Pharaoh's Ghost {Completed/Editing}

XVII*

Entering the palace, Kirk paused and sucked in a deep breath. It had been an interesting first day or so and there was no telling what else was going to happen. He turned and gazed down at the city below. Shukura had walked him halfway before running off to work on an errand of some sort, but he didn't mind. He was used to people running off. Kirk sucked in a deep breath as he glanced around asking himself what he should do now when golden particles appeared several feet ahead of him in the hallway. He watched as the particles turned violet before allowing the sphere from before to appear. 

A smirk appeared on his face. There was a door upstairs that was heavily guarded and he wanted to know what secrets it held. He watched as the sphere moved back towards the staircase wishing to bring him upstairs. He glanced around, he had already seen the locked door, but he needed another way in. He stood and thought about his options. He could rush the men at the door and break in directly, but that would more than likely get him killed on-site no questions asked.

Chains clanked somewhere nearby causing his ear to twitch. He picked his head up and glanced around. The clanking sounded once more, this time, it came from underneath him. Kirk scanned the area for some sort of stairwell. Every door had a marking on it, but they were written in their dialect so he had no clue what was supposed to be what. Screams echoed through the corridor and shook his core. Rushing to a door on his left, he flung it open and peered in. Shelves lined the walls with cleaning supplies and fresh linens lying on the surface. 

Kirk closed the door and moved on to the next one. He reached for the door and paused. There was no telling where the screams came from or what was even happening to the person. The scream resounded once more followed by a long wail. Kirk clenched the doorknob tight and glanced down the hallway passed Shukura's door. Thanks to his parent's line of work, he knew those screams meant someone was either being tortured or murdered. Sucking in a deep breath, he followed the screams until he came to a door on his left and pushed it open.

Cold air hit him in the face causing him to tense. He had no idea if he was in the right spot, a long mournful cry followed by screaming in what he assumed was their dialect filled the air. Gritting his teeth, he traversed the stairwell until he was engulfed by darkness. Kirk paused and turned back toward where he came from. Light glowed bright at the top. Perhaps he should turn back. The door's hinges squealed as it began closing. Kirk tried to race to the top to stop, but it was too late. The door clicked shut and now he was left alone in the silence. 

Sucking in a deep breath, he put a hand against the wall and progressed carefully down the steep steps. His mind wondered as he progressed into the darkness. At any moment, a monster or some kind of cave dweller could approach him and he would never know the difference or see them coming. The sound of metal pulling against metal echoed around him. He felt the air around him drop at least twenty degrees enough to shake his body. He felt the floor beneath him begin to pull back behind him.

Gritting his teeth, Kirk bent his knees and jumped forward. He didn't know where he was going, just that he hoped there was a platform before him he could land on. His toes braced against a hard object, and he held his arms out hoping to regain his balance, however, the platform pulled out from underneath him as well causing him to fall backward. Cold air shot up around him as he fell. His body jolted upwards as a wet substance hit him in the back before engulfing him. Kirk held his breath as his body sank. He had fallen into some type of body of water. 

Kirk kicked his feet out, pushing his body forward. Perhaps there was a wall nearby he could use to get his barring. Metal on metal began clinking in the distance. He rolled on his stomach and began turning every which way searching for a way out. All that met his eyes was darkness. Kirk's lungs began burning as they yearned for fresh air. He changed to a semi-standing position and pushed his legs out forcing his body upwards. Cold metal came into connect with his head. The impact forced him to release some air from his lungs.