Night has fallen by the time they reach the wall, the shadows cold and wretched. Alicia faces them with a little more bravery with Oliver at her side, a steady presence that keeps her hands from shaking and her mind from wandering.

Jumping down from her horse, she stares up at that imposing wall, knowing what lies beyond that ancient stone but not wanting to accept it just yet. She turns to her horse—taking a breath—and begins grabbing her supplies from the saddle, intent on ignoring whatever hurts she's feeling to get through this ordeal with something of herself intact.

All they need to do now is find an entrance to the tomb from the outside, which shouldn't be too hard considering she already knows where one is. She was just never brave enough as a child to wander into it, even when her brothers dared her to. She was raised on the Traveller stories and she wasn't going to test the validity of them.

She faces the wall as Oliver lights a lantern and holds it up. It does nothing to light the monstrous wall that resides over them, trapping them in its shadow.

"I used to come here frequently as a girl," she says, needing to fill the quiet with something other than the croak of insects and the drum of her pulse in her throat. "My brothers and I would try to climb to the top. But we'd always get to a height where we'd get too scared to go any further."

"No one's ever climbed it," Oliver tells her, a fact she knows now but didn't as an excited little girl, eager to best her brothers at everything. The further up the wall, the smoother the stone gets, either made that way by water and rain, or sanded down to prevent anyone from climbing. The wall is as old as Muovea itself, so no one really knows.

For so long it stood as a useless barrier, a shield from the sun, something to throw stones at, a damper for the market in some residences where it blocked the view of the sky. But now they'd all be dead without it.

Perhaps the Faceless queen knew of the trials they'd have to face.

"Come on," Oliver says, snapping her from her reverie. "Let's find that entrance."

Removing the saddles from their horses and letting the animals roam free lest Grey Bloods happen upon them, Alicia and Oliver starts towards the thick shrubbery that surrounds the darkened crack in the stone.

Maybe if her brothers were here to dare her onwards, she'd feel fewer nerves with the need to prove herself. But they're not here and she's just a girl wandering into the dark, knowing there are monsters in the shadows that don't take kindly to strangers.

She never thought she'd be stupid enough to go back into the tomb.

They clear the weeds together and after some time they reveal the tunnel. Alicia's conviction weakens as she gazes into the mouth of darkness.

Oliver's hand brushes against hers, the lightest touch that manages to arc sparks across her skin. She looks up at him, steadying her breath as he watches her, studying her face, that worried glint in his eyes. She won't get used to that look, not when it's for her expense.

Alicia smiles softly at him and even has the nerve to intertwine their fingers, squeezing his in reassurance. They move towards the tunnel, Oliver's lantern barely piercing the dark. Her heart warms slightly as Oliver keeps a hold of her hand.

Their steps echo against the stone that curves around them, throwing the noise they're making back at them. Alicia's heart picks up its pace, the tunnel just as foreboding as it was when she was last here.

She's suddenly very thankful that Oliver doesn't let go of her hand.

They wander further into the cold, musty air, the stench throwing her back six years. She was still a child then. She feels like a child now.

Oliver's hand tightens around hers, warm and comforting against the oppressive cold and shadows closing in on them. Alicia swallows the fear that tries to rise in her throat.

They walk through the darkness, Alicia expecting to run face-first into a wall at any moment with how low Oliver has to keep the lantern for fear of the creatures in the dark.

They pause at a corner as Oliver peers around it, Alicia holding her breath at the same time, trying to hear if they not alone in here. Oliver tenses at her side, and that's the only warning she gets before a guttural growl crawls towards them in the darkness. She can't tell which way it came from.

Dousing the light, Oliver keeps as still as a grave. Something walks upon the loose stone, steps crunching closer to them. Alicia sucks in a breath of the rotted air and it sounds far too loud in the dark.

Then she sees it, a dark shape that seems to shift through the shadows like blood oozing over black fabric. Alicia opens her mouth to draw in another breath, or weep, or scream, she doesn't know which, but she doesn't get a chance to find out before a palm over her mouth stops the noise from leaving her. Oliver pulls her against him and away from the creature, holding her steady with an arm wrapped around her stomach. She holds her breath, willing her heart to settle.

Alicia stays still, focusing on Oliver's steady heart beating against her back. She grips his forearm when she glimpses the Ghul through the tunnel, so close to them she could reach out and touch its greying flesh.

Alicia presses herself further into Oliver's chest when she truly sees the creature, its sunken eyes a bright blue against the slate grey of its stretched flesh. Oliver's grip just tightens on her.

It drags itself past them, towards the way they had come, and Alicia hopes it doesn't find a way out into the world. It's a miracle these creatures haven't escaped already.

