A bright, clear day shines over an ancient town, hundreds of years old, the architecture worn but still maintained, mixed with modern buildings and tech sprinkled between. The location only a few of hours from a standard, thriving town, surrounding areas thick with vegetation, forest covering much of the land with a large mountain visible to the west.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmMva8slTg
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Two mid twenty explorers are walking in this town, with a backpack each, matching black cargo shorts. Jamie, the taller of the two with short black hair and a five o'clock shadow, wearing a pale orange shirt with a button pocket, with exploring gloves and boots to offset the more casual look. Shelly, with light brown hair reaching her neck and a tiny bandage on the bridge of her nose, wearing a dark green top with mild rips on the left shoulder and right arm, wearing simple gloves and casual boots, alongside a utility belt. They both stare at a map Jamie is holding, walking around the little town.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lKPFejLe2
Shelly turns her head slightly and eyes towards to her pal "Jamie, there's a snack bar around where we need to be" She cheerfully expressed as a rumble forms in her stomach. Pointing just slightly off the marked spot on the map "Right here, we can also top off on some supplies too." Gleefully stating.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXdJXEuEdP
Jamie nods "Yeah not a bad idea. We got time, we can make a pit stop." in a delighted, chatty manner. He folds the map carefully and slips it in his shirt pocket, turning his head to his friend "Hoping to get some chocolate more then anything. Aren't you Shelly?" he mildly grinned with a jesting tone, awaiting her reaction while slightly leaning to her.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5uMLy4QpjT
Holding her backpack straps she joyfully replies "You bet! It's been aaaaages since i've had some." 97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhqvGqbQ4AG
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They both reach a snack bar, a small building packed full of goods with some chairs and tables outside to rest and enjoy, a semi worn sign above the store's window reads Snack-tastic. As they both enter, a bell rings, the smell of fruit and freshly made tea fill the air inside, the store owner in his chair enjoying his tea behind the counter, he looks at the two explorers and greets them with a smile and wave "Welcome customers! Have a look around and let me know if you need anything!" Jamie nods and happily responds "We shall keep it in mind, thank you." They both look in different aisles to pick what they each want to have now and for the trip ahead. Once selected and paid for, they step outside, take their backpacks off and sit on the chairs, slipping their backpacks under the table as they lay out their goods.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH4CNY5TCbP
Shelly takes a chocolate nut bar, rips the packaging open and bites into the snack, enjoying the flavour with delight. Jamie gently opens a trail mix packet, takes a small amount and has it, with a mouth full he mentions semi-seriously "So, we got roughly about... Two hours before the sunset arrives, according to the architecture..." he then shallows his food and continues "...It's relatively small compared to the one from last month, yet no one has managed to get whatever is in there. Strange..." Jamie rubs his chin wanting to understand what the reasons could be, his expression reinforcing curiosity.
Shelly after having a chocolate bar confidently states "its also not that well known either. So, it's very likely that it's just amateurs who are getting stuck and giving up before they make it. I wouldn't worry about it." She has a few sips of water then packs her stuff, ready to go with excitement in her movement. Jamie joins in, packing his things while thinking about the ruins.
Within a few minutes they reach the entrance, the wide stone walls showcase how massive this once magnificent structure was, now cracked, aged and breaking apart, covered in vegetation, the main entry has debris that block much of the way, leaving just enough room for only a couple of people comfortably. Steel beams hold some of the ruins up from crumbling down onto the roads, an excavator can be heard nearby removing rubble. Two guards sit near by the crumbled entryway, enjoying a card game on a worn out table with plastic seats, one of them glances up and spots the duo. He gestures and says something to the fellow guard, both stand up and approach the explorers, with caution and concern one of the guards urges "Woah, woah, woah. Slow down there you two, this place isn't a tourist attraction" His hand out stretched to the explorers momentarily, who look at each other for a moment, then Shelly giggles back "hehe, oh we're not tourists, we're actually explorers. We dive into ruins and tombs like this all the time." Both guards inspect their get up and share an unconvinced look, the second guard warns "Even if that were so, this place is extremely dangerous. Full of traps, every time a group goes in, few come out, and those few that do..." He pauses and looks down, taking a deep breath before turning his gaze back at the explorers with a serious look "You shouldn't go in..."
