Earthly Delights part two

As the dust came up my thoughts descended; a funny little hole in the garden or something much more revealing? I peered into the gloom. Underneath the speckled lid there was something cooking, a tunnel no less, supported by twisted, creaky beams. I wriggled my way into the hole and along the passage, petrified of what I might or might not find and gazing into the abyss. Trembling with fear but spurred on by excitement, I thought I saw a twinkling in the distance but it could have been my eyes deceiving me; my tummy was filled with butterflies. After struggling for quite some time the light grew more apparent and finally an opening presented itself onto something far more sinister.
Let me describe to you the wonders of that cave. In the distance tall shadows loomed, whilst what can only be portrayed as creatures looked on and close to me, at the side of the tunnel, was a little fellow holding up placards in front of a roaring fire, which was creating the images on the far wall. How bizarre, I thought, and what the devil is going on here? The odd little man with the signs was so deeply engaged in his activities that I didn't dare disturb him and instead turned to the peculiar show and its audience. They seemed silent and motionless and I soon realised why. Whilst no sign of discomfort showed on their gaunt and withered faces, their limbs were firmly bound by thick chains and heavy locks. Neither did they notice me for they were engaged in watching the spectres on the wall and didn't seem to be able to move at all. They watched with such fascination and fixation that I soon came to think that this puppet show was all they cared about, for try as I might, they were not to be distracted. It was as though all that existed were the shadows on the wall. Turning to the man by the fire I asked him, "Excuse me sir, where am I?", and his look of utter horror gave rise to a sinking feeling. I wasn't supposed to be here, he scolded and that I was a fool and should go back to where I belong. Put off by his rudeness and the ridiculous scenario that I was presented with, I felt like walking away, going back up the tunnel and getting on with the gardening. But the demise of the imprisoned audience drew me back. Were they not even aware of their detainment, their bondage and the fallacy of what they saw? I gently tried to catch their attention but they only responded with grunted sounds and coughs as if to drown out my utterances. As the strange little man by the fire became more agitated, telling me to bugger off and calling me all the names under the sun, I grew disheartened. There seemed to be nothing I could do so I simply left, crawled back up the passage from whence I came, covered up the portal in the garden and got on with my life despite the perplexing situation occurring under my hedgerows. Had I fallen and banged my head? Had I mistakenly eaten some of the red berries on the holly bush? I do not know, but I will remember the look on those prisoner’s faces until the day I die. They appeared hollow.