The desert wind howled as the black helicopters descended on the excavation site, kicking up a storm of dust and sand. Derek Dirk squinted, pulling his hat low over his brow as the rotor wash battered him. His team of archaeologists, frantic now, scrambled to cover their dig, tossing tarps over the exposed sections of ancient stone. The dig had been his life’s work, and now, after years of searching, they had finally found it—the tomb of an ancient emperor shrouded in legend.

The helicopters touched down with a mechanical roar, and black-clad soldiers poured out, their faces hidden behind tactical helmets and body armor. Derek’s heart sank as he recognized the symbol on their gear. These weren’t scientists; they were government agents—or worse.

“What the hell are they doing here?” Derek yelled over the deafening rotors, his voice carrying more fear than anger as he turned to Thomas, his financier.

Thomas met his gaze with a steady, cold expression. “They’re here because of what you found. Don’t expect them to care about anything else.”

Derek’s hands balled into fists, fury rising. “You called these bastards? Why? This is my discovery!”

Thomas’ eyes flashed with something darker. “Just cooperate, Derek. You don’t want to know what happens if you don’t.”

Derek cursed, kicking at the dusty ground before rushing toward the excavation site. He was 35, medium build, wearing his usual dusty old hat, jeans, and a faded blue T-shirt. For years, he had searched these arid foothills east of the Spine Mountains, chasing ancient legends of an emperor-sorcerer buried with untold treasures—and, if the stories were to be believed, unspeakable dark powers.

Local folklore claimed that the emperor was no ordinary man. He had summoned demons, mastered necromancy, and created monstrosities that terrorized his enemies. Most academics dismissed the tales as nothing more than superstition, but Derek had always believed there was truth in the myths.

He reached the entrance to the cave, where his crew of grad students was still working, unaware of the danger now looming. Andy, his chief assistant, was there—tall, skinny, with a wild beard and an attitude that had gotten on Derek’s nerves more than once.

Andy stood, glaring at the approaching soldiers. “What kind of totalitarian bullshit is this? I should call the authorities.”

A deep, gravelly voice cut through the noise like a knife. “I am the authority.”

Derek and Andy turned to see a towering figure step from the shadows—a man nearly seven feet tall, clad in a black suit that strained against his massive frame. His head was bald, his forehead heavy with deep-set eyes that glowed with an unnatural intensity. His face looked like it had been carved from granite, all sharp angles and brute strength. If not for the suit, he could have been mistaken for some primordial giant.

Behind him, more soldiers stood, their rifles ready. Thomas followed in the man’s wake, his expression unreadable.

Andy, never one to back down, stepped forward. “This is a dig site, not a damn war zone! What’s your degree, anyway?”

The giant man chuckled darkly, pulling out a pistol. “The school of hard knocks, boy.” Without hesitation, he shot Andy between the eyes.

Derek recoiled, horror freezing him in place as his assistant crumpled to the ground. The man in black holstered his weapon and turned to Derek with a cold smile. “If you really want to know, I studied under Shukra.”

Before Derek could process what had just happened, chaos erupted. One of the students pulled out a cell phone, only to be cut down by a hail of bullets from the soldiers. His body was torn apart, painting the cave walls with gore. The remaining students huddled together, their faces twisted in terror.

Thomas approached the giant, his voice steady. “Shall we kill the rest, my lord?”

The giant shook his head. “No. Keep them. If he wakes hungry, we’ll need sacrifices. Tie them up.”

The soldiers moved in, cuffing the students and dragging them to the side of the cave. Derek watched, helpless, his mind racing. This wasn’t real—this couldn’t be real. He had to wake up from this nightmare.

Two young women were singled out by the giant. “Bring them forward,” he ordered.

Thomas hesitated. “I doubt they’re virgins, my lord.”

The giant’s smile grew cruel. “That matters little. The blood of the innocent still holds power. Their fear will awaken him.”

Derek’s stomach turned as two robed figures appeared from the shadows, chanting strange incantations as they approached the sealed stone door. The giant began drawing arcane symbols in the sand, his movements swift and practiced. The air grew thick with dread, a tangible force pressing down on Derek and his team.

