Polaris grabs me before I can even take a breath and the pain in my ankle shoots up my leg, blinding me with pain. I hiss loudly and he curses when we hear the sound of boots stomping on the floor outside my door. 

He swings open the door in the bathroom, used only by the human attendants and pulls me along with him through the dimly lit walkway. The walls here are much narrower, space isn't a luxury the slaves require.

"What is going on?" I whisper, my voice filled with panic and pain. Every step is a struggle and my foot has started to swell up considerably. It reminds me of Michael's foot after I broke it during my first match. 

"We need to reach the North City gates," Polaris finally struggles to get out and I notice him heaving in pain. The gash in his chest has opened up and a fresh stream of green blood flows down his chest, leaving a trail behind us. 

"I thought you wanted the bounty?" I ask, my hatred for him slowly slipping away as he drags us through the narrow maze of corridors. 

"The Truth machines were supplied by Elca. The only way to outsmart one is to tell the truth," He looks at me with bloodshot eyes and I straighten up to ease his burden of carrying me. So he's been on our side all along.

"Lucian?" I say softly, my entire body igniting in hope and fear. He looked so apprehensive before I left. Did he know about this the entire time?

"He knew vaguely but we never had the discussion. I couldn't have any memory of this plan in my head. The Truth machine would have picked up the emotion," Polaris explains in a heat of words and he sighs loudly. "Can you please pick up the pace?" 

We reach a fork and the sound of foot steps in the distance sends a shiver of panic down my spine. We stare at each other with wide unblinking eyes. I have no idea which pathway leads to where and apparently neither does he. 

"Weren't you a fighter?" He whispers in exasperation and we hear the sound of Plutonian soldiers shouting in the distance. 

"Follow the blood," Someone instructs, their voices much too close for comfort and Polaris clutches his wound instinctively. 

I slip off my fighter's shirt, leaving me in my singlet with it's padded reinforcements. I throw it at him and he dabs it to his chest, to soak up the blood. We both rush down the right path blindly, not knowing where anything leads to. 

My memories are confined only to the waiting rooms the attendants used to lead me to. I had no idea these walkways formed such a maze. 

I hear the soldiers reach the fork behind us within seconds and they shout at each other to split up. They sound so close by, too near for my comfort. My leg is heavier than a log as I drag it behind me and Polaris is limping as well. We are too slow. 

The darkness is our only solace and my heart skips a beat when I see the handle of a small door. I grab it and swing it open desperately without thinking and we see a human fighter sitting on a sofa with her attendant next to her. 

She screams in surprise when she recognises me which is the absolute worst thing that could happen at this moment because the soldiers behind us hear this as well. 

Polaris slams the door, his fingers digging into my arm angrily as we hurry down the walkway, away from the human who gave away our location. 

"There they are," A Plutonian shouts and I am so filled with fear, I could vomit. I rush forward, ignoring the searing pain in my foot and we turn a sharp corner in front. My heart falls to my stomach when I see a dead end up ahead. 

I can hear the footsteps approaching, and my panic bleeds into the air, so potent I am sure they could smell it. We stare at each other and just then the wall appears to slide open on our right. A hand pulls me inside and I grab Polaris. 

We huddle into the darkness as the wall closes before my eyes. I feel a hand go over my mouth to silence me and my breath stills as I hear Plutonian soldier boots thumping on the floor, right in front of us. 

I don't move nor do I breathe as they speak to each other in confusion, discussing if we had gone down the other corner instead. A part of me fears that they will suddenly spot us hiding behind this wall and it makes my heart hammer in my chest like a drum. I pray that they do not hear it. 

After a few tense moments the footsteps fade into the distance and the hand over my mouth loosens. I slump in relief and my body is pumping with adrenaline, it numbs the pain in my foot momentarily. 

The hand pulls us further into the darkness and I have no choice but to trust it and follow. After all this person did save us from the Plutonian soldiers and it's not like we have any other options. 

My nose hits something soft and dusty as I pull Polaris along with me and soon we are all engulfed by dusty clothes that make me want to sneeze. The sound of machines groaning echo from the distance and they slowly grow louder, until they sound like tyres screeching. 

