"Regrettably, it looks like there is no obvious way out of this hole," Bhallar announced, returning to the chamber he had woken up in.

"Are you telling me that I might die with you in this hole?" Philitis wiggled his brows suggestively. "If you are by my side, my death wouldn't be in vain."

Bhallar ignored his green-eyed companion. "I said that there is no obvious way. Look closely at this wall." He pointed at the wall Philitis had been staring at when he had regained consciousness. "This is almighty Ra's symbol. It's barely visible. According to ancient texts-"

"Are you speaking of the forbidden texts?" Philitis narrowed his eyes, "The more we interact, the more I realize that you are not as innocent as I thought. How did you get your hands on forbidden texts?"

Bhallar cleared his throat; ignoring the latter, he wiped off the thin layer of dust from it, revealing the sun God's face. Bowing his head to show respect, he pressed his ear to the Sun God's lips.

He missed the longing in the hunter's eyes and whispered, "Almighty Ra's presence in this dark corner is odd. It is safe to say that whoever built this place wanted to keep him hostage."

"You are not making any sense. You realize that, right?" Philitis's exasperation was palpable. "We have half an hour, at most, before this place plunges into darkness. Tell me that there is a way out."

"How did you end up here?"

"Through the tunnel that you came through. Why?"

"Are you looking for the run-away concubine? If yes, why are you alone? Why did you come here." Bhallar bombarded him with questions while more swirled around in his mind.

Philitis smiled cockily, "Will you believe me if I said I was following you?"

"No. I won't. You were here before me."

"Fine. After we parted ways, I returned to my group. We were tipped that the girl was headed to Ra's temple. Since I am the best tracker among them, it was my job to lead them here. However, a few miles before we got here, a thick fog appeared out of nowhere, and I lost my footing and fell where you did."

What the hunter had told him didn't make sense. He had fallen into the hole as soon as he had entered the tunnel, but Philitis was telling him that he had taken a different one but ended up here as well.

"Did I say something worrying?"

Bhallar shook his head, "It's not a single tunnel but a web of them, instead...a system that the killer must have used for his benefit." He stepped away from Ra's symbol. "I can hear Aari. That means we are very close to the temple's innermost womb. Let's look for a cold patch on the floor or a loose tile. We can start from there."

***

A few minutes later, Bhallar's guess proved correct. One of the tiles placed at the threshold of the left chamber sounded hollow when tapped, and as soon as the hunter tried to pry it open, it slid to its right, revealing a long, dark passage.

"So, will you lead the way, or should I?" Philitis asked, looking over his shoulder at Bhallar, who stood frozen on the spot.

"Wait. What if it's not the place we are looking for?"

"Then we are screwed either way, aren't we? Might as well die trying." The hunter turned around and offered his hand to the physician, "Trust me, I will not let you die before me. You still owe me a favor, and until I have extracted it from you, I will not let anyone take you from me... Not even death."

Bhallar's dusky complexion did nothing to hide the blush that colored his cheeks this time around. Praying that the hunter had not noticed it, the physician nodded, took his companion's hand in one, and held the torch in another before stepping inside the tunnel much like the one he had taken when he had fallen into the pit.

Unfortunately, after taking hardly a few unsure steps into the tunnel, they slipped on the moss that lined the wet floor and fell face-first into the stream.

It took hardly any time for Bhallar to realize that the hunter by his side didn't know how to swim. Like a terrified child clinging to his mama, the hunter wrapped himself around Bhallar's much shorter frame, almost making them both drown. The armor he was wearing and the weapons in his sachet: items whose purpose was to protect him were merely adding to his woes.

Bhallar, driven by the will to survive, punched the hunter. The act probably hurt the former firsthand, more than the victim; nonetheless, it got his attention.

"Let me go so that I can save us both." He commanded and got shocked when he saw the hunter obey him immediately.

Now free, Bhallar removed the bag of tools from around his waist; hoisting his companion up, he wrapped it around his wrist before hooking the other end to his belt. Then kicking the water hard, he propelled himself forward and swam ashore with the hunter tagging along.

As soon as they stepped out of the water, Bhallar collapsed on the moss-laden floor, exhausted.

"Th...thank you." The hunter muttered under his breath before falling unconscious next to the one he had vowed to protect barely a few minutes ago.

"Philitis! Wake up. The tide is rising. We don't have much time. This tunnel is going to flood." Bhallar yelled to the hunter, but to no avail.

