Rain lashed against the broken glass of the old house as if the night itself were trying to seep inside. Noah zipped up his jacket and cast his flashlight down the hallway. He was alone. Or so he wanted to believe.
He didn't quite remember how he had ended up here. His research into urban legends had led him to this town, to this house. What started as an academic curiosity had quickly turned into an obsession. He had found records of an orphanage sealed beneath the property, connected through a locked basement. No one spoke of it, but anonymous reports described events that defied logical explanation.
He forced open the lock leading to the basement and descended the stone steps cautiously. The air was dense, as if each particle was charged with history. It wasn't dust that made him cough—it was something deeper, almost emotional. A presence.
The walls were covered in old inscriptions and chalk markings. Some were religious symbols; others were childish scribbles. A half-open door let out a faint whisper.
When Noah pushed the door open, the whisper turned into a muffled murmur. Inside, a figure waited: Rei.
"I knew someone would come," he said softly, without fully turning around.
Noah swallowed. There was something eerily familiar about the man, though he couldn't place it. Rei looked at him with a blend of sorrow and resignation.
"You don't belong here. But now you can't leave."
Silence thickened between them. Noah took a step closer, equal parts intrigued and afraid.
"What is this place?" he finally asked.
Rei smiled, but it held no joy.
"A refuge. A trap. An echo of the past. All at once."
Behind Rei, a hidden hatch led Noah into another chamber. There, he found old orphanage records. Photographs of children, medical files, drawings of houses with eyes.
Among the names, one stood out: Yuki.
"He was here... he was one of them."
Rei nodded silently. Something flickered in his gaze. Something like pain.
Then, the basement shook. Lights flickered. A collective whisper rose from the walls.
"It is waking... he feels it too."
Noah stepped back, but Rei stopped him. His hands were cold, but firm.
"If you're going to stay, you must know the truth. What lies beneath isn't dead. It merely waits. And now, you're part of it."
Noah stared at him wide-eyed, caught between the urge to flee and the need to understand.