He couldn’t sit by any longer. Desperation gripped him, and he signaled to one of the soldiers standing nearby. The man approached, his face blank.

“What’s happening here?” Derek whispered, his voice trembling.

The soldier glanced at him, a flicker of discomfort in his eyes. “I don’t know, and I don’t want to.”

“This can’t be right. You can’t just let this happen,” Derek pleaded.

The soldier sneered, spitting in Derek’s face. “I’ll tell you this—whatever’s coming, you’re not talking your way out of it.”

The soldier turned away as the massive stone door began to glow. The runes carved into its surface shimmered with a dull red light, and with a deep, rumbling groan, the door slowly swung open.

A reddish glow spilled out from the tomb, casting long, unnatural shadows. The robed priests dragged the two women inside, their screams echoing through the cavern. What followed was worse than Derek could have imagined—horrific sounds of agony and mutilation filled the air. Some of the students retched; others fainted.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Derek tried to keep his composure, but tears streamed down his face as he fought back the overwhelming fear. He had never felt so powerless, so utterly broken.

Then, silence.

The red glow intensified, and a deep, booming laughter resonated from within the tomb. A massive shadow moved in the doorway, and as it stepped into the light, Derek’s heart stopped.

Namhadchogan. The necromancer king. The sorcerer who had ruled with terror 6,000 years ago. He stood before them now, towering at over twelve feet tall, his silver mane brushing the ceiling. His black armor was encrusted with centuries of dust, and his cloak, tattered and worn, billowed behind him. His pale face was splattered with fresh blood, his eyes burning with a crimson glow. He was a living nightmare made flesh.

Namhadchogan turned his gaze toward the giant in the suit and knelt. “My lord,” he rasped, his voice like grinding stone. “How may I serve you?”

The giant smiled, his eyes glinting with triumph. “You’ve slept for 6,000 years, sorcerer. But the time has come. The world is ripe with corruption, and soon, we will reign as gods.”

Namhadchogan grinned, his blood-stained teeth gleaming. “It is as you say, my lord. Men have grown weak. The time of our ascendancy is nigh.”

The sorcerer’s gaze drifted to the students and Derek, and he chuckled. “Shall I feast upon them?”

The giant waved a dismissive hand. “No need. Take that one,” he pointed to a particularly rotund student, “for later, if you get hungry.”

Two guards grabbed the student and dragged him, screaming, out of the cave. The sorcerer and the giant walked side by side out of the tomb, laughing like old friends reunited after millennia.

Derek’s blood ran cold. Whatever hope they had left was fading fast.

The soldiers began placing explosives around the cave, preparing to seal the tomb forever. Panic gripped the remaining students, but their pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears. Derek turned his fury toward Thomas, who still stood by, watching.

“What are you going to tell the families? The university? We’re not just going to disappear!” Derek shouted.

Thomas sneered. “Disappear? No, no. You’ll be found. A tragic accident, an unfortunate cave-in. It’ll be all over the news.”

“You’re insane! People will find out!”

Thomas laughed. “We own the media, the police, the world. You’re nothing but a pawn. You always were.”

The soldiers finished their preparations, and as the helicopters began to depart, Derek felt a deep sense of dread settle over him. They were going to die here, buried alive in the tomb of a forgotten king.

But as the last helicopter lifted off, one of the soldiers returned—Derek’s tormentor. The guard dragged him across the cave floor, ignoring Derek’s protests until, with a sharp blow, everything went dark.

When Derek awoke, the sun was setting, casting long shadows across the desert. He was no longer bound, a blanket thrown over him. He sat up, his head pounding, the scene of devastation around him confirming the horrors of the day. The cave was in ruins, blood smeared on the rocks, and his team was gone.

Derek was about to open his mouth when the guard barked at him, his voice filled with venom. “Listen, fuck face, I do the talking. You do the listening, unless you want a bullet in your head. Understand?”

Derek nodded quickly, his mind racing.

The guard continued, his tone gruff and filled with years of pent-up frustration. “I saved your sorry ass for one reason. I've seen too much. I know too much. These assholes I work for... they’re not like anything you’ve ever dealt with. Every day I think about blowing my own brains out just to escape the nightmares. The horrors I’ve seen... they could fill volumes. I joined the military to do something noble, to protect people, but this?” He shook his head. “This is pure evil. They’re waking things that should stay buried—demons, necromancers, priests of dark gods who haven’t been spoken of in thousands of years. They’re waiting for something, something cosmic. Something big.”

