Elias’s fingers trailed the wall as he walked. They walked through the empty hallways. He occasionally paused when he recognized something. The remains of battle were messy and always made them pause. Members of the Sword Temple had fought and defended the structure together until their last breaths. Their bodies lay mixed with other fallen members and monsters. Each had worked together until the end.

They crossed through another courtyard and headed for one of the side buildings connected to the larger complex. It was a slow and somber walk to the side building. Thompson kept his hand on his crossbow as if more monsters were going to come around the corner.

“All of the Temple’s important documents should be in here. Everything about the lessons, training, history, and the original document on sword forms. It would have been sealed up once the war started. Even then it would have been rarely used. Only the masters of the Sword Temple would learn it and only by instruction from another sword master.”

“Is it possible that the documents were destroyed?” asked Alice.

“It is unlikely. The monsters were here for the people, not the things. Anything destroyed was collateral damage. The fighters here would never have let the doors to their storage areas open,” Elias responded.

The door to the side building was half open already. With a hard shove, the door creaked open wide enough for them all to enter. Inside the building, tables were flipped, and wall decorations spread themselves on the floor in tatters. They stepped over the bodies of rotting monsters. Elias walked over to one side of the room. He pushed some of the old wood aside.

“The documents we need are down there, but we need to find a key,” said Elias. He pointed out the outline of a metal hatch with a keyhole in it.

“Or we can try and break in,” said Thompson. “Can your sword magic cut through the metal?”

“I can try,” Alice said as she drew her sword.

She called on her power and brought the sword in between the slits of the metal. Her blade glowed and she focused solely on strengthening the weapon. Alice strained as she pulled upward letting the blade push against the hatch. The intensity of the glow grew. Thompson and Elias took a few steps back. The metal creaked and groaned as Alice put more stress on it. It produced a high-pitched whine loud enough that they had to put their hands over their ears.

Alice's sword magic surged through the metal, illuminating the darkened room with its intense light. With a final, determined heave, she wrenched the sword upward, and the hatch broke open with a resounding crack, its hinges giving way under the force. The trio exchanged looks of triumph mixed with relief. Elias stepped forward, peering into the newly revealed darkness below.

"Good work," he said, nodding at Alice, his voice a mix of admiration and urgency. "Let's not waste any time."

They descended cautiously into the basement, the air growing cooler and more stale as they ventured deeper. The narrow stairwell opened into a corridor lined with doors on either side, each marked with symbols that Elias explained were the different sects of the Sword Temple.

"The documents room should be at the end of this hall," Elias whispered, leading the way. His steps were measured, his eyes scanning for any signs of danger or hidden traps.

As they approached the final door, Alice noticed intricate carvings on its surface, depicting various sword techniques and battles. The door, however, was firmly shut, its lock rusted to the point of no return.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"We need to get through this," Thompson murmured, examining the lock.

Alice prepared to use her sword again, but Elias stopped her. “Focus on the hinges and be careful of the door. The door is ancient and should be preserved. There is no need to rush it. Take your time.”

“I’ll handle it,” she replied.

“Thompson, help me with these tools,” said Elias.

As Alice started working on the top hinge he brought out the old craftsman’s bag. He took out a few of the tools and sorted through them. Thompson quickly noted what Elias was trying to do and started to help. They worked on the lowest of the three hinges and started to test the strength of the hinges with the tools. Elias hoped that they would at least be able to damage the hinge enough for Alice to easily open it if not break it off entirely.

Alice carefully aligned her sword with the top hinge, her concentration evident in the slight furrow of her brow. The blade's glow intensified as she channeled her energy, her movements precise and controlled. Meanwhile, Elias and Thompson worked meticulously on the lower hinge, their tools scraping against the aged metal.

The silence of the corridor was broken by the occasional clink of metal and the soft, focused breathing of the trio. Elias glanced over at Alice, admiring her focus and skill. She kept pushing and pulling at the hinge. The space between the area widened as more metal was bent out of place.

Thompson grunted in approval as the lower hinge finally began to give way under their combined efforts. "Not much longer now," he murmured, his voice low but encouraging.

As Alice completed her task on the top hinge, a soft metallic whisper signified the loosening of the ancient binding. With one hand she grabbed what remained of the hinge and pried it away. She stepped back and the others let her take up more of the space. Alice examined Thompson and Elias’s handiwork.

“I guess I should do the bottom one next,” she said. “Thanks for loosening it for me.”

The next hinge went by much quicker. Their tools had started to twist the bolts and metal connecting the door to the wall. Her blade created the leverage she needed to force the hinge to the point of breaking. She moved onto the final hinge. It was the final seal between them and the journey they had been on for weeks.

By now she knew how to best bend the steel and make it break. She let her sword into the cracks of the hinges and let the temporarily unbreakable sword force itself through the metal. Luckily the rust that rusted the locks had also rusted some parts of the hinge. In time she broke the final hinge as well. She gave it a push.

It didn’t budge. “The door is still sealed because of the lock,” said Thompson.

“We need to manually push the door open at this point. Make the lock the hinge point. Until it breaks as well,” said Elias. “We push it open together.”

“We can try, but if we can’t force it open with strength then I will have to damage the door and its artwork to get through the lock,” said Alice as she sheathed her sword.

Together the three of them lined up against the door. Alice stood nearest the lock side, where things needed to bend and break before opening. Next to her was Thompson and then Elias.

Alice empowered her body with magic, her muscles bulging slightly under the strain as she focused her strength. Thompson and Elias, on her sides, braced their feet against the ground, their own muscles tensing in preparation. With a unified grunt, they pushed against the ancient door. The lock, weakened by rust and age, creaked under the pressure, but it held firm, resisting their initial efforts.

"Harder!" Elias grunted, his voice strained. "We need more force!"

Alice closed her eyes, calling upon her sword magic not just to empower her blade but now her entire being. A soft, almost imperceptible glow enveloped her, the magic coursing through her veins like liquid fire. She pushed against the door with renewed vigor, her energy melding with the physical effort of her companions. The door groaned, the sound echoing through the empty corridor. The lock screeched as it was forced beyond its limits, the metal bending, twisting, and finally snapping with a loud crack.

The door fell, revealing a large room filled with shelves of scrolls, books, and various artifacts. The air was thick with the scent of old paper and dust. As they regained their balance, the trio peered into the room beyond the door. Shelves lined the walls, filled with scrolls and tomes, their covers aged but intact.

Elias stepped forward; his eyes wide with awe. "This is it," he whispered. "The heart of the Sword Temple's knowledge."