The light fades, and Dave collapses to his knees on solid ground. He lifts his gaze and, to his surprise, finds the familiar details of his world—his reality: the buildings, the neon lights, the heavy air of his city. He's back. Or so it seems.
Heinz is by his side, but his expression is tense, distant. Dave watches him closely, trying to decipher what's going on in his mind. Even though he's returned, there's a gnawing sense that something invaluable was left behind in that twisted, dark dimension.
"We made it?" Heinz asks, though his tone makes it painfully clear that he already knows the answer.
Dave nods, but when he meets his gaze, he feels an inexplicable emptiness.
"I don't know whether to thank you or hate you for this," Dave says with a bitter laugh, as if trying to break the tension with a joke that's lost its humor.
Heinz offers a faint smile, but his eyes remain heavy with the sorrow they've carried since stepping through the portal.
"Maybe it's better if we part ways… Might make this hurt a little less."
Dave is about to respond when he feels a presence behind him—an energy impossible to mistake. He turns, and there he is: Axel. His brother, flesh and blood, with that intense gaze he'd longed for in that other world. Axel approaches with his usual stride, steady and defiant, but when his eyes land on Heinz, something shifts in his expression. There's a flicker of surprise in his gaze, like he's seeing an intruder trespassing on his world.
"So you're back, Dave. And I see you didn't come alone," Axel says, his tone sharp and cold.
The air thickens, dense with tension. Dave knows the moment of truth is coming. He's going to have to explain everything soon.
Seeing Axel's expression, Heinz takes a step back, as if finally understanding that his place in Dave's life has always been… temporary.
"Looks like I'm not needed here," Heinz murmurs with resignation. "Don't worry, Dave. I'm fine with this."
Before Dave can stop him, Heinz walks away. And in that moment, something hollows out inside Dave—something he never thought he'd feel watching someone leave.
Axel stares at him, not fully grasping what just happened, though a faint sneer curls his lips.
"What's going on with you? You're dragging around more emotional baggage than I remember."
Dave stands still, locked in his brother's gaze, but something doesn't sit right. That stare, those words… There's a chill behind Axel's voice that doesn't belong, a calculated hostility that feels too deliberate. And even though he's standing right in front of him, doubt begins to creep into Dave's mind.
Without breaking eye contact, Dave clears his throat and speaks with the same defiant tone he's always used with Axel.
"Tell me something, Axel…" he begins, not even sure what question is forming, only knowing he has to test this so-called 'reality.' "How long has it been since you last saw me?"
Axel's brow furrows; his face hardens. He tries to hide it, but the flicker of confusion is there, plain to see. When he finally speaks, his words carry a coldness Dave knows all too well—the same coldness he faced in that other world, where Axel had been nothing more than a twisted echo of the real thing.
"Long enough for you to forget your priorities, Dave. You're still a fool—always have been. Even for yourself."
The emptiness inside Dave spreads.
This isn't real.
This isn't his world.
Another trick, another trap meant to keep him from his true home.
Without another word, Dave turns and walks away from Axel, leaving his brother frozen in his confusion. Axel's voice follows after him, harsh, brittle, carrying that same artificial chill Dave now hears for what it is: a lie.
"Where do you think you're going, Dave?"
"To find someone who owes me answers, Axel. I don't have time for your sermons."
The city around him is perfect, familiar, down to every building and every shadow. But Dave knows that if he looks closely enough, he'll find the cracks—the tiny flaws that will give the whole thing away.
What he really needs now is someone who's already seen them too.
He needs Heinz.