\u201cAhh! So the little rat has found his tongue! Tell me where the stone is and I might\u2026might\u2026just reconsider!\u201d Bosula was now bending over Lesedi and had his face close to his. He had the foulest breath Lesedi had ever smelt. What did this creature eat? Rotten toads? Or maybe he never cleaned his teeth. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2026I\u2026don\u2019t know what you are talking about,\u201d said Lesedi, trying to make his voice shake, which wasn\u2019t too difficult under the circumstances. <\/p>\n
\u201cYOU ARE THE KEEPER OF THE STONE!\u201d Bosula boomed in a loud voice that made everyone jump except the chameleon guards, who stood there with their eyes roaming around the cave. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not!\u201d said Lesedi truthfully. He wasn\u2019t aware that he was the keeper of anything. He had been told to hide the palm Nut and that was all. <\/p>\n
\u201cTHAT\u2019S A LIE!\u201d yelled Bosula, his voice echoing around the cave. Lesedi tried not to breathe in too deeply, Bosula\u2019s smelly breath was starting to make him feel sick. \u201cYou are trying my patience! SCORPION PIT!\u201d He waved his arms at Lesedi and the snake. One chameleon creature grabbed the snake by the tail and another grabbed Lesedi around the waist. Lesedi put up an impressive struggle as he was dragged along, all the time trying to work out how he was going to get the stone out of the snake. He had completely forgotten about the scorpions. Kgatwe hadn\u2019t, though, and he was hoping that the walls of the pit wouldn\u2019t be too sandy so that he could scramble up them. They were marched to a slit in the side of the cave. It looked like a laundry shoot and was just big enough to fit a person through. The snake was pushed through first and Lesedi could hear it slithering away and then a large plop as it hit the bottom. He couldn\u2019t be sure but he thought he heard a second plop as well. Then it was his turn. He was stuffed unceremoniously into the hole. It was very slippery and seemed to spiral as he went flying down, knocking against the sides. He landed with a thunk in the dark, his breath knocked out of him once again. He was starting to feel like a sack of mealie meal being thrown around like this.<\/p>\n
Lesedi lay on his back on the ground trying to get his breath back and at the same time trying to locate the whereabouts of the snake. His eyes gradually started getting used to the dark and he realised that there must be a source of light coming from somewhere. <\/p>\n
\u201cKgatwe!\u201d he whispered. \u201cCome out and see where we are. Your eyes work better in the dark than mine.\u201d <\/p>\n
Kgatwe didn\u2019t move. \u201cWhere are the scorpions?\u201d he whispered back nervously.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh for goodness sake!\u201d said Lesedi. \u201cThey\u2019re up looking for Lorato in the tunnel. Don\u2019t you pay attention?\u201d<\/p>\n
Kgatwe slowly poked his head out of Lesedi\u2019s pocket. If this was a scorpion pit there were bound to be a few hanging around. He looked around, his eyes falling on the snake lying prone nearby. \u201cWell, looks like snake\u2019s had the wind and the nut knocked out of him,\u201d he said casually.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe what?!\u201d said Lesedi, sitting bolt upright and forgetting about his aches and bruises. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Nut,\u201d repeated Kgatwe, venturing a bit further out of Lesedi\u2019s pocket and peering around. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is it?\u201d Lesedi could just make out a shape that looked like the snake nearby. <\/p>\n
\u201cSnake\u2019s right here,\u201d said Kgatwe.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot the snake! The Nut!\u201d snapped Lesedi. This gecko could be very annoying at times. <\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d said Kgatwe very deliberately. \u201cBut there is no bulge in snake so it must be out of snake.\u201d <\/p>\n
Lesedi could make out the snake a bit clearer now. He looked somewhat dazed and confused and there didn\u2019t seem to be any lump in his throat anymore. He got on his hands and knees and started feeling frantically around the floor of the pit. <\/p>\n
\u201cCareful of scorpions,\u201d said Kgatwe, climbing onto Lesedi\u2019s head. <\/p>\n
\u201cStop worrying about scorpions. See if you can see the nut.\u201d Lesedi continued sweeping his hands across the floor. He could feel the slits in the ground that he knew were scorpion holes but at this point he didn\u2019t allow himself to dwell on this. He must find the Nut. Suddenly his hand closed around something round. Sitting down he clasped it to his chest, feeling it carefully. It was the Nut! <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve found it!\u201d he said excitedly to Kgatwe. He felt like leaping up and down with happiness. <\/p>\n
\u201cGood,\u201d said Kgatwe, sounding unimpressed. \u201cNow how do we get out of here?\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cUmmm\u2026\u201d said Lesedi, feeling his initial jubilation disappear. He sat still trying to think, holding the nut very tightly in both hands. Then he started to feel around the Nut, wondering if there was something inside. If there was there must be a way to get inside. He couldn\u2019t feel any openings or cracks; then his fingers felt a very tiny little bump on the side, which he pushed and fell back in amazement at what happened next, catching his breath. The top popped open and a brilliant light filled the pit. It was the same light he saw in his head when he managed to contact Ledimo. It spiraled up red and green and silver. <\/p>\n
\u201cClose it!\u201d said Kgatwe urgently, pulling at his hair. \u201cThis must be the stone they keep talking about. If anyone sees that light they will know we have it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lesedi fumbled frantically with The Nut, at last managing to close it. Feeling himself shaking all over he carefully put it into his pocket. This was all becoming a bit much for him; however, the bright light had given him a quick chance to glance around the pit. There were definitely no scorpions but there were hundreds of slits around the edge of the pit and up the walls. They would no doubt be back as soon as they had made sure the upper passage was clear. There was a grid over a small window on one side, which was probably where Bosula\u2019s strange creatures kept an eye on proceedings inside the pit. He noticed with relief that there was nothing peering in at them. As his eyes got used to the dark again he could see that there was a dim light coming from somewhere high above them. It wasn\u2019t coming from the shoot they had come down, so this might be a way out.<\/p>\n
\u201cKgatwe, where are you?\u201d The little gecko had hopped off his head when he saw that there were no scorpions and was scrambling around the edge of the pit. <\/p>\n
\u201cTrying to find a way out\u201d came the reply from the far corner.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s up there where the light is coming from,\u201d said Lesedi, pointing upwards. <\/p>\n