I took a huge gulp of water when Steve passed over the water pack. With the market crowded as per usual and the sun beating its last afternoon rays down on our backs, we were beginning to sweat like the rest of the townsfolk. We had already been to several stalls - selling food, medical supplies and all other types of trinkets. Unfortunately, it wasn't easy to find anything still in its box and no one had any idea what we were talking about. With the MP hunting the Corps earlier, it was unlikely my team members would be stupid enough to head out in public with their green covers on.

"Do you think we've talked to the entire market yet? Surely word is spreading that we're looking for Soph and Jack." Steve complained, squinting through the harsh sunlight. I sighed, also getting exhausted.

"Come on Steve. A few more stalls and then we can take a break before nightfall. The sooner we find them, the better."

Turning down yet another street filled with stalls, we made our way to the closest one selling some herbs.

"Ma'am, we're looking for a couple who was last seen here two to three days ago. A women and a man. Woman was about 5 and a half feet tall, man about 6 foot? Woman was a blonde, man a brunette?" Steve began, pausing to take in the woman's response. She paused for a brief second before returning to her job. I raised an eyebrow at this and tried again.

"They were probably looking for long lasting food or medicinal herbs?"

She paused again, visibly hesitating.

Red flag. Steve and I swapped looks, both now on the same page.

"Please ma'am, we're just trying to find our fellow Corps members and get them the help they need. This terrible war is over and we need to let them know." I laid it on thick, trying to get the lady to spill. "One of our comrades is seriously hurt-"

"-I know." She interrupted quietly.

I smiled subtly. A lead.

"You know?" Steve leaned forward, tilting his head.

"The girl didn't sound too good by what the couple bought. They were some hard hitting herbs I sold." The older woman finally met our eyes and quickly scanned over us, her gaze landing squarely on our Survey Corps patches on our outer jackets. Her eyes raised to meet mine.

"You're their fellow Corps members?"

I nodded in confirmation.

"Yes ma'am. I'm actually their team leader. Do you have any idea where they could have been heading?"

Sadly, the herb seller shook her head, waving around some plant in one hand.

"No, but from the amount they bought, they were looking for at least a week before coming back to market."

"They were in this market for hours, I swear!" exclaimed another voice, poking into our conversation. We all turned to face another townswoman, wrapped in the usual golden brown shawl of those living in the nearby farms. Her arms were full of baskets, each holding some type of bread.

"Every time I turned around, I'd spy that couple wandering somewhere down the streets. If anything, I'd try asking old Tom Lantern down near the end of this road. They were there for quite a bit."

"Tom Lantern?" Steve mused. The sticky-nosed lady (but quite helpful regardless) nodded in affirmation.

"Like his name, he sells lanterns and all types of lighting materials. Have a look yourselves."

Heeding her direction, Steve and I quickly made our way down the street, slowing down as we came in front of the usual market stall, only the front table was filled with all different types of lanterns and lighting implements. Oil lamps, paper lanterns, fabric box lights, you name it, he had it.

"Looking for a light for your new home, you two?"

A skinny man rocks up from behind the stall, looking over us with a friendly but keen eye.

"More like looking for information, sir." I smiled politely and shook my head gently at his offer. "My fellow officer and I are part of the Scouting Legions. We were searching for our 2 comrades that were spotted here just recently. We heard word that they bought something from you?"

After a quick glance at our jackets, he opened up.

"Yes, a man and a woman. As far as I could tell, they were carrying a variety of dried foods and herbs. They bought 2 small oil lamps from me, as well as some extra oil to go with it."

"Oil lamps?"

The seller heaved up a box and shifted it to his hip.

"2 of them. The brightness of the lamps aren't the best but it covers a larger area. They bought enough oil to last them maybe a week?"

"What are the lamps usually used for?" I scanned over the variety and could see plenty that would've been smaller.

"Those are more popular for those travelling to the UnderGround, as sharp bright lights are bad for moving around down there. Otherwise, they're also used for less populated areas – such as out in farmlands. With only a week's worth though, more likely they're heading to the UnderGround – there are plenty of places nearby should they need to restock."

With one last nod, he left to attend to business. I groaned in frustration, looking up to the sky and Steve rubbed his temples.

"Fantastic."

"We need a plan. We can't go into the UnderGround blindly. That would be suicide."

I paused in my pacing and glanced over at Steve, who was absentmindedly tracing invisible patterns on the table top. After that terrific answer, we headed back to the lady's house, utterly defeated by our day.

"Getting to the UnderGround is not a problem. The real question is, where do we even start looking for them? The UnderGround is just as big as the surface, if not even larger."

"User case. What would you do if you were with the 5 of them?"

"Well, Linda's badly hurt so they wouldn't want to travel in too deep." I murmured.

"But they're running from the MPs who were out to kill us."

"Yes, but staying too far from any exits is more risky than not. The villagers mentioned they only had enough oil to last a week in the darkness."

"They were also in their Survey Corps uniforms. They can't risk any place where there's large numbers of peopled milling around. The chances of some person swapping a soldier out for surface citizenship is too high."

"Okay, so we're talking the outskirts of the Underground, nearby surface exits. That should narrow it down."

"We'll have to go door by door until we find them, unless you know of someone that knows the Underground."

My mind instantly goes to picture Levi and my heart tugs slightly before I shook my head vigorously.

"Yes but it'll take too long to get them here. We'll have to make do without them. Come on, let's get some sleep and we'll go door knocking first thing in the morning. I know a way down."