Three hours later, picking through the wreckage of their old home, it was clear that no one had survived but them. Bodies crushed under stone, others shot, some burned... it was horrifying and Thera more than once had to close her eyes and give her stomach time to settle. The four met up under the hole to the sky and each shook their head to report their failure to find any other survivors of the catastrophe.

Jonah nodded heavily then said, "We need to make our way to the kitchen and see if there's anything we can salvage."

Kaegan looked sharply at him. "How can you think of food at a time like this?"

Jonah turned serious, steady eyes on her. "Because without it we won't last much longer than they did. We can find water once we reach the surface but just 'happening upon' food is a different matter."

Kaegan was fighting to keep her composure and Carlin stepped up and touched her arm. "Kaegan... you worked in the kitchen before you were the mining foreman... can you show us where the extra would be stored?"

Kaegan slowly nodded, gripped her staff, then led them over the uneven piles of rock in their path. Their progress was slowed as the terrain was especially difficult for Thera to navigate and Jonah hung back and stayed with her, at her side to help her struggle over the rocky hills.

When they reached the food storage bins they were in luck. Most of the food lay there untouched, the attack so violent and sudden that there had been no time for anyone to raid and horde. Vegetables, bread, cured meat... it was still awaiting its turn to be served to the hungry workers.

Wordlessly, everyone subdued by the carnage they had tunneled out to find, they stuffed their food sacks with food. When those were full they filled their pockets, then they made sacks of curtains. They found one water basin intact and filled their water bags then turned to deciding their next course of action. As though in unspoken agreement, everyone's eyes went to Jonah.

Jonah was deep in thought, considering their options, then looked back the way they'd come. "We need to get to Brenna's office."

Kaegan asked, "Why?" Her fire and spirit were noticeably dampened by seeing her colleagues, her friends, sprawled dead.

"Brenna spoke frequently with Administrator Caulder but we never saw her leave her office to go see him. There must be a passage in her office leading to his. It should take us to the surface."

Kaegan's brow crinkled. "What makes you think Administrator Caulder's office was situated on the surface?"

Jonah's lips pursed and his eyes narrowed even as his gaze seemed to cast over a thousand yards. "Just a feeling."

In silent consent the four started back from the kitchen toward the overseer's office. What before would have been a fifteen minute walk had become a two and a half hour trek and by the time they were able to see the location of Brenna's old office Thera was panting for breath and clutching one arm around her distended abdomen as though she could literally carry it farther.

Jonah looked in concern at her. "You okay?"

Thera nodded but couldn't speak in a voice trained enough to assuage him.

Jonah touched her stomach, as though it might give him insight into Thera's true physical state, and he turned to Carlin and Kaegan. "We need to stop and rest."

"Don't stop on account of me," Thera protested, out of breath, but Jonah looked sharply at her.

"I won't lose you now, Thera, you or the baby. We stop and rest."

Thera went quiet and Carlin and Kaegan tried to look as though they hadn't heard the emotional remark from the tough-as-nails Jonah.

They all found a relatively level surface, dropped their bags, then sagged down to recuperate. Jonah eased Thera down to the ground and, despite her earlier claim she could keep going, she sagged back against a large rock and closed her eyes, arms draped around her stomach.

Jonah knelt beside her and touched her knee. Thera opened her eyes and looked at him.

"You're not feeling any pain, are you?" he asked quietly.

Thera knew what he was thinking and shook her head. "No, it's not that." She gave a wane smile and said flippantly, "You try climbing up and down these piles of rock with fifteen, twenty pounds dropped into your gut."

Jonah smirked wryly. "Guess it would wear me out."

Thera nodded and closed her eyes again. It did feel good to take a breather, she had to admit, even if only to herself.

"Well, the good news," Jonah said, now addressing everyone, "we have enough food to have a decent meal and rebuild our strength. Eat up, everyone... within reason."

Understanding their respite would be longer than a simple twenty-minute reprieve they opened their food packs and ate straight from the sacks until they were no longer being gnawed by hunger. Thera, too, partook of enough to actually appease the hungry baby inside her for the first time in nearly a week.

The temperature was starting to drop, signaling the approach of night. The light coming in through the skylight dimmed and Jonah sidled closer to Thera.

"Sorry I can't build a nest for you," he said in a teasing voice though underneath his sarcasm his regret was sincere.

Thera touched his arm that looped around her. "It's okay. I'm so tired I don't think falling asleep will be a problem."

