inside the ruin

At the summit, Lukas and his classmates stood in silent awe.

The world stretched far below them ,lush valleys blanketed in green, roads snaking through distant city. The wind was crisp and cool, carrying the earthy scent of pine and damp stone.

"It's beautiful," someone whispered.

But Lukas didn't respond.

His eyes weren't on the view, they were on the sky.

Dark clouds churned above, unnatural in their motion, spiraling like something was coiling beneath the heavens. A strange pressure pressed against his chest, not physical, but heavy all the same.

Then the first drops fell.

Cold, sharp.

Rain.

It began with a whisper on the leaves, then intensified almost instantly, drumming against the earth in a chaotic rhythm.

Lukas flinched as thunder cracked like a whip overhead.

Just then, a sharp static blare echoed from speakers far below.

A voice followed urgent, strained.

"Attention everyone ,due to the sudden change in weather, all visitors are requested to descend the hill immediately. I repeat, heavy rain warning in effect. All visitors must begin descending at once."

Students around Lukas groaned, some disappointed, others concerned. Teachers called out, rallying groups to stay close and move quickly.

Ben nudged Lukas, who was still staring at the sky.

"You good, bro?"

Lukas blinked. "Y-yeah. Just… the clouds. They weren't like this a few minutes ago."

Ben followed his gaze, frowning. "Yeah, weird. Let's move before we get soaked."

But even as Lukas turned to leave, something in his gut twisted. That same voice—"Divine Bane . come to me"—echoed faintly in his mind again.

Inside the ruin, the archaeologist stood before the black door ,the one with twin golden serpents locked in an eternal coil.

"I think it moves," he said, brushing dust from the engraved surface. "Get a light on it."

A flashlight beam cut across the ancient stone.

Ignoring the protests of the nearby researchers, the man pressed his palm against the surface and tried to push.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then—a low rumble echoed through the chamber.

"Stop!" one of the senior archaeologists shouted, but it was too late.

The ruin groaned. The walls trembled. The pillars above rattled, shedding centuries of dust.

Then, like the roar of an angry god, the entire hill began to quake.

Above, on the slope, Lukas and the others were halfway down, jackets soaked, shoes slipping on wet stone.

A deafening crack tore through the air.

"Earthquake!" someone yelled.

But it was more than that.

The ground split open.

A gaping fissure tore its way across the slope with terrifying speed, ripping through the narrow path. Trees were uprooted, chunks of stone flung aside .

Screams rang out.

Students scrambled, some losing their footing on the rain-slick terrain.

Lukas turned just in time to see Ben slip.

"Ben!" he shouted, lunging forward but the ground beneath him collapsed. He tumbled, rain stinging his face, sliding down an avalanche of shattered earth.

Ruby, clutching onto a branch, cried out as it snapped and she too vanished into the darkness below.

One by one .Lukas, Ben, Ruby, and three others .were pulled down into the belly of the hill.

Then , a splash.

The fall ended in a splash. 

Lukas plunged into a subterranean water basin, the icy shock of impact stealing his breath. His body sank briefly before buoying up ,but not before his head slammed against the rocky base beneath.

Crack.

Stars exploded behind his eyes. A deep gash split his forehead, and blood unraveled into the water like red ink in a canvas of blue.

The basin was not to deep ,but it was just enough to break most of their fall.

Not all.

A few meters away, two students hadn't been as lucky. They'd landed just outside the water, where jagged rock welcomed them like the maw of a beast.

One had died instantly ,his neck twisted at an unnatural angle.

The other... had tried to move.

And failed.

Now, only four remained.

"Ben!" Lukas shouted, wading through knee-deep water, his voice sharp with panic. "Ruby!"

"I'm here!" Ruby called out from the left. Her voice was tight, shaken but alive.

Ben surfaced beside Lukas, gasping for air and coughing. "What the hell just happened?!"

They barely had time to catch their breath before their eyes settled on the floating bodies around them familiar uniforms, twisted limbs. Their classmates. Lifeless.

Ruby turned her head and squeezed her eyes shut, shoulders trembling. Ben looked once and then looked away, jaw clenched, face pale.

But Lukas didn't flinch. He stood, drenched and bloodied, his eyes locked on the horror with quiet fury.

From behind, the fourth survivor stepped forward.

"We don't have time to mourn," said Albert, the class's second-ranked student . he likes to think himself of this sharp, calculating type but in reality he is always chasing Lukas's shadow. He glanced around with cold efficiency and trying to act cool he says. "If we stay here, we die. We need to move."

Lukas nodded faintly, but then staggered, dropping to one knee. A tear in his forehead caused blood to trickle down, staining his skin.

"Lukas!" Ruby rushed to his side. Without hesitation, she tore a strip from her skirt and pressed it against the gash on his head, trying to stop the bleeding. Her hands were shaking. "Are you feeling better?"

He exhaled slowly. "Yeah… thank you, Ruby."

Ben looked around, brows furrowed. "But where are we? What is this place?"

