Donghae stepped out of the coach, looking at both sides of the rail that they had travelled through to see if there were any dangers lurking around. Another masked man, another creature, another glitch. Nothing! They were the only two on this unrealistically white platform stretching ahead and the bricked tunnel wall behind.

"This is crazy". Kyuhyun had walked a bit further away from Donghae, eyes staring at the floor, looking at the place where he had just stepped, turning in circles. His boots were drenched in black slime and on such a clean floor any mirth would be clearly visible, but no. There was not a single stain, or a drop of the black slime. Donghae noticed it too, equally puzzled with the strangeness.

The tunnel wall behind them was towering high above, rusted brown in stark contrast to the barren platform opposite it which faded to darkness at a distance. This wall of darkness ahead of them was their destination. It was the only way they could afford to move anyway.

Donghae repositioned the dagger in his hand and looked back at Kyuhyun, "You ready to finish this?" Kyuhyun smirked and fell into a jog catching up with Donghae, "As ready as I'll ever be."

They walked a couple of meters, feeling the darkness stretching further ahead. The quietness was deafening, there were no sounds, not even of their boots tapping against the floor. The place felt strangely suffocating as if the air was constricting their senses, Kyuhyun already taking shallow breaths and his lips slightly parted. Donghae noticed Kyuhyun struggling, so he walked by his side, placing a comforting hand on his back, feeling his stiff muscles twitch.

"I'd be damned if I let you two escape", the boyish voice suddenly spoke up, startling Kyuhyun. Donghae patted his hand softly against Kyuhyun's back, calmly listening to the cursed voice as if he was expecting it.

Alec laughed, "We are damned any way". He chortled aloud, the sound interrupted by static sounds.

A mesh of blue black criss-crossing lines buzzed past them, distorting the prisitine calmness of the place. Kyuhyun stumbled but was caught by Donghae from falling down.

"I have to give it to you Donghae. You made it to the end again and this time without going through the hoops like I made you do previously". 

Donghae tugged Kyuhyun's shoulder, urging him to run. Kyuhyun nodded his head, because even he knew that Alec's days were numbered and who knows how long this game can hold up. They took off sprinting with Alec giggling at them. It made Kyuhyun furious, the way Alec was having fun at watching them run for their lives. We will have the last laugh, he thought, taking a glance at Donghae who was running along by his side.

"You made me do this Donghae'. The voice cracked, static noises buzzing, "I can't let you leave."

Donghae felt a piercing pain in the middle of his eyes, as if something was pinching his nerves. The dagger in his hands fell down when he held his head at the stabbing pain in his skull, feeling currents of electricity jolting his nerves. Kyuhyun turned back seeing Donghae crouched on the ground, hands desperately clutching his head and jaw clenched tight.

"Donghae", he slided beside him, cradling his own arm which hurt on colliding against Donghae's body. "What's wrong?" he placed his ininjured hand on Donghae's shoulder, trying to see what was suddenly wrong with him. Donghae shrugged his shoulder, trying to get away from Kyuhyun's touch, almost crawling just so he could put distance between the two because the touch aggravated the prickling pain in his skull.

The tunnel walls that were behind them were engulfed by the approaching glitch, contorting into undescribable shapes and indistinguishable colors. Kyuhyun was in a state of panic. Their destination was just ahead of them, but a torrent of glitches was brewing right behind them, slowly swallowing everything in its path.

He leaned over Donghae and grabbed him by his shoulder, dragging him closer, "We need to leave Now!" He pulled Donghae upright by the collar of his jacket, all the while Donghae was still tortured by the piercing pain in his head. He grunted and mumbled something, which Kyuhyun didn't understand.

"The glitch is going to destroy the whole game. DONGHAE", he shouted when he was pushed by the man away from him. "I know it hurts", he didn't knew , he didn't knew why Donghae was in such pain that he couldn't even scream, but he would lie if it would mean getting the hell out of here. "Let me help. I'll take you to the end."

Donghae hunched over, grabbing his head desperately as the pain became too unbearable. He heard Kyuhyun's words but felt an unexplainable surge of anger. Kyuhyun came over to him again, picked up the dagger, placing it in his sheath and pulled Donghae up, prying his hand away from his head and putting it on his shoulder. Donghae gritted his teeth as they bounded ahead again with Kyuhyun barely able to walk properly himself.

"...You like this... Enjoying a lot aren't you?" Alec's broken voice interrupted them. 

"Kyu-" Donghae uttered the word against his clenched jaw, clutching the lapel of Kyuhyun's jacket. "Go... without me".

Kyuhyun was wide-eyed at the request. They didn't made a promise to each other just to abandon it at the finish line. "Stop it Donghae", he placed his hand on Donghae's that was clutching at the front of his jacket, his craddled injured arm itching to get out of the confinement of his makeshift sling.

Donghae looked up at Kyuhyun and it was at this moment when Kyuhyun saw the brawling emotions in them. Tears filled up his eyes, anger and hurt of equal parts swirling in the tiny orbs. Donghae tightened his fist that Kyuhyun had held, "I said leave me alone", he swung the fist with all his strength, striking Kyuhyun in the jaw, a shocked expression gracing his face at his unexpected action.

Kyuhyun was also stunned by the punch, feeling a rattle in his jaw. He quickly ducked when another fist came flying to his face and caught it with his hand, twisting the arm behind Donghae's back as he stood behind him. He looked down and when Donghae stared back he noticed those strange bespoke white lines, crossing past his iris. He recalled the first encounter with Donghae in the game where he saw the sim