The cave was cold, wet, and smelled of damp earth. Not to mention, it was pitch black. At first, there was a little bit of light from the entrance, but only for the first few feet. After that, it was blackness, the void, the call of the abyss, blindness, accented with the sharp, soothing droplets of water casually falling from the walls and ceiling of the tunnel. It was soothing, in a way, if not for the complete and utter darkness.

“How are we going to see the map this way?” I said.

“Maybe Sage had the foresight to pack us some torches?” Tom said hopefully, rummaging in his sack.

He handed me the map to hold, fumbling in the darkness, as he felt around for what may be a torch.

“Nice!” he exclaimed, and I heard the rustle of movement that probably indicated him presenting his find.

“What?”

“Oh, I forgot we can’t see each other. We’ve got little candle lanterns. Need something to light them with though…”

More rummaging followed, and I waited patiently. If Sage had given us candles with lanterns, then surely, he had given us some way to light them.

“Mm… not finding anything,” Tom said, still digging through his items. “Can you try your bag?”

Wordlessly, I opened my bag, finding the opening by touch, and felt through it. I felt our dwindling field rations, the camping blanket, thick and wooly, the sharp edge of the lantern, the waxy candle, the prick of a needle from the repair kit, but… no matches.

“Nothing in my pack either,” I said, disappointed. “Let’s just find a place to regroup, sit down, breathe.” My lungs and muscles still ached and burned from our ardent run.

I felt a hand grab my shirt, to keep my close, and I stifled my scream. I knew it was Tom; he just wanted to make sure we didn’t get separated, which I appreciated, but it was still startling. We walked carefully, hands outstretched to make sure we don’t run into anything, and finally made it to a place wide enough where we could both sit down next to each other.

“I thought esteemed Demon Hunters could cast magic?” I said carefully. “Don’t you know any?” My words were a stab at his worst failures, and I knew it. Instantly, I regretted what I’d said. I didn’t know his story, just like he didn’t know mine. But he was here and willing to help me, even though the truth was out.

Silence.

“I… was never very good at that. Humans need runes to cast, and… I never could them right. Which was why I failed the novice test.”

He sighed, and I heard years of disappointment exit his body in that slight exhalation of air.

“Could you try?” I asked, quietly, hopefully.

A deep breath, and a rustle of clothing and hair. “Sure,” he agreed. “But I need to draw the rune with something. Paint’s best, but chalk or anything that leaves a mark would do.”

We didn’t have anything like that in our packs. But we were surrounded by rocks in a cave.

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“Do you think you could scratch it into the ground with another rock?”

Another sigh. “Like I said, I’ll try.”

“Excellent.”

I went off on my search to find him a rock that would work – I hoped. This was a long shot, I knew. From someone who had never drawn a rune correctly in perfect conditions, with the exact correct materials – and in the light – could hardly be expected to draw a rune successfully in the dark, in a cave, scratching with a rock.

Sweeping around with my hands while sitting in the same spot, my fingers quickly lit upon what felt almost like a chalky, soft stone. Futilely, I tried staring at it to see if it would work at all, but of course, there was no light. I saw nothing.

“Here,” I said cheerfully, trying to brighten his mood. “Try this one. I’m sure you can do it!”

After a bit of fumbling and a very awkward handoff, he had the stone.

“Here goes nothing, I fucking guess,” he mumbled.

I heard him plop down on the ground, and the scratching of stone on stone began. It was the least soothing sound I’d ever heard. It grated on my ears, screeching, and probably waking up every single creature in the entire mountain.

Several minutes later, the scraping stopped, and I heard him sit back.

“This won’t work,” he said confidently and resolutely. “There’s no possible way.”

“Well I guess we’ll find out. How do you activate it?”

“Like this,” he said, and then he spoke the words in some foreign language I didn’t know.

Nothing happened, and the darkness still overpowered our sight.

“I told you this wouldn’t fucking work,” he said as he stood, brushing off his pants. “I’m a fucking idiot for trying.”

I stared at the spot where I thought he’d drawn the rune, peering closely. Still darkness, and I could see nothing.

Then, a faint glow, barely anything at all, an echo of light, the slightest of red growing at the center. It grew in strength, its radius growing, turning from a deep red to a dark orange. Tomas was turned around, rustling in his bag and pouting.

“Tomas!” I said excitedly, pointing at the rune and its growing power. “Look!”

“No.” He didn’t turn around.

His loss. I watched his rune, the glow steadily increasing in radius and intensity, until it suddenly spurted into a little flame in the very center, flickering and casting the tiniest of shadows on the cavern around us.

“Is that…”

I grinned widely, and for the first time since entering the caves, he could see the light reflect off of my face. “It is.”

“Quickly, then!” he said, his voice shaking.

We snatched our candles up, eager to place the wicks in the tiny flame he’d conjured. The candles lit, and the flame still burned on, shining on the rune scratched into the stone around it. We placed the candles in our respective lanterns, and the light shined on brighter. We could see the way, now.

“Tomas…” I said slowly. “Excellent job.” I looked at him proudly, but all he had eyes for was his little flame.

“I’ve never… done that before…” he said, the light reflecting in his irises, the flame dancing as if proud to be his.

“Shall we consult the map, sir Demon Hunter?” I asked, my lips in a half smile.

Still staring at his rune flame, he rustled up the map. Finally, he tore his eyes away from it to see the path.

“Well, there aren’t any turns for a while,” he said, staring at the piece of paper. “But it looks like we’ll come across a cavern with many choices. It looks like a maze after that.”

“Then let’s go,” I suggested, stretching my sore muscles and adjusting my shoes. “We’ve a long way ahead of us.”

We left the flame behind us, its flickering fading the further we got away, until the dampness of the cave snuffed it out completely.