The moment we crossed the threshold of the tomb, it felt like the world shifted beneath my feet. One second, I was trudging through the swamp—cold, damp, and shivering from the wetness that seemed to sink into my skin. The next, I stepped into a freezing gust of air that hit me like a slap to the face. The tomb wasn't cold like the outside air had been—it was a different kind of cold. A suffocating cold. The kind that burrows into your bones, like it's been here so long, it's forgotten what warmth feels like.
I couldn't see my breath, but I felt it in my chest. The air hung thick, as if the tomb itself was holding its breath, waiting for something. And the silence… it was absolute. A silence that pressed against my ears like a weight, making everything around me feel even more suffocating.
I glanced over at the giant ahead, his massive form melting into the shadows. His towering presence was so overwhelming that I could hardly remember how to breathe. With each step I took, I felt smaller. Diminished. As though the tomb itself was swallowing me whole. The light from the dim, flickering crystals embedded in the walls barely illuminated the path ahead. The glow flickered like the last embers of a dying fire, casting twisted shadows that crept along the walls—too long, too still.
"Doesn't this place just scream haunted?" I muttered, trying to make my voice sound braver than I felt. My own words felt thin and fragile, swallowed by the tomb. "And why is it so cold? Is it like a rule for it to always be below ten degrees?"
"We don't need warmth," the giant replied, his voice flat, emotionless, the exact opposite of the fear gnawing at my gut.
Right. Of course, we didn't need warmth. Because in the middle of an ancient tomb, with God knows what curses and death traps, who needs warmth, right?
I shivered, my jacket offering no protection against the bite of the air. The cold clawed at my skin, creeping into my bones, and with every breath, it felt like I was inhaling ice. Behind me, the swamp had felt alive—full of unseen creatures and the suffocating weight of the land. But this tomb? This place was… wrong. It wasn't alive. It was ancient. Dead. And something here wanted us. I couldn't shake the feeling that something—someone—was watching us. Waiting.
The walls of the tomb seemed to close in as we ventured deeper, the air thickening with every step. It was like the tomb itself was aware of us, tightening its grip around us. Each new corridor felt like it stretched longer than the last, the silence growing thicker. My heart began to pound in my ears, and I tried to push the feeling away—It's just the atmosphere. It's just my mind playing tricks. But I couldn't shake it.
The farther we went, the more I started to feel the pressure in the air. The walls seemed to pulse with a low, rhythmic thrum, like the heartbeat of something buried deep within. It was so subtle that I wasn't sure if it was real or if I was just imagining it, but the longer we walked, the more insistent the feeling became.
"Hey," I said, trying to cut through the tension with a joke, though I wasn't sure if it would even make a dent. "What exactly are we looking for in here? A treasure chest? A bunch of mummies? Or maybe just some random ancient artifact?"
The giant didn't even look back, his massive form striding forward, unbothered, unhurried. Finally, his voice came again, distant and clipped.
"A relic."
"A relic?" I let out a nervous laugh, though it came out sounding hollow. "We're in an ancient tomb in the middle of a swamp—and we're looking for a relic?"
The giant didn't respond, his attention solely fixed ahead, moving with that eerie, detached purpose of his. He wasn't here to explain things. He wasn't here to answer questions. He was here to find whatever it was he came for, and I was just… along for the ride.
I pressed my hand to my forehead, trying to shake off the growing unease gnawing at me. The air was too still. The silence too heavy. It was as if the very tomb was waiting for something. And that something was us. Every breath felt too loud in my ears. Every step felt like it was dragging us deeper into whatever cursed pit lay ahead.
I couldn't help it—I glanced behind me. The corridor stretched on, its end lost in darkness. I had this bizarre sense that the shadows were shifting, following us. Something ancient stirred in the depths of the tomb, an eerie presence that made my stomach churn. I swallowed hard. It's just the atmosphere, I reminded myself again, but the knot in my gut tightened.
"Does it feel like we're being… followed?" I asked, even though I knew the giant probably wouldn't care. He didn't seem to be bothered by anything.
"There is nothing behind us," he said, his tone so absolute that I almost believed him. Almost.
