In a cave somewhere deep underground, a forgotten place resides, where no life dares to tread. Stalactites hang like ancient icicles from the ceilings, the air thick with the scent of damp earth and moss. A place long forgotten by the world. It was a place that was not meant to be discovered.
Within the cold walls lies something hidden, a secret that was meant to be buried for eternity. Yet, nothing lasts forever, what is lost will eventually be found, and what is hidden will eventually be revealed through the test of time.
As fate would have it, a young female draws near. Her heart was pounding with a mixture of fear and curiosity.
A day prior, Regina was a student who was following her professor on a trip to a newly discovered archeologist site. With her semester break before her, she saw this as an invaluable opportunity -- a chance to step beyond the confines of the classroom and witness the thrill of discovery firsthand. She was particularly drawn to the idea of uncovering ancient objects that had once been treasured, relics that could reveal the culture, beliefs, and daily lives of people from another time.
However, during one of the days when she was traversing through one of the caves in the area, the ground cracked and gave in, resulting in her falling through and into the abyss. She wasn't sure what happened, it felt like a blur to her. One moment she heard something crack, the next she was falling through the air, swallowed up by the dark.
When she woke up, she was surprised to find herself void of any serious injuries, which she was thankful for. Although there were scrapes and scratch wounds all over her body, and it ached throughout her body, she knew she was lucky to be alive. Something she was set to remain as long as possible. Although, she did curse her bad luck for what happened.
She wasn't sure how much time had passed, she just hoped that rescue could come quickly. She hadn't expected this kind of accident to occur.
However, one thing's for sure, she wasn't going to die in this forsaken cave. She was determined to make it out alive and get drunk with her friends, something she currently regretted not doing much.
Standing up, she began to assess her surroundings. She couldn't see very clearly with the lack of lighting, but she could barely make out a path in front of her. Without a choice, she began to walk slowly down the only path available to her.
Time passed and Regina was getting weary, she felt like she had walked on for ages, yet progress was slow. Just as she was about to take a break to rest, she could faintly make out something ahead. With this, she pushed on until she reached a massive stone door.
At this moment, she realizes this must be one of the historical sites left behind long ago. She felt happy that she was the first one to discover this, but it didn't last long until she remembered her situation. Standing closer to the stone door, she could make out that it was engraved with some shapes and symbols.
As she reached out her hand to feel the engravement, her mind was thinking that it would be impossible for her to push open the set of stone doors that would weigh more than any person could ever move. To her surprise, when her hand touched the engravement on the door, it seemed to have reacted to her presence and began to open by itself, revealing a new path onwards.
The sudden sound and movement of the stone door made Regina jump, thinking that her life was in danger. It took a while to calm her beating heart when she realized it was just the door opening on itself.
Regina was intrigued now. She wondered if the door was equipped with a mechanism that opened itself automatically when someone touched it, and how it continued to work after ages. Surely, it wasn't that someone saw her and opened the door for her, if that's the case, she could be saved anytime now.
Of course, these were just thoughts she produced to keep herself optimistic.
Walking past the stone doors, there was a long and narrow passage until the end. Walking along the path, she went straight directly to the end. It did not take long for her to eventually reach the end of the path. It opens up to a chamber of sorts. Taking a step forward, multiple braziers throughout the room lit up on their own, revealing the rest of the chamber to her eyes.
The sudden change in lighting stung her eyes, although she managed to quickly readjust to the brightness of the area because the contrast in brightness was not too big.
"Weird..." Regina mumbled. It would be a lie to say that she was unfazed. She kept wondering how everything was moving on its own.
The first thing she noticed was the small pedestal in the middle of the chamber. On top of it lies a small egg-shaped object that is black with a greenish pattern on it. And it was quite big, probably around the size of a bowling ball.
As for the surroundings, everything was made of stone, from the floor to the walls and the ceiling. She noticed the markings on the old, withered wall. The ravages of time had all but destroyed the vibrant carvings that adorned the stone walls. It was now broken and forgotten, covered by dust and debris, a victim of the passage of time.
Not that she would be able to make out what they meant even when they were in peak condition.
She walked around, trying to look for an exit, but there was none. The only path available to her was the one she just took to enter the chamber. At this moment, she felt fear creeping in, what if she was trapped here, until her death?
Shaking her head, she has to be positive. Especially now. She has to believe that there will be a way out of here. With this in mind, she began looking around once more, though the result was the same. She wondered if she should backtrack in case she missed a path somewhere.
With this in mind, she looked around until her sight was back to the egg-like object. She wondered what it was. Maybe it could help with her situation.
As she stares at it, she suddenly has an urge to touch it. Like she was drawn to it. That, and her curiosity pushing at her.
After a short internal debate, she began to move slowly towards the object at the center of the chamber. She was trapped with nothing to do anyway, might as well satisfy her curiosity, hopefully, it wouldn't be the last thing she'd ever do. Approaching the object, she hovers her hand over it briefly, apparently hesitating for a brief moment before eventually placing her hand on it. It felt smooth to the touch, but it wasn't hot or cold.
