A Tune in the Dark

They tried to move the rocks. Reem and Jad pushed with all their strength, and Saif tried to lift a small rock with his six legs. But the boulders were huge and heavy, piled on top of each other like a little mountain. Not one of them moved.

The three of them sat in front of the wall of rock in silence. Behind them, the lake's blue glow cast their long shadows on the boulders: three small shadows in front of a mountain.

"Do you know what I'm thinking about right now?" said Jad quietly. "My gran. She always said: when you're scared, count the beautiful things around you. So I'm counting: a blue lake. A brave friend. A robot who talks in proverbs. And... biscuits I can't eat."

Reem laughed in spite of her fear. And she felt the fear grow a little bit smaller.

Then something even worse happened.

When Saif tried to climb up the rocks to search for a gap near the top, a boulder slid beneath his legs and he fell. Another rock crashed down on top of him, onto his white body, with a horrible metallic sound: crunch.

"Saif!" Reem screamed.