The walls began to narrow, the stone growing colder, slick with dampness. And the deeper we went, the more it felt like we were being drawn into the tomb's bowels. The air thickened, the very stone underfoot seeming to pulse with some deep, forgotten power. And then—click.
The sound wasn't loud. It wasn't even sharp. But in the silence of the tomb, it was deafening.
I froze.
My foot was still on whatever it was, but I couldn't move it. My heart pounded, a sickening thrum in my chest as I looked down at the pressure plate beneath my foot. The air suddenly felt too heavy. The walls seemed to breathe. I could almost feel the tomb's eyes turning toward us.
"Uh… Mr. creature guy?" My voice felt thin, fragile. "I think I just triggered a trap…"
The giant didn't flinch. Didn't even blink. His gaze remained ahead, as if nothing had changed, as if triggering ancient death traps was just another part of the day's work.
His hand moved slowly, methodically, and black light crackled between his fingers, sending a ripple of cold air through the tomb.
Before I could even react, he pointed down, one massive hand brushing against the stone where the pressure plate had been triggered. The dark energy in his palm pulsed, crackled, and with a sharp crack, the pressure under my foot disappeared. The trap—disarmed, like it was nothing.
"Move," the giant said, his voice deadpan, like he was bored.
I exhaled sharply, stepping off the plate, my legs trembling with something that wasn't just cold. I could barely keep my feet beneath me, the sense of danger still hanging thick in the air, like the tomb itself had been watching us, waiting to see if we'd fall into its grip. I staggered forward, my knees weak, but I kept moving. There was no turning back now.
We continued onward, the hallways growing tighter, the air heavier. The cold wrapped around my lungs, making it harder to breathe. The silence pressed in closer, suffocating, like the tomb was holding us inside, as though it would never let us leave. The further we went, the less it felt like we were exploring a tomb and more like we were walking into the mouth of something ancient—something alive.
The stone beneath my feet began to hum, just faintly at first, but it grew louder with each step. The walls, too, seemed to vibrate. A deep, throbbing hum that echoed in my chest, rattling my bones. The tomb was awake. Something was waking inside.
Then, after what felt like hours, we arrived.
It was vast, cavernous. The chamber stretched farther than I could see, the shadows in the corners so deep, they seemed to swallow the light. At the far end of the room, atop a raised stone platform, sat the relic.
It didn't look like much at first glance. Just a plain stone chest, covered in dust, engraved with strange symbols. But as my eyes lingered on it, I could see something more—something beneath the surface. The faintest flicker of light seemed to pulse from inside, an eerie, living glow, like the chest was a heart. Watching us. Waiting.
Then I heard it. A deep, rumbling sound, a low growl from deep within the tomb's bones.
I turned. My breath caught.
The ground beneath the giant's feet began to crack.
The fissures spider-webbed out from where he stood, jagged and sharp, like the tomb itself was splitting open. The relic's glow intensified, pulsing faster. The air around us seemed to warp, a strange pressure building. The runes on the walls throbbed, almost like they were alive. The entire room felt like it was shifting—warping—like the tomb was fighting back.
The giant took a slow, deliberate step back. But it was too late.
The ground beneath him shattered with a deafening crack. A blast of stone and dust erupted outward, sending jagged rocks flying through the air. I staggered backward, shielding my face from the explosion, my heart hammering. Panic rose like a tide, choking me, threatening to drown me in its rush.
"Move!" the giant's voice cut through the chaos, ice-cold. Unshaken. As if this was a moment he'd planned for.
I didn't hesitate. I sprinted, adrenaline flooding my veins. Behind me, I heard the ground collapse, a massive rift opening beneath the giant. My pulse thudded in my ears as I stumbled for cover, darting behind a pillar, my chest tight with fear. Dust clouded the air, and my breath came in ragged gasps.
But the giant—he was fine. He stood in the midst of the rubble, unbothered, as if he hadn't just nearly been swallowed by the tomb.
"Get back," he said, his voice detached. Unmoved.
"Are you—are you okay?" I asked, my voice a mix of disbelief and panic.
He didn't answer. His eyes flicked ahead. That same cold indifference returned, but now… there was something more. Something darker. The relic was reacting to the destruction around us, its glow pulsating faster now, as if it was feeding on the chaos.
And something else was coming.