The Last Beacon

XXXVII

Sascha didn't want to open her eyes once she stirred.

She groaned, her back stiff and aching, feeling that she had awoken on a cold stone floor. She gritted her teeth and pushed up from the ground with significant difficulty. Her back clicked as she moved, and her limbs were heavy and trembling.

"Sascha? You're awake!"

Sascha groaned again, blinking her eyes open, realising that she was back with Laurenz.

She still could not quite grasp what had happened. She was not even sure if her conversation with Reverus was real, and she did not know how much of it was just a figment of her imagination.

I'm not really sure how much of that I could have come up with on my own, she told herself, knowing deep down that Reverus was not a construction of fiction.

"Laurenz," she breathed, her head still lightly spinning.

"I'm here," he replied quickly, "are you alright? You've been out for a long time."

Sascha rubbed her eyes, trying to expel the dizziness that she still felt. "How long have I been out?"

"I don't know how long it's been, but I'm sure it has been over 24 hours. It was late evening when Mortimalus returned from wherever he took you, and he gave the order to send me to a cell. Hours later, you were dragged in here, unconscious. You've been asleep up until now, and it's been hours and hours since you were put in here with me. I think it may be either late at night or early morning, because the guards switched shifts a little while ago. That's all I have to go on."

"Wait, we're in a cell?" Sascha asked, seemingly coming out of her drowsy state.

"Yes," Laurenz sighed, "the dungeon is deep within the mines. I'm not sure we're going to get out of here, Sascha. I'm so sorry."

Yes we are, Sascha thought to herself, but I'm not sure I can tell you that.

"I'm sure we'll figure something out," she said, reassuring.

"No one escapes the dungeon here," Laurenz countered, "not unless it is authorised by the king. The bars are of the strongest, highest quality metals, and the locks cannot be picked. The dwarven craft is far too advanced for any prisoners to be able to escape. Unless we can convince Mortimalus to let us out, we're not going anywhere."

Sascha said nothing. Instead, she stood up and slowly made her way to the thick, cold bars of the cell. She gently grasped them with both hands and peered out through one of the gaps, trying to get an idea of their surroundings.

There were a multitude of narrow stone paths and platforms in a seemingly endless cavern. There were thick wires and ropes carrying large baskets and barrels, and steam rising from somewhere deep down below. Sascha guessed that the cells were sat on one of the larger platforms, deep within the mountain.

"Sascha?" She heard Laurenz ask.

She turned around silently, sending him a questioning look.

"Come sit down," he said fondly, "I want to tell you a story, to pass the time."

Sascha said nothing, and she made her way over to Laurenz, sitting down in front of him, crossing her legs.

"It's about time I told you this. The whole story, I mean," he said.

"What do you mean?" Sascha asked.

"I want to tell you the full story of my final job as a bounty hunter. I think it might be good to help you understand me a bit better, and how Decius and I met."