Albert didn't answer right away. He approached one of the towering stone pillars that jutted out of the flooded ground its surface carved with glowing symbols, half-submerged. He traced a finger across the markings.

"You didn't see the news?" he muttered. "If I'm right… this the ruins ,we saw on tv today ."

He turned to face them, eyes gleaming with uneasy excitement.

"We're inside it."

Lukas looked up at Albert, eyes narrowing beneath the blood-streaked bandage.

"Don't get excited, Albert," he said, voice low but firm. "This isn't a game. We have no idea what's in here… and there's a very high chance of us not making out of here"

The words cut through the heavy silence like a blade.

Albert stiffened, but didn't respond right away. His hand hovered over the carved pillar, the glowing runes casting pale light across his face. For a moment, the air between them crackled with something unspoken—old resentment, fear, or maybe just the weight of the truth Lukas had voiced.

Ruby gently squeezed Lukas's shoulder, grounding him.

Ben shifted uncomfortably, glancing between the two.

"So what do we do?" Ben asked, quieter this time.

Lukas stood slowly, his muscles trembling with fatigue, but his eyes never left Albert's.

"We survive," he said. "But we do it smart. No more rushing in. No more guesses. We move together, stay alert, and if something feels wrong, we turn back."

He turned to the others, his expression hardening into resolve.

"No more deaths."

They began to move.

The corridor ahead was choked in darkness ,pitch black, with only the faint glow of the runes behind them now fading. The water clung to their legs, cold and murky, sloshing with every step.

With visibility near zero, they moved in a line: Ben led, cautious but determined; Lukas followed close behind, hand on the wall for balance; Ruby behind him, one hand still holding the makeshift bandage to his head; and Albert brought up the rear, unusually silent.

Then, something tangled around Albert's leg. He froze, his eyes wide with panic.

"Ha—something just coiled around my leg! H—help! Help!" Albert's voice cracked, his fear rising.

Lukas slowly walked toward him, his movements steady despite the tension in the air. He bent down and reached for the thing wrapped around Albert's leg.

When his fingers brushed it, he realized it was nothing more than a long rope—caught by the flow of water and tangled around Albert's leg by sheer accident.

"Albert, it's just a rope. Calm down," Lukas said, handing it to him. "And if this ruin is really as ancient as they say, then there shouldn't be anything alive in here."

Albert let out a shaky breath, slowly regaining his composure. "That… makes sense."

Ruby smirked. "Oh? Where did the sharp and cool Albert go, huh?"

Ben chimed in, mimicking Albert's earlier panic. "H-help! Something just coiled around my leg!" he squealed dramatically, flailing his arms.

Ruby burst into laughter, nearly doubling over. Ben joined her, grinning from ear to ear.

Albert muttered under his breath, "Yeah, yeah… go ahead, make fun of me. I don't care."

Lukas watched them, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips. For a moment, their laughter cut through the dread—a welcome break from the fear pressing down on them. In a place like this, they needed moments like that more than anything.

They continued their journey in silence, eventually finding a narrow staircase spiraling upward.

As they climbed, every sound echoed unnaturally—the slow drip of water, the shuffle of their feet, and from somewhere deeper in the ruin… voices.

Muffled. Tense. Angry.

When they reached the top, they froze.

The voices grew louder—adult voices arguing, distorted and overlapping, ricocheting off the ancient walls. There was no clear direction. The sound seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once, like echoes of ghosts trapped in stone.

Then—light.

A faint white beam flickered from the far end of the corridor. Not magical, not rune-born ,an actual flashlight.

"There!" Ben shouted, pointing. Relief rushed through his voice.

Ruby gasped and smiled, clutching Lukas's hand.

But Albert…

The cold mask he'd worn all along cracked in an instant. Tears spilled down his cheeks as he broke into a sprint, splashing through the water, arms flailing.

"Help! Over here!" he cried. "Please!"

Ben watched him go, snorting under his breath.

"Acts all tough, but when it gets real, he turns into a mama's boy."

Lukas and Ruby couldn't help it—they laughed. The kind of laugh you only have when death was just behind you and life had finally stepped into view again.

"Come on," Lukas said, giving Ruby a gentle tug. "Let's get out of here."

Together, they walked toward the light.

albert reached there only to see adults arguing with each other . 

"We never should've opened the door!" one archaeologist shouted. "That quake came from below the foundation's unstable! "

"No, that wasn't a quake. Something moved down here." another argued

then Lukas and other come near them .

A nearby police officer noticed the children and stepped forward, rifle slung across his shoulder. "What the hell—kids? How did you get in here?"

Ben stepped forward, his voice shaking but clear. "We… we were coming down the hill when the ground split. Rain made it worse. We slid… and fell into this place. Two of our friends didn't make it."

The officer's face darkened. He turned to the others. "Two are dead."

The room fell silent. Only the dripping echoes answered.

Lukas looking around found the entrance was blocked by boulder and understood that they were all trapped

"this is not looking good " he whispered to himself .

Lukas starts to ask questions to an archaeologist regarding what happened then an older archaeologist rubbed his temples. "We've lost contact with the outside word. radio are down . And the door... is sealed off by a boulder."

