The air thickened as we pressed deeper, walls narrowing until every breath felt borrowed. Water clung to the stone, trailing down in thin lines that glittered like veins of glass under the failing bulbs.
Drip… drip… drip.
Kaara walked ahead, her steps steady, too steady, like she wanted me to hear each one. The false ally followed close behind her, shoulders hunched, body language screaming obedience rather than choice.
"Not many make it this far," Kaara said, voice calm, smooth enough to slide a knife between ribs without breaking stride.
I gave a dry laugh. "Guess I'm just lucky. Or cursed. Hard to tell these days."
Her smirk flickered in the dim light, sharp and practiced. She didn't need to say betrayal out loud. It was etched into every movement, every glance she spared me all of it rehearsed, all of it leading me exactly where she wanted.
Step. Splash. Step. Splash.
The false ally twitched when her hand brushed the dagger at her side. Not a threat, not yet. A reminder.
"You're wondering why I didn't kill you back in the Veins," Kaara said.
I shrugged. "Figured you liked the company. It gets lonely down here."
Her eyes caught the light, gleaming with something colder than amusement. "No. I kept you because you still have a part to play."
Useful. The word slid under my skin like a splinter. Not trusted. Not respected. Just a tool waiting to be broken.
The tunnel bent, revealing a set of rusted doors sealed with a chain. Kaara traced her fingers along the lock, not to open it, but to test it to measure my reaction.
Click. Tap. Click. Tap.
Metal against metal, almost playful. A secret behind steel.
I didn't move, didn't call her out. Just smiled like I hadn't already stitched her betrayal into the back of my mind.
"Lead the way," I said. "After all, what's the worst that could happen?"
Silence.
Too sharp. Too deliberate.
Kaara pushed the doors open, and the sound rolled out heavy and slow, like stone grinding against bone.
I followed anyway, every step deliberate, every nerve braced. Because sometimes you don't dodge the knife.
Sometimes you let it fall, just to see what bleeds.
Drip… drag… drip… drag.
The sound crawled in after us.
Waiting.