The hidden door swung open with a low, grinding screech, releasing a wave of stale, cold air that carried the faint smell of dust and metal. Inside lay only darkness—thick, suffocating, and full of unseen things.
Aris's hand tightened around her knife, every nerve ending screaming alert. Dark, enclosed spaces had always made her skin crawl, but she didn't step back. She didn't hesitate.
Loot didn't earn itself.
"After you," she said, nodding at the tunnel. "You're the one with the dramatic homecoming. I'm just here for the valuables."
Kael glanced at her, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Chivalrous as ever."
"Save the chivalry for your throne," Aris muttered. "Just don't walk into a trap. I'm not dragging your armored body out of here."
He stepped into the darkness first, his frame cutting through the black like a shadow. Aris followed close behind, pulling the door shut behind them with a soft click—leaving them completely cut off from the Wasteland outside.
For a heartbeat, there was nothing.
No light.
No sound.
No way out.
Then Kael's voice cut through the quiet, low and calm.
"Stay close."
A faint, warm glow flickered to life in his hand.
Aris blinked, staring.
It was a small, portable light—old, but functional, clipped to the inside of his armor. She'd never noticed it before.
"Of course you have a secret light," she said dryly. "Next you'll tell me you have a secret wine cellar and a private water tap."
"Both exist," Kael said. "After we reclaim the fort, you can loot both."
Aris's eyes lit up. "Sold. Lead the way, my lord."
The sarcasm was so thick it could be tasted, but Kael didn't rise to it. He just started walking forward, the faint glow cutting a narrow path through the dark.
The tunnel was narrow, the walls rough concrete, the ceiling low enough that Aris had to duck slightly. It sloped downward, winding deeper into the heart of the Black Fort—deeper into the belly of the beast.
Every few steps, Aris's ears twitched, listening for footsteps, for voices, for the faint sound of a gun being cocked. But there was nothing. Only silence.
It was the kind of silence that made the hair on the back of your neck stand up.
"They're not expecting us to come from below," Kael said quietly, as if reading her mind. "This tunnel was never marked on any map. No one but my inner circle knew it existed."
"Your inner circle that betrayed you," Aris said.
Kael's jaw tightened. "One man. Vorin. He was my second-in-command. My friend. He turned the rest of the fortress against me. Promised them power, wealth, a bigger share of everything."
"Classic traitor move," Aris said. "Overpromise. Underdeliver. Steal the throne. I've seen it a hundred times at small markets. Just scaled up."
Kael's lips twitched. "You compare a fortress coup to market drama."
"All politics is just drama with better weapons," Aris said sagely. "And I've always been better at business than drama."
They walked in quiet for a few more minutes, until the tunnel began to slope upward, and the faint glow of real light became visible at the end.
The exit.
Aris held up a hand, signaling Kael to stop. She crept forward silently, peeking around the corner.
The tunnel opened into a small, dimly lit storage room—shelves lined with old tools, broken electronics, and crates of spare parts. The door at the far end was slightly ajar, and through it, Aris could hear the faint murmur of voices.
Guards.
She slipped back to Kael, her expression sharp.
"Two guards outside the door," she whispered. "Armed. Distracted. We take them quiet. Fast. No noise. No guns. If they scream, the entire fort is on us."
Kael nodded, his gaze already focused, every muscle coiled like a spring. "On my signal."
Aris gripped her knife tight.
For a long, stretched heartbeat, nothing happened.
Then Kael moved.
He blurred through the tunnel like a shadow, slipping through the open door before the guards could even react. One second, the men were talking lazily. The next, Kael's arm was around the first guard's throat, cutting off any sound before it could leave his lips.
The second guard's eyes went wide. He reached for his gun—
But Aris was already there.
She moved fast, low and brutal, slamming her shoulder into the man's stomach. He doubled over with a gasp, and her knife pressed lightly, warningly, against his throat.
"Make a sound," she said, her voice sweet and deadly, "and you lose the ability to make any sound ever again."
The guard froze, pale and terrified.
Kael laid the first man silently on the ground, unconscious but alive. He turned to the second guard, his golden eyes cold.
"Where is Vorin?" he asked.
The guard hesitated.
Aris pressed the knife a little harder.
The guard flinched. "In the lord's chamber! The top floor! He's been living there since—since he took over!"
Kael's expression didn't change. "How many men are inside the fort?"
"Twenty! Maybe twenty-five! Most are patrolling the outer walls!"
Aris and Kael exchanged a single look.
Too many to fight head-on.
Too few to hold the entire fortress securely.
Perfect.
Kael pressed a pressure point on the guard's neck, and the man's eyes rolled back, slumping unconscious.
Aris pulled her knife away, wiping it clean on the man's sleeve.
"Messy," she commented. "But effective. Now what? March up to the top floor and demand the throne back? That's very dramatic. Very you."
"Not yet," Kael said. "We need weapons. Armor. A plan. The armory is two floors down. We go there first."
Aris's eyes lit up. "Armory? As in guns? Ammunition? Knives? Things I can sell for a fortune?"
"Among other things," Kael said dryly.
Aris grinned, sharp and excited.
"Then what are we waiting for?" she said. "Lead the way, my lord. I've got looting to do."
Kael shook his head, but there was no heat in it.
He opened the door, checking the hallway.
Empty.
They stepped out into the Black Fort.
And the game truly began.