'You owe him nothing. You saved his life once. Look out for yourself. You can't afford the luxury of compassion now.' His voice of reason offered; he chose to ignore it. He was not that kind of man. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the rhythm that Aari was dancing to.

'Seven hundred meters at the most. I can do this.' He muttered under his breath. Then, discarding his armor, he wrapped the complimentary cord Hondo had given him with the purchase and secured the hunter to his back. Maybe the adrenaline coursing through his brain had helped him with his task, he concluded, and filling his lungs with air, he dived into Aari.

"Argggh!" Bhallar heard the hunter scream and grab his chest; a moment later, though, he seemed to understand what the physician was trying to do and held his breath. Alas, it was a little too late. The water had already entered his chest, making it impossible for him to calm down and cooperate with his savior.

'How the tables have turned; funny, isn't it?' Philitis thought to himself, 'Here I was, thinking how a weak man would adapt to a hunter's life, but he turned out to be more capable than me.' His heart pounded and changed course without his knowledge just before blanking out again.

***

"Wake up, for the love of the land!" Bhallar landed a sharp slap to the yet-again-unconscious hunter's cheek. "I can't afford to waste my time on people like you." He yelled, hoping that insulting the hunter would do what his blows hadn't. The hunter remained motionless.

It had been a few minutes since Bhallar had dragged both the hunter and himself out of the stream. They were also out of the forsaken pit of death and on open land. Though it was dark now, the physician had felt strangely exposed as he had administered CPR on the hunter that he, for some reason, didn't want to give up on. It had worked. Philitis's heart had started up again, but after coughing up a few ounces of water, he had fainted again.

Bhallar had seen such cases. After observing the hunter, he concluded that there latter was scared of water. Whether or not Philitis had suffered a trauma early in life leading to his fear, Bhallar couldn't say with certainty.

'No one is all-powerful. Everyone has a weakness, Bhallar. And if they manipulate you the right way, they will be in a position to make you do whatever they desire. So, keep your weaknesses hidden. Do you understand?'

'Yes, baba.'

'Baba, he has understood, but I am sure dada will not be able to follow through.'

'Why do you say that, sweetheart?'

'Dada is very innocent. Just like you.'

'So, my dear, are you implying that you are not innocent?'

'Maybe I am... maybe, not.'

Bhallar closed his eyes, 'You are innocent, sister. Too innocent. That's why you ended up there. What I don't understand is how you managed to escape.'

"You are thinking about her, aren't you? That golden-eyed girl. You are pretending to be a bounty hunter to find her, am I right?" Philitis demanded, startling the physician.

Anger washed over Bhallar a split second later. "Your speech is clear, and your voice is calm. How long have you been pretending to be unconscious?"

Philitis smirked and sat up, shaking lose, the dust that had clung to his robes, "Since your lips met mine."

"You are a disgusting human being. I should have let you die in that pit!" The physician vented his annoyance and frustration.

"But you didn't, and that's why you might just live a little longer if you actually happen to find the girl. By the way, how are you guys related? My guess: you are siblings, and you are on a quest to save her."

Bhallar couldn't respond for a few moments. He wasn't horrible at lying per se, but Philitis wasn't a stranger anymore, and the physician was sure that his lie would be caught within no time.

"It's alright if you tell me. I owe you my life; I won't betray you. You have my word." The hunter added sincerely, but it didn't help the situation.

Bhallar shook his head and stood up. "It's best that we part ways now rather than later." He stated dispassionately, collecting his belongings.

"If that's what you wish, I will gladly agree. But since you saved my life, I can't just leave you here without at least a warning or two, can I?"

"Why?"

"Have you heard of Siyaries?"

"The warrior clan of the south?"

"Yes. That's the one."

"What about it?" Bhallar asked innocently.

"Fuck!" Philitis exclaimed, grabbing the physician's hand and pulling him towards him with force, "I am afraid the time for warning has passed us by, beautiful."

"Unhand me, you ruffian!" Bhallar bellowed, struggling to free himself, only to fail miserably.

"Keep it down, love, or you might not live to see your almighty Ra shine upon the new kingdom tomorrow morning."

Bhallar stopped struggling and searched the hunter's troubled green pools, "Why?"

"Because we are men, and they don't take kindly to trespassers."

"Really? What do they do?"

"Something much worse than death, love, something much worse," Philitis replied elusively before wrapping his arms around Bhallar's lean frame and rolling them behind an overgrown cactus shrub.

[Chapter word count: 1839;
Word count so far: 21123]