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Jack's woke up and it was one of those blue sky scorches where the dirt turns to powder and the trees shimmer in the heat. Jack's fired up his bike and headed off into the bush, flicking dust up as he waited at the edge of the paddock for his mate. Hendricks was Jack's buddy from school and they decided that their afternoon activity was going to be exploring a new cave they just recently discovered. You ready to send it? Jack's yelled over the engine noise. You know it Hendricks grin kicking his bike to life. The boys bumped knuckles with their gloves and took off like rockets across the track. They rode through the forest and up through some private property hitting ruts, launching off small berms, dodging gumtree roots, and flying through dry creek crossings. The air was thick with dust and laughter and the sound of two strokes echoed off the hills. Jack's waved Hendricks over. I wanna check out the back fence line. I reckon there's a new trail there and I reckon that's where we're gonna find this secret cave. Mitch said he cleared the scrub last week, so we should be able to get through. Sure thing. I'll race you, Hendricks said, already turning his bars and pulling the throttle. They boasted on the pegs and shot towards the trees at the edge of the property where the paddocks gave way to wild bush. The boys pulled up panting and dripping in sweat. Alright, you in this one, Jack said, pulling off his goggles, but before Henry's could gloat, Jack's pointed to something in the distance. What's that? Nestle between two mossy boulders was a thin crack in the hillside, partially hidden by vines. It looked like nothing from afar, but the closer they crept, the more it resembled and entrance. Looks like a cave. Said Hendrix crouching to P inside. Jack squinted. I've never seen this before, and we've ridden here like a hundred times. This must be the entrance to the cave I've heard about. They stared at it in silence for a moment. The air coming outta, it was ice cold, and it smelled like wet leaves and something older, something ancient. It was dark and scary. Should we go inside? Hendricks asked. Jack's hesitated, Mitch's back at the shed fixing Bonnie's bike. He'll be ages if we have to wait for him. Let's just go in for a quick look. Hendrick said already pulling a torch out of his bumba. We just won't go very far in. So no one takes our bikes when we are not here. Jack's nodded. Pulling out his own flashlight. Alright, but if it looks dodgy, we're out inside. The air was cooler than a fridge and thick with moisture. The cave walls dripped in places and the boys boots squished in the mud. With each step they crept forward beams of light bouncing around the cave, twisted and turned. Every sound echoed, drips, foot falls breathing. At one point something scuttled across the wall and Hendricks jumped. Ah, oh, it's just a lizard. Said Jacks trying to keep his voice steady. The tunnel narrowed into a chamber where strange rock formations hung from the ceiling like teeth. That's when they heard it gr a low gurgling growl that seemed to come from deeper inside. Did you hear that Hendricks whispered his eyes wide? Yeah. Said Jacks. I think it's just wind through the rocks, but neither of them believed it. They pushed on hearts pounding. The next chamber was lit by the reflections of tiny minerals that sparked like glitter in the center, sat something weird, an old dirt and crusted helmet. Jack's picked it up carefully. Across the inside brim. Written in, faded black pen. Were the words. Snake Bite Steve. 1989. No freaking way, Hendricks breathe. Snake. Bite Steve from those old bags. Dad has jack's nodded slowly. He disappeared years ago on a ride. No one ever found him. People reckon he vanished into the bush. A sudden chuckle echoed through the tunnel. You boys are so nosy. They froze. Something shuffled behind the rocks. Then came thump, thump, thump. Something big. Ron Jack said Quietly. They bolted, slipping, stumbling, ducking under rock. LEDs, climbing over boulders. Mud slashed up their modo pants as they sprinted blindly behind them. Came a voice closer. This time you've got no business in here. This is my track and cave. Just as their torches started to flicker and run outta battery, they spotted it a beam of daylight ahead, high up at the end of a steep muddy shaft. The tunnel had opened up into a slope, but it was steep as a skate ram and slick with gooey clay. No way. We are making it up. That said Hendricks. We have to. Jack said, eyes locked on the light. Remember the hill climb behind your house? It's just like that. Keep moving. Don't stop. Stay centered. We have to get to our bikes to escape from whoever it is that's chasing us. Jack's went first. Slipping his way up the slope. He made it halfway before grabbing onto a root and hauling himself up to the lip. He turned around and reached at his hand. Come on, Hendricks. Hendricks scrambled behind him, slipping on the slime, but Jack's caught his wrist and pulled together. They tumbled out into the sunlight, gasping for air. From below came the sound of crunching footsteps and a furious voice. Has it chased him. You come back here, I'll make sure I catch you. They didn't stick around. The boys jumped on their bikes, kickstarted them, and Ro took off. I started bouncing their way through the trees, pulling wheelies over tree roots and jumping through muddy puddles. Jackson was in the front kicking up dust and Hendricks. Could see the scary person coming outta the cave and chasing them on his own Big bike. Go Jacks go faster. He's coming. Jack's twisted the throttle as they headed downhill. His brakes were squealing as they ran out of pad. You've gotta stay with me, Hendrix. He's catching up to us and he looks scary. The boys held onto their handlebar, bouncing across the rocks and dodging tree roots. Just then out of nowhere, a kangaroo jumped in front of Jack's. He skidded to a stop Hendricks just pulled up behind him. Did you nearly hit that Kangaroo Hendricks said I did, but luckily I was just able to avoid it The boys couldn't see the man chasing them, but they could hear his bike coming. I didn't waste any time and took off again, doing a burnout as they rode. Jack's yelled out through his helmet. Come on, Hendrix, follow me. They kept slicing through single track, popping their way over tree roots and over big jumps. Then all of a sudden they came across a big canyon. They pulled to a stop. What do we do now? The man behind us is catching us, and we're not on the same track we used to get here. Where did this canyon come from? Hendricks looked at the canyon and then saw a big jump off to the side. Jax, I reckon we can jump over this canyon, but we're gonna have to go all the way back up the hill and pin it over. That jump. Jax agreed. Alright, follow me. They rode back up the hill and just as they turned around, they saw the scary man approaching them on his big dirt bike. They took off as fast as they could, full throttle pinned. They hit the jump. Boom and went sailing through the air. The canyon was hundreds of meters down below them. They were both side by side. As they landed with a thud, they'd made it They skidded to a stop, looked back across the canyon, and the big scary man who was chasing them, couldn't hit the jump fast enough, and he fell short, falling down into the canyon Phew. That was close, Jack said I knew the cave would be scary, but not that scary. Hendricks said, oh man, that was one hell of a ride. I'm glad we were able to jump across that canyon. The boys rode back to the paddock in stunned silence. Their jerseys were soaked in mud and sweat. Their boots full of dust and their minds racing. Mitch waved as they pulled in.. Where have you been? Just exploring Jack's. Bumbled. They didn't say much else. Not until later when they sat by the trailer eating crackers and sipping on some water. We shouldn't have gone in there without telling anyone. Hendricks said That was dumb. Yeah. Jack's agreed. We're lucky we got out. Shouldn't have gone in where Mitch said oh, we went in that cave and you wouldn't believe what we found. Jack's pulled something from his gear Bagg and placed it on the ground between them. Snake bite Steve's helmet. Hendrick stared at it in silence. Alright. He said That's wild. Mitch looked at it and said, well, I told you never go in there, but I'm glad you got out. How'd you get away from Steve? He's a crazy rider. We had to jump a huge canyon, Hendrick said then Jack smiled. Yeah, and he nearly caught us. The boys looked at each other wide eyes, the sun setting behind them. Well, some legends don't die, I guess Mitch said and even though you nearly got caught by snake bite, Steve, just remember any day on a dirt bike is a good day.