Anxiety poured over into sleep. My muscles tightened leaving me sore when I woke up. This was already starting to feel like a never-ending hangover. Still, what little rest I had was better than nothing. I looked over at Breaker. If it wasn’t for the fire I could have sworn that he hadn’t moved in an inch since I fell asleep. It made sense. Mimics had to be able to stay still for long periods when they were trying to pass for objects. However, seeing it was another matter. In the glow of the fire, he looked like a sculpture that had been dressed in old cloth. The only visible difference between him and the rest of the dungeon was the absence of dust. I hadn’t noticed it before, but looking at him now, he gave off the same archaic feeling as this place. He was dripping in old magic.

“Finally, you’re up,” he said turning to face me and resting one arm against the door frame. His sudden speech shocked me from my trance.

“Yeah, I wasn’t out for too long was I?”

“You were, but it’s fine.”

His blunt response took me aback. “Most would say, ‘Oh no, not at all’ and try to reassure me,” I replied.

“Why would I do that? I said it’s fine.”

“Whatever, we can work on your bedside manner later. What’s our plan from here?” I asked getting up from my bedroll and walking towards him. He towered over me and strands of his dark hair fell forward as he leaned down closer to my height. Were all mimics this tall? A tinge of excitement rushed through my nerves.

“Well, there’s only two ways out of the dungeon. One is death, and we’ve already established you want to avoid that,” he said his face shifting to an annoyed expression. I rolled my eyes.

“The other is a portal arch. It’s a long shot we’ll even get down that far. It’s on the bottom level.”

“Wait, there isn’t just another door near the surface?”

“Nope.”

Breaker walked past me and up to the wall ignoring my obvious panic.

“Wha-, maybe we ca-. Are you sure?”

“Yup.”

He pulled out a loose brick and grabbed a few small items from a hidden space behind it. I stopped and looked at him confused.

“What did you think I’d just leave my stuff out for thieves like you to find them?”

“I’m not a thief.”

“What else do you call someone who breaks into ruins? Adventurer? That’s a made-up term so people can feel better about it.”

“You have a very poor view of others, you know that?”

Breaker shrugged and continued collecting his things. I took that as a sign and began packing up my bedroll and putting out the fire.

“So, if we do manage to make it to the bottom. How long do you think it’s going to take from here?”

His face twisted in thought.

“If we miraculously avoid trouble, about a week accounting for your oversleeping.” He said smirking and giving me a wink. I bit my cheek holding back the urge to hit him. He was trying to get a rise out of me. Stupid mimic.

“Is there anything down there I should be worried about?”

“Oh, lots of things.”

“I meant the bottom level specifically. You know, some weird guardian or goblin who won’t let us pass without the sacred talisman of sha-de-la-who,” I said swirling my hands around in circles.

Breaker chuckled, “No, he doesn’t need all that.”

“Who is he?” I asked. But, I feared that I already knew the answer to my question.