the ruin door opens

Lukas reached his school, a large campus with towering buildings painted in shades of white and blue. The schoolyard buzzed with energy as students rushed around, some chatting excitedly, others dragging their feet, still half-asleep. The morning air carried the scent of damp earth and fresh grass, and the distant hum of teachers preparing for the day echoed through the hallways. In front of the school stood several buses, lined up for departure, their engines humming as students assembled near them.

Lukas spotted a group of students waving in his direction. "Lukas! Over here!" a boy with glasses called out, standing alongside three others.

Noticing them, Lukas dashed toward his friends.

"You somehow made it, mister latecomer. I actually thought you wouldn't show up," a girl in the group teased, crossing her arms with a smirk.

"Sorry for being late, guys," Lukas said with a sheepish grin, brushing his hair back, unintentionally making himself look like a total fool.

"Let's get in. We can chat inside," another boy suggested as they boarded the bus.

The teacher at the front did a quick headcount, then nodded in satisfaction. With a low rumble, the bus roared to life, rolling out of the school gates.

Lukas sat by the window, arms crossed, his head already tilting slightly as exhaustion weighed on him. Next to him, his best friend, ben, was scrolling through his phone, occasionally glancing at Lukas with amusement.

Lukas barely lasted five minutes before his eyelids drooped shut. He had been up the entire night, buried in books about black holes and supernovas. He didn't even remember when he drifted off, one moment he was staring at the endless road ahead, and the next, a deafening voice shattered his peace.

"WAKE UP!"

Lukas jolted awake with a sharp inhale, eyes darting around wildly. Laughter erupted all around him. ben and a few others snickered, some barely holding back their grins.

Lukas groaned, rubbing his temples. "Seriously, guys? That's not funny." His golden eyes flashed with irritation as he leaned back into his seat.

"I was up all night reading theories on black holes and supernovas. Let me have some shut-eye."

ben chuckled, shaking his head. "Dude, we're in eighth grade, and you're reading college-level physics books. You might actually be part alien."

A voice from the seat behind them chimed in. "Well, what do you expect? It's Lukas, after all. Mister over smart."

Lukas sighed and turned slightly to glare at the speaker. "No one asked for your commentary, Ruby. Go back to your seat."

Ruby smirked. "Okay, mister over smart ."

ben stifled another laugh while Lukas rolled his eyes, turning his gaze back toward the window. The bus rolled on, the chatter of students filling the air as he once again tried to grab a few moments of rest.

Lukas leaned his head against the window, watching the blur of buildings and trees pass by. He had seen it all before. The same roads, the same houses, the same sky stretching endlessly above. No matter where he looked, nothing ever changed.

This world was so… ordinary. Everything followed a pattern. People were born, they studied, they worked, they grew old, and then they died—just another cycle in an existence that refused to change.

Lukas closed his eyes with a sigh. Maybe if he slept, he could dream of something more. Something beyond this dull planet.

After several hours winding through rural roads, the school bus finally arrived at the base of a towering hill. The students filed out one by one, stretching their legs and chattering with excitement. But their voices soon faded as their eyes locked onto the scene ahead.

Nestled at the foot of the hill was a temporary archaeological site , buzzing with activity. News vans, camera crews, uniformed police and scientists in reflective vests surrounded a barricaded area. Behind them, partially obscured by tents and scaffolding, stood the ruin door.

It was far taller than Lukas had imagined ancient, metallic, and inscribed with otherworldly symbols that seemed to shimmer even in daylight. But the moment his eyes met the door directly, a sharp, blinding pain exploded in his skull.

A voice screamed in his head

" COME TO ME , MY LOVE . I AM WAITING "

Lukas dropped to his knees, clutching his head, fingers digging into his scalp as he shut his eyes tight and tried to drown out the sound. It was unbearable, like his brain was tearing itself apart.

"Lukas! Hey—are you okay?" Ben, his friend, crouched beside him, panic in his voice. "What's wrong?"

But Lukas couldn't answer. He could barely breathe.

And then—the door moved.

A deep groan rumbled through the earth. Dust burst outward as ancient stone ground against itself. The symbols across the ruin pulsed once… then shattered. The metallic door cracked down the middle and crumbled outward, sending a wave of silence through the crowd.

Everyone stepped back.

What lay beyond the door was not a passage or a chamber—it was darkness.

