The private jet cut through the sky like a silent predator, its sleek frame slicing through the clouds. Below, the endless blue expanse of the Aegean Sea stretched out, islands scattered like forgotten relics of the past.
Emma sat by the window, her fingers drumming lightly against the armrest.
Greece.
It felt surreal. A day ago, they had barely escaped with their lives. Now, they were flying straight into another storm.
Alexander sat across from her, eyes scanning a leather-bound journal—one of Hawthorne's recovered texts. His expression was unreadable, but Emma knew him well enough to see the tension in his jaw.
He was worried.
So was she.
Marcus, sprawled out on the couch across the cabin, let out a dramatic sigh. "Can I just say? I hate secret societies. Why can't ancient treasures ever be in an empty field, waiting for some nice archaeologist to find them?"
Hawthorne adjusted his glasses. "Because that would be far too easy."
Emma smirked. "And we're never that lucky."
The intercom crackled. "We'll be landing in ten minutes, Mr. Blackwood."
Alexander closed the journal. "Gear up. We don't know what we're walking into."
---
Landing in the Unknown
The moment they stepped off the jet, the heat hit them like a wave.
The air smelled of salt and sun-warmed earth, the scent of the sea carried by a gentle breeze. The landing strip was tucked away on a private island, the kind that belonged to billionaires and ghost stories.
A black SUV was already waiting for them.
Emma adjusted her sunglasses. "So… we're sure about this lead?"
Hawthorne nodded, unfolding a map as they climbed into the car. "The fragment of the seal should be somewhere beneath the ruins of an old monastery. It was built during the Byzantine era, but before that, the island was home to something far older."
Marcus raised an eyebrow. "Older? Like… cursed tomb older?"
Hawthorne hesitated. "Possibly. There are accounts of the Revenant using the island as a hiding place centuries ago."
Emma exchanged a look with Alexander.
This wasn't going to be easy.
The car rumbled over the rocky terrain, winding through dense olive groves and sun-bleached cliffs. The deeper they went, the more abandoned the land felt—no tourists, no locals.
Only ruins.
And silence.
"Are we sure this place isn't haunted?" Marcus muttered.
"No," Hawthorne said simply.
Marcus groaned. "Fantastic."
---
The Descent
They reached the ruins by late afternoon.
The monastery was nothing more than crumbling stone walls and archways choked with vines. Time had not been kind to it.
Emma stepped over a fallen column, scanning the area. "There's supposed to be an entrance somewhere, right?"
Hawthorne studied the map. "If the texts are accurate, there's a crypt beneath the altar chamber. That's where they would have hidden the fragment."
Alexander was already moving. "Then let's find it."
They navigated through the ruins, the heat pressing down on them. The monastery had once been grand—Emma could see it in the faded frescoes, the broken mosaics beneath their feet.
And then, at the center of the ruins, they found it.
A circular stone altar, weathered by centuries of wind and rain.
Alexander ran a hand along its surface. "It's hollow underneath."
Hawthorne crouched beside him. "There must be a mechanism."
Marcus cracked his knuckles. "Or… we could do things the fast way."
Before anyone could stop him, he slammed his boot against the altar.
There was a deep rumble.
Then, the stone shifted.
A section of the floor collapsed inward, revealing a dark, yawning hole. Dust and debris cascaded down into the abyss.
Emma coughed. "Subtle."
Marcus grinned. "I try."
Alexander pulled out a flashlight, illuminating the rough-hewn tunnel beneath them.
"Time to go," he said, dropping down into the shadows.
Emma sighed. "Of course we're going into the creepy underground crypt."
Then she followed him down.
---
Secrets in the Dark
The air was cool and damp. The tunnel walls were lined with ancient carvings, symbols worn with time. The deeper they went, the heavier the silence became.
Emma's pulse quickened.
Something about this place felt wrong.
Alexander moved ahead, scanning the walls. "Look at these symbols."
Hawthorne traced a finger over the engravings. "They're warnings."
Emma frowned. "Warnings about what?"
Hawthorne swallowed. "About what's waiting down here."
Marcus sighed. "Great. Love that."
They pressed on, their footsteps echoing. The tunnel sloped downward, leading to an underground chamber.
And at the center of it…
A pedestal.
Upon it lay an obsidian shard, no larger than Emma's palm. But it pulsed with an unnatural energy, sending a shiver down her spine.
Alexander stepped forward. "The fragment."
Emma held up a hand. "Wait."
Something wasn't right.
The air felt thick, charged. Like the moment before a storm.
And then—
The torches along the walls ignited.
Emma spun around. "That's not good."
From the shadows, figures emerged. Cloaked. Silent.
The Revenant.
They had walked straight into a trap.
---
The Reckoning
A low voice echoed through the chamber.
"You should not have come."
A man stepped forward, his face obscured by a dark hood. But his eyes—**glowing, molten gold—**were unmistakable.
Alexander tensed. "You're too late. The fragment is ours."
The man chuckled. "Oh, but you misunderstand, Mr. Blackwood. We never needed the fragment."
Emma's breath hitched. "Then why are you here?"
The man smiled.
"We came for you."
In an instant, the air exploded with movement.
The Revenant lunged.
Emma barely had time to react before she was yanked backward, a knife slicing the air where she had just stood.
Marcus cursed. "This is why I hate ancient treasure hunts!"
Alexander was already fighting back, moving like a force of nature. He dodged a blade, twisted, and slammed an attacker into the stone wall.
Emma grabbed a broken torch, using it as a makeshift weapon. A Revenant came at her—she ducked low, sweeping their legs out from under them.
But there were too many.
And then—
A blinding shockwave erupted from the pedestal.
The air split apart.
Emma saw the obsidian shard crack, dark energy pouring out of it.
The chamber shuddered. The walls began to collapse.
Alexander's voice rang out. "We need to get out—NOW!"
Emma turned—only to see the golden-eyed man standing over her.
"You don't understand, child," he murmured. "This is only the beginning."
Then, everything went dark.