10

A New Beginning

Tallulah led Kelwarin along the corridor that led in the direction from which the two of them had entered the building previously. Both of them made their way down the path in silence. Neither spoke a single word nor did she seem inclined to start a conversation. After walking for approximately twenty minutes, Tallulah eventually brought them to halt.

"Looks like we have reached our destination," she declared as she pointed at the door leading to an open room directly in front of them.

Kelwarin studied the room carefully. It appeared to be a simple living space. All of the furniture consisted of a bed with blankets, pillows, and several shelves stacked high with books. A small fireplace rested in the corner of the room beside two doors which both led to rooms in which people resided.

"Which way should we go?" Kelwarin asked after looking around the room briefly.

Tallulah gazed at his face for a short while, then shook her head. "No idea. You tell me."

"Hmm… Well, first off we should gather whatever possessions we have left here before heading towards the outer wall. Once there, there should be a couple of houses close to the walls. Most likely, they're inhabited by other members of the resistance and that's the best bet that the others will be there too."

"Alright," she agreed, nodding in agreement. "And what else do we have here? Any food? Weapons? Money? Or maybe clothing? You mentioned that we might need those items to survive."

Kelwarin shrugged helplessly. "I don't know… Probably some weapons. I haven't found anything useful yet."

Tallulah sighed and shook her head as she stared at Kelwarin in disappointment. "Great… Now all we need to do is wait until nightfall. I'm afraid that the chances of our survival aren't very great at that point considering how exhausted I am."

"But we still need to leave, don't we?" Kelwarin argued. "The sooner we get out of here, the better. Besides, they will expect us to return eventually."

"Well, yes, but… We don't even have a plan…" she stated. "Do you have any ideas or suggestions for getting out of here?"

Kelwarin frowned, pondering over the question for a moment. "Not particularly… Maybe we should look for some sort of escape device…"

Tallulah raised her eyebrows in surprise at Kelwarin's suggestion. "An escape device? Don't tell me you already have such a plan?"

Kelwarin sighed. "Well I haven'e thought of anything but that… I mean you're smart, aren't you? Surely you would've come up with something…"

Tallulah let out a loud sigh in response. "Fine…" she muttered reluctantly, turning her head away from him to stare blankly at the floor. "You win. We'll look for it during the day when things are less busy…"

"Good."

"I guess you'll also need to inform the rebels about this place so they can take appropriate measures to protect themselves as well. Hopefully, they can provide shelter and cover fire if needed."

"I'm sure they're smart enough to do that."

"Maybe," she murmured quietly. "Either way, you should go and alert them of our location so they can send a team here to help us."

"Alright." Kelwarin nodded his head. "Do you want to stay here in the room or would you rather wait for the rebels to come?"

"I'll wait here. I don't care whether they come or not."

Kelwarin nodded again. "I'm going to alert them," he informed her before disappearing back through the door he came through earlier.

Kelwarin returned to the kitchen where Rellin was currently cooking dinner. He cleared his throat loudly to grab the other man's attention.

Rellin looked up and furrowed his brows in confusion when he saw the look on Kelwarin's face. He didn't say a word, waiting for him to explain his sudden mood change.

"A lot has happened while you were gone. Did you happen to find any clothes for our friend over there?" Kelwarin asked casually, pointing at the prisoner who sat slumped against the table, his gaze fixated intently on the floor.

Rellin's eyebrows raised slightly at the mention of Kelwarin's 'friend'. "Yes… Why?" he asked cautiously, not quite knowing why Kelwarin would suddenly ask such a strange question.

"Nothing," Kelwarin dismissed, shaking his head dismissively. "Just trying to see what sizes fit. I can probably get her a decent set of trousers and some shirts…"

"Why? Do you fancy her?"

Kelwarin snorted. "What does it matter? It's none of your business anyway."

Rellin's eyes narrowed and he clenched his fist tightly in anger at the other man's dismissive tone. If anyone deserved to be treated with respect it was Kelwarin, he decided. The soldier didn't deserve someone who tried to act tough to hide the fact that he was completely terrified at having to share a cell with the guy.

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