The journey to the Ruined Depths was unlike anything Elias had ever experienced. The further they traveled, the more the world changed around them. The air was thick with old magic, the kind that made the back of his neck tingle, like stepping into a place that had been untouched for too long.
Marco's drone scouted ahead, feeding live footage to their HUDs. The terrain was rugged, filled with deep chasms and towering cliffs of obsidian stone, remnants of an era long past. Strange glowing fissures pulsed beneath the ground, feeding an unknown energy that even his sensors couldn't identify.
"This place is cursed," Ivy muttered, adjusting the grip on her bow. "I can feel it in my bones."
Lira arched an eyebrow. "You say that like we haven't already walked through about ten different cursed locations."
Cecilia smirked. "Yeah, but this one feels different. Like, extra doomed."
Elias didn't disagree.
Varian, walking slightly ahead, studied the ruins with an intensity that made even Reinhardt raise an eyebrow. The former Vanguard commander had seen war, had seen destruction—but whatever lay ahead of them?
Even he didn't know what to expect.
"We need to be cautious," Varian finally said, his voice firm. "If this is a pre-Vanguard ruin, then whatever remains here predates even the Academy."
Marco clicked through his interface, frowning. "That's what's been bothering me. How the hell did the Academy even find this place?"
Silence fell between them as they processed the question.
The Academy had spent centuries erasing history, removing traces of the Vanguard's past. But this?
This wasn't their history. This was something older.
The entrance to the ruins came into view—a massive stone archway, its surface lined with faintly glowing inscriptions, symbols Elias had never seen before. His visor scanned the carvings, trying to decode the text, but the translation kept shifting, as if the language itself was resisting being understood.
Lira ran a gloved hand over the stone. "This isn't just a ruin," she murmured. "It's a vault."
Varian's expression darkened. "A tomb."
Elias exchanged a glance with him. "What exactly was buried here?"
Varian didn't answer. Instead, he placed his palm against the stone, activating the gate.
A low hum vibrated through the air as the ancient mechanisms came to life. Dust spilled from the seams as the massive doors slowly parted, revealing a vast underground chamber beyond. Torches along the walls lit on their own, casting long shadows against towering statues of armored figures.
And at the center of it all—
A massive circular door, its surface engraved with symbols that pulsed in gold and crimson light.
Reinhardt let out a low whistle. "That… does not look friendly."
Ivy drew an arrow, keeping it ready. "Something's waiting for us in there."
Marco's drone hovered ahead, scanning the structure. "Hold up." His voice was tense. "I'm picking up… life signs."
Everyone froze.
Elias narrowed his eyes. "Academy?"
Marco swallowed. "No." He zoomed in on the readings. "Something else."
Before anyone could react, the torches along the walls flared brighter, and the circular door began to shift. The symbols along its surface twisted, rearranging, forming a pattern that made Elias's head pound just looking at it.
And then—
The door opened.
A rush of cold air swept through the chamber, carrying whispers that weren't there before. The walls trembled, and the statues moved.
Not statues.
Sentinels.
Their stone armor cracked, revealing bodies of metal and ancient circuitry beneath, their eyes flickering to life with a golden glow.
Lira took a step back. "Oh, hell no."
Cecilia sighed. "Of course the statues are alive. Why wouldn't they be?"
Varian didn't hesitate. "Defensive constructs," he said, drawing his sword. "Prepare for battle."
The first Sentinel lunged.
Elias reacted instantly, his gauntlet lighting up as he intercepted the attack. The force behind the blow rattled his entire frame, sending shockwaves through the floor. His thrusters flared, stabilizing him before he was thrown off balance.
The Sentinel didn't stop. It pressed forward, moving with a grace unnatural for something so massive, its blade flashing in a rapid series of strikes.
Elias twisted, dodging two swings before launching a counterattack. His gauntlet crashed into the Sentinel's torso, sending a shockwave of kinetic energy rippling through its body.
The construct barely flinched.
"Yeah," Elias muttered. "Didn't think that'd be easy."
Reinhardt slammed into another Sentinel, his hammer crackling with stored energy. He swung downward, shattering the construct's shoulder, but it continued moving, unfazed by the damage.
Ivy's arrows pierced their joints, but even with direct hits, the Sentinels repaired themselves mid-motion.
Marco cursed. "They have adaptive self-repair. They're learning from our attacks!"
Lira dodged a strike, flipping mid-air. "That's cheating!"
Varian, moving with calm precision, slid between two Sentinels, his blade carving through weak points faster than they could adapt. "They may be ancient," he said, "but they are not invincible."
Elias analyzed their movements, tracking pattern recognition in their attacks. "They're prioritizing kinetic attacks—Marco, can you overload their sensors?"
Marco was already typing. "Working on it—give me thirty seconds!"
"We don't have thirty seconds!" Lira snapped, narrowly dodging a Sentinel's blade.
Elias didn't wait. He activated his thrusters, launching himself directly into the largest Sentinel, driving both of them backward through the chamber. They crashed into a stone pillar, dust exploding outward.
For a moment, the construct was pinned—but then its hand clamped around Elias's throat.
His visor glitched, energy readings spiking wildly.
The Sentinel's voice echoed—low, metallic, ancient.
"Outsider."
Elias's breath caught. It spoke.
"Your presence is… unexpected."
Elias struggled, but the grip tightened. His HUD flickered, his armor straining against the pressure.
"You do not belong here."
Before it could finish, a golden blur struck from the side.
Varian's blade severed the Sentinel's arm, freeing Elias in a single swift motion. The construct staggered, its circuitry failing, and before it could recover—
Elias's gauntlet flared with energy.
He drove his fist straight through its core.
The Sentinel shuddered—then collapsed.
Silence followed.
Then—the remaining Sentinels stopped.
Their glowing eyes flickered. Their bodies froze, as if waiting for a command that never came.
And then, in perfect unison—they bowed.
Reinhardt blinked. "Uh… okay?"
Elias, still catching his breath, narrowed his eyes. "They weren't just guardians." He turned toward the massive door now fully open, leading deeper into the ruins.
"They were waiting for something."
Varian's expression was unreadable. "No," he murmured.
"They were waiting for someone."
Elias clenched his fists, staring into the darkness beyond the door.
Whatever was inside knew he was coming.
And it had just let him in.