Round 622

Merrin freezes mid-crawl, pressing herself flat against the cold stone floor as she tries to process what just happened. The crack of Varrika's crossbow firing echoes through the darkness ahead, the bolt whizzing past Merrin's head with a sound like ripping cloth. She knows it wasn't her friend - Varrika is still trapped at the bottom of the shaft behind them. Her mind races as she considers her options. She could call out to see if whoever fired the shot will reveal themselves, but that feels like a terrible idea. Instead, she slowly reaches for her own crossbow, lying beside her on the floor, and begins to back away from the direction the bolt came from.

As Merrin moves, she hears it again - the unmistakable sound of someone moving through rubble just ahead. They're coming closer. Her heart pounds in her chest as she realizes she's trapped between two threats - trapped under collapsing shelves with no healing potions and Varrika injured at the bottom of a shaft behind her, and now so...

She knows she needs to act fast. Merrin loads a bolt into her crossbow, her hands shaking slightly from adrenaline. She positions herself against the wall, using the shelves above for cover as she aims into the darkness ahead.