Volume 1 - Beggar Knight
The Serpent's Coil
Duncan hit the ground with a roll, tumbling over his shoulder and up to his feet, mace in hand as he scanned the area for any Ghul. Mehdi and Omar weren't far behind him, weapons in hand as they attempted to make out any shapes in the darkness. The thick, stale air echoed with the noise of horrific, pale monsters clawing their way up the walls and out into the desert. The only light that seeped into the pit was from the moon, only illuminating a small circle around the trio.
Mehdi held his rifle in one hand, kneeling down and patting around in the darkness for anything that could give them some light. His hand finally brushed against a torch that had seemingly been sucked in by the moving maw. He tossed it to Duncan, who picked up a stone from the ground, glancing briefly at its jagged edge, and struck it against the head of his mace. The spark flicked off, igniting the torch with a sudden, fierce blaze.
The room flared to life, shadows leaping away from the walls as the torchlight revealed ancient stone walls etched with strange, indecipherable symbols and carvings, marks of a long-forgotten civilization. The pit felt older than the sands above them, a remnant of a time that even the desert had tried to bury. The carvings seemed to pulse in the torchlight, as if reacting to their presence. But there was no time to study them, the Ghul were ascending, their vile shrieks growing more distant as they neared the surface.
"The camp can't hold on much longer." Omar said, his voice tense, eyes fixed on the walls. "We need to hurry."
Duncan nodded, he could feel his heart pounding in his chest. Since descending into the pit his body had felt strange, like he was being pulled forwards deeper into the cavern. A pain shot through his heart, and he fell to one knee clutching at his chest. The agony was sudden and sharp, radiating from his core and spreading outwards like sharp claws gripping his ribcage. He gasped for breath, the torchlight flickering as his grip on it faltered.
"Duncan!" Mehdi rushed to his side, eyes wide with alarm. "What's happening? Are you alright?" He said as he held his arm and pulled him to his feet.
Duncan struggled to speak, the pain twisting through him, but he forced himself to nod. "I'm fine" he managed to say through gritted teeth. "Just...give me a moment." But even as he spoke, he knew something was terribly wrong. It wasn't just the physical pain, it was as if something within him was being drawn toward the center of the pit, to the very heart of whatever dark power lay here.
He stood up straight, steeling himself against the pain emanating from within, waving Mehdi off as he spoke. "Let's start looking, we don't have time to wait around."
His two companions looked at each other, obviously concerned for Duncan. Omar cast him a worried glance but didn't argue. Instead, he moved to one side of the chamber, examining the carvings on the walls, while Mehdi did the same on the other side. Duncan took a shaky breath, trying to focus on the task at hand, but the pull in his chest was growing stronger, almost unbearable. It was as if the very air in the pit was alive, thrumming with energy, and it was calling to him.
He lumbered forward, his eyes drawn to a giant circular stone at the far end of the pit. The pain in his chest intensified with each step he took toward it, but he couldn't stop himself. It was as if his body was acting on its own, driven by an unseen force. As he got closer he held the torch high, illuminating it.
It was a door. It had to be, he still felt his body pulling him beyond it. It was an imposing presence in the dimly lit chamber, standing nearly twice the height of a man and carved from a single slab of dark stone. Its surface was adorned with intricate patterns and symbols that spiraled outward from a central point, each groove filled with dust from centuries of stillness. The stone itself was weathered, its edges smoothed by time, yet the craftsmanship was undeniable, every line and curve had been etched with purpose and precision.
At the center of the door was a massive relief of a serpent, coiled around itself, its head and tail meeting in an eternal cycle. The serpent's eyes were set with small, glinting stones that seemed to flicker in the torchlight, making it look almost alive. Around the serpent, ancient runes were arranged in a circular pattern, their meanings lost to time but their presence ominous, as if they held a warning or a spell to keep something contained.
The door had no visible handle or hinges, appearing as an immovable part of the cavern itself. It was as though it was designed not to be opened but to be a barrier between two worlds. The surface of the stone was cold and unyielding to the touch, and a faint vibration could be felt when Duncan pressed against it.
