If it was one thing getting into the tunnels so easily, it was quite another thing getting out. The laptop died shortly after my last post and I’ve spent the past 36 hours in a state of almost constant agitation. Not about being trapped in the tunnels. No. About Maya. Even if it was over a video link, I couldn’t stand the thoughts of her waking up and not being with her. We finally made it out of Gerridian’s lair an hour ago. Maya hasn’t budged. I’ve been sitting watching her and I haven’t seen as much as a flicker of an eyelid or twitch of muscle. O’Heir, Justin, and Ana have been watching her in shifts. Though they report no change in her condition, they’re ready to pull her out of the tunnel the moment anything happens. And they’re sure that something will happen. The atmosphere around the house has changed, O’Heir said. It’s not as dark and brooding as before, and birds have returned to the trees along the lakeshore. What’s more, Daidogan keeps repeating that Maya’s on her way back. It’s a long journey, she says, but she’s on her way and we need to be ready soon.
I desperately hope it’s true. After all we’ve been through, I can’t stomach the thoughts of Maya suffering any longer. Kanar seems positive, too. Though he hasn’t straight out said anything about Maya, he’s dropping plenty of hints that I need to have patience.
Patience! That word’s starting to sound like some mental whiplash slicing through my brain. But I guess there’s little else I can do. And we’ve plenty to worry about this end. We’ve got to regroup with the others and get out of here fast. Everything’s changing, shrinking. It’s like someone’s pulled a great plug and this whole world is draining away. Kanar admitted as much earlier. He said that now Gerridian’s gone, his false empire is contracting and will soon collapse in on itself with such force this whole place will be pulverised into a mass the size of a pea. Sounds like something out of a science fiction film. But I believe him. He figures we’ve got less that three or four days to find our entry point before it closes over.
We’ve got to get moving now. I’d prefer to stay, of course, just sit here and watch Maya while the laptop recharges. Kanar won’t let me.