Derek's mouth went dry. “Why save me?”

The guard’s eyes darkened. “Because they’re looking for something. And whatever it is, it’s terrifying enough to make them nervous. I was on a dig with them on the other side of the Spine Mountains. They uncovered a tomb, and inside were these symbols, hieroglyphs. The whole group—the ones you think don’t fear anything—they went white as ghosts. Some started shaking, others drew their weapons, ready to fight.”

Derek leaned forward. “The leader—who is he? What’s his name?”

The guard scowled. “We just call him ‘Lord.’ Lord of the Pit. King of the Unclean. He’s got a lot of titles, but I’ve never heard his real name. All I know is, he’s not human—not completely. I’ve seen him do things… terrible things. Once, he hit a guy so hard, all his limbs flew off like a ragdoll. And when we saw those symbols in the tomb? He changed. Grew extra arms, extra heads. Weapons appeared out of thin air, like he was some kind of goddamn demon himself.”

“What happened to that tomb?”

“They didn’t find what they were looking for. Eventually, they calmed down, acted like it was just another failed mission. But I’ll tell you this—whoever was buried in that tomb? They hated him. Before we left, they all took turns pissing on the grave.”

Derek swallowed, his stomach churning with a sick mix of fear and revulsion. “What did the symbol look like?”

The guard knelt, drawing a crude shape in the sand. It didn’t resemble anything Derek had seen before, an angular, twisted design that seemed to pulse with something dark, even in the sand.

Derek stared at it, the weight of the world pressing down on him. “What do you want me to do?”

The guard’s gaze hardened as he raised his gun, pointing it directly at Derek’s forehead. “Find it before they do. Hide it. Use it against them—whatever the hell you have to do. Just don’t let them get it.”

Derek held up his hands in surrender. “Isn’t there anyone I can talk to? Anyone who can help?”

The guard pressed the barrel of his gun against Derek’s skull. “You’re not talking to anyone. You do, and you're a dead man.”

Derek froze, his heart pounding in his chest. “I—”

“Shut up and listen! Anyone who isn’t already bought, owned, or in this for their own sick gain is brainwashed. If you went to any ‘sane’ person and told them you saw a 6,000-year-old sorcerer walking around, what would they say? They’d lock you up.”

Derek’s mouth clamped shut. The guard had a point.

“It’s all part of their plan,” the guard continued. “They’ve been dumbing down our species for generations. Brainwashing us in every way they can. Now, people are so far gone, they’ll never believe what’s happening until it’s too late. Tell them the world’s ending, and they’ll tell you to shut up so they can catch the next ball game. And when these monsters walk around in their true forms, people won’t even flinch. Hell, they’ll probably think it’s the latest fashion.”

Derek’s voice was low, almost a whisper. “What’s their master plan?”

The guard’s eyes flicked toward the horizon, the fading light casting long shadows. “I don’t know all of it. But it’s bad. Worse than anything you or I can imagine. They’re calling it the ‘noontide of the age of corruption.’ And trust me, when it hits, we’ll wish we were dead.”

He shoved a pistol and a large knife into Derek’s hands, followed by a backpack filled with supplies. “Take these. Head off on foot. Whatever you do, don’t get caught. You’re a dead man now, whether you like it or not. If they find you before you find what they’re looking for, then we’re all screwed—or worse.”

Derek stood there, stunned, his mind racing with the enormity of what had just been dumped on him. The guard’s words echoed in his head like the toll of a funeral bell. What the hell had he stumbled into?

The guard gave him one last shove. “Go! Head west. You’ll have a chance if you stay off the grid.”

For a long moment, Derek just stood there, rooted to the spot, the weight of the guard’s words sinking into his bones. Then, as the last rays of the setting sun dipped below the horizon, he started moving. He walked westward, into the unknown, the sense of dread settling over him like a shroud.

In the back of his mind, he couldn’t shake the feeling that whatever lay ahead, it was far darker than anything he had ever unearthed in a forgotten tomb.