The sound of metal hitting against rock drowned out the sound of the rock cracking above Pacha as she slept, then without warning the roof caved in and collapsed into the mine. The whole mine shook and people dropped their pickaxes.

As the rubble began to clear, Elizabeth blinked. She opened her eyes and coughed, the dust from the rockfall lay thick upon her. Elizabeth had been blasted away from the rockfall by the force and she had hit her head badly. There was a sharp ringing in her ears and a minute went by while she tried to figure out what had happened. In-front of her lay her pickaxe, where she had dropped it and to her right lay the rocks that had fallen from the roof above. The rubble filled the passageway from top to bottom and it sealed off Elizabeth’s section from the rest of the mine and the lift shaft.

Elizabeth began to hear cries from within the rubble. Her mind began to clear just as she became aware that there were other slaves gathered around her and one was helping her to stand upright. Slowly she began to realise that Pacha had been asleep where the rubble now lay. She stumbled towards it and began to shift rocks like those around her were doing. She found Pacha under a large rock that meant that her upper body had just been superficially covered by the debris. Due to this, she was mostly unharmed however, it was clear that her left shoulder had been badly dislocated. Despite the pain, Pacha was greatly relieved at the sight of Elizabeth. They held each other’s hands tightly and stayed in the cold together as their adrenaline calmed.

From the surface, Vallabhadev and Khavand had heard the crash, and Vallabhadev started lowering himself down into the mine and moved with force to the site where the roof had caved in.

“Clear this route and put all the rubble in the lift,” Vallabhadev commanded them. Then he continued, with no remorse, “also send up any bodies,” Vallabhadev turned and left back up the lift.

To their great disappointment, the slaves could not free the rubble that was lying on Pacha’s lower half. After an hour or two of trying they began to hear the sound of the rubble being cleared from the other side. A small hole appeared and they saw the other slaves clearing the passage. A moment later then a woman cried out and held her hand to her mouth as an old man's broken body was lifted from the rubble and carried into the dimly lit lift, where he was gently placed down onto rocks.

“What's going on?” whispered Pacha, wincing at the pain from her shoulder.

“They've cleared George’s body and put it onto the lift,” Elizabeth told her plainly.

“I always liked George,” Pacha replied softly and a moment of silence passed between them before Pacha's eyes lit up. “We can get out of here,” She exclaimed and Elizabeth turned to her knowing what she was about to say.

“That's a bad idea,” Elizabeth replied sternly.

“He won't know. How many people have been killed in mine collapses?” Pacha asked.

“A lot of us, around 12 since I first arrived,” Elizabeth replied.

“Those clearing the rubble on the other side don't know how many of us have been killed.” Pacha continued but her words still failed to convince Elizabeth. “Come on, this could be our way out of here,” Pacha encouraged her. “Remember what you said. You told me that you have faith and that one day life will change for the better. That is this day, so be strong Elizabeth. This is the time to be brave and trust in Tallara.” Elizabeth was quiet for a moment letting Pacha’s words sink into her.

“Yes. Alright. I will lie here and you must cover me with rubble.” Elizabeth said as she lay down, put her arm through a gap and placed her head to the side. She nodded at Pacha. Pacha signalled to the other slaves and they covered them both with rubble, careful not to injure either one of them more.

They lay there waiting for the other slaves to clear the rubble and slowly they began to hear rocks moving from around them. Not long after they pulled Elizabeth out. She stayed calm, letting her body become a dead weight as she was carried to the lift and placed gently down on the rubble. A few minutes went by before Elizabeth felt a body being gently lowered on top of her. The lift started to move and once a few seconds had passed Elizabeth opened her eyes. She tilted her head back and caught sight of the mine just before they entered the lift shaft. Slaves were gathered around the lift’s bottom and it looked as though only a few bits of debris remained in the mine. She turned her head upwards to see Pacha lying on top of her.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Pacha? Pacha? Pacha?” She called, slowly becoming concerned when her friend didn’t answer. Calmly she felt Pacha’s pulse and was relieved when she felt a normal, regular heartbeat. She also checked Pacha’s breathing, which was very faint but steady. Pacha was alright, she concluded. Resting her head back down, her mind turned to the light above her which was growing ever brighter. Who knew what horrors were waiting for them once they reached the top?

