MEMELAND

The hooded figures moved through the streets at a steady pace.

Not too fast.

Not too slow.

Just enough to blend into the crowd.

Kai and Eric followed from a distance.

Every time the figures turned a corner, Kai worried they would lose them.

Every time they slowed down, Eric worried they had been spotted.

The result was an incredibly stressful walk.

"Relax."

Kai whispered.

"I'm trying."

Eric whispered back.

"You look like you're about to die."

"I'm an architect."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'm not built for this."

Kai wasn't sure how to respond to that.

The pair continued following the group through another district.

After several minutes, Kai finally asked the question.

"So."

Eric glanced at him.

"So?"

"What's in those blueprints?"

Eric immediately groaned.

"Don't remind me."

Kai waited.

Eric sighed.

"Fine."

He rubbed his forehead.

"A few weeks ago, a client came to me."

"What kind of client?"

"A weird one."

"That's specific."

"He was bald."

Kai blinked.

"Okay."

"He wore a face mask."

"That's less normal."

"And he refused to explain anything."

"That's even less normal."

Eric pointed dramatically.

"Exactly."

Kai was beginning to understand why this bothered him.

The architect continued.

"The guy shows up."

"Throws a bag of money on my table."

"Tells me to create detailed blueprints."

"Refuses to explain what they're for."

Kai frowned.

"What did he want built?"

Eric looked away.

For a moment, he seemed embarrassed.

Then he quietly said,

"A giant robot."

Silence.

Kai stared.

"...What?"

"A giant robot."

"You mean like a statue?"

"No."

"A siege weapon?"

"No."

"A giant robot."

Kai continued staring.

Eric sighed.

"I named it GFR."

Kai was afraid to ask.

"What does that stand for?"

Eric crossed his arms proudly.

"Giant Fucking Robot."

The silence somehow became worse.

"I spent weeks designing it."

Eric continued.

"Joint systems."

"Internal mechanisms."

"Power routing."

"Weapon placements."

"Everything."

His expression became annoyed.

"It was honestly my best work."

Kai wasn't sure if that was impressive or concerning.

"Then what happened?"

"I finished."

"Celebrated."

"Went to sleep."

Kai nodded.

Reasonable.

Then Eric pointed angrily toward the city.

"And I woke up to hooded lunatics breaking into my house."

Kai blinked.

"They robbed you?"

"They ignored everything else."

"Money?"

"Still there."

"Furniture?"

"Still there."

"Documents?"

"Still there."

Kai understood immediately.

"They only took the robot plans."

"Exactly."

Eric looked genuinely offended.

"They didn't even compliment my work."

That somehow sounded like his biggest complaint.

The hooded figures ahead turned another corner.

Kai quickly motioned for silence.

The pair continued following.

The city gradually changed around them.

The bright commercial streets disappeared.

The crowds became smaller.

The buildings older.

Less maintained.

Eventually they entered a section of the slums.

The hooded group stopped.

Kai and Eric immediately ducked behind a stack of crates.

Several seconds passed.

Then the figures entered a ruined building.

One by one.

Until all of them disappeared.

Kai waited.

Nothing happened.

"No guards."

Eric whispered.

"No lookouts."

Kai nodded.

"Too easy."

"Exactly."

The pair approached carefully.

The building looked abandoned.

Broken windows.

Collapsed walls.

Dust everywhere.

Inside, there was nothing.

No furniture.

No people.

No hooded figures.

Eric frowned.

"They couldn't have vanished."

Kai searched the room.

Then noticed something.

A faint scraping mark on the floor.

He followed it.

And found a metal hatch.

Half-hidden beneath debris.

"Found something."

Eric walked over.

The moment he saw it, his eyes widened.

"What?"

Kai asked.

Eric crouched.

Examining the hatch.

Then his expression changed.

Confusion.

Followed by concern.

Followed by concern becoming panic.

"That's impossible."

"What?"

Eric pointed.

"I built this."

Kai stared.

"You what?"

"This access hatch."

"The city never approved it."

"I designed it years ago."

"Only a handful of people should know it exists."

The two exchanged looks.

Neither liked what that meant.

Suddenly—

Voices.

From below.

Kai immediately grabbed Eric.

Both dove behind a collapsed wall.

The hatch slowly opened.

Several hooded figures emerged.

More than before.

Far more.

At least a dozen.

One climbed out first.

Then another.

Then another.

The final figure paused.

His voice echoed through the room.

"Captain Fais won't be pleased if we fail."

The others lowered their heads.

"Understood."

The group quickly dispersed.

Disappearing into the streets of Asphyxia.

Silence returned.

Kai slowly looked toward Eric.

Eric slowly looked toward Kai.

Neither spoke.

Because both had realized the same thing.

The stolen blueprints.

The cult symbols.

The hidden hatch.

And now—

A captain.

Whatever was happening beneath Asphyxia...

It was much bigger than either of them expected.