Not the absence of light, but something deeper. An abyss that seemed to devour everything. Even the midday sun failed to pierce it.

It was as if even light feared what was inside.

Despite the growing alarm at the site, the teacher ,unaware of what was unfolding clapped his hands to gather the students.

"Alright, everyone, over here! Let's gather near the rest station before we begin the trek."

The class shuffled toward a modest building surrounded by benches and a pair of vending machines. The scent of damp earth and pine filled the air, mixed with a trace of roasted peanuts and fried snacks from a distant food cart. A few hikers lingered nearby, oblivious to the event unraveling just beyond their line of sight.

Lukas, still pale and shaken, stood slowly. The pain had ended, but the voice still echoed in the back of his mind like a fading whisper.

my love…come to me 

He glanced once more at the door.

Whatever was inside, it hadn't just opened.

It had awakened.

__________________________________________________________________________

The students began pairing off as instructed, forming groups of two for the trek. The trail ahead wound upward through dense woods and rocky inclines, with signs and yellow caution tape marking restricted zones where the archaeological team was still working. Though large parts of the foot area were cordoned off, the main hiking path remained open—just enough for the school's itinerary to proceed uninterrupted.

Lukas ended up walking beside Ben, who kept glancing at him with concern.

"You sure you're alright?" Ben asked, adjusting the straps of his backpack.

"Yeah… just a weird headache earlier," Lukas muttered, though his gaze remained distant.

As they made their way up the trail, the peaceful ambiance of the hill began to shift. The air grew heavier. The usual sounds of birds and rustling leaves faded, replaced by an eerie stillness.

Lukas tilted his head upward.

Just minutes ago, the sky had been a brilliant, cloudless blue. But now, thick gray clouds were forming overhead, unnaturally fast, spiraling in as if drawn by something beneath the earth. A gust of wind swept down the hill, carrying with it a strange scent like burning ozone and old stone.

His steps slowed.

Something about this felt… wrong.

Not the kind of wrong you could explain, but the kind your instincts screamed at you to notice.

"Hey, Ben," Lukas said, his voice low. "Doesn't this feel… off to you?"

Ben looked up, frowning at the sudden shift in weather. "Yeah. That's weird. The forecast said it would be clear skies all day."

Far ahead, the teacher kept urging the class forward, unaware of the change. Most of the students were still laughing, chatting, or snapping pictures, but Lukas couldn't shake the sense of growing dread.

The deeper they climbed, the more the air felt like it was watching them.

Beneath the ruined archway, a small team of four archaeologists descended cautiously, accompanied by two armed police officers. Their flashlights cut through the oppressive darkness, casting narrow beams that danced along the dust-choked stairwell. The air was cold and dry . it ruin felt ancient, untouched by time.

The archaeologists grumbled at the presence of rifles, their frowns barely hidden beneath helmets and headlamps.

"This is a sacred site," one muttered. "Not a war zone."

"Sacred or not," the leading officer said without turning, "we don't know what's inside. Better be cautious than dead."

They reached the bottom of the stairwell, where the passage opened into a massive underground chamber. The sheer scale of it made them pause.

Thick green pillars, encrusted with vines and ancient moss, loomed around them—some cracked, others pristine, as if defying time itself. The ceiling arched high above, lost in shadow. The floor was made of smooth obsidian stone , marked with faint golden etchings that pulsed subtly, like veins.

The group split up, flashlights sweeping across walls and pillars, examining carvings and measuring structures. Whispers of awe echoed softly.

Then—

"Over here!" a police officer called.

The group gathered, their lights converging on what he had found.

Embedded into the far wall stood a massive door—tall, seamless, and made of a pitch-black material that drank the light. In front of it stood two statues of coiled golden snakes, their mouths open and fangs bared, locked in mirrored stances as if guarding the entrance.

The archaeologists moved forward cautiously, one of them murmuring, "This isn't from any known civilization…"

The officer who found it reached out, curiosity overriding caution. His fingers brushed the cold, black surface.

Instantly, a deep groan echoed through the chamber as if the very ruin exhaled.

Above ground, the clouds twisted violently.

The sky darkened several shades deeper, and a low rumble rolled across the hills like thunder on the horizon.

Then the wind picked up cold and sharp.

A sudden pressure fell upon the hill, invisible but palpable .