Round 470

Merrin's wiry frame tenses as she clings to the precarious ledge above the rising waters, her dark eyes scanning the narrow passage ahead with desperate hope and growing dread. The stone beneath their feet trembles ominously, each rumble sending fresh waves through the already turbulent floodwater that now swirls around Varikka's thick thighs in a way that makes her groan with frustration rather than fear. She shifts her weight, wincing as pain shoots up from her sprained ankle—a sharp reminder of their earlier misadventure.

"Well?" she demands, voice echoing slightly off the stone walls. "What's down there? Another dead end or something useful for once?"

Merrin squints into the darkness ahead, trying to make out any details in the gloom. The passage stretches out before them, narrow and low-ceilinged, with ancient runes carved into the walls at regular intervals. She can feel the water level rising slowly but steadily, already halfway up her own leg—an icy grip that promises to pull them both under if they don't find a way out soon.

The sound of clanking metal on stone echoes through the corridor behind them, growing louder with each passing moment. The Guardian is still coming, its pursuit relentless despite their desperate escape. Merrin knows they can't afford to linger here much longer—trapped between rising waters and a pursuing monster.

"Move!" she hisses urgently, grabbing Varikka's good arm and pulling her forward. "Unless you want to drown in this fucking sewer!"

The two women stumble through the chest-high water, their movements hampered by exhaustion and injury. Merrin's rogue instincts scream at her to find higher ground, but the passage offers no such relief—just more stone walls and deeper water.

Then, suddenly, she spots it: a narrow opening in the wall ahead, partially hidden by the rising floodwaters. It looks like a tight squeeze, but it might be their best chance of escape from this accursed tunnel.

"I see it!" Merrin shouts over her shoulder, pointing with her free hand. "There! That could be our way out!"

She redoubles her efforts, half-dragging Varikka now as they fight against the current towards the potential exit.