The Stone Monarch

The Stone Monarch


Audrey and Edie had been walking since just after breakfast.  Audrey was Edie's cousin, and this was her first trip on her own.  Their goal was a nice, long swim in an abandoned, flooded quarry on the other side of Toothy Pass, a gap in the line of hills arrayed north to south just west of town.  The pass got its name from the rocks that flanked its entrance.  An identical series of five stones, looking for all the world like an oversized set of incisors and molars, lined the trail on each side.

They enjoyed the scenery and took their time, exclaiming every so often over a particularly pretty flower in the fields or a hawk outlined against the bright blue sky as it hunted its next meal.  As they walked, Edie again told her cousin about the Legend of Toothy Pass.

"Like I mentioned in my letter, they say the pass is the entrance to the realm of the Quarry King and, if you don't pay his toll, well...something real bad will happen to you."

"Sure, Edie.  Whatever you say," replied Audrey, her disbelief evident.

They walked on in silence.  Eventually, the gap appeared in the distance.

"Where's your toll, Audrey?  Is it in your backpack with your swimsuit?"

"You're still serious about that?"

"I was and am dead serious.  The legend says you can't pass, if you don't pay the toll."

"You're almost in high school, Edie!  I can't believe you're so superstitious!  You actually think something bad will happen, if you don't toss a rock into some hole?"

"The legend is the legend, and spooky stuff happens around here.  I'm not taking any chances."

"Well, I didn't bring any dumb rocks.  Just let me have one of yours," demanded Audrey.

"Won't work," Edie countered.  "First off, like I already told you, it has to be yours; no borrowing allowed.  Second, I only brought two for myself: one to get in, and one to get out again."

"Fine!" Audrey huffed.  She searched along both sides of the path, until she found a fist-sized rock.  It was shot through with veins of white and gray, and flecks of mica sparkled in the sunlight.

"This is a pretty enough rock; I'll just use it and find something else on the other side.  C'mon, Edie.  It's swimming time!"

Audrey took a few steps forward, tossed her rock into a hole that lay just inside the gap's entrance, and continued up the path.  As she passed between the lead stones, a thick mist began to form, until the girls could no longer see each other.  Suddenly, Audrey began screaming, which started Edie screaming, too.  After a few moments, though, Edie realized she was the only one screaming.  There was a harsh, grating sound--as of stone grinding on stone--and then a rocky swallowing sound made the ground tremble.

When the mist cleared, Edie peered at the rocks lining the gap.  They were covered with blood and gore, and there was no sign of Audrey.  Even as she watched, the blood soaked right into the rocks, leaving them completely dry.  Edie heard a soft sighing like a gentle breeze in the trees, but there was no breeze and there were no trees.  It sounded disturbingly like her father's sigh of contentment after a good meal.

She stared at the pass's entrance for a good long while, then turned back toward town.

"I tried to tell her--agates or geodes; nothing else is good enough."

[584 words]