Xenia

The woman and all her companions fled. He fled with them. He did not fear the vengeful invaders who sought to vent their anger on these attackers, their loud, echoing shouts coming from behind them. He went with them because the woman and her companions needed guidance on their journey. He would provide it.

The ones the woman had rescued had few supplies and no liquid to sustain them, as well as nothing to carry their paltry belongings in aside from the sling of their own arms. The woman burst open the tube along the left wall for drink, but they could not dally. The recent captives told the woman of the stashes of fat and oil which were above, stashes which the invaders had learned of through questioning the residents or their own exploration.

So they fled. The woman's light-bearing stick was the sole source of illumination which they had. She went before all the others, casting the bright beam of light upon the walls and floor to guide their steps and ensure that the way ahead remained safe and clear of obstruction and danger.

They moved as swiftly as possible. Despite the woman and her surviving companion knowing the path they would tread, the ones who had been victims of the invaders were mistreated and weakened by their captivity. They could not walk as swiftly or as surely as if they were healthy. The bricks of material which the woman and her companions has brought from the place deep under the earth helped offset this weakness, to some degree. They instilled bursts of energy and feelings of healthful satiation in everyone who ate them, but they could not undo the systematic abuse and malnutrition they had suffered. The invaders had only the wavering lights cast by the shoddy lanterns to see by, and they did not know the way. But they were well-fed and their anger buoyed their steps just as well as fear did those of the woman and her companions.

He only needed them to go a little farther. He could then intervene.

They reached the collapsed section of the tunnel. The woman broke open the tube one last time and implored everything to drink what they could. They would go without until they reached the sanctuary. The descent was rough. Some of the frailer former captives tumbled into the jagged mess of rocks below. Some died. Some were too injured to continue under their own strength. The woman told others to help those who still lived. They continued along the subducted tunnel, moving through the places where the walls were barren, gray stone and entering into the ones where the surfaces were plated in metal.

He closed the door behind them once they were all inside. They were trapped.