It felt like awakening from a long, dreamless slumber when Max's eyes slowly opened. His vision adjusted to dim light, and the first thing he saw was the ceiling above him. The rock was rough and uneven, its dark gray surface glistening faintly as though carved from some ancient stone. The entire place felt heavy, like the air itself had weight.
"Where is this?" Max whispered under his breath. He tried to move, to push himself up, but his body refused to obey. It was as though countless invisible hands pinned him down, forcing his chest and limbs against the cold ground. He could not lift even a finger. Only his mouth moved freely.
'The pressure here is worse than outside,' Max thought calmly, refusing to let frustration creep in. His memory flashed back to the last thing he had seen before collapsing—the silhouettes of dwarf-like figures emerging from the strange settlement. Now, lying in this cavern, he could only assume that these beings had brought him here.
