The maintenance tunnels were a different world altogether, a far cry from the crowded alleyways and rooftops above. The air was thick with dust and stale, carrying the faint scent of rust and mildew. The darkness was nearly suffocating, broken only by the faint glow of the emergency lights mounted sporadically along the tunnel walls. The soft hum of city infrastructure filled the space, creating an eerie backdrop to their frantic escape.
Sera dropped down from the maintenance grate, landing softly beside Zyra. The tunnel was cramped, barely wide enough for them to move single file. It stretched out ahead of them, seemingly endless in its narrow, concrete walls.
"Remind me why we're doing this again?" Zyra muttered, her voice echoing slightly in the confined space.
"Because the alternative is getting caught and thrown in a cell. Or worse," Sera shot back, brushing off the grime from her hands as she adjusted to the darkness. She glanced over at Zyra, barely able to make out her silhouette in the low light. "Come on, let's keep moving. The farther we go, the better chance we have of slipping through."
They began to move down the tunnel, their footsteps muffled against the concrete floor. The walls were close enough that Sera could feel the cool stone brushing against her shoulder with every step. The deeper they went, the quieter it became. The sound of the city above began to fade, replaced by the distant hum of machinery and the occasional drip of water leaking from the old infrastructure.
For a moment, it almost felt peaceful. But that peace didn't last.
"You think the patrols will follow us down here?" Zyra asked, her voice tight with tension.
Sera shrugged. "Maybe. They're thorough, but I doubt they know every inch of these tunnels. They're not mapped out like the streets above."
"Yeah, well, I'm starting to get the feeling we don't know every inch of these tunnels either," Zyra muttered, glancing nervously at the dark corners and junctions they passed.
Sera grinned. "Relax, we'll figure it out. It's not like they're gonna have a welcome party waiting for us down here."
But as the words left her mouth, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of doubt. The maintenance tunnels were old, some sections forgotten by the city's engineers. There were stories of people getting lost down here, of entire sections collapsing without warning.
But better this than facing the guards above.
The tunnel narrowed even more as they continued forward, forcing them to crouch as they moved. The ceiling was low, covered in pipes and wires, some of which had long since corroded. Sera could hear the faint hum of electricity running through the cables, and she made a mental note to avoid touching anything.
As they reached a junction, Sera paused, glancing down both corridors. The one on the left seemed to descend deeper into the ground, the floor sloping slightly as it disappeared into the darkness. The one on the right remained level, though the air that came from it was thicker, more stagnant.
Zyra stepped beside her, her eyes darting between the two paths. "Which way?"
Sera hesitated, listening for any sounds of pursuit. The tunnels were silent, save for the occasional distant clang of machinery. She weighed her options. The path that sloped downward was risky—it could lead to more uncharted territory or a dead end. But the stagnant air from the other tunnel didn't sit right with her either. It felt wrong, like something was lurking further down.
"Downhill," Sera decided, pointing toward the sloped tunnel. "We'll go deeper. They'll expect us to keep it level, try to keep our bearings. But if we go further down, we can lose them entirely."
Zyra sighed, her face etched with reluctance. "If this gets us killed, I'm haunting you."
Sera laughed quietly, starting down the slope. "Better ghosts than prisoners."
They descended into the deeper section of the tunnels, the incline making it harder to keep their footing. Sera was careful to move slowly, knowing that a single slip could send them tumbling into the unknown. The air grew cooler, the distant hum of the city above now barely a whisper. It was disorienting, the way the tunnels twisted and turned, leading them further away from everything they knew.
As they reached the bottom of the slope, the tunnel opened up slightly into a larger space. The walls were rougher here, the signs of age and neglect more apparent. Old machinery sat abandoned along the sides of the room, rusted and long forgotten. Sera approached one of the machines, her fingers brushing against the cold metal.
Zyra, however, was more focused on the room itself. Her eyes flicked toward the ceiling, where old ventilation shafts were barely visible. "This place gives me the creeps," she muttered.
Sera nodded. "Yeah, but at least no one's found us yet."
As if on cue, the sound of footsteps echoed faintly from somewhere above. Both of them froze, their bodies tense as they listened. The footsteps were distant, but unmistakable.
"They're coming," Zyra whispered, her eyes wide.
Sera's mind raced. They had gone deep enough to avoid detection for a while, but the guards were persistent. They must have figured out where they'd gone and were following the trail.
"We need to keep moving," Sera said quietly. "This way."
They moved toward the far end of the room, where another tunnel led even deeper into the system. The walls were damp now, and the air was thick with the smell of mold. The tunnel curved sharply, and as they rounded the bend, they found themselves in a narrow passage barely wide enough for them to squeeze through.
"Shit," Zyra muttered, glancing over her shoulder. "We're running out of room."
Sera didn't respond, her focus entirely on finding an escape. The passage was tight, and the walls seemed to press in on them as they pushed forward. But as they continued, the passage finally opened up into another tunnel—a larger, more open space that stretched ahead in the distance.
"We're almost there," Sera said, though she wasn't entirely sure where "there" was.
The sound of footsteps echoed again, closer this time. The guards were gaining on them.
Sera quickened her pace, her heart pounding in her chest. They couldn't be caught, not after everything they'd been through. As they approached the next intersection, Sera spotted a small access hatch in the floor.
"Here!" she whispered urgently, motioning for Zyra to help her.
They pried open the hatch, revealing a ladder that led down into yet another level of the tunnel system. Without hesitation, Sera climbed down first, her hands gripping the cold rungs as she descended into the darkness below. Zyra followed close behind, pulling the hatch closed above them as they disappeared into the depths.