"Where are they?" Ty growled as he paced in front of the cave.
"Calm down, Ty," Pyra said, "They have only been in there for a few minutes. Everything is fine."
"That's really easy for you to say, Pyra. Your mate is safely in a healer's shop playing around with herbs and leaves and shit trying to come up with healing potions. Mine is wandering around in a rock tunnel that none of us have any idea what might be in it, where it leads, or if it could be being used to bring our enemies into our compound. I'm a little stressed out right now."
"So I take it you got over your whole 'she's too young' thing and finally bonded with her?" Pyra asked.
Ty stopped pacing long enough to glare at him briefly, and then went back to pacing.
"Yes."
"And?"
"And what? It was the most incredible experience of my life, I'm hopelessly in love with her, and now I'm terrified that I've just watched her walk into her death. How is it that a group of warriors and a nurturer just sent three women into a potentially extremely dangerous tunnel with nothing more than a torch and a dagger?"
"They're going to be fine, Ty. You need to learn to have some faith in your mate. I know they seem small, but if Eden has taught me anything in my time with her, it is that human women are far more capable than we give them credit for. Zuri tells me that Samira is incredibly smart and resourceful. I wouldn't have let them go in if I didn't think that they would be safe."
"And what happens if they aren't? What happens if they get into the tunnel and it turns out that the Klimnu are using it, and they are in there? What then? Do you really think that they will be able to fight them off with a single dagger? We have no idea how many of them there are, and reserves could have arrived since the last battle. If we can't get in to them, it would be hopeless."
"So talk to her. Connect with her and make sure that she's OK. She might be able to tell you what she's seeing."
Pyra walked away, leaving Ty alone near the mouth of the cave. Ty stared into the darkness, straining to hear even the smallest hint that the women had made it into the tunnel or were headed back toward him. When only silence greeted him, he closed his eyes, took a breath, and concentrated on connecting directly to Samira.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
He waited a few tense moments.
"We're fine," he finally heard and felt his body relax slightly, "Pyra was right. This tunnel is extremely small. I didn't see anything that indicated that there might be a larger section or some kind of false wall that might open it up more. This is definitely it."
"How far have you gone?"
"Pretty far. The ground is getting steeper. I think we are probably all the way underground now. It's cold and feels kind of clammy down here."
"That's what the Klimnu feel like," he thought absently.
"I've never seen them."
"Zuri and Leia have. They'll tell you."
"I know. Wait…"
The connection went silent and Ty felt panic building inside him again.
"What? Samira? What's going on?"
"I feel air moving."
"What does that mean?"
"Air doesn't move inside a closed space. If I can feel air moving, it means that we are getting close to an opening in the tunnel. Get near Pyra. I want to be able to talk to him."
Ty called out to Pyra and gestured for him to come closer.
"Samira says that she can feel moving air," he told the massive warrior, "She wanted to be able to talk to you."
"Ask her if she can tell where the air is coming from."
Ty did as Pyra asked. It felt strange standing beside Pyra and having a silent conversation with his mate. He felt like the ability to communicate this way was such a private thing and it almost seemed inappropriate to be sharing it with Pyra. Of course, he knew that the way Ciyrs had healed Eden when she first came to the planet had created such a strong link between them that they were actually able to communicate telepathically, so Ty knew that it could be much worse. He didn't know how he would cope with knowing that another man was able to roam freely through Samira's thoughts or talk with her without anyone knowing what he was saying.
"Tell Pyra that I don't know yet. We can feel it on our faces and on our sides, so either it is one big opening, or there are two."
"Is the torch holding up?"
"The air in here is getting damper. It's fine for now, but I'm a little worried that it is going to go out soon. What do we do if it does?"
"Run the blade of the knife against the wall. Hopefully it will generate enough of a spark that you will be able to relight the torch."
"And if not?"
Ty hesitated. He didn't really know what to tell her. The thought of her being stuck inside the tunnel far underground without even so much as a light source made him feel sick.
"It'll work, Baby. Just keep going. I'm right here. Just know that I'm right here."