Ruby clung to Lukas's arm. "We're trapped, aren't we?"

Albert, who had been beaming just moments ago, suddenly slumped against the wall, wet hair plastered to his forehead, eyes glassy.

"Why the hell did I even come on this trip?" he muttered, voice rising with every word. "If I knew this was going to happen… I would've stayed home. I had dreams, dammit. I wanted to go to college. I wanted a girlfriend. Now it's all gone! Everything's gone—"

He kept rambling, words tumbling out like a dam had burst.

Ben stopped in his tracks, fists clenched. His voice cut through the noise like a slap.

"Would you shut it, Albert? We're all worried. You're not the only one scared!"

Albert froze, startled by the sudden outburst. His mouth snapped shut, and he looked down, face red with a mix of shame and fear.

"Calm down, Ben," Lukas said, stepping between them. His tone wasn't harsh—but it carried weight.

He turned his gaze to Albert, calm but unwavering.

"Albert, I get it. You're scared. We all are. But right now, panic helps no one. So do me a favor and keep your mouth shut ."

Albert nodded silently, eyes still low.

Lukas exhaled and turned toward the approaching figures. The voices from earlier had grown clearer members of the archaeological team, some in dusty field gear, others in uniforms, all looking as confused and alarmed as the students.

"Do you have a first-aid kit?" Lukas asked one of them.

A police officer, mid-thirties with a lined face and weary eyes, stepped forward and handed him a roll of clean bandages.

Ruby took it without a word. She guided Lukas to sit on a nearby stone and knelt beside him. Her hands trembled as she unwound the bandage, wrapping it firmly around his head.

He winced, but didn't complain.

She pressed down gently to stop the bleeding, her voice barely a whisper.

"You're gonna be okay…"

He glanced at her, managing a faint smile.

"Thanks, Ruby."

 lukas looked around everyone who were all lost in their own thoughts.

Some sat quietly, eyes vacant, clutching soaked backpacks or staring at their trembling hands. Others whispered prayers, their minds already halfway home thinking of their parents, siblings, warm beds, and safe mornings that now felt like distant dreams.

Fear had cracked them open. Grief, like water through shattered glass, poured in silently—slow, invisible, but relentless.

Lukas sat slightly apart, not out of pride or coldness, but necessity. His eyes swept across the dim chamber, watching as the others unraveled in their own quiet ways—Ruby chewing her nails to the quick, Ben pacing aimlessly, a tremble in every step, and the adults… whispering in clipped, urgent tones, avoiding eye contact, their confidence bleeding out one shallow breath at a time.

This is bad, Lukas thought. Really bad.

His mind ticked through the situation like a machine running low on fuel. We're not going to die of thirst or starvation. That's not what will kill us. It'll be fear. Fear erodes reason. And when reason goes, everything follows.

He leaned back against the cold stone wall, his forehead still aching beneath the bandage Ruby had wrapped earlier.

What we need now isn't a plan. It's hope. Not optimism—hope. The belief that somehow, no matter how impossible it seems, there's a way forward. Without that, this place will swallow us whole.

He glanced at the children—his classmates—and then at the adults. They all think we kids are the weakest link. But that's not true. His gaze sharpened. Children believe that as long as the adults are standing, things will be okay. That belief gives them something powerful: hope rooted in trust.

But the adults? They know better. They understand how deep this ruin goes, how strange the rules here are. They've already begun doing the math in their heads—logistics, timelines, resource counts. And that knowledge... that realism... is what will break them first.

Lukas's jaw tightened.

Because when hope dies in a child, it mourns quietly. But when it dies in an adult... it collapses everything around them.

Then Lukas looked at himself detached, distant. The fear didn't strike him like it did the others. Not because he was stronger.

But because he had nothing left to lose.

I wish I could be scared like them, he thought. I wish I had someone to worry about. Someone who'd be waiting if I made it out.but in reality....there was none.

He looked down, water rippling around his legs, the ruin's silence pressing in from every side.

My family's gone. A car crash ended that chapter few years ago.

His uncle is the only person left whom he can call as a family, he was a good man. Honest. Kind. Never cruel. He made sure Lukas had what he needed: a bed, a meal, an education.

But Lukas could feel it, even in the quiet moments. The distance. The silence stretched between them like a thin wire ,never spoken, never snapped, always there.

He didn't choose me. I was just… left behind. A name on paperwork. A duty passed down. I'm not a son. Just something broken he promised to carry.

He clenched his fists in the dark.

Sometimes, I feel like Peter from Spider-Man.No parents to come home to. No one to love for who we are , only the burden of always having to smile, to stay positive, like it's some kind of duty.

But unlike him, I don't have a home to return to.No Aunt to care. No warm kitchen or safe bed.Just the weight of knowledge I never asked for… and a mind too sharp for its own good.

It's not a gift. It's a sentence.

The others whispered, cried.

Lukas watched in silence.

He didn't envy their fear. He envied the reason they had to feel it.