Nightmare of the Abyss

An Unseen Force

The air shifted.

A ripple ran through the space around them, warping the ground beneath their feet. The unnatural glow of the cracked sky flickered—for a single moment, it felt like something was being rewritten.

Then—the world snapped.

A crushing pull wrenched them forward. A sensation like falling, but without direction—without gravity.

Bruno barely had time to brace before the air solidified around them again.

They weren't in the city anymore.

The transition had been seamless, but the environment had changed. Cold walls. Reinforced steel doors. A fortified structure.

Raine staggered, blinking rapidly. "What—?"

"Warp gate," Varen muttered, rubbing his temples. His voice was steady, but Bruno saw the tension in his jaw. "Advanced spatial transfer. Didn't even feel the passage."

Silas flexed his fingers, shaking off the lingering disorientation. "They couldn't risk us walking through the city, huh?" His smirk didn't reach his eyes. "Smart."

They were already trapped.

Guards in dark-plated armor surrounded them. Their movements were precise, practiced.

One stepped forward, a stern-faced woman with short-cropped hair, and motioned for them to extend their arms.

"Weapons. Items. All of them."

Bruno clenched his teeth but complied, unfastening his belt. His dagger, the small rations he had left—everything was stripped away. The others followed, though Silas made a show of rolling his eyes as he tossed his blade onto the growing pile.

Then the guard reached for Bruno's Abyssal Fragment.

The moment her fingers hovered near it, a pulse of dark energy rippled outward.

The air shuddered.

The woman hissed, stepping back. Her hand had paled slightly, veins darkening for a brief second before returning to normal.

The guards hesitated.

Bruno felt it—the Fragment was resisting.

Another guard approached with a thick, rune-etched containment box. He unlocked it and motioned sharply. "Drop it in."

Bruno's fingers lingered for half a second.

Then, with a slow exhale, he let go.

The moment the Fragment left his grip, the air felt lighter, as if something oppressive had just been sealed away.

Silas let out a slow whistle. "Well, that was dramatic."

The woman shot him a glare before securing the box with three separate locks.

One of the guards muttered, "Damn thing feels like it's watching me."

Bruno said nothing.

Because he felt it too.

The door to the chamber opened.

A man stepped in—broad-shouldered, clad in battle-worn armor, a sword sheathed at his side. His presence was heavy, controlled.

Captain Elias.

He stopped at the head of the table, arms crossed. His gaze swept over them, not with hostility, but with scrutiny.

Finally, he spoke. "Let's make something clear. You are not supposed to be here."

Silas leaned back, smirking. "Trust me, we didn't exactly book a vacation."

Elias didn't react. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small, metal emblem.

It was engraved with an intricate compass-like design.

"Abyssal Cartographers," he said. "The first to ever document this pocket dimension."

Bruno's fingers twitched. Abyssal Cartographers? He'd never heard the term before.

"They discovered gates exist decades ago," Elias continued. "A spatial anomaly in the Abyss. It led here."

He placed the emblem on the table.

"A team of seven mercenaries was sent in to clear it. Their mission? Locate the entrance. Secure the passage."

His voice lowered slightly.

"They never found it."

A pause.

Bruno's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Elias met his gaze. "The gate disappeared. There was no way in or out."

Raine tensed. "So they were trapped?"

"For a time. But after four hours, the anomaly stabilized. A full perimeter scan was conducted within a 200-meter radius." He let the silence stretch before saying:

"The gate did not return."

Silas's smirk faded slightly. "Meaning what, exactly?"

Elias leaned forward. "Meaning that whoever came through it this time… was no ordinary group of lost mercenaries."

He held their gaze for a long moment before sitting back. "And then, the very next day… you stepped out of a crack in space."

A slow, sinking feeling coiled in Bruno's stomach.

They weren't just lost wanderers in this dimension. They were an anomaly. And those lost wanderers were four of you.

And the people here knew it.

A metallic clank signaled the end of the conversation.

"Take them to the cells."

The guards grabbed their arms, pulling them toward the heavy, reinforced corridor.

As they walked, Raine's gaze flickered toward a row of iron-barred cells along the far wall.

Then—she froze.

The prisoners inside… weren't normal.

Some sat curled in the corners, muttering to themselves. Others clawed at the stone, nails torn and blackened from overuse.

One man turned his head too fast, his eyes sunken and hollow.

"Don't listen to it," he whispered, voice raw. "Don't let it in. Don't let it in."

Raine shuddered. Something was very, very wrong.

She tore her gaze away as the guards shoved them into separate holding cells.

The doors slammed shut.

A cold stillness settled.