Jamie steps to the side to inspect the ruin's entrance and reassures "We've had our share of problems along our way, but we do understand the risks and, generally, what type of traps to expect alongside the stability of this place. We do not intend to jump in willy nilly." He crosses his arms and turns his head to the two concerned guards. Who both nod to each other and the first guard reluctantly utters "Alright, if you want to have a look, make it quick and not too far in. I don't care if you have plenty of experience, it's full of dangers waiting to happen. Got it?"97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7efdPc27y
Jamie and Shelly both in unison answer "got it."
The guards keep their eyes on them as they step aside and let the explorers go in, who both get a feeling of uneasiness while they are prepared to dive in. The first room is lit with modern lights that surround the corners and walls, bits of rubble scattered around from previous clean ups. Dirt and dust cover the floor and walls while cobwebs cover many corners and objects they can. Walls behind the layers of dust are detailed in various shapes and symbols, with very few torches hanging up, burnt out a long time ago.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfmoF5dTQjG
Jamie approaches a nearby wall and gives a deep blow, removing several layers of dust, coughing from the blowback despite quickly moving away to avoid it. When he looks back and studies it, he comments in amazement "These shapes, they both match the Cuvarate site, yet.. The order is completely changed, this must've been where the border of the two nations was all those years ago." Shelly, has a small smile before disappearing due to a strange feeling, she glances around and sees a small particular crack in a wall, sensing something is watching. She adverts her eyes from the crack and looks elsewhere. In a quieter and concerned tone she cautioned "That's awesome and all, but... I have a funny feeling about this place and no, its not the traps. It's something else." She spots more small dark cracks, alongside spotting the only passage way available, free of any rubble or blockage. She spoke with hesitation in her voice with worry as her expression "Lets... Lets be quick with this one, if we can."97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZXJfmEMhzf
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Jamie ends up behind Shelly and puts his hand on her shoulder and reassures "Don't worry I get it. We'll be quick with this one." He then turns on his utility light and leads the way, staying close to Shelly to try to ease her tension, who turns on her light as well, taking a deep breath and focusing on the path ahead. The guards head back out, staying close to the entryway. As both explorers head deeper inside, the modern lights grow dimmer, the walls and pillars are covered in thicker dust and cobwebs, with occasional rodents scurrying about. Soon after they both notice the first trap of the ruins, several floor tiles marked with spray paint, some pushed into the ground. Jamie turns his head reassuring "Hey, least it's safer and quicker if most of the traps are already dealt with." Shelly nods and breaths a small sign of relief, feeling more at ease. As they both continue deeper, many of the markings disappear leaving them to use their knowledge from experiencing ruins, rooms appear in groups after the first trap. Nature reclaims much of the place, small spots of blood line the floor and lower walls time to time, Jamie is the only one to notice and not too worried as he believes its just from animals hunting pray. Many of the rooms grow fewer as both check every one of them they come across, finding a pattern with the structure, a very linear place with turns that make a spiral going inward, many of the rooms being small and empty, only a few having broken vases, stands and other old, forgotten pieces. They both begin to notice weird outlines in the shadows fading in and out, feeling something is around them. They eventually reach a large, towering stone door with a mechanism attached throughout the whole door. The duo look at one another, surprised to see such a thing. Shelly places her backpack down, reaches in for her trusty tools and a note book, she begins to figure out how to unlock it. A small bit of excitement escapes as she softly remarks "I hope this will be qu-"
Suddenly her quiet, paced voice is interrupted by a sound, like rapid footsteps in a split second, her voice rises, trying to hold back from screaming, managing to be quiet while worrying "what the hell was that!" Jamie pulls out his light to inspect with while slowly moves to the sound "I'll take a look, it's likely just a rat or two, I won't be too far." in his reinsuring manner to keep Shelly calm, he takes a couple of glow sticks out of his backpack, cracking and shaking them, once they glow he tosses them in Shelly's direction. While feeling uneasy himself, he brushes off the off feeling while going next to a doorway just a few paces back, shining his light inside, spotting rats, he relaxes, stepping inside and mutters "wonder if there's much here at all to bring back to the museums..." A subtle, indistinguishable noise is heard, Jamie looks around from right to left, all he sees is an empty room with a couple of statutes and a table in the middle, with broken vases filled with dust. He shrugs it off and starts heading back, as he exits the room the sound of faint breathing and scratches occur. Jamie worries about Shelly, he quickens his steps towards her, as he gets closer, he sees she is making progress, he has a quiet sigh of relief to not stress her. Settling himself down, he reminds himself that these places are filled with rodents, snakes and other normal creatures, yet here the feeling of being watched by something different is ever constant. Unsure how that could be he ignores it, thinking his head is messing around, he get closer to Shelly who hears Jamie approaching her way. The seal is looking close to open, it gives her a much needed moment to feel calmer. With a sigh and relaxed expression "This is one weird door but i almost got it..."
