The following is Part 1 of a collaboration between [@The Savant] and myself.[hr]
As they continued to go deeper and deeper, Pilka remembered that people like Kara could not see in the dark without tools to help them — flashlights and things. He stopped in his tracks and looked around, immediately to the left of them was probably a twenty foot drop, and the man realized how dangerous it was for her to be blindly following him. “[color=C8A2C8]Do you have anything on you? To help you see?[/color]” his voice stayed low as if he was making sure no one could hear them. This was a habit from living in the tunnels and the caverns – you never knew what was roaming around. Be it the cult or the creatures dwelling in their natural habitat.
 
“[color=C8A2C8]If not,[/color]” he began before he stopped talking as he heard a few things fall in the distance. Their light echoes telling him that it was a few small things, probably pebbles or the like, and most likely from natural shifts or drafts. “[color=C8A2C8]You can hold on to me until we get somewhere safer.[/color]” he added once he felt like there was no danger around. There was still danger in the cities especially in all the nooks and crannies. 

She thought on his question for a moment, quickly realizing the contents of her small bag didn’t include a light to help illuminate her path.[color=yellow]”I do not, sorry."[/color] Kara slowly inched forward, holding her arm out in front of her until her hand came in contact with his shoulder. She stood still for a moment, waiting for him to move. 

[color=yellow]”So, where are we going?"[/color] Kara was a little nervous if she was being honest with herself, mainly because she was out of her element and there was some vulnerability to that alone. That and she was completely enveloped in darkness while a stranger guided her further away from the light. 

A stranger... It suddenly dawned on her.

[color=yellow]”I’m Kara, by the way. What’s your name?"[/color]

There was a naturalness to how his body tensed when Kara touched him, he wasn't expecting her to reach out and grab his shoulder, but he instantly settled down. Being a hermit meant there was not a lot of physical touch for him and when there was… it was bad. Fighting off creatures of the caverns and darkness or fighting off scavengers and lowlives. An internal thought pressed him to ease his body though he would stay alert and cautious, “[color=C8A2C8]I don’t have anything either, sorry,[/color]” the man added because he didn’t ever think to bring flashlights or lights or whatnot on him. He didn’t really need them. 
 
“[color=C8A2C8]Well…[/color]” he began as if he had to think about where they were going. “[color=C8A2C8]I actually don’t know where any of this leads to and I doubt you would want to go outside of the city,[/color]” he spoke as if he was having external thoughts more than a conversation. Looking around, he mumbled something to himself, “[color=C8A2C8]I would go home, though you leaving the walls might put you in a lot of danger. You are practically as useful as a baby outside,[/color]” he chuckled at his words, finding them amusing, and continued to move forward. Looking for ways to possibly climb down or higher or get Kara somewhere safer. 

Then he stopped when she introduced herself and he looked back at her, the faint bits of light that came from behind them, and it caused his eyes to gleam in the darkness. Similar to eyes that she might have seen before except a little more eerie — stray cats. “[color=C8A2C8]How rude of me, I forgot to introduce myself. I must be getting old,[/color]” he held out a hand to shake her free hand. “[color=C8A2C8]I am Pilka, nothing more,[/color]” he added as his longer spider-like fingers wrapped around her free hand and shook it. His hands were gloved for obvious reasons since he was trying to hide who he was from civilization. Letting go of her hand, he began to move again. “[color=C8A2C8]Kara, that is a pretty name.[/color]” 

She shook his hand briefly before letting go. It was [i]different[/i], but not unexpected. He wasn't, after all, as "human" as her. Horrible as it sounded, it was only the truth. 

[color=yellow]"Thank you,"[/color] she added in response, saying his name in her head. [color=yellow]"Yours is unique, can't say I've heard it before."[/color] Small talk aside, Kara was uncertain and a little anxious over what he had said moments before. They were in hiding for now on these city outskirts, but she would eventually have to go back. Go back home. Go back to her family... [color=yellow]"Pilka, we need a plan,"[/color] she finally spoke up after a few moments of working it out in her head. [color=yellow]"When I go back, I'm gonna need a cover story, a reason as to why I ran away from those officers."[/color]

“[color=C8A2C8]It’s an orphans name, nothing unique,[/color]” he said a little too quickly before realizing that she was probably decades younger than him and he chuckled to himself. “[color=C8A2C8]Thank you,[/color]” he decided to cut off everything else that was on his mind and what he wanted to say about the name. It was popular amongst orphan boys when he was younger. It was similar to when people decided to all name their kids Lee or Olivia. 

