Faunee's POV
"Yeah no shit, you just killed all of us Faunee" Thalora said through gritted teeth as she continued to tug at the rusted handcuffs behind her attached to the wall
I blew my hair out of my face, the baby hairs on my forehead sticking on with sweat
"I.was.trying.to.help." Well, it's not my fault that stupid Alpha is an absolute fucker.
The chains never stopped moving. Even when we sat still, they whispered—iron scraping against stone, wrists shifting in restless frustration. Every sound in the cell was too loud. The dripping from somewhere in the dark. The soft rasp of our breathing. The distant clank of another door closing far down the corridor.
My arms ached where the shackles bit into my skin. The metal was cold enough to make my bones ache. I tried to lean back against the wall for relief, but the chains pulled taut, keeping me hunched forward just enough to remind me who was in control.
Thalora's voice broke the silence first.
"There's got to be a way out of this," she whispered, the defiance still sharp under the fatigue. Her wrists jerked against the cuffs as she tested them again. The sound made me flinch—it was too loud, too reckless.
Ziko turned his head toward her, the chain around his neck clinking. "You'll only tear your skin open doing that."
"Better than rotting here," she snapped back.
I looked at her in the dim light leaking through the narrow slit of a window. Dirt streaked her face, but her eyes still burned, wild and alive. Ziko's were different—quiet, calculating, full of the same dread I couldn't shake.
"We don't even know what's beyond that door," he said. "You break free, then what? You think you can fight your way through ten guards chained to nothing but hope?"
"I don't need hope," Thalora hissed. "I need a chance."
Before Ziko could answer, the heavy boots came. We all froze. The guard's silhouette filled the bars a moment later—broad shoulders, a lantern swinging from one hand. Its light stabbed into our corner, catching the glint of chains and the red rawness around Thalora's wrists.
"What did I say about talking?" His voice was low and gravelly, the kind that didn't need to shout to make you afraid. He stepped closer, the keys at his belt jangling like a warning.
No one spoke. Even Thalora pressed her lips together, her chest rising and falling fast.
The guard smirked. "That's better." He lingered there, letting the silence stretch until it hurt. "You'll learn to keep quiet. All of you."
Then he turned and walked away, the lantern light shrinking until the cell fell back into darkness.
For a while, the only sound was the dripping again. Slow. Measured.
Ziko exhaled shakily. "You're going to get us killed," he muttered, his voice almost breaking.
Thalora didn't answer. Her eyes were fixed on the door, her chains pulled tight like she might lunge at it if she could.
I swallowed hard, the taste of rust on my tongue. "Maybe," I whispered. "But if we stay here, we're already dead."
The words felt like they didn't belong to me, but once they were out, I couldn't take them back.
Thalora turned her head toward me, and in the dark, I could almost see her smile—a small, dangerous thing.
Then the three of us sat there in the dark, our chains humming softly, the thought of escape alive and trembling between us like a heartbeat.
I don't know how long it had been since the guard's footsteps faded. Down here, time didn't move right. The darkness stretched forever, swallowing minutes, swallowing courage.
Thalora hadn't stopped staring at the door. The faint light from the slit in the wall made her eyes look silver—sharp, alive, dangerous.
"Thalora," Ziko murmured, half-asleep beside me. "You need to rest. You'll only make things worse."
She didn't answer. Instead, she twisted her wrists again. I heard the metal scrape. Then the sound of skin tearing.
"Stop!" I whispered, the word too loud even in my throat. "You're bleeding—"
"I don't care." Her voice trembled, but not with pain—with fury. "These chains aren't unbreakable. Nothing is."
Her determination scared me more than the guards did. She yanked harder, teeth gritted, and the small, wet snap of her skin splitting echoed through the cell. I wanted to look away, but I couldn't.
"Thalora, listen to me!" Ziko's whisper broke, raw with fear. "If they find out you've—"
"They won't find out," she cut in. Her breath came fast. "Not if we're gone before they do."
She twisted again, then suddenly gasped. A faint metallic click. I thought it was just another link straining—but no.
Her right wrist slipped free. Fuck.
For a moment, none of us breathed. Even the darkness seemed to pause.
"By the stars…" Ziko whispered. "You actually—"
"Can you please shut the fuck up?" she hissed. Her voice shook, half from adrenaline, half from pain. Her hand trembled as she reached down to the manacle on her ankle. "I can use the edge of this bolt—if I can just—"
That's when the light came. A flicker at first—then the unmistakable glow of a lantern. The sound of boots padding against the cold concrete floors
"Shit-" Ziko whispered.
Thalora froze mid-motion, blood smeared on her wrist. The chains clinked as she tried to tuck her freed hand behind her back.
The guard's voice rumbled through the hall. "I heard something."
Panic slammed through my chest. I didn't think—I just moved.
I shifted, letting my own chain scrape the wall deliberately, loud enough to echo. The sound drew the guard's attention like a hook. His lantern swung toward me, harsh light spilling over my face.
He sneered. "Couldn't sleep, little rat?"
I forced myself to meet his eyes. "I—my chain—it was pinching. I was trying to—"
"Keep your mouth shut," he growled, striking the bars with his spear. I flinched, the sound ringing in my skull.
He stared for another long moment, suspicious, before finally turning away. The light receded, then vanished altogether.
Only when the darkness returned did I let out the breath I'd been holding.
Thalora was staring at me. Her freed hand was still hidden, blood dripping quietly onto the stone.
"You covered for me," she whispered.
I nodded, barely able to speak.
"I did it for us" my voice was barely a whisper "we didn't make it out of the hell hole all the way here to die"
Thalora pursed her lips as she nodded
I never want to go back there
Ziko's voice was hoarse. "You're both insane."
Maybe he was right.
But as I looked at Thalora's trembling hand—free—I felt something ignite in my chest. Fear, yes. But something else too.
Hope.
For the first time since they'd locked the door, I actually believed we might see the sky again.
I'm certainly not ready to die either.
But I'm not scared of death.