As she finishes, the door makes clicking sounds, starting to open up, both explorers are surprised how advanced the door appears to be "Didn't expect this place to have something like this... Must be a one time door, removing what holds it tightly shut." Jamie quietly mutters in astonishment, Shelly cutting in insistently while moving on, with a hand gesture to make haste "Probably logs, ropes and mice, come on lets keep moving. Sooner the better." Jamie, mildly shakes his head to end his distracted mind and catches up to Shelly, both focused on what's ahead, avoiding the increasingly deadlier obstacles, from narrow walk ways with pits, to pressure plates firing many arrows, spikes falling from the ceiling and concentrated beams of light. Carefully inspecting as they push onward, they find it increasingly shows less infrastructure damage, less rooms litter the way, fewer and fewer decorations in them, the path narrowing into a single large hall way, the roof reaching far above with pillars equally as high, statues of people praying and worshiping surround the walls, spaced apart. Torches are dimly lit, showing deep cuts in the walls and dried blood close to the carved out path. When they both step into the hallway, they hear noises again, seemingly all over, however no sign of any movement is seen as both show a bit of fear, Shelly starting to breath more rapidly trying to keep herself steady, Jamie keeping his head on his shoulders, reminding himself its just small creatures hiding in the dark, he silently turns his head halfway to Shelly, with a face of determination, asserting "Shelly, Shelly. Take deep breaths and stand back to back with me, we can cover the area with our torches and make our way forward. Ok?" She nods quickly and stutters "o-ok..." following his lead strictly, knowing it will help her anxious state despite the constant feeling of something otherworldly being here, nagging at her. As they keep going, no traps or danger are present despite all the signs pointing it should be. Jamie finds it deeply strange but as he carefully watches all over, nothing seems out of place aside from moving shadows he still sees. A few moments pass, they reach what seems to be the final room, special carvings surround the entry point, where a single chamber remains, torches inside surprisingly bright, with a yellowish hue to the flames, the walls clean of any symbols, scratches and blood, only embedded handprints are seen. The centre holds a single stone display, a darken wood totem sits on top, depicting an ancient deity with a blue-green gem where a heart would be. Shelly and Jamie look at each other for a second and look back at the totem, both thinking of the same thing: Why the weird flames? Why all the noises? The advanced-for-the-time door? The moving shadows? All these things make the two start to pick up the pace more as they head in, Shelly comments as calmly as possible in her current state "Sure off putting in here, but maybe once we grab it and leave, all will be ok. Right?"97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7lsn4YmxVK
Jamie looks back and gives a small noticeable smile to attempt to make the idea seem likely "Hopefully, i'll check for traps, you keep an eye outside." He directed with a relaxed tone, continuing with a mutter aimed at no one "Man the museum guys better appreciate this historical item..." A small sound is heard within the walls
As he approaches he scans the room carefully, nothing seemingly out of place, making the sound bug Jamie more, he reaches the stand and slowly grabs the item with a firm but careful grip, lifting it and taking steps backwards. Nothing occurs but as soon as Jamie turns around with a calm posture, a click is heard. Shelly spins around to the sound as Jamie leaps forward out of instinct, narrowly avoiding the initial swarm of stone darts, shelly runs in to get her friend up. Both run out of the room as more darts emerge, expanding across the room, Shelly makes it out but a dart hits Jamie directly in the lower left leg, falling over with a pained moan just outside the exit. The darts stop shortly after as both