Reflections of Mist

What's that sound?

What felt like ages passed in a mix of ringing silence, frosty glares, and an all round listless atmosphere.

Serious thirst and hunger were starting to creep up on them, formally having been pushed to the side by adrenaline and determination.

No one spoke.
The words had run out long ago, as had the motivation.

They all confined themselves to their chosen corner of solitude, no one daring more than a cold glance at the others.

Alysha lolled on a ledge of rock jutting out on the wall, her body shaped against the natural curve of the boulder, feet flat against the wall and her hair tumbling off the rock edge to cascade towards the floor in a tangled mess.
One hand was covered her forehead and eyes, the other rested on her stomach.
Lookswise, she seemed a little roughed up, but surprisingly not to worse for the wear.
However, she was unnervingly still, the slight rise and fall of her stomach being the only suggestion that she wasn't some statue.

Luci had found a lollypop stick in her pocket.

Currently, in an attempt to alleviate some boredom, she was using it sort of like a mix between a pencil and a drumstick and was scratching it along the ground, making random scraping tunes and nonsensical scratch-doodles.

Scritch! Scritch! Scritch!

She could feel the glares from multiple points across the room as the faint sound cut across the silence.

Nyx was considering pretending to sleep.

She was also considering actually going to sleep.

Except she didn't really feel like sleeping.

She felt absolutely drained, physically and mentally, but the thought of actually sleeping was somehow unappealing.

Actually, pretty much everything seemed unappealing.

Existing in general seemed unappealing.

Sighing, she closed her eyes and laid her head back against the rock.

Thud!

Something echoed faintly through the stone wall behind her.

Eyes flying open, she sat bolt upright, listening intently.

Nope, nothing.

Maybe she'd been mistaken.
Or maybe it had just been a one off unimportant thing, like rock shifting.
No need to get excited.

Closing her eyes again, she leant back against the rock.

Thud!

There was no mistaking it that time.

It was faint, a vibration through the rock, but it was there.
Repeating again and again, steady as a drumbeat.

Thud!Thud!Thud!

"What's that sound?" She croaked hoarsly, mouth feeling very dry.

Luci looked up from her project. "Sorry, that's me. But it's so boring down here!"

"No, not that sound! The other sound!"

"What other sound?"

"Nyx, are you okay?" Maddie asked gently.

"Yes, I'm fine! But there is a sound! Oh for... Put your damn head against this wall, you'll hear it!"

Maddie shifted as best she could and laid her ear to the wall. She listened.

"You hear it?"

"Uh... Some stuff. There's nothing earth-shattering."

"Yeah, but you can hear that more obvious repetitive thudding sound, right?"

"Uh... Not really."

"Okay, maybe hear isn't the right word. It's like a kind of vibration, you sort of feel it and then you sort of hear it. It's kind of like... an impression of a sound, rather than a full on sound, maybe. I don't know. Just concentrate!"

Maddie gave her a look. "Why is said sound so important anyway?"

"Because it's not random. It's rhythmic. You know, kind of like digging would be... Catch my drift?"

"Digging?" Luci exclaimed, rushing over. "Budge over, let me listen."

Maddie looked at Nyx. "Are you sure this is real? You didn't somehow imagine this?"

Nyx wore an annoyed expression. "Do I look like I would make this up?"

"Subconsciously, you might..."

"Shut up, I'm trying to listen!" Luci barked, placing her head against the wall.