File:Tales to Astonish Vol 1 22 001.jpg

Description
A high school student volunteers to man a governmental mining drill experiment near the grand canyon. When he descends, he meets primitive tribesmen who live underground being harried by a crawling reptile. The boy's gun cannot slay the beast, but it annoys the creature into following him up the drill's shaft. At the edge of the grand canyon, the boy uses a hand mirror to reflect light into the creature's eyes and dazzle it into toppling over the ledge. The creature doesn't fall, however, so the boy bravely decides to sacrifice himself by descending to the canyon floor thus ensuring the creature will follow and be trapped by the sheer walls. A passing helicopter sees the boy just moments before he is seized by the creature, and lowers a rope ladder, saving the boy and leaving the monster stranded at the bottom of the grand canyon.