Ethan's grip on his pistol tightened, his instincts screaming that this was about to go from bad to worse. He had faced dangerous men before, but something about this one sent a chill down his spine, a certain calmness that masked something far more sinister. He had no idea who the man was, but judging by the deference of the Syndicate soldiers around him, this wasn't just any commander.
The man took a slow step forward, his boots echoing through the dimly lit tunnel. "Ah, I can see you're tense. Understandable. I've been told I can have that effect on people." His smile widened, cold and sharp, as he glanced at Malek before turning his eyes back to Ethan. "But relax... it'll be over soon."
Ethan's jaw clenched behind the protective visor of his helmet. He didn't like this. The way this guy spoke, it was as if they had already lost.
"I'm Raeth," the man finally introduced himself, his tone dripping with sarcastic politeness. "And I have to say, I've been waiting for this moment. You two have caused quite a bit of trouble, haven't you?" His eyes flicked to the rubble of the tunnel behind them, the remnants of their struggle to get here. "But no matter. We'll fix that."
He raised his hands in mock surrender, stepping back slightly. "Before we get into it, though, I have a question." Raeth's voice lowered, his smile curling into something darker, more malicious. "Ever wondered what it feels like to be buried alive?"
Ethan's muscles tensed, but his helmet's advanced filtration and breathing systems kept his breathing steady, his air pure. His HUD was calm, tracking Raeth's movements, scanning for any sign of explosives. But still, a chill ran through him.
Raeth didn't wait for an answer. In one swift motion, his hand slipped into his coat, pulling out a small device. He held it up between his thumb and forefinger, the dull glint of the detonator catching the weak light from the overhead bulb. His eyes gleamed with sadistic pleasure as he tilted his head, watching their reactions with twisted amusement.
"Because you're about to find out."
The click of the button echoed through the tunnel.
Before Ethan could react, the ground beneath him exploded. His helmet dampened the noise, reducing the deafening roar to a muffled thunderclap, but the force of the explosion still hit him like a sledgehammer, throwing him and Malek back. The ceiling groaned and began to collapse, chunks of rock and metal crashing down as the tunnel imploded.
Ethan hit the ground hard, his helmeted head slamming into the rocky floor. The HUD flickered for a second before recalibrating, displaying rapidly changing structural integrity warnings. The world around him was chaos, debris crashing down, and the tunnel filling with dust. But his breathing remained steady, unaffected by the dust clouds swirling through the tunnel thanks to his helmet shielding him from the immediate suffocating danger.
"Ethan!" Malek's voice crackled through his comms, faint but clear inside his helmet.
Ethan groaned, forcing himself to move. His HUD highlighted Malek's figure a few meters ahead, his friend pulling himself up, battered but alive. The ceiling above them groaned ominously, ready to give way at any moment.
"Stay low!" Ethan barked over the comms, pushing himself to his feet, his suit's servos whirring as they compensated for the strain. His visor was painted with warnings: structural collapse imminent, danger zones mapped out in red as more debris fell around them.
From the settling dust, a shape emerged. Raeth, calmly standing amid the destruction, his sadistic smile still plastered on his face. He hadn't moved an inch, watching them like a predator toying with its prey. The collapsing tunnel didn't faze him. He had planned this perfectly, and now he was enjoying every second of it.
"I have to admit," Raeth called out over the rumble of falling rocks, his voice unnervingly casual, "I didn't expect you to make it this far. But here we are."
Ethan's grip tightened on his pistol as he glanced toward Malek, whose eyes were already scanning for an exit. But there was none. They were surrounded on all sides by the collapsing walls, and Raeth's grin only grew wider.
Raeth gestured casually with the detonator still in his hand. "You could try shooting me, I suppose. But the way this place is coming down, I'm afraid you'd only speed things up. You might want to save those last few breaths for something more important."
Ethan felt the tension in his body coil like a spring, but he held his fire. His suit's systems were working overtime, mapping out potential escape routes, but the odds were grim. The tunnel was falling apart faster than they could react.
"Where's your way out?" Ethan growled through his helmet, trying to stall, trying to think. There had to be something, a gap in the tunnel, a corner they hadn't explored. Some chance to survive.
Raeth laughed, the sound distorted through the dust-filled air but still cold and hollow. "Way out? Oh, there is one. But I'm afraid it's not meant for you." He took a step back, his form dissolving into the dust and shadows. "Enjoy your tomb."
And with that, Raeth disappeared into the chaos.
Ethan's HUD flickered red. More danger zones, more structural failures. The tunnel wasn't just collapsing; it was imploding. He had minutes, maybe seconds before everything came down.
"Ethan, we need a way out, now!" Malek's voice came through the comms, desperate but focused.
"I know," Ethan snapped, his mind racing. He scanned the tunnel, his helmet systems locking onto the weakest point in the ceiling. There, above them. If they could blast through, they might just make it to the surface. It was a slim chance, but it was all they had.
"Charges," Ethan barked. "That ceiling. It's our only shot."
Malek didn't argue. He reached into his pack and pulled out two explosives, his hands moving with quick, practiced efficiency as he set the charges against the weak point Ethan had highlighted.
"We don't have much time," Malek warned as he finished setting the explosives.
Ethan nodded, his visor tracking the timer. "We'll make it."
The charges detonated with a deafening roar, even through Ethan's helmet, and the tunnel shuddered violently. But instead of caving in, the ceiling cracked open, revealing a sliver of daylight above them. The explosion had worked.
"Move!" Ethan shouted, grabbing Malek by the arm as the tunnel continued to crumble around them.
They sprinted toward the opening, dodging falling debris as the tunnel gave way behind them. Ethan could feel the ground shudder beneath his feet, hear the rumble of the collapsing walls through the muted atmosphere of his helmet. He reached the jagged hole first, pulling himself up with the aid of his suit's enhanced strength. Malek followed close behind, his breath ragged in the comms, but alive.
With a final heave, they both tumbled onto the surface, gasping for air as the tunnel below them finally gave way, collapsing entirely. Dust billowed up from the hole, but Ethan's breathing remained steady, filtered and controlled through his helmet. He lay back, staring up at the sky, his chest heaving with exhaustion.
For a moment, everything was still. The roar of the collapsing tunnel faded into the distance, and the only sound left was the quiet hum of their breathing inside their suits. They were alive—but barely.
"That was… too close," Malek muttered, his voice cracking through the comms.
Ethan sat up, his mind already racing ahead. They had survived Raeth's trap, but the bastard had slipped through their fingers.