Fortress Core

"Who is this?!"

Mathew heard a familiar voice even before he reached anywhere near the top of the tunnel.

'My exhaustion is really ramping up,' the young man thought as he pursed his lips.

In the darkness of the shaft, no one could notice his sour expression.

"It's us!" Leila called out in response, nearly making Mahtew drop his grasp over the ladder just to smack his own face.

"Fine, come in," Daniel called out.

'It's a wonder how natural it is,' Mathew thought, shaking his head before climbing up the ladder once again.

"How did it go?" Daniel asked when Mathew's girls started to climb out of the shaft.

"We caught the bastard," Leila reported while crawling out of the hole. She then stood up to his feet, only to tap on her knees to dust them out.

"Where is he, then?" Daniel asked right away. He then shook his head. "No, where is Norbert?" he changed his question while trying to move his eyes in Leila's direction.