Chapter 39: Through the Fire

"Do you think we can actually survive this?"

Sarah's voice cut through the eerie silence, trembling with a rare vulnerability. Her eyes were locked on Alex as they trudged forward through the seemingly endless tunnel, the light behind them growing fainter with each step. The memory of their escape from the Abyss still clung to her like a shadow, tightening around her heart.

Alex didn't answer immediately. His expression was hard to read, as though he were wrestling with demons of his own. The way he had wielded that light, so effortlessly—something had shifted in him. There was a quiet power brewing beneath his skin, but it also scared him. Sarah could see it.

"We don't have a choice but to survive," he finally said, his voice gravelly but resolute. His gaze met hers, and for a moment, the vulnerability was reflected there too, hidden beneath layers of determination. "If we stop now… everything we've been through will mean nothing."