INT. HELL – THE TESTAMENT'S CHAMBER – TIMELESS
Golden light burns hotter than fire.
Screams echo through the chamber of greed as bodies fall, weapons clash, and the resurrected dead advance in perfect unison.
Arven, Grace, Kael, Cassian, Kairo, Kwame, Sofia, Dimitri, Elias, Viktor, and the last uncorrupted survivors stand back-to-back, bloodied and exhausted. Around them, their former comrades — greedy and dead alike — charge endlessly.
Kwame: swinging his hammer, panting We can't hold forever!
Kael: blocking a divine strike with his gauntlets Then we don't! We move!
Grace: slashing two attackers aside with her katana Where?! We're surrounded!
Suddenly, a voice fills their heads — calm but urgent.
Gabriel (voice): echoing inside their skulls Run. Get out. Leave now before you're consumed in greed or cut down by the dead.
Arven: eyes widening Gabriel?!
Gabriel (voice): firm Retreat to the gate. Close it. Do not look back. Run.
The group exchanges stunned looks — then move. Arven cuts a path open, Grace at his side. Kael slams his gauntlets into the ground, sending a shockwave to scatter attackers. Kwame's hammer swings wide, clearing a way.
Cassian: yelling Move! Everyone move!
They sprint, dragging the wounded with them. Sofia strikes with her rapier to fend off attackers trying to block their escape. Tanaka's chains whip out, pulling a survivor back just before a blade lands.
Sofia: panting Don't stop running!
Elias: twirling his staff and spear in alternating bursts Keep together! Don't break the line!
Viktor fires behind them, slowing the zombified chosen as they close the distance. The group races toward the massive stone gate at the edge of the chamber — carved with sigils of judgment.
Behind them, the golden light grows blinding. More corpses rise. Thirty-four old chosen march with inhuman precision, weapons blazing with divine wrath.
Kairo: glancing back They're not stopping!
Arven: gritting his teeth Then neither do we!
They reach the gate. Kwame slams his hammer against the control sigil, cracking the gold veins. Kael plants his gauntlets into the mechanism, forcing it open with brute force.
The gate groans. The ground shakes. The resurrected army closes in.
Grace: yelling Faster! It's closing!
One survivor trips. Dimitri turns back, cutting down an attacker and pulling the man to his feet. Elias throws a burst of light to cover them. Sofia lunges, stabbing a spear that nearly pierces Kairo's back.
Cassian: breathing hard Everyone through — now!
The last of them cross. Kwame slams his hammer down — the gate seals with a thunderous boom. The sound echoes like a heartbeat stopping. The golden light fades on the other side of the door.
Silence. Just the sound of their own ragged breathing.
They stand in a dark hallway — the "safe" side of the gate. Only 32 survivors now.
Blood, dirt, and ash cover every face. The glow of the Testament is gone, but its weight lingers.
Kwame: panting, shouting into the dark Gabriel! Speak to us!
Grace: weakly Why didn't he warn us?
Kairo: staring at the ground He knew. He had to know.
Arven: quietly, fists shaking Gabriel... why?
Silence. No voice answers. Kwame steps forward, slamming his hammer into the wall.
Kwame: roaring Speak to us, Gabriel! You never warned us! You sent us into that trap!
Nothing. Just echoes. Then — a new voice.
??? (voice): calm, smooth Oh. You're trying to communicate with Gabriel.
The survivors freeze. The voice is not Gabriel's — colder, heavier.
??? (voice): I'm sorry. He's not available at the moment.
Sofia: whispering Who are you?
??? (voice): Let's just say... Gabriel is not here anymore.
Cassian: furious What do you mean "not here"?!
??? (voice): My apologies. I am Michael — the brother of Gabriel.
Silence. Shock. The survivors look at each other, unable to process.
Kwame: snapping What the hell?! You're an angel — you're supposed to help us! Don't abandon us now!
Michael (voice): I am helping you. By speaking. But it is not our job to interfere with the judgment of Hell.
Grace: shaking Judgment of Hell? We were chosen! We were sent here!
Michael (voice): And you sinned. That is why you are here. That is why you will be reset for the fourth time.
Elias: staggering Fourth time...?
Michael (voice): Gabriel broke the rules. He interfered. He is in Heaven now, facing his own judgment. He will be executed soon.
Gasps. Cries. Someone drops their weapon. Sofia covers her mouth. Kairo's grip on his katana shakes.
Julian: whispering No... Gabriel...
Viktor: growling So all of this — the Testament, the greed, the dead — it's a trap you knew about.
Michael (voice): The Testament reveals what you are, nothing more. You did this. Not we.
Kwame: roaring Liar! You watched us die! You sent us to die!
Michael (voice): softly Goodbye.
The voice fades. Silence swallows the hall. The survivors stand frozen, trembling. Only 32 left. No Gabriel. No hope. Just the echo of their own breaths.
Some collapse to their knees. Others stare at the sealed gate, hearing faint scratching from the other side — the Testament's puppets still moving.
Arven: quietly We're alone now.
Grace: closing her eyes Then we move. Or we die here too.
Kwame leans on his hammer, staring at the ceiling. His jaw clenches. He whispers a prayer but nothing answers.
To be continued...