The air in the tunnel was heavy, almost suffocating, and the constant dripping of water on the walls was all we had heard for hours. We were exhausted, but the pace of our work didn't slow down. It was hard, relentless work, but necessary. Every inch we dug sped up our escape.
We had been digging this tunnel for almost four years, and although it was a slow process, I could feel the difference in the rocks. In the past few months, we had encountered more soil than actual stone. And, of course, over time, I learned how to avoid Nathan's switch. I was at a point... good? I'm not sure how to explain it exactly. I wasn't better than Nathan, but I wasn't getting whipped anymore, so I guess we were on a similar level?
While I was lost in my thoughts, old Nathan was hammering away at the rocks ahead of me, until, suddenly, he stopped and moved closer to one of the stones he had been breaking. That, of course, caught my attention.
"Huh…?" Nathaniel suddenly gasped, breaking the steady rhythm of his digging. He froze, his body tense, staring intently at something in front of him.
"Haaa… haaa... ahh, my God... this... finally..." His voice was trembling, but filled with emotion.
I looked up, confused, and followed his gaze, straining to see what had caught his attention. There, in the dirt and stone, were small roots, thin like strands of hair but still roots. Real tree roots, weaving through the cracks in the rocky walls.
Noticing that the light was starting to fade, Nathan reached out to me for a candle.
"Light... boy, give me the light..." Nathaniel stretched his hand urgently, his voice anxious, as the small candle he held flickered out.
Quickly, I handed him one of the candles I was holding, my own hands trembling with excitement as I looked at the sight.
"Ahhh… haha… my God." I almost laughed, unable to hold back the overwhelming sense of relief that washed over me when I saw the roots. Finally, a tangible sign that we were close to the surface. The feeling was surreal. I think it was the first time in my life that I mentioned God, though I'd never prayed to any. I felt like maybe we were being blessed by one.
Nathaniel, in ecstasy, laughed as small tears threatened to spill from his eyes.
"Hahaha…" His laugh was full of release, but there was something deeper in it, an emotion only someone imprisoned for so long could understand.
"Now it's just a matter of months…" he said, his voice nearly breaking from the joy and the accumulated exhaustion of years of struggle.
"Months, boy. We did it."
I could hardly believe it. The journey that had once seemed endless now had an end in sight. For a moment, everything felt right, as if the universe was finally giving us a chance to win.
"I'll go grab a bowl..." I said quickly, trying to keep focused. We needed to keep working, gather the dirt, and dig even deeper.
I began to head back through the narrow tunnel, my legs brushing against the tunnel floor.
A deep rumble started reverberating through the walls. I felt the ground tremble beneath my feet and around me. Before I could react, the sound of collapsing rocks filled the air.
"Mr. Nathan!" I yelled, turning toward the noise. Panic surged through me as I saw the rocks beginning to fall on top of Nathaniel.
"Ahhhh!!!" His scream of pain echoed through the tunnel, hitting me like a shockwave. Nathaniel's body was partially buried under an avalanche of rocks and dust. I ran toward him, my heart racing, not thinking about the consequences.
"Ahh... run, boy, run!" Nathaniel shouted, his voice laced with agony and fear. Even in his pain, he thought of protecting me.
"I'm not leaving you here, old man!" I shouted back, my mind overwhelmed with determination, despite the growing fear. I wouldn't leave him behind, not after everything we had been through.
I dropped to my knees beside him, my hands frantically moving to try and clear the rocks trapping him. Nathaniel was breathing heavily, his face twisted in pain.
I quickly dragged him through the tunnel back to his cell.
I managed to get him inside with some difficulty, doing my best not to hurt him any further. I folded a piece of cloth from Nathan's bed and placed it under his head as he lay on the cell floor. But when I looked at the state he was in, it felt like my heart had jumped into my throat."
"Ahh... my ribs..." he groaned, struggling to speak. "They're broken..."
"Shhh, don't talk." My voice was shaky, like a frightened child's, but I tried to keep it steady, pretending to myself that everything was under control. "Save your strength, old man. You'll recover. You'll have plenty of time to rest once we're out of here."
He coughed, the sound sharp, and I could tell something was very wrong.
"No..." he whispered, his voice weak but determined. "...they've punctured my lungs..."
My heart raced. I could feel my breathing quicken, the fear overtaking me uncontrollably.
"Do me a favor..." Nathanael murmured, his hand trembling as he pointed to something behind me. "Under the bench..." He paused, struggling for breath. "There's a loose stone... Find what's hidden there... quick, quick..."
My hands were trembling, my heart pounding, but I followed his words, turning to the old bench in Nathanael's cell. I tried to stay calm, but the sound of his labored breathing made everything more urgent. My hands moved quickly, and soon I found the stone he mentioned.
With a quick tug, the stone came loose, revealing a small hidden space. Inside was something wrapped in cloth. I pulled it out, my hands shaking as I unwrapped it.
Nathanael coughed again, this time blood trickling from his lips.
"When I said I didn't know where my family's treasure was... turns out, I lied," Nathanael murmured, with a faintly amused tone, as if he were revealing a funny secret.
"You lied...?" I replied, incredulous, my mind struggling to process what he had just said.
"Haha..." He let out a weak chuckle, broken by pain. "Turns out I'm human after all, not a saint." His eyes flickered briefly with a hint of mischief, but the spark quickly faded as he coughed again, wincing in pain from his broken ribs.
I leaned in closer, trying to catch every word. There was something more he wanted to say, and I knew time was against us.
"On this isolated island..." he began, his words slow and drawn out. "There are pools, and hidden caves... beneath the mountain." His voice was almost a whisper now, as if he were sharing the greatest secret of his life.
"Don't say that, old man. I didn't come this far just to leave you now..." My voice was weaker than I had intended. The thought of leaving him behind was unbearable.
Nathanael looked at me, his eyes tired but resolute.
"Keep digging, boy..." he said with a seriousness that cut deep inside me. "You... are the last thing that remains of me."
I stayed silent, my throat tight with the tears I was trying to hold back. The weight of that responsibility settled over me like a mountain. I clenched my teeth, nearly to the point of breaking them, wishing this was just another nightmare.
"When you escape... use it for good... do you hear me? For good." He whispered, his voice growing fainter.
I nodded, but the words that came out of my mouth were not what he expected.
"No." My hands trembled with anger. "I'm going to make the people who put me here pay." Each word was filled with rage, a hatred that had been growing inside me for so long. I wanted those people to suffer for everything they had done.
Nathanael closed his eyes for a moment, breathing painfully. When he spoke again, his voice was calm and hoarse, but still full of certainty.
"I know you're different from the others of your kind, I can feel it..." he said, his tone weary. "But please, don't let them turn you into the monster they claim you are."
Those words hit me like a blade, piercing the armor of hatred I had been building for so long.
"This is my final lesson... Varian..." he said, his voice now barely a whisper.
"Sniff..." The tears finally came, falling freely. "Damn it... God, why did you allow this?" I whispered, as I held Nathanael's hand, feeling his life slip away and the light in his eyes fade.
Silence filled the space, and in that moment, the weight of what he had left me with settled over me.