Amaro pushed himself deeper, feeling his horns snag against stone. He angled his head, having to press his nose to the ground to ensure they pointed forward. In the worst case he was confident he could snap his own horns off if he really needed to. They’d grow back.

He felt his way forward, noticing that the walls bent at an awkward angle. Even if there was light on the other side, no one would be able to see it from the entrance. Fitting his torso through was a challenge in it of itself, especially with his arms pinned at his sides. He didn't really have anywhere else to put his arms, though. At least he could push his elbows along the walls to move forward a bit fast.

All he could do was peddle his feet and worm his way forward. He felt like he was bound by the earth itself. The opening couldn’t have been more than 30 centimeters wide, but the deeper he got the more narrow the tunnel became.

He felt sharp hooked crystals snagging his clothes and jabbing into his skin. He had to exhale all his breath just to get more room. It was only now that he remembered how much smaller Kaara was than him. He tried to inhale, but his lungs wouldn’t fill all the way. He felt panic overtake him. What if he was too far in to help? What if he blocked all the air with his body and suffocated both himself and Kaara in the process?

Even if he could squeeze through now, he would have to risk getting stuck again on his way back. What if the cave was too narrow to turn himself around? He couldn’t move backwards like this. Not with all these crystals hooking him. If they tried to pull him out like this he’d be grated like cheese. What if the cave suddenly collapsed on him? His clothes soaked with icy water.

What if he starved to death in the dark cold of this tunnel? Amaro was not afraid of dying. He was afraid of dying a slow, painful, and suffocating death at the hands of this cave. How had Kaara pushed forward not knowing if there was a dead end or not?

He shimmied his shoulders, squeezing half a centimeter at a time before he felt the walls give him just a bit more room. He pushed through, and felt someone grab his horns.

“Heave! Ho!” Kaara said, sliding him inside the cramped cavity. He could feel her warmth pressed against him, her breath lightly caressing his skin.

“You got the torch?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Oh, it’s you, I thought you were Rorik.”

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“Oh, sorry, I-”

“No need to be sorry, I was just surprised is all. I can light it just hold it out.”

Amaro stuck the torch out, smacking it into Kaara’s nose.

“Ow!”

“Sorry!”

Clack! Clack! Fwooosh!

The torch came to life between them. This was the closest he had ever been to her. He swallowed, looking away. He could see the rest of the cavity they were in. There was a narrow crack they could squeeze through at their side which seemed to open up to a less cramped part of the cave.

Kaara went through first, reaching out her hand. Amaro grabbed it. She let go, “No, pass the torch so you can crawl through.”

“Oh! Right,” He handed her the torch, “Should we wait for the others to get through?”

Kaara shook her head, “There’s no need,” She handed him the torch, “I guess it’s better you’re here instead.”

Amaro felt his heart jolt, “Oh yeah? Why’s that.”

“Cuz if you get stuck in here with me, the nobles will have a reason to help get us out.”

“Oh. Right.”

Kaara giggled, “It’s a joke, it’s a joke.” She slapped his bum with her tail, “Thanks for standing up for Rorik, by the way. You helped him in a way I couldn’t.”

“It’s only right. Anitus was going too far, and he’s my brother in the end.”

“He said you never try to beat him during duels. Why is that?”

Amaro looked back to the small tunnel they crawled through, deciding they wouldn’t be able to hear them from here, “To tell the truth? I’m afraid he’ll beat me anyways. At least if I give up I can let him assume I’m still stronger than him. If anything, it lets me think I could have beaten him if I tried.”

“Why’s that important to you?”

“I’m the eldest. I’m meant to inherit my family’s name. I don’t really want that, but… well you know how Anitus is. If he doesn’t think there’s anyone around to keep him in check, he’ll be even worse than he already is.”

“He mentioned you don’t train anymore. Tell me if I’m wrong or not. Anitus seems like he really looked up to you at one point, but then you stopped training and when he sees you not trying he sees everything you could have been and gets frustrated.”

Amaro chuckled, “You’ve read the situation like a book. How can you tell?”

“I’ve got a knack for reading people. And I think Rorik saw me in the same way for a little while too.”

“I see. So we’ve got that in common, then.”

“I like to think everyone has at least one thing in common with anyone else.” Kaara stopped in her tracks and pointed, “Look, over there.”

Amaro looked. In the light of the torch, he could see more symbols on the wall. They almost looked like…

“Are those… dragons?”