The Same, but Different

Well, there was no use worrying about that now, she decided. The endless silence was really on her nerves. However she had the strong feeling that something would happen, whether that be Fred coming to "rescue" her, Minestus (or Belboz) showing back up, or the nausea wave taking her back to the moss-covered room in the caves.

The worst thing was the boredom, it always was. About fifty yards down the tunnel, a torch attached to the wall gave just enough light to prevent her from being in total darkness. Watching its flickering was the nearest thing to sensory stimulation that she had available.

More silence. She had given up guessing the timeframe, as this was the umpteenth time this "cycle" had occurred. "Hello!" she called eventually, just because that normally prompted a response of some kind.

1. Unexpectedly, this time there really was no response. "Oh bother," Astra muttered. The pattern had changed.
2. But there was an answering "Hello!" Then she saw a flickering torch flame in the distance, the torch presumably being carried by the person who had answered her hail.
3. A few moments (and another wave of nausea) later, she was back on the mossy pathway. She still had all her memories.
4. There was a flash of light, and Minestus and Belboz showed up in the room with her. "Oh, bugger it all," said Minestus. "She's caught in the time loop too!"

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