move further away and check on the wound. The dart is stuck in his leg but not too deep. Shelly grabs her backpack and reaches for medical supplies as Jamie rips the dart out with another audible grunt. Both hear a loud thump sound, Shelly's eye widen showing signs of panic as she begins hurrying, Jamie forgoes his usual calm attitude, telling his friend "Do not stick around if you see anything dangerous, ok?" A pain in his voice showing, yet maintaining a stern tone. Shelly ignores his statement as she finds everything she needs and treats his leg. With a stressed stutter she responded "N-no! I rather throw th-that stupid fucking item away..." Another thump happens, much closer then before, with a low pitched growl, making it clear to the two that there is, in the best case scenario, a dangerous creature about to show itself. Shelly finishes up hastily, shoving the supplies in the backpack then lifting Jamie up, glad that he is not too heavy, a scratching sound grows louder as the yellow torches burn out. Shelly Fretted "Let's get out of here!" Wrapping Jamie's arm around her shoulder, holding her bag with her other arm, she leads the way out as both make haste. As they reach the automatic door, a breathing sound grows closer alongside more scratches and stomping. Jamie begins to use his hurt leg a bit more to move faster, uttering noise and heavier breathing from each step. Shelly notices and tries to make it easier for him to move. The unknown noises from the creature turn into a growl as they pass the glow sticks, Jamie catches on to it and yanks one from the side of his backpack to get it started. They go past previous traps, able to avoid activating them due to their methods to get around them, hoping the creature would trigger them instead. Yet to never occur, making Shelly think its something far worse. When the sounds come closer Jamie get the glow stick going and drops it behind the duo, seemingly slowing the creature down.
Soon they spot small, dotted lights from the equipment, they are showing mild excitement to reach the entrance as the explorers are breathing heavily assuming the danger is right behind them. Jamie slows down for his leg, noticing that it's been bleeding more from his heavy usage of his leg. Shelly refusing to slow down, leans downward, pulling Jamie's arm to take as much of his weight as she can to get him outside. As they finally reach the final door, one of the guards from before fires a flare, flying behind the explorers, the room glowing a bright red as the room's near illusionary figure appears like a standing giant, with a distorted growl the figure disappears. As all three make it outside proper where the sun is slowly approaching sunset, both explorers land on the ground near exhausted. Shelly tightly hugs Jamie, while he gives a gentler one back "We made it out and got the totem... We made this count." He pants semi weakly as he shows the object, Shelly breaths deeply and remarks "Well, glad we made it out not empty handed. Holy hell we need to get your leg fixed." They both check on the bleeding, where quite a stain of red covers a lot of the bandages. The guards help Jamie up, one of them gestures to look at the totem, which Jamie hands over. The guard is impressed and hands it back, letting them keep their hard work, as the other escorts the explorers to a local doctor, carrying Jamie on his back. As they walk, Shelly wonders "What kind of... Thing can live in the ruins." The two friends ponder this, the escorting guard chimes in to keep their minds off the topic, instead explaining the history and legend of the item and of it's importance. Which the explorers listen in with intrigue.
Inside the ruins, the figure stands tall, watching with it's keen eye sight through the tiny cracks and holes in the walls to everyone on the outside, it speaks in a deep, distorted and growly voice "Finally, those worthy to keep the Cro'malug safe, they earned it." it laughs with a long grin across it's face "I can rest, once again." as it enters deeper inside, continuing to laugh much more cheerfully.
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