She stood still, unable to read his facial expressions which was slightly frustrating to say the least. [color=yellow]"They've got my face,"[/color] she shrugged, [color=yellow]"but maybe that's it. If they were unable to detect our conversation, we can make something up..."[/color]

Kara was going a certain direction with this, though she wasn't sure how she'd put it in words. Her plan would implicate him, not that he wasn't already a target due to his status. [color=yellow]"Maybe I can lie and say that you coerced me to walk with you, and that you told me to act normal and avoid capture otherwise you'd hurt me."[/color] She stopped with a sigh. [color=yellow]"It sounds bad, I know. But if I go back and they interrogate me and I don't have anything to answer for my actions, I'm done."[/color]

She waited for his response, hoping he'd see her point despite the idea being selfish in nature.

Kara took the words right out of his mouth and he was thankful for that. “[color=C8A2C8]I was thinking about that,[/color]” his voice was low and filled with honesty. He shouldn’t have stated such a thing for her to follow him in the first place. Shaking his head at himself, he was disappointed, and his thoughts were running wild with what ifs and solutions. 

“[color=C8A2C8]It’s not bad,[/color]” his tone seemed a little defensive when he argued with her feeling bad, if she did. “[color=C8A2C8]You’re protecting yourself and it’s not like I have a place in society. You are not affecting my life like I am affecting yours at the moment,[/color]” it might sound horrible but it was true — Dwellers and burrowers were not individuals who were welcomed in society or in the walls of Dominion at all. He was playing dangerous games by coming into the city. 

She scoffed jokingly, her mood changing for the better now that he had agreed. [color=yellow]"You can't blame yourself when I was the one who bumped into you and set of this chain of events... I even went as far as following you to give you back your broken shades,"[/color] she added matter-of-factly. When Pilka talked down on himself, her voice grew defensive. [color=yellow]"Don't say that. You seem as civilized as the rest of us; at the very least, you deserve respect, and that means being able to freely roam wherever you please like the rest of us."[/color]

Kara wasn't sure how she was suddenly defending dwellers like him, but maybe it was the fact that interacting with one had challenged the very same stereotype she thought to be true, at least to an extent. 

Stopping as he was thinking, that was when he began to feel vibrations all around them, “[color=C8A2C8]Stick to the wall,[/color]” he encouraged her by guiding her right against the wall and away from the drop off. Looking over the edge for a second, he noticed it went from about twenty feet to what appeared to be an already formed crack into the earth, and he didn’t press himself up against the wall at all. 

“[color=C8A2C8]If you do not mind getting dirty or having scratches on you. I can make it look like I attacked you,[/color]” he honestly wanted to bring that up when they continued to go into the darkness but he felt off with making such statements or asking such questions. 

[color=yellow]"Fun fact, I've never been in a fight,"[/color] Kara went on, her fingers loosely tracing the wall they were walking next to. [color=yellow]"I know it's going to hurt but I think you should give me a black eye—it's crazy I know but I want to make my lie as authentic as possible."[/color] She waited for his response, hoping he'd agree. If not, then she would have to persuade him, but something told her there wouldn't be any pushbacks from him. This was, after all, helping her avoid the fallout later on. Or so, that's what she hoped...

His mind flooded with questions, statements, and everything else that could appear after such a question. Kara might not be able to see him though he was looking at her like she had completely lost her mind. She wanted him to punch her and give her a black eye… It was for the better, indeed, since it would be more convincing but how could she want that? He swallowed dryly, “[color=C8A2C8]I’ll think about it,[/color]” he sounded conflicted as if he had a moral code that was telling him no while another part of him was reminding him it was for her safety. If he didn’t, she could lose everything, and worse… be prisoned or something. 

She nodded her head, [color=yellow]"That's fair, thank you."[/color] And it really was. Her request was not one some people would feel comfortable granting, that much she could acknowledge. She herself wasn't obviously looking forward to it neither, but it was something she needed, and her focus now was the future, or at least, making sure she didn't mess it up for herself. Herself and her family, of course... Goodness knows how they would deal with the news. [i]"Your daughter was caught aiding and abetting a dweller."[/i] Kara could predict her mom fainting and her brother trying to make sense of it all.

That was when the earth started to shake terribly and he held his arms out to balance. The trembles were severe and he hooked himself into the ceiling above while putting one hand on Kara so she wouldn’t move away from the wall. In the distance it sounded like rocks were falling and crashing, the echoes booming, and then a crushing sound could be heard before the ground started moving. So many noises could be heard from the earth shifting.

She gasped, getting her footing right as if she were bracing for the worst. [color=yellow]"What is that?!"[/color] It was a hypothetical question of course as the shaking was bad enough to make it more than obvious. [i]Are we safe here?[/i] she wondered to herself, never being this far out within city limits. Kara placed her free hand on his arm, solely using him for balance. [color=yellow]"Can we go somewhere safe?"[/color] her voice was urgent, and a little louder than before.

