MEMELAND

The road to Yggdrasil was far less glamorous than it looked from the village.

For three days Kai walked.

Up winding mountain paths.

Across narrow ridges.

Through rocky trails that seemed determined to break his ankles.

The massive fortress-city visible from the village never appeared to get any closer.

At one point he was convinced the mountain itself was moving away from him.

On the fourth day, he hated mountains.

On the fifth day, he hated whoever decided to build a city on one.

On the sixth day, he finally reached the entrance.

Or what he thought was the entrance.

A massive cave carved into the mountainside stretched before him.

The tunnel disappeared deep into darkness.

Cold air drifted outward.

Kai stared at it.

"Well."

He adjusted his bag.

"This doesn't look suspicious at all."

Then he stepped inside.

---

The cave was enormous.

Natural stone walls towered above him.

Water dripped from somewhere in the darkness.

The deeper he ventured, the quieter everything became.

The silence reminded him of the Forest of Summoning.

That immediately put him on edge.

Kai continued walking.

One hand resting near the knuckleduster attached to his belt.

The tunnel gradually widened.

Then—

A voice echoed through the cave.

"Another one of you bitches?!"

Kai blinked.

"What?"

A figure exploded from the darkness.

A fist came with it.

Instinct screamed.

Kai jumped backward.

The punch barely missed his nose.

The impact shattered part of the cave wall behind him.

Stone fragments flew everywhere.

Kai stared.

The man staring back was tall.

Muscular.

Covered in dust.

A black tank top stretched across his broad frame.

Cargo pants.

Military boots.

Tattoos wrapped around both arms.

Most importantly—

He looked absolutely furious.

"What the hell?"

Kai barely finished speaking before another punch came flying.

---

Kai ducked.

A second punch sailed overhead.

The stranger followed immediately with a kick.

Kai blocked.

Pain shot through his arms.

The force alone nearly knocked him over.

The man didn't stop.

Another punch.

Another kick.

Another punch.

Kai found himself entirely on the defensive.

"Would you stop?!"

"No!"

"Why?!"

"Because you're one of them!"

"I don't even know who they are!"

The stranger paused.

For half a second.

Kai immediately regretted speaking.

The man looked even angrier.

"You got jokes too?"

"I'm serious!"

Another punch.

Kai barely avoided it.

The fight continued several more moments before the stranger suddenly grabbed Kai's shirt.

Then stopped.

The man stared directly into his eyes.

Silence.

Kai stared back.

The stranger squinted.

"Huh."

"What?"

"Huh."

"What does huh mean?"

The man released him.

Kai immediately dropped onto the ground.

Exhausted.

Confused.

And mildly offended.

The stranger crossed his arms.

"You're not one of them."

Kai sat there.

Breathing heavily.

"Wonderful deduction."

The man ignored the sarcasm.

"Sorry."

Kai blinked.

"That's it?"

"What?"

"That's your apology?"

"Yeah."

"You attacked me."

"Yeah."

"You beat the shit out of me."

"Yeah."

"And your apology is sorry?"

The stranger thought for a moment.

"Pretty much."

Kai rubbed his face.

The mountain suddenly seemed capable of producing only lunatics.

---

Several minutes later the two sat near a campfire.

The stranger tossed another piece of wood into the flames.

"Name's Andre."

Kai nodded.

"Kai."

"Only Kai?"

Kai sighed.

"Please don't start."

Andre burst out laughing.

"You too?"

Kai frowned.

"What do you mean too?"

"Never mind."

Andre stretched.

Then pointed deeper into the cave.

"Bastards stole my house."

Kai blinked.

"Your house?"

"Yep."

"You live inside a mountain cave?"

"Yep."

Kai looked around.

Andre looked around.

Neither spoke.

Eventually Kai sighed.

"Fair enough."

Andre grinned.

"Glad we understand each other."

Kai wasn't sure they understood each other at all.

---

Andre eventually explained.

Or attempted to.

A group of assassins.

Bandits.

Or something similar.

Had recently taken over part of the cave system.

Andre wasn't entirely sure who they were.

Only that they had forced him out.

Naturally, he had attempted diplomacy.

His version of diplomacy involved punching them.

Repeatedly.

The negotiations had failed.

Spectacularly.

Kai wasn't surprised.

"So what now?"

Andre stood.

"We get my stuff back."

"That's the plan?"

"That's always the plan."

Kai slowly stood.

"This is a terrible plan."

Andre grinned.

"Exactly."

Then he marched deeper into the cave.

Kai reluctantly followed.

---

The deeper sections of the cave felt different.

Less natural.

Wooden supports reinforced several passages.

Old lanterns hung from the walls.

Signs of habitation.

Yet no one was present.

No voices.

No movement.

Nothing.

Andre frowned.

"This is wrong."

Kai immediately became alert.

"You expecting someone?"

"I was expecting idiots."

"Same thing."

"Fair point."

The two continued forward.

Then a scream echoed through the darkness.

Neither hesitated.

Both broke into a run.

---

The corridor opened into a larger chamber.

And chaos immediately greeted them.

A corpse slammed against a wall.

Another stumbled across the room.

Its movements unnatural.

Jerky.

Wrong.

Kai froze.

The man's throat had been ripped open.

Half his face was missing.

Yet he was still moving.

Still attacking.

The corpse lunged toward them.

Andre punched it.

The head exploded.

Kai stared.

"What the hell was that?!"

"Undead."

Andre cracked his knuckles.

"Again."

The word again was somehow more concerning than the undead.

Several more emerged from the shadows.

Former bandits.

Former assassins.

Former humans.

Now something else.

Kai and Andre exchanged a glance.

Neither needed to say anything.

The fight began.

---

The undead weren't particularly strong.

But they never hesitated.

Never feared pain.

Never retreated.

A broken jaw didn't stop them.

Missing limbs didn't slow them.

One even continued crawling after Andre despite lacking legs.

The encounter quickly became exhausting.

Kai crushed another skull.

Andre launched a corpse into a wall.

Eventually the final undead collapsed.

Silence returned.

Both men stood breathing heavily.

Andre looked around.

Then cursed.

"Well."

Kai looked at him.

"What?"

"They definitely weren't undead before."

Neither liked what that implied.

---

Eventually they reached Andre's former residence.

A surprisingly comfortable chamber carved into the mountain.

Or at least it had been comfortable.

Now it was trashed.

Furniture overturned.

Supplies stolen.

Walls damaged.

Andre stared at the destruction.

Then slowly clenched his fists.

Kai took a step back.

"You alright?"

"No."

Andre walked toward a damaged bookshelf.

Then pulled a hidden lever.

A section of the wall opened.

Kai blinked.

"A secret room?"

Andre proudly nodded.

"Exactly."

Then he reached inside.

And pulled out several stacks of magazines.

Kai stared.

Andre stared.

Silence.

"What are those?"

"My emergency supplies."

Kai grabbed one.

Then immediately regretted it.

The cover featured an extremely questionable illustration.

Kai slowly lowered it.

Andre snatched it back.

"Careful."

"Why?"

"They're rare."

Kai rubbed his temples.

"Those were your secret emergency supplies?"

"Absolutely."

"You could've hidden food."

"Food is temporary."

Kai didn't even know how to respond.

---

A loud screech echoed through the cave.

Both men immediately became serious.

That wasn't human.

That wasn't undead.

That wasn't normal.

The sound came again.

Closer this time.

Andre slowly stood.

Kai tightened his fists.

Something was coming.

Something big.

And judging by the look on Andre's face—

Something neither of them wanted to meet.