"You should rest," he said and kissed her temple. They were sufficiently hidden by the darkness that Carlin and Kaegan wouldn't clearly see the gesture.

"We can't all sleep," Thera said, but Jonah stopped her.

"I won't. I'll stay up, then when I get sleepy I'll wake Carlin to take over, and I'll tell him to pass off to Kaegan when he gets loopy."

"I can–"

"Don't argue with me on this, Thera... please."

It was the 'please' more than anything else that silenced her. Jonah was not disposed to pleading and she knew it. "Okay."

Jonah hugged her closer, "Thank you. Now get some sleep."

Thera leaned into him, rested her head on his chest, and her eyes closed almost immediately.


When Thera woke up the first thing she noted was the cold. Second was the hard, cold stone under her. Third, Jonah wasn't with her.

Thera sat up as quickly as her unwieldy body would permit and sought her companions in the dawning light. She could just barely make out Carlin and Kaegan, both still sleeping, cuddled up together, probably for warmth. There was no sign of Jonah.

Thera started to struggle to her feet to search for him when a hand dropped on to her shoulder from behind and she gasped and swung.

"Whoa!" Jonah whispered harshly, just barely ducking away from her elbow.

"Jonah! Where were you?" Thera hissed in mixed anger and relief.

Jonah hefted the four food bags he had in one hand. "Refilling what we ate last night. Might as well start off on the surface with as many supplies as we can." His eyes cut to the two sleeping figures and he frowned unhappily. "Damnit, I would have thought Carlin would tell Kaegan the point of waking her up was so she could keep watch."

"Was she awake when you left?"

"Yeah."

Thera shifted on the uncomfortable rock. "Then she probably just fell asleep and technically you were awake so she probably thought it was safe to doze off. Um... Jonah?"

"Yeah?"

Thera swallowed her pride. "It kills me to say this," his eyebrows climbed in curiosity. "I think I'm going to need your help to go to the bathroom."

Jonah smiled cheekily. "I won't tell if you won't."

Thera scowled. "Sure, laugh, I'm sure a man would find this just so amusing."

Jonah set down the food bags and moved around to stand in front of Thera and help her to her feet. When she was upright he held her close and whispered, "Not when he's the father of said baby he wouldn't."

"I still think you're enjoying this too much," Thera griped.

Jonah chuckled and started to help her over the rubble.

"I don't suppose we could make it back to the lavatories? I don't think I'd need your help if I could actually use a toilet."

Jonah shrugged. "It'd take us about half an hour to clamber our way over there. Can you hold it that long?"

Thera huffed. "No."

"Don't worry about it, Thera, at least you needing to go is a good sign you're not dehydrated. Besides, it's nothing I haven't seen before."

"You're not helping."

Jonah squeezed her hand and helped her pick her way over the debris until finally she proclaimed where they were was where they'd been heading and she choked down the last of her dignity and let Jonah help her remove her pants and hunker down to relieve herself.


When they'd all answered the call of nature, had a light breakfast, and repacked their sparse supplies, the light outside coming through the broken skylight had increased enough for them to see where they were placing their feet and to make out the distant shapes of Brenna's office. The office itself was a crush of silver metal on the ground, collapsed from its aloft place by the attack.

The four companions picked their way over the debris and fallen stones until they were standing before the twisted cubicle.

Jonah tilted his head back and looked at the place the office used to be. There it was, a perfectly rectangular opening, a hallway, that would have led off the back end of Brenna's office.

"Oiy," Jonah muttered at the overhead distance between them and the hallway.

Kaegan eyed the climb. They could scramble over the piled debris halfway but then it was a steep, almost completely vertical face up to the hallway's opening.

"We need rope," Carlin said idly.

Jonah looked around, searching his mind for something they could use, then he winced. "Carlin, Kaegan." Both looked at him. "Start seeing how many coats you can salvage."

Carlin's expression fell sadly but Kaegan was aghast. "You would steal from the dead!"

"They don't need them, we do. Unless you can think of something else we can fashion into a rope, in which case I'm all ears."

Kaegan turned away, bitter, but eventually she shot a murderous glare at Jonah then marched off. Carlin followed suit and Jonah turned to Thera.

Thera was scrutinizing the incline. "I can't make that, Jonah. No way."

"We'll haul you up, you won't have to climb."

Thera touched her stomach uncertainly.

"Let's go help Carlin and Kaegan."