Silence enveloped him.

  Too heavy to be natural.

  He couldn't hear Adam anymore.

  Couldn't sense his aura.

  Only that dull pressure throbbing behind his temples.

  And that whisper — like a voice, calling from nowhere.

  Then… something.

  A shape.

  A crack in the wall.

  Roughly three meters below.

  A hollow space.

  A possible escape.

  His pulses had let him see what the lack of light concealed.

  Once he realized there was a passage down there, he blinked —

  and the pain in his head and eyes vanished, along with the pulses.

  Gone.

  Was it just… a fatigue-born hallucination?

  "Grab on to me," Kael whispered, his voice trembling.

  "Wait—what?"

  "Trust me."

  He clenched his teeth and began to swing his weight.

  His hands, already torn and shaking, slid against the jagged rock.

  But he pushed through.

  "You're actually doing this…"

  Adam's voice was laced with doubt.

  "Brace yourself."

  The tension rose again.

  Blood pounded in Kael's skull.

  Wind whistled around them.

  One final swing —

  and Kael let go.

  The drop was brutal.

  Adam fell into the darkness, a strangled cry trapped in his throat.

  Kael, for an instant, felt utterly weightless, suspended in an endless void.

  But then — he spotted a jag in the wall.

  A ledge, just a few meters below.

  He reached for it, every nerve on edge.

  But the blood still streaming from his shredded palms had slicked the stone smooth.

  His hand slipped, cutting an arc through the air.

  A silent scream tore through his mind.

  Time froze mid-fall.

  The void caught him — merciless.

  No… not like this…

  The ground rushed up.

  His breath fled.

  His head spun.

  The world melted into pain and panic.

  But before the impact — a hand seized him.

  Adam.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  In a last-second burst of strength, Adam pulled him back, dragging him into a chaotic tumble.

  The two crashed hard against the stone floor.

  Silence fell.

  Crushing.

  Adam, motionless, stared wide-eyed at the scene.

  He couldn't understand.

  How had Kael failed?

  He'd seen it — the terror in his eyes, the desperate helplessness.

  Kael lay still, barely breathing.

  His arms were soaked in blood.

  He lifted his gaze slowly, each breath sharp with pain.

  His heart pounded like war drums in his skull.

  He had failed.

  Everything had shifted in a heartbeat.

  He hovered between two realities.

  Detached.

  Even the air seemed to slip from his lungs.

  "We're… safe," Adam murmured.

  His voice was faint.

  Almost stunned.

  Kael said nothing.

  His thoughts clashed and collided.

  How could I have…?

  He forced himself to focus.

  To breathe.

  But each inhale stabbed him anew.

  Still in shock, Adam shook his head.

  He'd seen Kael lose his grip, fingers slipping on rock before vanishing into the void.

  For a moment, he'd thought Kael had… given up.

  Adam looked away.

  A shiver crawled down his spine.

  The scene would haunt him.

  A ghost.

  A brutal reminder of how fragile they were.

  Another silence fell between them, broken only by Adam's ragged breathing and the low hum of wind.

  They were alive.

  But at what cost?

  "I think I'm gonna puke."

  "Not on me," Kael grunted, trying to sit up with a grimace.

  "I shouldn't have answered your call today," Kael muttered, eyes drifting across the room.

  "I should've stayed home with my sister, like I planned.

  Lesson learned…"

  "Next time you land a job like this — leave me out of it."

  A bitter smirk tugged at his lips.

  "You literally told me to call you first if it paid well," Adam said between gasps.

  "Yeah, well… if we end up dead, the money's kind of useless."

  "Hmph."

  Adam's voice turned sour.

  "Peru and Egypt were way easier."

  "I think this temple's different because it hasn't been fully discovered.

  Maybe no one's made it this far."

  Kael paused, eyes scanning the shadows.

  "Like this passage.

  It probably wasn't on anyone's map…"

  Then, quieter:

  "Maybe those who found it never made it out."

  They both fell silent, gazing at their surroundings.

  Skeletons littered the floor —

  macabre proof of past explorers who hadn't survived.

  Old bones, yet their presence remained a silent warning.

  "I don't think they lived long enough to share what they found," Kael murmured, eyes fixed on a cracked skull, jaw clenched.

  Moments later, their attention was caught by a strange mechanism near the pit of spikes.

  It activated with a sudden clack, resetting the trap that had almost consumed them minutes ago.

  "A timer, maybe…"

  Kael frowned.

  "Could be it resets after a delay once it's been triggered."

  After a pause, Kael tried to rise using his hands.

  But the moment his palms touched stone —

  a shock exploded through him.

  From fingertips to chest.

  The pain was excruciating.

  More intense than anything he'd felt before.

  His hands felt ablaze.

  ?

  Adam, shaken and wide-eyed, rushed to his side.

  Under the flickering torchlight, when they looked at Kael's hands, a chill ran through Adam.

  The skin on Kael's palms was shredded.

  Torn by jagged stone.

  Burned raw by effort.

  Blood and sweat drenched his fingers.

  Adam couldn't understand how Kael had endured such agony —

  holding on, supporting them both, still searching for a way out.

  A weight pressed down on Adam's chest.

  Crushing guilt.

  How did I let him reach this point?

  He didn't have time to dwell on it.

  His hands trembled as he dug through his bag for the first-aid kit.

  Panic clouded his thoughts.

  Still, he dropped to his knees beside Kael, aware of his helplessness.

  "Kael — stay seated.

  I… I can't do much, but at least let me treat your hands."

  His voice, laced with frustration, betrayed his rising fear.

  Adam bit his lip, feeling completely useless.

  But deep inside, something whispered that this —

  was only the beginning.

  That Kael… was no longer quite the same.