath dropping the last boulder on top of the flowing water completing a partial barrier across one side of the spillway.

"Don't think of this as camping along a river bed. Think of that nice soft cot back in the ballroom." Sarah waited for him to reach her then dug into his ma.s.sive shoulders with her knuckles and began kneading the tension away from his muscular back.

"Just how comfortable do you expect those cots to be, Sarah?" Hopper chuckled as he began to relax under her soft touch.

A shout from below drew their attention as Jack and Nicole appeared at the edge of the woods, carrying a food satchel. The pair headed for the base of the rocks to examine Sarah and Hopper's handiwork. The pair had succeeded in diverting nearly half of the rushing water away from the entrance to the cave. What spilled over was much more violent but the brunt of the force was to one side.

"Perfect!" Nicole shouted up to them.

"It looks great, but will it hold?" Jack "It'll serve our purposes." Hopper, jumped down from a large boulder then turned and gently lifted Sarah down beside him.

"What's that?" Sarah asked, reaching for the satchel.

"Fairyland's first air tank." Jack answered, winking at Nicole.

"We lined it with pine tar. Hopefully it will hold as long as your dam." Nicole Handed it to Sarah. "We were just about to test it." Moving to the edge of the pond, Sarah handed Jack the satchel. He blew it up like a large leather balloon and shoved it under the surface. After a few seconds a few bubbles appeared.

"Okay so it's not perfect. But I think it should last long enough to give me the air I need to check out the cave." Jack pulled the satchel from the water and emptied the small trickle of water from the bag. "A little more tar and it will be perfect."

"I'm not so sure this is a good idea." Sarah frowned, "It could make you over confident. You'll go in too deep and get lost."

"We've thought of that." Nicole said. She grabbed the satchel from Jack and proceeded to smear the dark pine tar she'd collected on a large oak leaf along the outer seams. "We'll tie the rope from our climbing gear around his waist. He can secure it to a rock near the entrance. Then follow it back if he gets confused or kicks up too much dirt.

And if he doesn't reappear in a sufficient amount of time, one of us can swim down and pull him out using the small wine skin as a secondary air tank."

"I don't know," Sarah stared at the satchel. "It just sounds reckless . . ."

"Sarah, it's only a game, remember?" Hopper added, putting his immense arm around her shoulders and pulling her close. "If we don't take some chances, we'll never win."

"Hopper's right, all we need is a good plan." Jack smiled softly, touched by her concern, " Remember, I won't really be in the water. It's all in our minds."

"Ok, so tell me then, how are you going to see in that cave?" Sarah countered.

"That's where you come in babe." Jack slid in between her and Hopper, sliding his arm around her waist.

"Uh oh." Sarah glanced at Hopper for a.s.sistance.

"Remember the spells I had to memorize?" Nicole moved closer. "One was a spell of light."

Nicole repeated the strange words to Sarah until she memorized them. Hopper found a large tree limb and placed it on the rocks at the edge of the pond. Sarah directed the incantation at the tip of the limb by staring at it and concentrating. Sarah felt like the queen of fools as she waved her arms for emphasis and shouted the magic words. No one was more surprised than she when the limb sputtered and sparked, then burst into flames. Nicole s.n.a.t.c.hed it up and thrust the burning end into the churning water. The flame continued to burn, unaffected.

"Jack, hypnosis is a powerful thing." Sarah cautioned.

"Relax, if I'm in there too long, Strong will pull me out of the trance and you'll go on without me." Jack smiled and filled the satchel with air. "Wish me luck."

The three remaining adventurers stood at the edge of the pool and watched as Jack disappeared into the darkness of the cave. With the torch in his teeth, satchel in one hand and the rope tied around his waist, Jack quickly found a rock to anchor the rope. He then swam toward what appeared to be the back of the oval shaped cave. The area inside was small, no more than 6 feet wide and 20 feet deep. Jack was certain he would have no trouble quickly locating the object in such a confined s.p.a.ce.

The water poured viciously over the falls after crashing into the newly constructed dam above. The seconds seemed like hours as the others watched and waited for Jack to emerge from the cave.

"How much time does that satchel give him ? ' Hopper asked, bending so close to the water his nose touched the surface.

"Well it took five deep breaths to fill it . . . " Nicole answered, "I'd say about 45 second per breath considering his exertion. Maybe three and a half to four minutes?"

"You mean you didn't figure that out before he went in the water?" Sarah glared at her.

"And just who's watch would we have used to calculate that?" Nicole calmly met her gaze.

The trio stared into the water in silence, leaving their concerns unspoken, Finally Hopper asked, "How long has it been?" Hopper glanced up at Sarah as he pulled off his vest.

"At least three minutes."

Hopper pulled off his boots and dove into the water.

"It's just a game." Nicole whispered.

"Yeah and if they both end up out of it, it's over.'' Sarah turned to face her. "I came here to spend time with Todd, not you!"

"What is all this hostility, Sarah? I'm just trying to be nice, to offer some comfort." Nicole stared at her."

"Why would you do that? You never cared before and it's too d.a.m.n hard to believe you've started now. It's all just part of the game. You're attempting to be the friendly elf, lover of nature and all that it gives life to." Sarah moved menacingly closer. "You've never said a civil word to me the entire time I've known you Nicole. So don't think I'm going to fall for your manipulative bulls.h.i.t now."

