PART 33 - UNDER THE ROAD

 Murmurs and words latched onto every part of his airways to escape his mouth, and were being silenced in erratic fashion, through the engulfing and wrapping tone of his coarse voice. The light of the torch, swung, in the motion of his unstable wrist joint, causing uneven burst of illumination through the raised dust, that was formed from his wriggling motions on the ground. Crickets and insects, had their chirps echo into the tunnel, louder, from the ruffling of the plants, on the ground. "What is it? Are you okay now?" I asked, after patiently waiting for him to regain his strength. "Ungh, where are you from? Who...a...ree you? Don't....k....il...l me" He replied, faintly clinching his fists, and staggering in his stance, before falling again. "Well, I'm Timmy, I happen to be from this city as well" I replied, lifting my hands in the air. "Ungh! Ungh! Is....t...hat...so... Uuunngh! What do you know?? Unngh, where....are...we?" He asked, as the torch fell out of his hand, and he clutched himself, and rolled on the ground like a tumbleweed from his inertia. "I'm not here to harm you, maybe I might help, or help each other. What's your name?" I replied, as I walked closer to evading his weak attempts trying to throw kicks and punches at me. "I'm...I'm...I'm...I'm Azoe!" He replied, with fear, smearing over his voice, and shocking his body, to produce words, moving faster than he could open his mouth.

Azoe's deep breathing muffled the surrounding sounds, while he placed his hands over his face, when I dropped my hand to help him up. I grabbed the torch, as I got him up to his feet, and stopped his staggering motion by supporting him on my shoulder. Our feet, crunched the dry leaves and branches, as the silence between us, continued for a couple of meters before,  I could consider, quenching my curiosity. "How did you get out of John's clutches?" I asked, as his weight pressed heavily on my shoulder and torn shirt, continued to tear after every readjustment, I made to get him in a position to talk. "How is it important to you, huh? I just don't want to see that dumb tyrant in my face again" He said, as he continued to breath heavily and seem to get exhausted. "I'm on my way there" I said. "Hahaha what... wh..at? Are you serious?" Coughs accompanied his laugh, as he held his knees, and tried to catch his breath. I stood, cemented in a a stance, listening to the laughs, rebound in my ears, waiting for their demise to come about.

After a few coughs, and staggers, Azoe looked at me scratching his head and brushing his beard with his fingers. "What are you gonna do there? Look at you? You're about an eighth of his size, let alone his henchmen" He asked, as he raised his palms to further gesture his disbelief. "Do you know someone called Trakus?" I asked. "Huh? Who?" Azoe's eyes, covered most of his face as they opened in surprise 

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