THE LAST BELL

The Tunnel Below

The tunnel was cold and heavy with dust. The smell of rot filled the air, making every breath hard. Axel held a small torch in one hand and Chloe’s wrist in the other. The flame shook against the damp stone walls. The sound of dripping water echoed like faint whispers.

Chloe pressed closer to him. “I don’t like this place, Axel. It feels… wrong.”

Axel gave her hand a squeeze. “Stay close. Nothing will happen to you while I’m here.”

Her eyes softened at his words. Even in this dark, haunted place, her fear could not wash away the strange warmth she felt for him. She leaned her head against his arm for a moment, drawing courage from him.

The walls narrowed the deeper they went. Strange carvings covered the stones—symbols that looked older than the school above them. They were not letters anyone could read. They looked like warnings.

Chloe reached out and touched one. “What do these mean? Who put them here?”

Axel shook his head. “I don’t know. But it feels like the dead are watching us.”

Before she could answer, a sound broke the silence—footsteps rushing toward them.

Chloe gasped and clung tighter to Axel’s arm. “Someone’s coming!”

A figure stumbled into view. Damian. His face was pale, his eyes wide with terror. Blood dripped down his arm where Mason had bitten him.

“Axel!” Damian cried out, stumbling closer. “Help me! Please!”

Axel raised his torch, his face hard. “You’re bitten…”

Damian fell to his knees. “Not fully. Not yet. You can’t leave me like this. I don’t want to die.”

Chloe pulled Axel back, fear flashing in her eyes. “We can’t take him. He’s infected. You know what happens.”

Axel looked down at Damian. His chest rose and fell quickly, panic spilling out with every breath. Axel’s jaw tightened. He knew Chloe was right, but he also knew Damian was still alive.

“Axel,” Damian begged, “you’re my only chance. I swear I can fight it. Don’t let me turn into one of them.”

Chloe shook her head, whispering urgently, “If we take him, he’ll slow us down. He’ll change. He’ll kill us.”

Axel hesitated. His hand trembled as he held the torch higher.

The tunnel stretched before them and suddenly split into two paths. One glowed faintly with torches burning along the walls, while the other dropped into complete darkness.

Damian pointed weakly toward the lit path. “That way… light means safety. Please, let’s go there.”

Chloe stepped in front of Axel, blocking Damian from view. “No. Light doesn’t always mean safety. Sometimes it’s a trap. I can feel something bad down that way.”

Axel looked at both tunnels, torn between their words. His heartbeat pounded louder than the dripping water.

Then it came—the sound.

Dragging feet. Groans. The sound of the infected.

From the lit tunnel… and from the dark one too.

Chloe froze, her lips trembling. “They’re already here… but how? We sealed the doors upstairs.”

Axel’s chest tightened. “They must have found another way in.”

Damian grabbed Axel’s sleeve, desperate. “We have to move now! Take the light path! Please!”

Chloe pulled Axel the other way. “No, the dark one. I don’t care if we can’t see. It feels safer than walking into a trap.”

Axel’s eyes darted between them. Both paths echoed with the dead. Both voices—Damian’s desperate and Chloe’s fearful—pulled at him.

The torch flickered as the sounds grew louder. Groans, claws scraping against the stone. The infected were getting closer.

Damian coughed and wiped blood from his mouth. His skin was turning pale. “I don’t want to die like Mason… Axel, you’re my friend. Please.”

Chloe snapped at him, her fear mixing with anger. “Friend? You’ll be one of them any moment! Axel, if you choose him, you’ll lose me.”

Her words cut deep. Axel turned to her, his torchlight reflecting in her eyes. “Chloe…” he whispered.

She grabbed his shirt, pulling him close. “You promised me you’d protect me. Was that a lie?”

Their faces were close, breaths mingling in the stale air. For a second, the world around them faded. The sound of groans, the dripping water, the darkness—it all disappeared. It was only her and him.

“I’ll never lie to you,” Axel whispered back.

But before their lips could touch, a roar echoed down the tunnel. Shadows moved fast along the walls. The infected were near.

Damian screamed, his voice cracking. “They’re here! Axel, make a choice! Now!”

Chloe’s grip tightened. “Axel, please… choose me.”

The torch flame flared as the air grew colder. The ground seemed to shake with the weight of the approaching horde.

Axel’s mind spun. He couldn’t take both. If he carried Damian, Chloe might die. If he left Damian, Chloe might live—but could he live with that guilt?

Damian’s eyes burned with desperation. Chloe’s eyes burned with love and fear.

Two paths. Two voices. And the sound of death rushing toward them from both sides.

Axel lifted the torch high, looking down the tunnels. His chest heaved. His heart screamed.

Chloe whispered, tears falling. “Axel… what are you going to do?”

Damian screamed louder, “Which path, Axel?! Which one?!”

The groans of the infected grew louder. Shadows spilled across the walls, closer and closer.

Axel’s hand tightened on Chloe’s wrist. His torch shook. His breath caught in his throat.

One more step, and everything would change.

Which path would he choose?

Axel’s chest burned as the shadows closed in. Chloe tugged his arm toward the dark path, her voice trembling. “Please, Axel, trust me!”

Damian coughed blood, clawing at Axel’s sleeve. “Don’t listen to her! The dark is death. The light is the only way!”

The groans echoed louder, their bodies nearly visible now. Axel’s torch sputtered, threatening to go out. His pulse thundered in his ears.

He pulled Chloe closer, his eyes darting between the two tunnels. One choice meant life, the other death—but which?

His breath shook as he whispered, “Do I risk the dark… or the light?”

Axel gritted his teeth as the torch flickered low. Chloe’s nails dug into his arm, her eyes wet with fear. “Axel, we don’t have time!” she cried.

Damian staggered forward, nearly collapsing. “If you leave me, I’ll die here… is that what you want?” His voice cracked, desperate and broken.

The groans turned into snarls, echoing from both tunnels. Shadows twisted along the walls, closing in like a trap.

Axel tightened his grip on Chloe’s wrist, his heart pounding. He took one shaky step forward, torn in half.

“Which path will save us… and which will destroy us?”