The Cave

Originally Aired: December 20, 1955 In Suspense #629, "The Cave," ten-year-old Dan receives a powerful flashlight for Christmas and convinces his reluctant friend George to explore the legendary big cave near the sand dunes. Armed with Dan's new flashlight and George's toy gun, the boys venture deeper than they've ever dared before, following mysterious underground tunnels and a strange saltwater stream. When they discover a tiny handkerchief floating in the water—perhaps a message from someone in distress—Dan's imagination runs wild with thoughts of pirates and buried treasure, and he insists they press on despite George's growing fear and hunger. As the cave walls suddenly vanish and the stream becomes a vast underground lake, the boys make a startling discovery: stars appear overhead even though they know they're still deep underground. When Dan's flashlight is lost in the water, they find themselves in an impossible twilight world. Strange echoes bounce back their voices, and then they see figures on the sand—men who appear to be pirates, violent and threatening. The boys have stumbled into something far beyond a simple cave exploration, a mysterious realm where the boundaries between reality and fantasy have dissolved entirely.