While on a hike, two siblings discover a mysterious cave. What is in the cave? What happens next?
Andrei and Marie stared at the gaping hole in front of them. The hole was big, so big that they slapped themselves for not seeing it sooner. It had been covered with vines and some sort of illusion that Marie managed to break. Marie looked at her brother. Andrei was tall, pale, and raven-haired, unlike Marie, who was short and brunette. Andrei was often called a playboy, outspoken and perpetually imperious, though inside he could be quite soft. Marie was a pleasant, fun girl who could sometimes be timid but was brave of heart. They were twins who were tutored by an old wizard, who had sent them on the task of investigating the cave in front of them. No one who ever went in came back, but the wizard and Andrei were confident they could find whatever power was inside.
“Do we go in? It looks scary…”
“C’mon, what’s the worst that could happen?” Andrei asked. Neither of them knew what was inside, but they could almost see the darkness radiating from the depths of the cavern. Andrei squared his shoulders and loped in until Marie couldn’t see him anymore. Panicked thoughts ran through Marie's head. What if something happened?
“See? Nothing happening!” Andrei called. Marie shuddered and ran after him. She was running to his voice until his hand stopped her. Looking down, she saw that she had almost toppled down a deep chasm in the ground.
“We need light,” Marie said, trying to keep her cool.
“You need light,” Andrei said in annoyingly dulcet tones. “I can see just fine.” Andrei summoned fire and held his flaming hand up to illuminate the area in front of them. Fire was a specialty of his. Technically his only specialty. In front of them was a narrow stone bridge, intricately carved, arching over the hole she had almost fallen into.
“Ladies first!” Andrei said cheerfully.
“How are you so calm?! This place is so… daunting.” Andrei just grinned and prodded Marie’s back. It was like he was enjoying this creepy place. Marie chewed her nails - a bad nervous twitch of hers - and took some doubtful steps onto the bridge. Once she had made sure this place would not crumble, she started to walk more confidently.
“Oh, don’t worry, It gets worse! There are skulls and spikes and whatnot up ahead…” Andrei said wryly.
“And you’re telling me this NOW!???????” Marie’s voice went up several octaves.
Once they were across the walkway, Marie’s fear subsided a little. She could breathe again. Andrei held up his hand, and Marie saw another pit, this time shallow but with long metal spikes protruding up. There were several platforms at different heights and sizes dotted around.
“You first,” said Marie. Andrei hopped from platform to platform with apparent ease, and he stopped at the tallest one. Marie started on the first few, but then she made the mistake of looking down. Right below her was a dead and slightly rotting body (RIP) that seemed to be quite recent. Marie moaned. She wished she could go back, back to the sun and the comforts of the forests. She took a deep breath. You trained for this. Remember to be persistent, she told herself. She crouched down and jumped onto the ledge next to Andrei.
“A few more to go! Don’t look down,” he said, eyes wide.
They completed the last two with minimal difficulty. At the end, however, there was a tunnel dropping straight down, and nowhere leading up, left, right, or ahead.
“Down?” Marie asked. She looked down the hole. It was deep and dark, but she could see a faint yellow light at the bottom, far, far below. She hated heights.
“Down,” Andrei agreed. He hated heights even more, but they were getting well rewarded for this.
“It’s just stone,” Andrei said. “You could cushion us, right?”
“Sure. Just stone,” Marie mumbled. On the count of three, they both jumped. As they quickly neared the bottom, Marie twisted her hand for her spell and they immediately slowed down, touching the floor gently. In front of them was a large stone doorframe with intricate symbols bordering it. Chains draped from the sides to the cave walls, and lava was flowing from the ceiling, creating the glow they had seen before. Andrei snuffed his flames out, and started looking around, checking for more traps or potential enemies.
“This seems too easy,” Marie said.
“Whatever this is, it is another trap of sorts. I think that if you do it wrong, you die,” Andrei said, toeing a corpse. This corpse had no blood, rather, it looked like it was completely drained of it. Black marks marred its skin, and its face was contorted into an expression of agony and terror. There were several more bodies like it, all bent into the same sense of mortal fear.
“What do these markings say?” Marie asked her brother.
“It’s an ancient script, one of the languages of devils,” Andrei said in awe, looking like a 5-year-old who was told he was getting a puppy. “It’s like, super rare and unheard of!”
“What does it say?”
“ This language is Nighav, easily mistranslated, and some words have completely different or no meanings.”
“I wonder if that’s how these people died,” Marie shivered, trying to stay composed.
“Chill out, it’s just a body. You’ve seen so many before,” Andrei said annoyingly. Marie glared at him.
“Fine, Fine! If I die, it’s on you.” Andrei’s voice got lower. “Beware the Hellfire, lest you be consumed. You enter the realm of the Devil… Deaavh iuk comaumn.’”
“What does Deeav yuk coma moomin mean?”
“Deaavh iuk comaumn. Death is coming. I think. Maybe?”
“Well, you aren't dead yet,” Marie said apprehensively.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Andrei chuckled. A chill washed over them like all life had left the chamber.
“Did you hear that?” Andrei asked, every hair on his neck sticking straight.
“Hear what? I don't hear anything”
“The horns…and the drums.”
The sense of foreboding closed around them. Suddenly, the doorframe lit up, and a glowing red light emerged, creating a portal. Heat blasted through it, as well as fire and darkness. The darkness had a certain… lifelike quality to it. Without warning, the brother and sister were sucked in. They barely perceived the creatures -some humanoid and some not- that were staring at them. Their eyes were drawn to the dark throne. The figure sitting on it stared red eyes and dropped the arm it was leaning on.
“Well,” the cold-eyed man said. “This is a surprise.”