Cole knows this place. Ben is sure of it, the moment he sees his friend going to the crate with purpose and decision, moving it to reveal a narrow passage out of the room. As much as he trusts Cole, he can't help hesitating a moment, facing that narrow crack in the wall. Could he fit? What if he got stuck, got trapped? And what was on the other side? All he can see is total darkness.
But he screws up his courage, glancing over to see the stark terror on Cole's face. He almost insists on Cole going first, so Ben can keep guard and follow after, but it doesn't seem worth the wasted time to argue it. Besides, there could be just as many dangers on the other side, waiting for them.
Maneuvering himself through is not an easy task, and Ben scrapes his forearm against the rough stone. He makes no noise, despite the pain, except a slightly sharper inhale. Once Cole is through, too, Ben looks around, at this tiny stone box they've hidden themselves in. He sees the manacles, and a cold, slithery fear slips into his guts. It ought to be comical, something out of a fantasy movie, a ludicrous, over-the-top dungeon. But it's so horribly real. He can smell the disuse of this room, damp stone and moss and metal, but underneath it, old but unmistakeable, is the smell of blood. Real blood that had been spilled here.
When Cole tells him where they are, Ben doesn't recognize any of the names he mentions. He breathes out, even quieter than Cole:
"In Thedas?"
His mind is reeling. Had they been transported, somehow? Is he in another world entirely? An idea occurs to him, and with shaking hands, he fumbles the device from his coat pocket, clicks it on. The light of it is blinding in the pitch-black cell, but Ben squints against the sudden brightness, tapping through to his inbox. He selects a text at random and deletes it, waiting for the signal to go through. As soon as the words disappear, he gives a tiny nod, shuts the device off and slides it back into his pocket.
"We're still in the Anchor. The network - the signal reaches here. This place is - inside the base, somehow."
That doesn't mean the danger isn't real. Ben has seen things from Cole's world brought through the shift, before. He had fought that Behemoth. So it doesn't change much, knowing they haven't been moved. Except there is some hope for escape.
He turns to look at Cole, heart racing, but keeping it together as well as he can. It's just mortal peril. Nothing new. Nothing to lose his cool over. Right?
And yet the terror seems to seep out of the walls of this place. The hairs on the back of Ben's neck are standing up and why can't he stop smelling that old blood?
"If they find us, get behind me." He shuffles closer to Cole in the darkness, jaw set, tense and angry at whatever forces have landed them here, are putting them through this. But anger is useful. Anger will help him to keep his friend safe. "I'm not going to let anybody hurt you, okay?"
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But he screws up his courage, glancing over to see the stark terror on Cole's face. He almost insists on Cole going first, so Ben can keep guard and follow after, but it doesn't seem worth the wasted time to argue it. Besides, there could be just as many dangers on the other side, waiting for them.
Maneuvering himself through is not an easy task, and Ben scrapes his forearm against the rough stone. He makes no noise, despite the pain, except a slightly sharper inhale. Once Cole is through, too, Ben looks around, at this tiny stone box they've hidden themselves in. He sees the manacles, and a cold, slithery fear slips into his guts. It ought to be comical, something out of a fantasy movie, a ludicrous, over-the-top dungeon. But it's so horribly real. He can smell the disuse of this room, damp stone and moss and metal, but underneath it, old but unmistakeable, is the smell of blood. Real blood that had been spilled here.
When Cole tells him where they are, Ben doesn't recognize any of the names he mentions. He breathes out, even quieter than Cole:
"In Thedas?"
His mind is reeling. Had they been transported, somehow? Is he in another world entirely? An idea occurs to him, and with shaking hands, he fumbles the device from his coat pocket, clicks it on. The light of it is blinding in the pitch-black cell, but Ben squints against the sudden brightness, tapping through to his inbox. He selects a text at random and deletes it, waiting for the signal to go through. As soon as the words disappear, he gives a tiny nod, shuts the device off and slides it back into his pocket.
"We're still in the Anchor. The network - the signal reaches here. This place is - inside the base, somehow."
That doesn't mean the danger isn't real. Ben has seen things from Cole's world brought through the shift, before. He had fought that Behemoth. So it doesn't change much, knowing they haven't been moved. Except there is some hope for escape.
He turns to look at Cole, heart racing, but keeping it together as well as he can. It's just mortal peril. Nothing new. Nothing to lose his cool over. Right?
And yet the terror seems to seep out of the walls of this place. The hairs on the back of Ben's neck are standing up and why can't he stop smelling that old blood?
"If they find us, get behind me." He shuffles closer to Cole in the darkness, jaw set, tense and angry at whatever forces have landed them here, are putting them through this. But anger is useful. Anger will help him to keep his friend safe. "I'm not going to let anybody hurt you, okay?"