The small party hurried through the passage, the flickering light of Jurgens torch casting its feeble light on the tunnel floor while Roderick's own torch served only to highlight Brandt's bloodied face and very little of the tunnel behind. Jurgan had been right, there had been no one in this tunnel for a very long time. Twice they came upon partial caveins that had to be navigated by crawling through the dirt. 

There were no sounds of pursuit however. Roderick had pushed the door closed after they went through and then locked it behind them. He doubted it would slow any pursuers for long, but at the moment he doubted the enemy even knew where to begin the pursuit. He admired Brandt who had maintained a stoic expression as they went. The mans arm must have been on fire with pain now that he had dragged his shield onto it. Roderick for his part carried his hammer and the torch, having secured the keys by slinging the belt from his robe across one shoulder. This had allowed his robe to billow freely and he was certain expose poor Brandt to a free show when clambering over the caveins. If it had been so, the smith politely never complained. 

Plant roots clutched at their hair as they hurried through the darkness and the ever present smell of earth was welcome. The tunnel was mercifully dry, whoever had done it must have known their trade. Roderick wondered if it might have been Dwarves, all of the tools marks he could see in the walls were very precise. Heavily tarred wood beams had been used to brace the ceiling every five paces and the smell of burning occasionally wafted through the air as the flame of a torch came close enough.

They paused once in their journey when they reached a long room, small beds down either side confirmed that the workers must have been Dwarves. Lord Waldo had thought to bring a wineskin which he took a deep swig from before offering some to both Priska and Maria. Priska drank greedily. Maria refused. She did take time to borrow a small knife from Brandt which she used to cut the bottom off her dress, and then slit it up the front to just above the knee so she could better move in it. Roderick had stared hard at the ground when he saw the flash of her legs, swallowing as he reminded himself that he was a Priest of Sigmar.

Brandt had seen his gaze and winked at him despite their situation and Roderick had smiled involuntarily. The Book of Sigmar was across his knee and the heavy warhammer was leaning against the wall next to him. As he looked at the ugly weapon he noticed that the serrated head, where he had smashed a mans head in, was missing some of its silver. A shame. To damage a relic of the Church, even one as pitiful as this, was a sign of the age they lived in.

"Onward!" Lord Waldo had stood and pointed grandly down the tunnel as if he were leading some great campaign and not a disgraceful flight for safety after abandoning his home. Priska had at once leapt up to walk behind him, curtly continuing to ignore Maria who was sitting on the tunnel floor with her knees drawn up to her chest.

"M'lady." Roderick had stood and offered her a hand. She blinked up at him, the smokey light of the torch harshly illuminating her features. Roderick thought it made her look even more beautiful. 

She didn't hesitate more than a moment, reaching up a hand and allowing him to pull her to her feet. "Thank you, priest."

He nodded and then paused as she held out a hand unmarked by pox or the brutal rigours of their age. 

"I could carry the torch, if you would prefer. I think that hammer might need two hands to swing." She smiled to show she meant no insult and he grinned back, handing her the foul smelling thing at once.

Jurgen, for all of his dull wit, had waited for them to rise, and now turned to plunge into the darkness once again. He was followed by Lord Waldo, who grandly insisted that Priska go before him. He tried the same with Maria but she shook her head, planting herself between Roderick and Brandt, who still kept a vigilant watch on the darkness behind them.

For the better part of an hour the little band of fugitives hurried through the dark, stumbling occasionally in places where the ground had shifted, clambering over smaller caveins, and twice pausing to listen for pursuit and hearing nothing. At length, and at last, they came upon another iron bound door. Lord Waldo snapped his fingers at Roderick who had to unsling his belt, fumble with the knot and then pass the key ring forward. Roderick rebelted his robe as Lord Waldo selected a key. 

Like the tunnel, the door was well made, and the lock turned at once when the key was slid home. Jurgen stubbed his own torch out in the dirt and then glanced at Maria who did the same, plunging them all into instant darkness. Maria instinctevely placed a hand on Brandts shoulder.

Jurgen pushed gently at the door and a welcome rush of fresh air blew into the tunnel. A sliver of daylight blinded them an instant and Jurgan waited for their eyes to adjust before pushing the door open further, his sword ready for a lunge. They were greeted by the sight of the fast moving Talabec River, its banks lined with bright green vegetation and patches of water lilies. Closer to the bank the water foamed white as it rolled over rocks just below the surface. Small fishing boats plied the surface of the river.

The cry of birds could be heard everywhere and a butterfly flitted quickly past the door where it was set back beneath an overhang. It wasn't until they were into the clear afternoon air that Roderick observed the door had been painted to look like the rock face, and had even been carefully fitted with real stone chunks to make all the more real. It looked invisible if you didn't know where to look. Roderick found himself wondering if he might get to meet a Dwarf one day, maybe visit one of their Holds. He imagined that something as simple as this door would pale in comparison to their own homes.

For a long few minutes they stayed in the shade of the overhang until Jurgen at last stepped fully into the sunlight and glanced up above, then into the trees around. "All clear m'lord."

Roderick let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding and then grinned at Brandt, then Maria. It seemed that no enemy had found this exit quite yet. They were safe for the moment.