”[color=C8A2C8]Tunnelers,[/color]” he spat out with a distaste — the Dominion government would always be quick to say these trembles, no matter how long or short, were due to earthquakes. However, people on the outside knew better. These vibrations throughout the earth were due to the massive fauna that the outsiders called Tunnelers. The gigantic creatures were not an issue except for causing the ground to shake and making holes that went on for miles and miles, sometimes straight down, so you always had to watch your step. 

The biggest issue with tunnelers was they were an omnivore species and it was not the adults that were concerning. It was the nest of babies that they would have. Falling into a nest was a death wish. “[color=C8A2C8]You are safe,[/color]” Pilka replied with such certainty that his slight lie might be convincing. She was as safe as he could manage her being safe. 

At the mention of the Tunnelers, Kara recalled one of the lessons from a long time ago. They touched briefly on their existence, but didn’t provide any additional information beyond a few facts. And surely no mention of them being the cause of these earthquakes. The same earthquakes that had always been a naturally occurring phenomenon, according to them. The same earthquakes that were somehow much stronger out here, but never had the same level of intensity in the middle of the city.

Looking around, he didn’t want to chance moving her and her falling to her death or something, so he wasn’t sure about moving at all. That was when Pilka made a few odd noises and seemed to fall silent. Listening. His voice echoed throughout the area and he shook his head. “[color=C8A2C8]What would you suggest is safe? Going to my home or returning you somewhere else in the city?[/color]” His home was safe for him but that meant moving down more and going up an old sewer way with a rusty ladder that could be dangerous. Going into the city was not safe for him and he hadn’t beat the girl up yet — God that thought made him feel a bit sick. She didn’t deserve what was going to happen to her. Not by him or by the authorities but he knew he had to hurt her. 

[color=yellow]"No no, we can't go back there yet, not until..."[/color] she stopped, not saying the words they were both thinking. [color=yellow]"If it's okay with you, let's wait for a while at your home. Then we can go ahead with the plans."[/color] Pilka still hadn't given her a definite answer, but he didn't need to. She'd inflict some form of damage on herself if she had to, but she wouldn't go back home unscathed. 

A distasteful groan could be heard from the man, “[color=C8A2C8]I know…[/color]” his voice sounded less than thrilled about the thought. “[color=C8A2C8]Not until I hurt you.[/color]” that statement made him feel sick. Actually vocalizing that he was going to have to do that though it helped ease him a little as well. Most burrowers, dwellers, and scavengers wouldn’t think twice about hurting someone else for a variety of reasons — more money, security, safety, making sure no one knew where they lived, another meal on the table, or so on. Pilka understood how hard life could be out here but he had met quite a few that were like him as well, individuals that didn’t care for needless violence, but was this near-future violence so needless? His eyes focused on Kara at the thought. If the government, specifically the Crystalline council thought she was befriending people outside of the city, and plotting or anything of the like. The damage that he would have to do to her for them to not think that would be incomparable to the horrors that he’s heard from survivors or runaways. 

Without another word, Pilka led Kara through multiple tunnel ways before they got to the old sewer shaft, and he purposefully went after her just in case she fell or anything. Luckily, she was light enough that nothing seemed to be irritated by her presence or weight. They emerged into an old sewer system which didn’t smell that bad except for how dusty and mildewy it was. The air was a bit thicker too with a slightly bad after taste. 

Leading her down a tunnel that seemed to be very unoccupied or messed with, spiderwebs, dusty, and everything that said people didn’t come down this way. There were bugs crawling everywhere and trying to escape the movements. Luckily for Kara, the sewers had artificial lights, but the deeper they went the less light there was. 

That was when Pilka began to move some stuff, things fell, and it sounded like a mess and he used his weight to open the door in almost a painfully slow way before he coughed a bit. Waving the allergens away from him and going into the vaulted area, at first he turned around, and realized… Kara couldn’t see. That was when he leaned over and turned the light on. Nothing happened at first. Then an electrical buzzing could be heard and it sounded painfully old before lights began to slowly dim and brighten up with time. 

An area that was an old maintenance room of good size, different levels, ladders, and a bunch of junk. It almost looked like a storage unit. Things that were new, broken, and being repaired. However, the floors were spotless, and everything was almost meticulously kept. Barely any dust. Everything seemed decently organized. There might have been a lot of stuff though Pilka’s home was not filthy or disgusting. 

He walked around the big center table to grab something, “[color=C8A2C8]I would try to be a good host but I doubt I have anything that you would care to even touch,[/color]” he joked. It was somewhat true though in the back part of his house, where he slept and spent most of his time resting were decent options — an older coffee machine with actual bagged coffee, washed cups, and a few areas to store food. However, he knew the items that he got were probably ugly in the sense of everything that was fresh on the shelves in Dominion. While he moved around, he seemed to have a little bit of anxiety with his movements, and he continued to tidy up slightly. Moving things to look better and so on without even thinking too much of it.