They stay like that for many more heartbeats, Oliver keeping her close and Alicia not daring to move. His breath fans against her cheek, hot considering the cold, and she's thankful for the reminder that she's not down here alone.

When the threat of danger begins to fade, Alicia's awareness comes back to her. She notes Oliver's body pressed flush to hers, the length of his front snug against the length of her back. Her fingers dig into his forearm as she tries to swallow the lump in her throat, wondering if this is fear she feels twisting in her gut or something else.

Then he stops his arms and steps back, cutting off her thoughts to tug her sleeve to continue onward. Alicia ducks her head to hide her flaming cheeks, but in this dark he wouldn't see anyway. She's never been thankful of the dark before.

After feeling their way through the dark for some time, they light the lantern again and Alicia pulls out the map, finding a section of the maze she recognises matching up to the twists and turns of the tunnel they traverse. It also helps that Andor Sandian used fallen stones, scratches in the walls, sometimes even chalk marks to make the map easier to read. The tunnels haven't changed much in the past twenty years.

"This way," Alicia says, leading the way.

A growl that resounds off the stone sends bumps scattering along her skin. She glances over her shoulder, past Oliver, and sees it.

The hulking figure studies them for a moment, baring rotted teeth, and Alicia's eyes widen, terror cementing her feet to the floor.

"Run," Oliver says, sounding breathless, and Alicia whips her head towards him. "Go!"

They don't hesitate a moment more. Oliver pulls her arm, and then they're running, Alicia stumbling over the loose stone, the only thing keeping her standing is Oliver's grip on her arm. Alicia clenches the map in her fist, terrified of losing it.

She hears pounding footsteps behind them, more than just one pair, and she has a foolish hope that it's just their steps echoing around them.

A little girl fearing the monsters under her bed, praying that the covers over her head will be adequate protection.

She knows that closing her eyes and hoping won't be enough this time, not when the howls of wild creatures chase them through the tunnel.

She stumbles again, her grip nearly torn from Oliver's, fingers aching with the strain to right herself and keep going.

Then Alicia does something foolish; she looks behind them.

The beasts that chase them aren't Greys, they aren't rotted and shambling corpses slower than a jog. These monsters wield swords, their armour ancient and falling to pieces, revealing tendons and bulging muscles beneath. Their eyes are of icy blue, glowing in the dark like orbs of sickly light.

These are the monsters the Travellers are too fearful to whisper about for longer than a passing mention.

"Keep fucking going," Oliver commands, the desperation in his voice nearly making her crumble right then and there. But she continues running, the trembling light and Alicia's shouted directions guiding them through the maze.

She focuses her gaze on the map, focuses on something other than her heart tearing to pieces.

Sweat soaks the back of her shirt, making the fabric stick to her skin. It drips into her eyes, but she doesn't spare a moment to wipe it away.

Alicia is so focused on the map and reaching the exit that she doesn't notice they can see the hole in the wall from here until she glances up at Oliver's shout. There, ahead in the gloomy darkness, is a sliver of silvery light.

She nearly convinces herself she can smell the fresh air from here.

Those monsters keep progressing, their howls coming closer. Alicia doesn't look back this time, can't possibly as she feels the sand in her hourglass dwindling.

With a burst of speed and conviction, she manages to keep up with Oliver as he reaches the crevice in the stone.

Those pounding footsteps are nearly upon them when Oliver grabs her and shoves her through the stone, none too carefully.

Then they're running again, having no idea how far they have to go to lose those creatures. Dirt crunches under their feet, the only noise in the quiet of the night.

It's then that she notices the silence, the echoing howls having faded, the barrage of steps behind them gone.

Alicia staggers and falls before she even realises what's happening, finding grass beneath her hands. She gasps for breath as her lungs scream and her heart pounds. Beside her, Oliver falls onto the ground, chest rising and falling quickly, his lantern tumbling from his hand.

As she breathes in the air with the sweet scent of grass, she begins to come to her senses.

Alicia raises her head and sees, finally sees. There are lights ahead, glimmering. And at first, she thinks they're just oddly coloured stars. It takes her a moment to realise that it's the light of buildings, the hill they sit on overlooking a place that was once her home; the slums.

She can't look at it for much longer without feeling like she's dreaming, so instead, she turns her gaze to Oliver who's looking up at her, his breathing evening out.

"We made it," she whispers, not daring to speak too loudly, knowing this could be snatched away at any moment. She looks back to the tunnel, nearly convinced she'll see Ghuls streaming from the stone, but she doesn't. She turns back to Oliver and grins at him, finally managing a genuine smile, wishing she could feel this blooming hope all the time.

Oliver's palm caresses her cheek, fingers rough but warm, another confirmation that perhaps this could all be real.

"What a fucking miracle." It's the first of many that they're going to need.