161 Tunnel Bound to the barracks

That night, George, Albrecht, Narciso and Magee planned out on what to do in order to rescue their comrades and a few civilians where George thought it as the most difficult of all times.

Then Albrecht broke the silence.

" Ah...Narciso and I were both in trouble. He's injured while I'm sick ... but I feel like dying. Look at yourselves, watching at me from lying down on bed, you're all sitting so scary, surrounding me like preparing your individual eulogy.." He closed his eyes and cleared his throat while Narciso controlled himself from laughing.

" Ah, brother, hmm...its going to be tough in the next few days. We have to follow them to the barracks but we can open this up for suggestions. What do you think?

" Our previous plan. We'll proceed to station one and dig a hole going down to the prisoners' cell, but its the end of station one. We can safely save them, yes! but the cave can be traced by the enemies through that hole." Albrecht reasoned out.

" Hmm...how about when reaching meters away going to the barracks, we'll create another hole getting out to the riverside below this cliff and cover the hole from station one so to deceive them. During the time of pulling them out from the prison cell, they'll be rerouting their escape to the riverside below where some of us, maybe five groups would release rattan baskets placed on safety slabs and pull them up. However, the soldiers will proceed to the crossroad in the middle and return to station one's path, passing the tunnel's exit and going back to station one." George ended and sighed.

" Amazing! it means preserving station one, well, I go for that or otherwise. "Albrecht looked at them.

" That tunnel might have purposes soon. We do not know yet if how long this war is. Covering it tightly means our safety or I've got a backup plan. Out of the prisoners' will be freed, we'll cover the topmost hole again after destroying the door, obstructing the enemies' attention that we probably left passing through the door going out. Just praying that there's a bamboo floor on that prison cell, I hope so, it has." George sighed again.

" Its possible, Sir." Narciso replied.

They chitchat a little while then they've heard a loud sound coming from the tunnel. Right there, George and Narciso went down the spiral stairs and listened carefully to the source of sound. As they leaned their ears closer on the granite wall beside the door, they've heard chatting sound and clattered objects, stumbled and dumped.

" Sir, they found our tunnel..." Narciso whispered as he worryingly looked to the lieutenant who just bowed down his head out of dismay.

In a distant far, they have heard some vehicles parked outside the entrance gate.

" Good Lord, help us! I forgot Narciso, I'm sorry, but..." The lieutenant was pressing his head but someone patted his shoulder. His wife.

" George...I'll do it, your men were injured and sick, its going to be tough for them. We'll let Narciso on rest and kuya might be better tonight after his herbal intake. Let's go." Magee smiled as George lifted Narciso going to the bed where Albrecht was lying down. Before the couple left, George took the medicine kit and applied some ointment on Narciso's wound while Magee left some water and food beside them.

Like a speed of light, the couple climbed towards the daylight optic hole using the bar counter as secret stairs. Narciso saw what they have just did and murmured on bed.

" Wow! such a couple..." Narciso smiled.

" They were love birds you know....and were crazy at each other. Hah! you're too noisy injured man, I'm still havin' my delirium right now, such a headache...huh... Albrecht was mumbling his mouth while eyes closed.

On the surface above, the couple crawled carefully above the place where the secret tunnel exit had been. A few meters away, they saw some soldiers marching and on the array of their platoon at the entrance gate.

" Mag...after they'll have that short ritual, they'll all get inside the granite mountain."

" Copy. So where we'll be heading after this? I readied the ropes we'll be using to get down, otherwise, I presume the rope I used to escape months ago was still there, hanging. It could be an option."

"Exactly. Oh there...they're almost done. In a count of three we'll quickly transfer beside that balite tree and move down. That's the exact spot for the exit. If we can reach below on the balite tree, we have to pass through that open space then move down to that cliff a little. On its halfway, the passage can be seen along with the baskets. We'll pull all of those below and cover it all with withered leaves. We'll also detach the ropes and we'll bring it down in a safer place. We might be using those in the next few days or months, who knows. So my dear...be very careful. I know you loved this job very well, but promise me, don't you ever go away by my side. Please, and that's my order." George looked at her smiling to him like melting his heart, so candid affair caught eye to eye. But seconds beat up and they got back to their mission and when the soldiers marched inside the mountain, the couple rolled down by the cliff and slid halfway and began to remove all the traces. They took it all going down and hide everything under the withered leaves and branches under the wilderness.