Try as she could, she failed to slow her breathing, and with Pacha’s weight on top of her, it became increasingly difficult. The light was almost all around them but Elizabeth began to drift, the sound of the lift became faint and just as it started to rock Elizabeth lost consciousness.

For a moment Elizabeth couldn't decide whether she was awake or not, the darkness all around her was a direct contrast to the blinding white light she had last seen. She was lying on her back with her head hanging downwards, and she could just about make out the fenced area around the top of the mine shaft. She watched the lift begin to move as a figure opened the gate and stood waiting by the lift. As the lift came into view, a slave stood ready with a pickaxe in hand. The slave swung his pickaxe as soon as he saw the dark figure, waiting by the lift. In the second that Elizabeth blinked she heard the clattering of metal and a loud cracking sound. She caught a glimpse of the figure breaking this slave’s neck before the pickaxe even hit the floor. Elizabeth dared not move and let her eyes stare out into empty space as this slave’s body was loaded into the wagon on top of her, along with the last pieces of rubble.

Cold air whipped around Elizabeth’s head and as they travelled through the terrain. The land turned from snow to bare stone. As they travelled over the bumpy ground, Elizabeth knew that she and Pacha had a chance at escape. She turned and shook Pacha as much as she could. Within a few moments, Pacha awoke only to seize up in pain and grip her shoulder.

“Shhhhhh,” Elizabeth whispered, indicating to Pacha that she needed to be quiet. “We need to get out of this wagon,” Elizabeth explained and Pacha nodded in agreement. Pacha was free and able to move, whereas Elizabeth was covered by the slave whose neck had been violently twisted. Feeling another jolt and looking round Pacha, saw Khavand driving the wagon towards what appeared to be a dormant volcano. Pacha didn’t want to know if her guess was correct, however, so instead she hauled the body up off Elizabeth just enough for Elizabeth to move her legs out from underneath him. Elizabeth then waited for the wagon to jolt before jumping off simultaneously with the movement. Pacha followed her at the next opportunity before they reconvened down in a ditch created by an old lava flow.

“Now what?” Pacha whispered to Elizabeth as she cradled her left shoulder with her right hand.

“Well, we can’t stay here,” Elizabeth whispered back.

“Can you help me?” Pacha said quietly and Elizabeth turned as she grimaced in pain. Her left shoulder had been forced backwards and it clearly sat out of the socket.

“This may hurt,” Elizabeth said as she gripped Pacha’s shoulder and pressed firmly on her shoulder blade. Pacha’s shoulder popped back into the socket and Pacha let out a muffled cry. “There. Are you ok?” Elizabeth asked.

“Yes. Thank you,” Pacha replied with tears in her eyes. “We need to get out of here.”

“That’s a good idea,” Elizabeth agreed. “I think we should head towards that mountain, we can’t risk getting caught if we go back towards the mine. Khavand broke that man’s neck, I think the wilderness will be safer.”

“I agree. Keep low,” Pacha responded. They travelled low in the ditch, passing Khavand at a distance of only 3 meter’s away from him. They stopped and sank as low as they could, they dared not to move in the fear of making a noise. Eventually, they heard the wagon move off and Pacha raised her head above the ditch. Her eyes had adjusted to the moonlight and she saw Khavand driving away from a crack in the ground. She could not tell how deep the crack was but the heat coming from it was intense. Most of the heat was being deflected by the ridge of the ditch they were hiding in, so Pacha and Elizabeth were nice and cool. They continued to crawl low and out of sight for fear of other men who were nearby. Neither one had been here before and did not know what lay ahead. They followed the ditch for miles, between mountains and boulder fields. The land in front of them slowly began to flatten out and the ditch ended and began to curve back on itself. Pacha and Elizabeth were forced out of their hiding place and walked uneasily into the wilderness. Two hours passed and Pacha spotted a cave in a nearby mountain. They ascended up to it and lay down. Elizabeth was the first to sleep while Pacha stayed on guard.

There they waited, sleeping in turn. They discussed what to do next but morale was low and hope seemed distant.