I stared down into the gaping maw in the earth, seemingly carved away by the prismatic hues of the rainbow. It was perfectly round, the dirt around the edges looking like it had been sliced with a cookie cutter. I wobbled a bit closer to the edge, peering over the lip. My foot kicked loose some sediment, and I heard it rain down below. I reached into my back pocket and pulled out my phone, noticing the complete lack of service.

I flipped on the flashlight.

The glow did very little to light up the space, but it did turn the mist in the air into a second, tiny rainbow. To my shock, the small arc of color immediatly gauged into the ground, carving away the earth like a laser. I played around with it for a moment, the danger of the situation not sinking in until I took a chunk out of my left sneaker.

I started to cut the light off, but before I did, I caught a glimpse of something metallic. My eyes widened, and I crouched down to get a better look.

Sure enough, a yellowish glow reflected up at me when I angled my flashlight just right. It was deep, probably no less than a hundred feet, but it seemed like a massive pile of gold. So was the legend true? I guess a part of me still believed in magic, otherwise I wouldn’t have driven so far out of my way chasing down the end of this rainbow. But still, how was any of this possible?

I quickly turned away, jogging back to my car. I had been on my way to a hike, so my climbing gear was in my trunk. I hurried to put it all on, fastening my harness and throwing the rope over my shoulder. I threw a spike into the ground a few yards away from the hole and hooked in my rope. As I stepped to the edge of the hole, I began to question myself. Was this safe? Nobody even knew I was here, if I fell…

I kicked off and slid over the edge. Along the way down, I placed several more pitons to secure myself. I had some experience in climbing, even if I had never gone caving before. My hands were sweaty, and the cold air of the chasm gave me chills. It felt like I’d been sliding down for hours.

I suddenly felt my foot touch ground. Or…not ground. The surface I stood on was unstable and slippery, but the sound was unmistakable. I was standing on a pile of coins. I dropped to my knees, pulling out my phone and turning the light back on. Bright gold reflected back at me, more than I could have imagined. My heart thundered in my chest, and I let out a choked cry of joy. My debt: gone. Any concerns about money: gone. The kids would be able to go to any college they wanted, hell, I could BUY a college. I began to pile the coins into my pockets, realizing that it would be several trips up and down before I’d even made a dent.

That was when I looked up.

I saw the small hole in the ceiling grow darker as clouds moved to cover the sun. The spectrum of color that had been above me just moments before disappeared, and the hole began to close. I couldn’t even react before the light completely faded and I realized that I was sealed inside.