We are soon met with dim white light and a dusty room that is thankfully empty. I blink the dust out of my eyes and immediately look at the person who saved us. 

I am shocked to see Mira standing in front of me. The last time I saw her was the day I decided to become a fighter, the day I was relocated out of the quarters. We were in the wagon together when the boy with us died a day before my birthday, before I made a choice that would separate us forever. 

Or so I thought.

She smiles at me tiredly, her face bony and pale. Her slave clothes are tattered at the edges and stains paint the front. She releases my wrist and her knuckles glow white under the lights. 

"We need to get out of here," Polaris says urgently while I stare at my unexpected rescuer. My entire being fills with gratitude and then guilt, knowing that she has helped me even though it could very well cost her everything.

"I know a way," She replies, her voice quiet and small, drowned by the sound of the squealing washing machines. 

I look around us and notice that we are in a large laundry room which has thankfully been separated into segments, hiding us from the others. 

She leads us past a row of machines and forces us to duck when we see a slave going about her chores. We hide behind a thrumming machine as she throws a bunch of stinking fighter uniforms over our heads and to the floor. 

Mira gestures for us to crawl along the machines quickly and this hurts my ankle more than walking does. I bite my lip hard, to distract myself from the pain. We finally reach another bundle of clothes that hang from the ceiling and she stands up. 

She pulls me up and I squeeze her hands, partly in thanks and partly because I feel like screaming every time I move my foot. 

We head through a bunch of freshly cleaned uniforms and past another door that looks exactly like a wall as well. This leads us down another corridor and I inhale sharply in relief because there are no longer any echoes of Plutonian boots nearby. 

She puts her ear against a door -which is what I should have done before I barged into that fighters room- and pulls it open quickly. 

I expected to see a fighter's waiting room but instead find myself in what looks like a smaller version of our recreation room in the human quarters. Except the walls here are heavily stained and the tables are strewn with used cups and half empty plates. 

It also reeks of stale food and I try not to look at the insects devouring a piece of meat on the floor. 

"Sorry the place is a mess. We don't really have the time to clean up after we eat," Mira justifies looking slightly embarrassed. 

I swallow in realisation, this must be the slaves pantry where they eat during their shifts. 

Polaris wrinkles his nose in distaste but doesn't say anything. We trudge through the plates of half eaten food that lie all over the floor and follow her to another door on the opposite side of the room.

Mira leads us along one walkway after another, till I can't make sense of where we are going. It feels like we are going in circles until we finally reach a small exit door that is so short, it must have been made for the human slaves. 

She peaks through the slit in the door and takes a deep breath. 

"There are a few of them outside. Wait here, I will be back," She opens the door and slips out before we can even ask what she means by that. 

I lean against the wall by the door, letting it take my weight as I rest for a few seconds. Polaris's eyes dart along the dark corridors that lead down various walkways. He looks impatient and more nervous by the second. 

I know that we are literally sitting ducks by waiting here but I can't think of any alternative other than waiting. 

My strands of patience grow thinner by the minute and they are about to break in panic but then we hear the steady hum of a few vehicles approaching. I peer out the slit in the door and see large gliders stop in front of us, both piled up with cargo. The Plutonian officers waiting outside rush over to check them and I see Mira pull out a few carts of uniforms. She shows them the cargo and drags them towards us. 

The Plutonians start picking on the other slave who apparently stared at them rudely and all of them surround him distractedly. 

Mira pushes the door open while we hide in the shadows. The sounds of her male companion's screams pierce our ears. The Plutonians are taking turns to punish him but Mira shows no emotion as she helps us into a cart each. She rushes down the hallway and comes back with a handful of dirty uniforms within seconds. 

I stare at her in awe before she buries me under stinking slave uniforms that reek of stale sweat and blood. 

She pushes us outside, one by one and the Plutonians are too busy beating up that human as she pushes us into the back of a glider.

My body tenses when I hear them hurl the whimpering guy into the back with us and the door shuts behind us. I can't believe we did it. 

"Stay put,we are heading to the slave quarters," Mira pats the pile of clothes above me and I remain silent, too afraid to move a muscle. 

