The chamber was suffocating, not just from the stale air but from the weight of its history. The glow from their flashlights caught glimpses of the ancient carvings that told stories of rituals, forgotten gods, and unspeakable horrors.

Raj moved with purpose, his eyes scanning the symbols with a ferocity that bordered on obsession. He muttered calculations and interpretations under his breath, oblivious to the tension rising around him.

Victor's POV

Victor leaned against one of the stone columns, pretending to be calm while his pulse thrummed in his ears. His eyes followed Raj's every movement, wary and calculating.

He had known Raj Darkthrone for over a decade. Their paths had crossed on numerous expeditions, and each time, Victor found himself caught between admiration and fear. Raj wasn't just an archaeologist—he was a force of nature. A man whose mind worked in ways others couldn't comprehend. A man who never let anything—or anyone—stand in his way.

He remembered the rumors. The failed expedition in Peru, where Raj had been accused of sacrificing the safety of his team for a chance at discovering the lost city of Aqaris. No bodies were ever found, but whispers of betrayal and ancient curses followed him like a shadow.

And yet, here they all were—following him once again.

"Genius is a dangerous thing," Victor thought, his eyes narrowing. "Especially when it belongs to someone with nothing to lose."

He glanced at Elias Vaughan, who stood near the entrance, his face half-hidden in shadow. Elias had always been the closest thing Raj had to an equal—a fellow seeker of truth. But even he seemed more cautious than usual.

Elias Vaughan's POV

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Elias crossed his arms, his gaze fixed on Raj. There was a time when he had considered Raj a mentor, even a friend. But those days felt like another life. The man standing in front of him now was a shadow of the one he had known—a man who had traded kindness for cold ambition.

He thought back to their first expedition together in the Tibetan Highlands. Raj had been a rising star back then, a brilliant mind with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. He could decipher ancient texts faster than anyone, identify symbols no one else could recognize, and connect fragments of history into coherent truths.

But brilliance came at a cost.

Elias had seen the shift in Raj over the years—the way his hunger for answers turned darker, his methods more ruthless. He remembered the whispered arguments in university halls, the way Raj would dismiss ethical boundaries as "obstacles to progress."

"Raj Darkthrone," Elias mused silently, "the man who could solve the mysteries of the world… and leave a trail of ruins behind him."

He clenched his jaw, watching Raj trace the spiraling symbols around the altar. There was no doubt in his mind that Raj was the most brilliant man he had ever known. But there was also no doubt that he was dangerous.

"Raj," Elias said aloud, his voice cutting through the thick silence. "We need to slow down. We don't even know what we're dealing with here."

Raj didn't look up. "We know exactly what we're dealing with. This tomb wasn't just built to hide something—it was built to protect it. We've read the texts, Elias. We both know what lies beyond this door."

Victor stepped forward, his voice calm but firm. "And what if those texts were wrong? What if what lies beyond that door is something we're not ready for?"

Raj finally turned to face them, his eyes burning with a mixture of excitement and defiance. "Then we'll be the first to discover it. The first to unlock its secrets. This is why we're here—to push the boundaries of what we know. To claim what history tried to bury."

Victor tightened his grip on the knife at his side, his mind racing. He had followed Raj into the depths of madness before, and each time, he had barely made it out alive. But he couldn't deny the pull of discovery—the intoxicating allure of being part of something greater than himself.

"Raj is dangerous," he thought. "But he's also a genius. And geniuses are the ones who change the world—whether for better or worse."

Raj turned back to the altar, his fingers hovering over the spiraled symbols. He could feel it—the hum beneath his skin, the pull of the unknown.

"The door is a lock," he said softly, almost to himself. "And this symbol is the key."

Eva stepped closer, her eyes wide. "Raj… are you sure?"

Raj smiled, a dark gleam in his eyes. "I've never been more sure of anything."

Without waiting for a response, he pressed his palm against the center of the spiral.

The room seemed to shudder. Dust rained down from the ceiling as ancient gears groaned to life, their echoes reverberating through the chamber. The stone door at the far end began to shift, its surface splitting down the middle as it slowly opened.

A cold wind rushed out from the darkness beyond, carrying with it the scent of something ancient and long-dead.

Raj stepped forward, his heart pounding. "Come on," he said, his voice steady despite the chaos around them. "We're about to make history."

Victor and Elias exchanged a look, their unspoken fears hanging in the air between them.

Then, one by one, they followed Raj into the darkness.