MEMELAND

The tunnel seemed endless.

Kai and Eric ran through the darkness.

Behind them, distant impacts echoed through the sewer network.

Each one sounded like a cannon firing underground.

BOOM.

BOOM.

BOOM.

Andre.

Fais.

Still fighting.

Kai hated it.

Every instinct told him to go back.

To help.

To do something.

Anything.

Instead—

He kept running.

Beside him, Eric was breathing heavily.

"Left."

They turned left.

"Right."

They turned right.

"Straight."

Kai finally snapped.

"Do you actually know where we're going?"

"Surprisingly, yes."

"That's not reassuring."

"It should be."

"It really isn't."

Another impact echoed behind them.

Dust fell from the ceiling.

The tunnel shook.

Eric glanced back.

Then immediately ran faster.

"That's bad."

Kai frowned.

"What?"

"The shaking."

"You've said that three times."

"And it keeps being true."

The architect pointed ahead.

"The supports here are connected to the central chamber."

Kai remembered.

The pillars.

The reinforced beams.

The modified structures.

Everything Eric had shown them earlier.

"The whole place is connected?"

"Unfortunately."

"And?"

Eric pointed upward.

"If enough damage hits the wrong support..."

Kai already knew the answer.

"It collapses."

"A lot."

"A lot?"

"A lot."

Kai hated how Eric kept saying that.

The two continued running.

Eventually they reached a maintenance junction.

Several large support columns stood around them.

Unlike the others—

These had mechanisms attached.

Old levers.

Metal braces.

Control systems.

Eric immediately rushed toward them.

His eyes lit up.

"Oh."

Kai didn't like that tone.

"What?"

"I can collapse it."

Kai blinked.

"What?"

Eric pointed excitedly.

"The supports."

"The tunnel."

"The chamber."

"The whole route."

Kai stared.

"You can do that?"

"Probably."

"Probably?"

Eric looked offended.

"I designed half this city."

"That's not an answer."

"It's the best answer you're getting."

The architect immediately started examining the mechanisms.

Twisting valves.

Checking supports.

Looking for something.

Kai stood guard.

His thoughts drifting elsewhere.

Back to Andre.

Back to the fight.

Back to that battlefield from the dream.

Back to the figure.

Back to the dead Fais.

Nothing made sense.

And yet—

It all felt familiar.

As though he'd forgotten a chapter of his own life.

A distant crash interrupted his thoughts.

Then another.

Then another.

The battle was getting closer.

Much closer.

Eric suddenly froze.

"Oh."

Kai looked over.

"What now?"

The architect pointed at a support beam.

Then another.

Then another.

Kai followed his gaze.

Hairline cracks.

Fresh cracks.

Growing cracks.

Eric swallowed.

"We're out of time."

Far behind them—

Another explosion echoed.

This one louder than before.

The tunnel shook violently.

Small rocks fell from the ceiling.

Kai clenched his fists.

Andre was still down there.

Still fighting.

Still buying them time.

And Kai was running.

The thought burned.

Eric finally finished adjusting the mechanism.

"There."

Kai looked at him.

"That's it?"

"That's it."

A single metal lever sat beside the support system.

Old.

Rusty.

Simple.

Kai frowned.

"That tiny thing?"

"Engineering is beautiful."

"It looks stupid."

"It works."

Another impact.

Louder.

Closer.

Then—

A voice echoed through the tunnel.

Fais.

Even from this distance.

His voice carried.

"IS THAT ALL YOU HAVE?!"

Andre's response came immediately.

"BETTER THAN LOOKING LIKE A POLISHED EGG!"

Silence.

Then another shockwave ripped through the tunnel.

The ceiling groaned overhead.

Dust rained down in thick sheets.

Even Eric flinched.

"Okay."

He swallowed hard and moved toward the lever.

Kai turned sharply.

"Wait."

Eric froze.

Kai stared past him into the darkness.

For a moment, through the settling dust, he saw movement.

Andre.

Still fighting.

Still standing.

Then Fais emerged through the haze, his massive frame cutting through the debris like a wall.

And behind him—

Cultists.

A few of them still alive.

Staggering.

Dragging themselves forward.

The battle was still happening.

Still too close.

Still not over.

Kai's chest tightened.

"Andre—"

Eric didn't say a word.

He just reached for the lever.

Kai's eyes widened.

"No, wait!"

But Eric had already pulled it.

CLANK.

The mechanism locked into place.

A deep metallic groan rolled through the tunnel.

Kai lurched forward, trying to break free from Eric's grip.

"Eric, stop!"

The architect grabbed him harder and started running.

Kai fought against him, but his body was too weak.

Every muscle screamed.

His legs barely obeyed him.

The fight earlier had drained him completely.

"Andre!"

His voice echoed through the collapsing tunnel.

"ANDRE!"

Through the dust, he saw him.

Andre turned.

Even now, even with the ceiling beginning to cave in around him, he was smiling.

That stupid, reckless smile.

Like he was still in control.

Like he wasn't standing in the middle of a death trap.

Kai reached out instinctively.

"Andre!"

Then the collapse hit.

Stone crashed down between them.

A wall of rubble swallowed the space in an instant.

Andre's face vanished behind the falling debris.

Kai's breath caught in his throat.

"ANDRE!"

Eric yanked him harder.

"Move!"

Kai stumbled, nearly falling, but Eric kept dragging him forward.

Behind them, the tunnel began to tear itself apart.

Supports snapped.

The floor buckled.

The ceiling came down in violent bursts.

Kai kept looking back.

Kept trying to see through the dust.

Kept hoping Andre would appear.

But the rubble kept rising.

Higher.

Higher.

Until there was nothing left to see.

Only stone.

Only dust.

Only the sound of the tunnel dying behind them.

And then they ran...

...

..

.

He ducked as a slab of stone slammed into the floor where his head had been a second earlier.

Fais stood across from him, dust rolling off his shoulders.

The bald bastard looked almost amused.

"They left you."

Andre wiped blood from his mouth and grinned anyway.

"Yeah?"

Fais tilted his head.

"They left you."

Andre glanced toward the collapsing tunnel where Kai and Eric had disappeared.

Then back at Fais.

"It doesn't matter."

Fais narrowed his eyes.

Andre rolled his shoulders, ignoring the pain shooting through his ribs.

"I'll find them again."

A low rumble shook the chamber.

Chunks of stone fell from above.

Fais smiled.

"If you survive."

Andre laughed once, sharp and breathless.

"That's the plan."

Then he lunged.

Fais met him halfway.

Their fists collided with enough force to shake the tunnel again.

Another support cracked.

Dust exploded around them.

Andre drove a punch into Fais' side.

Fais answered with a brutal elbow that sent Andre stumbling back into a broken pillar.

The tunnel groaned.

Somewhere behind them, another section collapsed.

Andre spat blood and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"You're really starting to annoy me."

Fais cracked his neck.

"Good."

He stepped forward as the ceiling trembled overhead.

"Then die faster."

Andre smirked.

"Try and make me."

And as the tunnel continued to collapse around them, the two of them charged back into the fight.