He felt along the face of the stone, reaching the edge with his fingertips he ran them around the curve, wiping off dust as he did. As his fingers traced the stone's edge, Duncan's heart skipped a beat, there was a section where the dust was conspicuously absent. His mind raced, realizing that someone had already moved the stone before them. His brow furrowed. It could only have been Mordred.
"Found something!" Mehdi's voice called out from across the chamber, breaking his trance. Duncan turned sharply, nearly dropping the torch as he did. His eyes were drawn away from the door, the strange pull weakening but not disappearing entirely. He forced himself to focus on Mehdi, who was crouched near one of the walls, his rifle slung over his shoulder. "There's some kind of...inscription here. I think it might be a clue."
Duncan moved over to him, each step feeling heavy as the draw of whatever was behind the gate tried to prevent him from walking away. He knelt beside Mehdi and leaned in to examine the inscription. The carvings were intricate, etched into the stone with a precision that belied their age. The symbols were unfamiliar, twisted and complex, but there was something about them that felt disturbingly familiar, as if they were tugging at the edges of his memory.
"What do you make of it?" Mehdi asked, his voice hushed as if the very walls were listening.
Duncan traced a finger over the symbols, his touch hesitant. The moment his skin made contact with the cold stone, a spark of energy surged through him, his fingers felt like they were burning as he brushed over them. Somehow he felt like he knew what the inscriptions meant, like the meaning was already present in his mind despite not knowing the cipher for this strange language.
"It's...a warning," Duncan said slowly, the words forming in his mind. "This place was meant to be sealed, to keep something from escaping."
Omar joined them, his face pale in the torchlight. "The Ghul," he said, his voice edged with fear. "They're what was sealed, aren't they? Whatever this place was built to contain, it's getting out."
Duncan rose to his feet. "Whatever the source of this is, it's behind that door. I can feel it, dragging me towards it."
Duncan’s gaze locked onto the massive stone door once again, the pain in his chest intensifying with every moment. The strange force pulling him toward it was growing stronger, and it felt as though the air itself was suffocating, thick with ancient energy.
"We have to open it." Mehdi spoke, standing up next to Duncan. "But how? It looks far too big for us to move, even with Omar." The three moved towards the giant stone, each examining its intricate carvings silently.
"There has to be some kind of mechanism, this was meant to seal these things inside, brute force won't open the way." Duncan studied the carvings closer, raising his hand to trace them once more and yet again feeling the burning sensation against his skin. Once more, the answer was given to him. "These symbols, they're not just a warning, they're instructions. A way to unlock the door."
Mehdi raise a hand to his chin as he stepped closer to the door. “The serpent... Ouroboros it’s a symbol of cycles. Life, death, rebirth. We need to turn it, align it with the right symbols.”
Omar nodded. “Then let’s do it. No time to waste.”
Without hesitation, Duncan placed both hands on the serpent’s head, feeling the stone’s cold resistance beneath his palms. Together, Omar and Mehdi moved to help him, their hands pressing against the ancient carving. Slowly, with a low grinding noise, the serpent’s body began to shift, rotating along the carved lines in the stone.
“Keep going,” Mehdi urged, his voice strained with effort.
The serpent’s body twisted in a slow, deliberate motion, the symbols around it beginning to pulse with light. As the serpent moved into place, the ancient markings glowed brighter, filling the room with a dim, eerie glow.
Suddenly, there was a deep, resonant
click. The entire door shuddered, and the ground beneath them trembled, sending dust and small stones raining down from the ceiling. The carvings glowed brighter, their light casting long shadows across the pit. The door began to move on it's own, slowly rolling out of the way with a loud deep groan.
Mehdi stood back, rifle at the ready, his eyes locked on the widening space. “It’s opening.”
Cold mist seeped through the gap, swirling around their feet. A low, ominous sound echoed from beyond the door, like a distant, mournful wail.
Omar, eyes fixed on the opening, took a step forward, his voice steady but edged with urgency. “Whatever’s back there, it’s what’s causing all of this. We need to face it.”
Duncan’s chest throbbed with that familiar pull, stronger than ever. The pain was almost unbearable, but he forced himself to stand tall, the torch still flickering in his hand. He moved closer to the door, readying his mace as he peered through the gap and into the darkness. Preparing himself for what was drawing him deeper into the void.
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