With one final swing of the stone in his hand, Luke struck the wall again. A sharp crack rang out, and then the resistance gave way. The jagged wall broke apart just a little more, sending a piece tumbling down with a muted thud against the packed earth floor. Dust swirled around him, lit faintly by the glow of his phone's flashlight.
Breathing hard, Luke let the stone slip from his grasp and drop beside the rubble pile. His knuckles and shoulders ached from the strain, even with the glove padding them, but the moment he leaned forward to test the gap, a slow grin spread across his face. The wall had finally yielded.
He pressed forward cautiously, angling his body through the space. At first, he thought he might get stuck—his shoulder scraping against rough stone—but then, with a little shift of his weight, his body slid through cleanly. He chuckled under his breath.
"If I can make it… Ilyrana definitely can."
