Chapter 9 Into the Volcano I woke up in the morning, freezing.
We were 5,000 feet above the ground.
It was very cold.
I was not upset, though.
The sun was shining so brightly that it put me in a good mood.
I crawled outside our shelter and went to look at the view.
I saw valleys and more mountains.
To my right, facing east, there were endless rows of glaciers.
Their white and gray peaks cut into the sky.
Looking west, there was the ocean.
It felt like the whole world was below me.
I had never seen a sight as magnificent as my view that morning.
My time of quiet thought ended when my uncle and Hans joined me.
They paused for only a moment to admire the view.
Then my uncle announced, To the crater!
He was ready to start going down right away.
Hans and I reminded him that we needed breakfast.
He listened to us, but he was not happy about it.
He paused only long enough to quickly eat some bread and drink coffee, then he prepared the ropes.
Hans and I ate more slowly, enjoying our view.
Finally, we joined Uncle at the mouth of the crater.
The crater was perhaps 800 feet wide.
We all looked in.
The sun lit everything, so it was easy to see down.
I guessed the crater was about 2,000 feet deep.
The sides sloped in gently, and I guessed the bottom was 500 feet wide.
It didn't look like it would be too hard to climb down.
We had good, strong equipment.
We tied our ropes to solid rocks at the top of the crater.
Once the ropes were secure, we made our slow descent.
Other than some loose rocks slipping past us, we reached the bottom without any trouble.
It was midday when we touched the bottom of the crater.
I sat down on a rock and stared up at the sky.
The mouth of the crater looked much smaller from far below.
The sky was now gray.
I watched as clouds swirled over the opening.
I was surprisingly calm.
I was not as scared as I thought I would be.
My uncle was not so relaxed.
He raced around the crate floor.
I had no idea how long I was staring at the sky.
I had no idea how long he was examining the crater.
I only became aware of him when he called my name.
Axel?
Axel, he called.
Come here now.
I need you.
I rushed over as quickly as I could.
He was standing on a tall rock, looking up at something on the wall of the crater.
Look at this, he said.
He pointed to writing on the rock.
Arne Sagnuson, look, he was here.
We were right.
It was writing high on the wall.
It was the same runes we found in Sagnuson's note.
I suddenly felt very tired.
I looked over to Hans.
He was sound asleep, tucked in close to some rocks.
I thought this was a very good idea.
I picked up my pack and unrolled my blanket.
I found my own sleeping spot and lay down.
My uncle continued wandering and exploring as I went to sleep.
We woke up the next morning to gray skies.
Right away I noticed my uncle was very angry.
It took only a moment to understand the problem.
There were three tunnels.
How would my uncle know which one to take?
We did not have enough time or supplies to explore one only to discover it was the wrong choice.
The note we found in the book said we would know which tunnel to choose by shadows.
At the end of June, the sun would be in the right position to cast a shadow over the entrance of the correct tunnel.
But if there was no sun, then there would be no shadow.
With today's gray sky, there was nothing to do but wait.
Thankfully, the sun arrived the next day.
It was June 28th.
We watched as its glorious rays filled the sky with golden light.
The shadow worked its way down the side of the crater.
We watched and waited.
It landed right above one of the tunnel entrances.
Uncle Lidenbrock almost jumped for joy.
I think he might have even clapped his hands.
To the center of the earth, he cried.
He picked up his pack and as much equipment as he could carry.
That's when the real journey began.
Hans and I organized the equipment and followed my uncle.
Before I entered the tunnel, I stopped.
This was my last chance to turn back.
I thought about my little Robin.
I thought of her smile.
I thought about seeing her again.
And with that, I started on my way.
Hans helped my uncle down the tunnel to the next level.
He slowly lowered the rope until Uncle Lidenbrock touched down.
Hans then motioned that I should go next.
I secured myself to the rope just as my uncle had done.
Hans helped lower me.
When I reached my uncle, I helped Hans.
I braced my feet against the rocks and held the rope tightly so that it did not swing, while Hans made his way down.
This first part of our journey was the hardest.
As the tunnel continued, it became very steep.
We had to move very carefully.
It was as if we were climbing down a chimney.
We used the ropes to steady ourselves while we lowered ourselves down the rock.
This was very difficult work, but I was interested in looking at the rock.
I examined it as I passed by.
The farther we went down, the older the rock was.
It was as if we were moving back through the ages.
The farther I go, the more confident I become, my uncle suddenly said.
I'm sure that we are on the right path.
Hans called and we understood that he wanted us to stop.
What's going on?
I asked.
My uncle asked Hans to explain himself.
He says that we are here.
We have reached the bottom. bottom, I asked.
But where do we go now?
Is there nowhere else to go?
Hans pointed to one side and said something to my uncle.
He says there is another tunnel just past these rocks, but he wants to stop now for food and rest.
My uncle sat down on a rock.
I have to say that I agree with him this time.
So we sat down and ate our dinner.
Then we settled in for a good sleep.
The journey would continue the next day.
