The sun had only just dipped below the horizon, leaving behind streaks of blood-orange and dusky purple that still clung to the sky. Shadows crawled across the cracked asphalt as two young men stepped through the rusted gates of an old, abandoned factory.
Their flashlight beams cut swaths through the darkness, revealing broken windows, collapsed beams, and remnants of machinery long since surrendered to dust and cobwebs.
"Jay, this isn't right," Nathan muttered, hugging his arms against a sudden chill. "Why the hell did you bring me here after sunset? Couldn't we have come in the morning like normal people?"
"Shhh," Jay hissed, glancing over his shoulder as though expecting someone to appear out of the gloom. "Coming in broad daylight would've drawn attention. Word would've gotten back to my sister before nightfall."
Nathan let out a frustrated sigh. "You could've told me that, genius. And come on, we're eighteen already. Why are you still scared of your sister like she's your mom or something?"
Jay rolled his eyes but didn't answer, instead sweeping his flashlight over a row of rusted lockers. Their metal doors were bent and scarred with age, some hanging off their hinges like crooked teeth.
"If I'd told you," Jay finally said, "you would've backed out right there on the spot. Besides, my sister… she's overly protective, alright? Thinks I'm still a clueless kid who can't tie his own shoes."
Nathan snorted. "You've got a point. But you do realize this place has been picked clean already, right? Don't tell me you seriously believe we're the first ones to poke around in here."
Jay's lips curved into a sly grin. "I know. But we're not here to look for old junk."
Nathan raised an eyebrow. "Then what are we here for?"
"You'll see," Jay said, his grin widening as he pressed onward, his boots crunching over shards of glass.
Nathan followed, muttering under his breath. His flashlight beam darted nervously over piles of debris and dark corners that seemed to swallow the light.
What the hell are we looking for? he wondered.
"Is it some kind of treasure?" he asked aloud, curiosity getting the better of him.
Jay stiffened for a heartbeat, then turned to him, eyes wide. "How did you know?"
Oh, this idiot actually thinks I can't guess what he's after, Nathan thought, shaking his head with a smirk.
"Aaaah, Jay… I know you've been scraping together money for months now," Nathan said, voice low and teasing. "You've saved up, what, 76 Netals? That's maybe—what—one to three percent of the cost of an F-Rank awakening stone?"
Jay's jaw dropped. "Impossible! How the hell do you know that? Are you some kind of spy? Or… a demon in disguise?"
Nathan made a face, unimpressed. "It's called listening, you idiot. You told me all that yourself."
"Oh… right," Jay said, scratching the back of his neck, his embarrassment almost palpable in the darkness.
Poor guy. Nathan felt a slight pang of guilt twisting in his gut. Especially since he'd secretly borrowed—okay, stolen—50 Netals from Jay's stash last month. If Jay ever found out, Nathan would be lucky to survive the fallout.
"You really want to awaken that badly?" Nathan asked, trying to steer the guilt away by focusing on Jay's dream.
"Yeah," Jay said, his voice softening. "It's everything to me. Ever since we were kids, I've wanted this. To awaken… get my own skill… maybe even join a hunter guild one day. You said it yourself once—you wanted to awaken too."
"I did," Nathan admitted. "Still do, sort of. But I'm not obsessed. Not like you."
They fell into a brief silence, broken only by the distant echo of dripping water somewhere deep within the factory. Dust motes danced in the beams of their flashlights, making the air seem thick and alive.
Jay's eyes shone with a strange light as he pressed on. "You'll see, Nathan. Tonight, everything changes."
Nathan felt a chill crawl up his spine—not from the cold, but from the way Jay said it. Like a promise. Or a prophecy.
He tightened his grip on the flashlight, forcing a grin. "Yeah, well, just try not to get us killed before your big destiny shows up."
Jay only laughed, and together they ventured deeper into the shadows, unaware of just how true those words would soon become.
_____
Fifty years ago, the world had changed forever.
