Mar was not aware of when Moraine dozed off. The hours slipped away in an unknown fashion in the darkness. Was it even morning? No matter. Mar just sat and contemplated the events that occurred today.
He felt a personal connection to Exavia. What was it that she said? Destiny. It was such a strong word. Maybe it was a word that Cyiet and Gelae knew well, for they followed her willingly.
And Cunner? Was it really him? Mar could not understand how he could forget about him. Of course Cunner was a survivor of Yrdnal. The two of them were playing outside the village when the vamps attacked it.
"Where are your thoughts, my friend?"
Mar looked into the darkness. His imagination could create an outline of a furre, but he knew that that was not realistic. It was total darkness without the fire. He could scarcely make out the cage around him.
"Who's there?" he asked.
"Cunner."
It was as if he was talking to a ghost. Cunner was his best friend, but somehow he was forgotten. But there he was in front of him ... so to speak Did he feel the pain too, Mar wondered. Did he also have a yearning for his childhood innocence? But a darker question invaded Mar's thoughts and it was one he had to have an answer for.
"Why are you here?"
"I wanted to see how you were doing," Cunner replied.
"No," Mar said, "Why are you with the vamps?"
"I am a vamp."
Mar felt as if a knot was being tied inside his mind. For almost a decade, he knew hate. In that time period, he saw his father's charred body everyday. During every hour of his waking world and during the occasional dream, Mar saw vamps burning his family.
"Why did you become a vamp?" Mar asked. He felt his voice deepen as he tried to suppress his anger, "They killed our families."
"They were not vamps," his childhood friend explained, "They were demons."
"Vamps are demons!" Mar yelled.
"No Mar. There is a difference. Most furres like to call vamps 'demons' but they do so only in ignorance. Demons are souls of the wicked. When a furre's soul turns evil, they become a demon: both vamps and others alike. I'm sorry, but your hate has been misplaced. However, I suspect a vamp of my acquaintance is in fact a demon. And I hear that she just overthrew our vamp leader. She wants you dead, Mar. She's going to kill you and your friends. She's going to kill me too."
"Then we should escape."
"We shall."
Mar heard something. It was as if someone was pouring sand all around him. Mar began to hear the noise above him too. But as he looked up, splashes of dirt landed in his face. Mar scowled as he felt bits of sand sticking inside his mouth. He started to spit, in hope that it would discard the displeasure.
"What did you do?" Mar asked.
"I turned the cage into sand."
"What?"
Mar then heard someone scraping two rocks together. Just as he pinpointed the source, he spotted sparks. From those sparks, a wall torch was lit. And from that light, Mar saw Cunner. Surreal as it was to see his friend again, though his fur colours have changed, Mar felt glad that Cunner was willing to help.
"You're free now," Cunner announced.
Mar was indeed free. He looked at the ground and discovered piles of sand where the outline of a cage once was. Mar stood and looked over at Moraine. She was still asleep, oblivious to the entire scene. All the better, Mar thought. Moraine had so much anger, that she probably would have lunged at Cunner at her first chance.
"You must take her with you," Cunner continued, "We must prevent innocent lives whenever possible."
Mar nodded.
"My only wish," his friend said, "Is that you will remember me when I'm gone. But that's impossible. Maybe we'll meet again instead."
Mar eyed him, puzzled, "What does that mean, exactly?"
"Good luck, Mar," Cunner replied instead, "The ladder takes you up to the main hallway. Follow it until you reach a fountain. Take a left. That'll take you to the front gate. I believe your other friend is being looked after, because he's gone missing."
"How do I find him?"
"If they're trying to save you, my guess is they're coming for you too."
"Wouldn't anyone notice us in the halls?" Mar asked.
"This is a large community of thousands. Unless the vamps you see are the ones who brought you here, I doubt they'll even notice you. Good luck again."
Mar watched as his friend climbed the ladder and exited their dungeon. He looked back at Moraine and sighed. He hoped she would help him and Gorian escape. He did not know yet if he could trust her, since just hours ago she singled him out to a vamp interrogator.
He bent down at Moraine's side and shook her.
"Mhmm," she moaned, "Is it morning, Gelae?"
Mar's throat felt heavy as he was forced to reply, "I'm not Gelae."
Within seconds Mar was flat on his back. Stunned, Mar tried to get up, but a firm grip kept him pinned to the ground.
"Where are we?" Moraine yelled.
"We're in the vamp colony, remember? Someone just set us free, we have to go before someone notices that there isn't a cage here anymore."
"Where's Gelae? And Cyiet?" she demanded, "Where did that crazy flying woman take them?"
"I don't know!" Mar shouted, "But we have to get out of here. I promise, we'll find them."
"Don't bother," a new voice said from above, "Those two are dead."
Moraine released her grip suddenly. Mar rolled over to see who spoke. His heart sank when he recognized the face. It was the lead archer who had captured them just hours ago. They were caught before they could even leave the room.