Unknown languages, atrocious wails, screams, and howls that could be defined as anything but human. Egan had resorted to covering his ears in despair. He could vaguely see the occupant of the cell next to the one left empty in between—which acted as a buffer between his and the other, but it did not prevent the circulation of sounds. He saw it, with that vigorous tail, like a large reptile, the snout extended forward and equipped with a terrifying set of teeth, as if it were a crocodile. It walked upright, tall, with an anthropomorphic appearance, but only because it had four limbs and a head; everything else had nothing to do with the human race.
Camelia had not looked even once at the being imprisoned in the cell on her side. Here, too, there was an empty one in the middle, as if it were an extra safety measure for the two sparse humans who had no way to defend themselves from anything or anyone, or so the demon and his subordinates believed. The seer clenched her fists. She had seen Nerea's plan, to return late and guide them out of that prison. However, the wait was exhausting and becoming unbearable.
Egan approached the edge of the bars. The stone was safely back behind the elastic of his boxers. He hoped it wouldn't fall again. "I haven't been hungry or thirsty since I've been here, does that happen to you too?" he asked, partly out of curiosity and partly to distract himself from those grotesque wails.
The young blonde nodded. "The demon has blocked some of our physiological functions, so he doesn't have to deal with them."
The young man realized at that moment that he didn't even need to go to the bathroom. "What a bastard," he said, then he instinctively covered his lips. She smiled.
"Don't worry, rather than spying on us, he will be busy with something else at this moment," the Camelia stood up and walked close to him. Only the luminous bars separated them. "When many detainees arrive, even if he delegates primary tasks to his generals, he still has to oversee. It's his job."
Egan extended his index finger beyond the bars as much as he could. Then he looked at Camelia. She touched the tip of that finger with hers, and a shiver ran down both their spines. He blushed. "Did you feel it too?"
The blonde nodded and hid her face behind her hair.
"Why does this happen to us?" even though it was pleasant and made his heart race, it was an unusual, unknown phenomenon, and he didn't know whether to fear it or not. "Do you think he's doing this to us?"
Camelia shook her head, avoiding looking at him. She was embarrassed, and it had been decades since she felt that way. The contact with Egan rekindled the most human part of herself, the emotions she had been forced to minimize and hide to survive. They were strong feelings, which she had never experienced even before ending up in that world. She wasn't ready to talk to him about such intimate things yet. "Let's focus on getting out of here, then we'll figure out what it is."
Egan understood. "Do you think the stone can be used against him too?" he changed the subject.
"I don't know. Touching the stone didn't show me the usability of its power—but I felt it, and it's very strong."
"Good to know," Egan seemed as nervous as she was. "If the demon arrives, we'll be in trouble," he pointed to the seer's ankles. "Not to mention the fact that he's unpredictable, who knows what other madness he might force us into. Can we still wait for that strange insect?"
"Nerea should be arriving soon," Camelia had her eyes closed and her fingers on her temples. "I can connect with her and briefly read her thoughts."
"Magnificent!" Egan covered his mouth again. He had said it too loudly.
The blonde curved her lips and reopened her eyes. Exhausted, she went to sit on the cot. "The telepathic connection absorbs much of my energy."
Egan approached the luminous bars and crossed them. "This is not what we needed, but it doesn't matter..." he picked her up, and Camelia flinched, turning red. Then she noticed that Nerea was behind him, quickly fluttering inside the cell.
"Fast!" said the fillian.
"Hold on to me," Egan told the seer, then turned to the insect. "Lead the way, please!"
Nerea flew quickly out of the cell, and the two humans followed her at a run, under the astonished gaze of the detainees who saw them and began to agitate more than before. "Those idiots will attract the guards!" Egan had seen them—those creatures with scarlet skin, and he didn't want to face them.
"Idiots?" Nerea repeated the unfamiliar term.
"The noisy prisoners," Egan tried to correct himself.
"Oh, soon we will be far from here," assured the fillian.
Camelia felt weak, and now that she thought about it, it had really been a foolish move to tire herself out so much just to calm her anxiety. "I'm sorry to be a burden..."
"What the hell are you saying? A burden?! You will never be one for me!" Egan said it impulsively, without thinking, but it was exactly what he thought, as true as those prodigious shocks he felt every time he came in contact with that woman. He was so attracted to her that he had to fight against his body to contain himself and not kiss her immediately. Yet he barely knew her.
Nerea turned for a moment to observe them. The male human was making speeches she had never heard before. It was difficult for her to understand the meaning of those words, but there was no time to ask.
The long corridor of the prison opened into a darkened ascent. "The master and his generals don't need light to walk this stretch," Nerea explained. "You follow my voice, so you don't fall or get lost. The corridor branches into several other tunnels."
"Alright," Egan was out of breath, supporting Camelia, and his heart was beating like never before in his life. The proximity to the blonde aroused something in him that he couldn't explain, but the more he felt it, the more he was convinced that the source of that overwhelming power was not a threat.
"...I had never passed through these corridors, I don't know the prison very well, still, I don't think there are guards. The master's barriers are impenetrable. I don't know how you managed to nullify them," Nerea continued.
"Have you ever heard..." Egan thought for a moment, the little creature was helping them, and Camelia had said she was sincere. So, he tried to trust. "Have you ever heard of the tear of gill?"
"No, of the gill yes, but not of this tear," Nerea swerved and continued to make noise as she indicated how to follow her.
"One of those gills ended up on Earth and granted me a precious gift," and it saddened him greatly to know that this gift had cost him his life.
"We are almost there. I have to distract the master..." Nerea slowed down a lot when the dim light of the veiled sky began to be seen near the exit. "I don't know how to explain to you how to reach Mirla's house," Nerea worried about not knowing how to guide them on the right path.
Camelia raised a hand. "Land on my finger, little friend," she smiled weakly at the insect.
"But won't this tire you more?" Egan was concerned, fearing she might faint.
"No, my contact clairvoyance doesn't drain energy."
Nerea landed on her finger. "What does 'friend' mean?"
"A friend is someone with whom you share a special bond, of affection and trust. Someone you care about, who you accept as they are, and who you want to protect and help," Camelia replied.
Nerea found herself taken aback once again, just because of words that were more powerful than magic. No one she had ever known in that world wanted to protect and help others, but only to obey and carry out the master's orders. "It's a very beautiful word," and she would have flashed a dazzling smile if she had her human form.
Camelia had seen the path to follow. "Take shelter too, Nerea, the demon is evil and forgives no one."
"I know, friend," the insect took flight again. "Go, I must distract him to allow you to escape. Mirla, the sorceress, will help you!" she disappeared from their sight at an amazing speed.
Camelia sadly watched the empty space that no longer held any traces of Nerea.