No one knew exactly how it began. One day, the skies split open like torn fabric, and monstrous beings poured out—creatures of horn, claw, and shadow. Demons, humanity later called them, though the word hardly captured the horror. They swept across cities and countrysides alike, ripping through armies, tearing families apart, and feasting on human flesh as though it were nothing but cattle.
Governments fell. Billions died. Humanity teetered on the brink of extinction.
And then, as if some cruel god had decided to toss mortals a bone, something miraculous happened. Humans began to awaken. By consuming stones—crimson, pulsating cores torn from slain demons—they could unlock strange powers. The strength of the stone matched the demon it came from, though the abilities varied wildly, almost like a twisted lottery.
It was brutal, bloody, and the only reason humanity still existed.
_____
"Ready?" Jay asked, his voice echoing slightly in the cavernous hallway of the old factory.
"I think so… or maybe not," Nathan muttered, shifting nervously from foot to foot. The past's horrors felt uncomfortably close in places like this. Factories that had once churned out tools and cars, now silent tombs of an older, safer world.
Jay didn't wait for a proper answer. He led them into a wide, empty chamber whose walls were stained with mold and graffiti, the floor littered with broken tiles and scraps of rusted metal. Their flashlight beams danced across support beams and holes in the ceiling that dripped with moisture.
Nathan watched as Jay strode confidently toward one section of the wall that looked no different from any other. Then Jay pressed his hands against the cracked concrete and pushed on a specific block. With a grinding groan, an entire section of the wall shifted, revealing a hidden elevator door smeared with grime.
"What the—? How do you even…?" Nathan's mouth hung open.
"I found it last week," Jay admitted, eyes gleaming with barely restrained excitement. "Stumbled on it by accident. But I didn't go down. Figured I'd wait for backup."
"Ah, you bastard," Nathan said, pointing a finger accusingly. "Didn't want to risk your own neck alone, huh?"
Jay just shrugged, a crooked grin on his face. "Hehe. So… we going in or what?"
Nathan folded his arms and turned on his heel. "No thanks. Good luck being eaten by rats or demons or cursed ghost children or whatever's down there. I'm going home. Good night."
"Wait!" Jay called out, his tone catching Nathan enough to pause mid-step. "What if this is it? The opportunity we've always dreamed about. A chance to change our lives. No more scrounging or hiding from street thugs. No more worrying about affording awakening stones years down the line."
Nathan hesitated. The idea dug its claws into his brain, scratching at all the old yearnings he'd tried to bury. A better life. Power. Security. Maybe even a future worth something.
"Yeah… but have you also thought," Nathan said quietly, staring at the elevator, "what if it's not our big break? What if it's our grave? Our last little adventure, where our story just… ends."
Jay rolled his eyes but stepped closer, placing a hand on Nathan's shoulder. "Why are you always so damned negative? Come on, I'll protect you. If anything jumps out, I'll punch it. Or we'll run screaming together. Either way, not dying alone."
Nathan couldn't help it—he let out a small laugh, shaking his head. "Yeah, yeah. Screw you, man."
"That's the spirit." Jay clapped him on the back, maybe a little too hard. Then, with a deep breath, he pressed the elevator's ancient button. Miraculously, it lit up with a sickly yellow glow.
With a tortured shriek of cables and machinery protesting after decades of disuse, the doors slowly slid open, revealing a dim interior caked in grime and dust. The stale air that wafted out smelled of rust, mold, and something else—something sharp and metallic, like old blood.
Nathan swallowed hard. "This is probably the worst idea we've ever had."
"Probably," Jay agreed cheerfully. "But at least we'll die together, right?"
"Haha, you asshole," Nathan muttered, forcing his legs to move.
Side by side, they stepped into the elevator. The doors closed behind them with a heavy finality, plunging them into darkness except for the beams of their flashlights. Then the whole box lurched downward, creaking and groaning, carrying them deep beneath the earth—toward whatever fate awaited them in the unknown shadows below.