Category: John Christopher

Only blind groping

The pipe turned into a gallery. It was neither wide nor high, but it led upwards. It was also damp, with drops of water oozing through the ceiling onto them. Henry called another halt for...

Dragged into Hell

For the greater part she was in utter blackness. The absence of light, unpleasant under normal circumstances, was terrifying when added to the close-pressing confinement of the rock about her. Her mind, strained out of...

Stuck in a rat trap

With Albrecht, she watched him wriggle into the hole, his body, as he progressed, cutting off more and more of the light, until they were left in darkness. They stood close together, aware of each...

No illusions

Here their needs were physical and urgent, summed up in one aim: to escape death. What would happen if the threat of death receded, and the threats and promises of life, with its confusions and...

Out, brief candle!

‘Our last day down here.’ ‘I’d like to think so.’ ‘It must be. We have good light for four or five hours, and then two candles, some matches, and a lighter. But even if it...

Drowned like rats

‘Shine your torch around.’ Cynthia opened her eyes to see the yellowing light reflected from a ceiling only a few feet above her. They were in a kind of alcove that lay alongside the river....

Pressing onwards

At last, Cynthia halted, resting her left side against the inward arch of the rock. Conscious of the added pull on the rope, Albrecht turned around and flashed the torch on her. She did not...