Claire pulled out the map again and Pierce held the lamp over it.
They were at a fork in the tunnel.
"The map says we have to go left."
"Ah, alright."
She tucked away the map and started walking that way.
What was that?
Voices?
She turned around to look at Pierce, who was alarmed as well.
"What do we do?"
"We have to fight them."
"Turn off the lamp."
They had been told about what to do in situations where they run into people underground. Since it could be Vaequilians discovering the tunnels, they couldn't just greet whoever they met.
Claire clenched her fists as Pierce quickly diffused the lamp.
Darkness and silence.
"Hello?" someone called down the tunnels.
The people had seen or heard them.
Crap
"We have no choice, do we?" she whispered to Pierce.
"Yeah. We have to fight them."
Pierce quickly walked back to the fork and hid in the other tunnel and she followed him.
She wiped the sweat off her forehead.
She was wearing a thief's clothes, given to her by Khai. It made very little noise.
The light was getting closer.
Claire held her breath and readied her knife. Pierce did the same.
Oh gods,
Oh gods,
Oh gods,
The voices were louder.
"Gods, Sara. Why'd you think this was a good place to go?" a voice asked.
"There was no other way!" another voice replied.
Sara?
She tapped Pierce on the shoulder and motioned to lower his knife.
She stepped back and waited for them to pass by.
Step,
Step,
Step,
They were right in front of them, unaware that Claire was there.
Claire held her breath.
"Troy, are we walking in circles?"
"Oh my god." she mumbled, and they stopped.
"What was that?" Troy asked, turning around quickly.
Troy turned and faced her for the first time in eight years.