"Calm down, Sarah. You're just upset because Hopper's taking a chance. He'll be back in a few seconds. You're worried for nothing. You haven't lost your Paladin. He's not in any danger."

"Todd is NOT my Paladin. He's simply a little over protective. Unlike you, he was taught to treat people with respect. Now if you don't mind, I think Hopper and Jack are more important than your return to humanity." Sarah actually growled at Nicole before turning back toward the water.

Hopper reached the entrance to the cave. His large troll eyes adjusted to the darkness inside immediately. Following the rope, he located Jack's still lifeless form, floating less than a yard inside the entrance. Below Jack, lying on the stone floor of the cave was what was left of the burning torch and a small jewel encrusted chest about the size of a deck of cards. s.n.a.t.c.hing Jack's arm, Hopper stuffed the chest into his mouth and headed out of the cave. Staying near the bottom of the pool, Hopper cleared the turbulent waters and raced for the surface. Hopper shoved Jack out of the water above him and hit the surface at a fast swim desperate to get to the sh.o.r.e.

"He's not breathing!" Hopper's deep voice boomed over the roar of the falls. Gasping for air, Hopper allowed Sarah and Nicole to drag Jack over the rocks and onto the gra.s.s. Sarah forced Jack into a sitting position and used the Heimlich maneuver to cleanse his lungs of water. She laid him on his back and forced air into his lungs. Nicole placed an ear to his chest.

"No heart beat!" She gasped.

Sarah pushed her away and started pumping his chest. Hopper appeared at her side and began puffing air into Jack's lungs.

"It's only a game." Nicole managed hugging herself as she watched them struggle to bring Jack back to life.

"It can't be safe to allow someone to think they've died. I don't care if it is just hypnosis, this is insane." Sarah said as she continued to force Jack's heart to beat. Suddenly Jack coughed and his head jerked forward. Hopper roared with delight as his friend rolled to his side gasping for air. Sarah hugged the large troll, relieved they didn't have to wait until the adventure was over to find out if Jack had really suffered from the ordeal.

"What happened?" Jack squeaked, looking up at his three nearly hysterical friends.

"You were dead." Hopper smiled weakly. "I pulled you out of the cave just in time."

"Dead?" Jack coughed, rolled over onto his back and sat up.

"Absolutely," Hopper added, "Sarah had to revive you."

"I guess I wasn't cut out for underwater spelunking." Jack forced a smile.

"Maybe not, but you're a great treasure hunter." Hopper's huge hairy face glowed with excitement as he offered Jack the small chest and added, "The honor's all yours."

"I saw you dive into the water and pull me out." Jack whispered softly, oblivious to the chest. "Nicole grabbed my arms and Sarah kissed me . . . "

"Are you all right?" Nicole moved forward. She stared at him with such intensity, Jack could no longer meet her gaze. He fell silently back on to the gra.s.s.

"My chest hurts and I've got a ma.s.sive headache." He sighed, clutching his head in both hands.

"Let's get him out of the sun." Sarah ordered, pulling Jack to his feet. "Can you walk?"

"I didn't get hit by a bus." Jack frowned, but leaned against Hopper's hulking form nonetheless. "How long was I out?"

"How long before you ran out of air?" The tall troll asked, leading Jack to the tree".

"The bag sprung a leak, after my second breath. I was pretty far in . . ." Jack stammered, trying to remember. "There was a side tunnel near the back. I had just entered it after searching the main area and finding nothing."

"Two minutes tops." Hopper answered firmly, moving Jack inside the tree line.

"I found you inside the main entrance."

"Two minutes, I guess that's okay."

"Of course it's okay," Nicole said. "Do you really think you stopped breathing?"

"It sure seemed like it to me." Hopper offered, lowering Jack onto the soft gra.s.s beneath a large tree.

"It's just part of the game. We wanted some excitement. So Strong gave it to us.

He'll be as good as new in a few minutes, then we can head out." Nicole grinned, holding out the jeweled chest to Jack. "It's not locked."

Taking the chest from Nicole, Jack set it on the ground before him. Using the small knife, still stuffed into his belt, Jack pried the rusted latch open. Inside was a bundle wrapped in a thick layer of wax. Turning the chest over, he let the bundle fall on to the gra.s.s. The others knelt beside him gazing at the lump of hardened wax. Using his long black claws Hopper gently poked at it.

"It's solid." Hopper said.

"Think your seven headed monster is hiding inside?" Jack smiled wickedly and slammed his fist into the package. The wax cracked and splintered apart revealing a leather wrap secured tightly with burlap straps. Jack's small knife quickly cut the straps then pulled back the leather to reveal its contents. Jack frowned and said, "l thought it'd be some kind of potion or a magic wand."

"So did I." Sarah said reaching for the worn, brown leather book. Two thin ornate silver snakes served as binders. The eyes were tiny sparkling rubies and the winding bodies were adorned with tiny blue and yellow gems that sparkled like crushed gla.s.s in diamond shaped cl.u.s.ters.

"Is that it?" Hopper stared over Jack's shoulder. "There's got to be something else."

"Conjuration," Sarah said, looking up at him.

"Well . . . yeah, that's a given, Sarah." Jack smiled weakly.

"No, that's what it says." She shook her head at him.