Three hours have passed. Erilaz, Hefri and Andvari spent this time sitting motionlessly on a firm bench and staring at the grey wall. The guards forced them to dress in white tracksuits with neon-yellow stripes. The collars around their necks were supposed to protect the prison staff. The guards also took Hefri's hair clip and Erilaz's earring.

The three Commanders felt frozen in time. Their grey, dull room appeared surreal because they knew that no prisoner left a cell like that alive. When the stupefaction began to gradually fade, Hefri spoke up first.

"Any ideas?"

Erilaz didn't react, still sitting with his legs curled up and his head resting on his knees.

Andvari only glanced at her. "Ideas for what?"

"For..." Hefri drooped her head, realising the absurdity of her words. "...the escape."

Andvari snorted scornfully, averting his gaze. "Come on. Many dangerous criminals have tried breaking out of here, but none of them succeeded. Everyone on this planet knows that no individual can escape this place." He sighed, giggling. "Not even Vardir."

Hefri twisted her mouth. The lack of Andvari's will to live disgusted her.

"There's no escape from this cell," he continued, avoiding looking at her face. "Even if we could, the guards would get us on the way." He tapped at the collar. "If they don't, our heads are gonna blow up... Oh, and they can hear us." He pointed with his chin at the corner of the cell. The tiny, dark hole in the wall hid a recording device. "They just don't react because they know we can't leave this cell."

Andvari glared at Hefri, emphasizing each word, "We. Are. Dead."

Hefri shrugged. "But what if we..."

"No one," hissed Andvari, narrowing his eyes, "not a single person, not even the worst of the worst, have ever left this prison wing. We're as good as dead."

Hefri opened her mouth to respond, but she backed off. Observing the feeble glow lamp on the ceiling, she took a deep breath. When purple, pink and green shapes began to dance in her visual field, she blinked and rubbed her eyes.

"Yeah, that makes no sense," she said. "We don't know how much time we have. And how can we open the door? They even took my hair clip."

Her hands flopped on her knees. The expression on her face turned blank, with just a faint smile remaining on her mouth. Once fierce and bright, her eyes stared now at the wall without even a sparkle of their old tenacity.

Her thoughts wandered towards her lush, vibrant gardens. Breathing the stifling, cold air, she brought back the memories of fresh aromas of flowers and fruits. The spreading petals and sweet juices lured many colourful butterflies and other insects. Squirrel-like rodents, birds and avian reptiles loved building their safe nests in the dwarf trees. Hefri couldn't imagine the end of it.

"I was supposed to check my plants tomorrow," she said. "Some of them are a very rare species. They will die without weekly manual fertilisation."

Andvari nodded. His chamber was full of unfinished projects too. Some of them needed only fit-out works while others were just a bunch of wires and cogwheels. They stood on shelves or rested in boxes somewhere in his storeroom. The layer of dust grew thicker and thicker on them and there was no one to dust them off.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"I had to start building my new machine. I planned to make a little bomb carrier," he explained, clenching his fingers on the edge of the bench. "Small like my finger, as fast as the large land carriers... and the bombs are similar to berries." He giggled noiselessly. "So I called them Murderberries." After a long, deep breath, he added, "Yeah, I wasn't too sober."

Hefri smiled under her breath too, even though she didn't feel joy or any other emotion. She only longed for her quiet, cosy gardens.

Andvari looked at her. "Maybe one day I would have built one for your plants." He scratched his chin. "A mechanical insect or something like..."

He fell silent, shaking his head. His knuckles turned white as he clutched the edge of the seat with all his strength.

Hefri tilted her head, glancing at him questioningly. His breath became heavy and harsh. He wrinkled his nose.

"It's unfair that you have to suffer for my mistake!" he growled, rapidly leaning forwards. All passion he managed to hide finally broke loose. The veins of his eyes turned glary red as the ferocity broke loose on his face.

Hefri and Erilaz looked at him with confusion.

"If that damned robot lizard hadn't glitch, we wouldn't have that trouble!" Andvari yelled towards the empty wall. Panting throatily, he stood up with his fists clenched. "Your death is my fault!"

Erilaz narrowed his eyes. Taking a deep, nervous breath, he gripped his knees. He had no idea how to react to this display of desperation and helplessness. His own thoughts roamed in his mind, giving him a sharp headache. In that state, when the pain radiated over his whole upper-body, he could say that one unwanted word and make things even worse. Inciting his friend's temper tantrum could help no one, so he decided that the best thing he can do is to shut up.

"You both die because of me!" Andvari punched the wall. "Because I wasn't clever enough!"

Hefri seemed to share the same view as Erilaz. She couldn't find the right words to comfort her friend, and her throat cramped up anyways. She forced her muscles to swallow the clump of dense saliva and the only noise she made was a short gasp.

Andvari attacked the wall again. "You both die because of me! Because I wasn't clever enough!"

With every punch his knuckles became more red but he ignored the searing pain.

"I wasted your lives!" he shouted in a faltering voice. The wrath in his eyes gave way to sorrow and terror. "It's my mistake!"

Hefri averted her gaze. She stared at the floor as the banging sounds continued.

Andvari stood still for a moment. His chest heaved rapidly when he panted and gasped. Red circles spread over his cheeks, and droplets of sweat dripped down his forehead. The skin scraped from his knuckles released a few drops of blood.

The manic heartbeat and pulsating headache only separated him from reality even further. The mixture of fury and dread cleansed his mind from all remaining thoughts. He gave himself over to the primitive instincts. The pain surging in his arm made him lift his bleeding fist up and aim at the wall.

"Only mine!"

He swung his hand but Hefri blocked the punch. Panting and grunting, he raised his weary eyes at her. Hefri stood in front of him with her lips contorted, and her eyes expressed resignation.

She clenched her fingers on his fists and snarled, "Aiming at Ivendir was our decision."

In response, Andvari sighed and averted his eyes.

Wrinkling her nose, she craned her neck to get closer to Andvari's face.

"I made it," she hissed. "Erilaz made it... It was our decision."

She released him and walked towards her bench. She wiped her hand, leaving red smudges on her white pants, and sat down with her knees curled up. She embraced her legs and rested her head on her knees. Rethinking this choice, Hefri couldn't answer herself if she acted right. Only then she remembered her parents and the consequences that may await them. Her job let them enjoy benefits, and the cash infusions saved her father's life many times. On the other hand, she couldn't imagine betraying her best friends.

Hefri sighed and rubbed her eyes. The thoughts that fought in her mind like two starving scavengers stirred up an annoying headache. Hefri twisted her mouth and tightened her eyelids when the pain pierced her skull wave by wave. The sharp, white light made her eyes sting. She gasped and lied on the bench, facing the wall.

Meanwhile, Andvari slumped down and sat on the floor, leaning against the wall. He stared at the ceiling, resting his elbow on his knee. The adrenaline rushing in his veins subsided, giving way to pain in his arms and burning around his knuckles. He took a deep breath and drooped his head.