We rock to the sides slowly and after a while I start to feel sick as the stench of the dirty slave clothes stick to every corner of my nostrils. I hear alarms going off in the distance and wonder if anything is going on deeper in the city.

The glider stops once we reach the slave quarters and the driver leaves Mira and her injured companion to clear out the piles of stinking clothes. Even though the smell is horrible, I have never been so thankful that the slaves clothes are handled separately from the fighters. 

Mira rolls us out of the glider and into the quarters. I hear soldiers running around in panic, screaming about the base needing back up. The ground shakes underneath us and I have no idea what is going on. 

We finally stop moving and Mira removes the clothes covering me. I stumble out of it and Polaris does the same. 

The slave with Mira is covered with blood, the skin around his eyes have started to bulge and turn purple. Polaris squeezes his shoulder and thanks him quietly. 

My heart clenches as he turns to me. He nods, his eyes determined and for some reason it makes me wonder if he knows more about me than what Lazarus's broadcasts have reported. 

"We can help you hijack a glider but that is the most we can do," Mira says. She leads us along the back of the building, through a set of dusty closets until we finally reach a small garage. There are a few Plutonian officers who are supposed to be on patrol but they are sitting around and chatting while they drink. 

While their gliders lie outside, unattended. 

We crawl among st the dusty broken machines silently and up close I can hear them speculating about the blast they heard from the army base. They are arguing with each other, some want to abandon their posts and help but the others insist on staying put. 

Mira and her companion stop when we reach the corner of the garage. She smiles at me and squeezes my hand. 

"We saw the diagrams in the slave quarters. We don't know what is going on but we are certain you're on our side, Aria. Thank you," She says into my ear and releases me. I smile at her gratefully. This is the first time I have actually felt good about escaping Pluto in the first place.

They scuttle back to the slave quarters and I eye the Plutonians, waiting for the perfect moment to run.

They are so engrossed in their debate that they only notice us once our glider roars to life. Polaris holds me as I step on the accelerator like Lucian has done so many times before and we fly off into the distance away from the shouts that pursue us. 

I drive like a maniac towards the North City gates that are wide open with wagons and cargo passing through. The guards from behind start shooting at us and I swerve around a large glider. 

A small explosion echoes behind us and shards of metal fly through the air. 

"Are you sure you know how to use this?" Polaris shouts when I nearly crash into a rock. 

I grit my teeth and increase my speed as we glide along the wide terrain. 

"Where are we going?" I ask.

"Head to the Western Border," He instructs as lasers fly around us. 

I try my best to avoid them, swerving from side to side. There are just too many and I don't know if we can make it. 

Just then a blast erupts from the sky and like thunder it rains on the army of Plutonians behind us. I see a small air craft approach us from above. A thick string darts out from its underbelly like a tongue, it wraps around our waists and tightens, pulling us up from the ground as laser beams destroy the glider we leave behind.

We fly through the air and the ship engulfs us quickly. 

"Minion, strap in! It's going to get bumpy," Remulus calls from inside and I can't help the smile on my face after hearing his voice. "The team did it, the mission was a success!" 

This piece of news shocks me and I untangle myself from Polaris quickly while he heaves. He hits the floor with a loud thud. 

"We did it. The damn fibre worked," He smiles and it is only then that I realise he had been carrying another microfibre the whole time. 

"Where?" I eye him from head to toe curiously and he grins. 

"You don't want to know."

So mine was the decoy all along and the distraction they needed for Lazarus. 

I laugh at myself and try to pull Polaris up but he remains motionless as a pool of green blood starts to form around him like a halo. 

"What?" I whisper hoarsely as I turn him to the side. My eyes widen in horror when I take in the multiple bullet wounds in his back. 

Polaris used himself as my shield while we drove to the western border and he's dying now because of it.

My eyes fill with tears as I grab his hand. 

"No," I whisper as I squeeze him hopelessly. 

He squeezes back, his gaze faraway and content. "Make them pay, Bone Breaker."

Ahhh long chapter. Hope you enjoyed!! I've been feeling kinda down for multiple reasons and just want to say that I'm so grateful for everyone who reads, votes and comments. It truly makes my day everytime. I love u guys!!