It pulsed faintly, as if it had a heartbeat, casting a cool, bluish light on the rocky walls around him. Th

spered to himself, his

t wasn't glass. It felt ancient like it had been there long before Willow Creek existed. Symbols, similar to those on

nd, stopping just short of touchin

m jump. He turned to see Max, tail wagging fu

laimed. "I told yo

and sniffed it cautiously before sitting down at Jack

m," Jackson said, his voice

t it, something that made him want to understand its purpose. Wa

ho had built this? Why was it hidden u

ng a deep breath. "Le

elisk and the glowing symbols. The flash briefly lit up the cavern, cast

said, scratching behind hi

its base, he noticed a small indentation-like a keyhole, but not quite. It was od

murmured, crouching

ight, shining it into the indentation. It was deep b

s obelisk part of something bigger?

n the tunnel," he said to Max,

were smooth to the touch, their light dimming slightly as he moved away from the obel

unnel, narrower than the one he'd entered throug

go, max?" J

e, wagging his

or it," Jackson muttered

ough the gloom. The walls here were rougher, less polished than the cavern. The glow from

l rocks clattered with each step. Max stayed close, occasi

faint light ahead-different from the glow of the o

muttered, quick

a circular pit, surrounded by stones that had been arranged in a deliberate patt

were mesmerizing, their colors shifting from blue to gree

place?" he w

re symbols, carved into the stones around the pit. They were similar to th

pictures with his phone. The symbols seemed to f

me," he admitted,

to the far side of the chamber. There, half-bu

boy?" Jackson asked,

e object. It was made of the same material as the obelisk, with

ackson said, holding t

pit flared brighter, casting wild shadows on the wal

red, his voice barely audible

ared, the flames died down, leav

ned the key over in his hands.

his voice steady despite

d tightly in Jackson's hand. When they returned to the obelis

carefully inserted the key. It fit perfec

an to hum, louder this time, and the symbols on its s

lisk pulsed with energy. The ground beneath him tre

usly, his tail w

of its surface slid open, revealing a hidden compartment.

rface swirling with shifting colors. He reached out,

rough him, and his mind was flooded with images-flashes of unfamil

murmured, his voi

snapping Jackson

ht steady in his hands. Whate

" Jackson said, his voice

tly in his hands. As he emerged into the sunlight, he knew one thing fo