A wide set of stone stairs rests on the giant pyramid. Statues guard amorphously in the shadows beside the ever-rising stairs. I looked down and saw that my feet left a clear print in the thick layer of dust that rests on the cold stone floor, a testament to ages that have passed undisturbed.

The red light became more vibrant between the thick cloud-like mists that loomed above. My eyes caught the shape of thousands of snake-like bodies that vined and clung to the cavern walls and stalagmites. The bodies wriggled and squirmed almost unnoticeably.

I could not tell which way was the head and which was the tail, but they ran like a series of wires that connected cities and both ends disappeared where naked eyes could not follow.

At the time I felt compelled to venture forth and climb the staircase. Like a pilgrim from a faraway land, on my way to enlightenment or perhaps paying homage to something I have not yet noticed or bothered thinking about. I felt enthralled.

A certain practice of charismatic behaviour causes lessers to feel intimidated and will likely act identically to other subjects. This place practised something similar for a much longer time.

Ages of men walked these stairs as I did, bringing sacrifice and offerings as depicted on the basreliefs etched into the stairs and portrayed by the human statues placed on the sides at the foot of the pyramid.

Visions or hallucinations invaded my sight as a dark smoky spectre revealed itself to me in the corner of my eye or when I was about to blink, it remained ever fleeting. I had a feeling that it was beckoning me to the summit, though the texture made it difficult to understand.

Two final statues guarded the summit with open palms indicating to stop. Their heads seemed like squids and their fingers were webbed. Strange blades adorned their back and a mighty staff hung protectively from the other hand.

How strange the beliefs were and how far we have come as a species I thought to myself. Though I am no expert on ancient civilizations, and as far as I know, Egpyt was the only other civilization with half-human, half-animal deities.

My knowledge of the Egyptians was gathered in one evening at the Cape Town town hall where the Moerdyk family displayed ‘The Modern Take on Egyptian Architecture’ and the many prestigious structures built by Gerhard Moerdyk himself.

Reaching the top, exhausted and breathless, the air itself felt heavy, infused by the weight of centuries. In front of me were two mighty doors trapped in a beautiful frame of detailed symbols. The double doors grew in size as I approached until I stood in front of its towering display of fortification. 

My journey would have ended there if not for one of the heavy doors already being open just enough to squeeze through. I attempted to move the door further with all my weight, clenched my teeth, pressure built up in my head and my back felt like it was about to snap. One man could make a difference in the world, but ten still stood no chance with that door.

The door was framed with ivory displaying a perfectly engraved bas-relief. A strange creature was standing on top of a rock above a crowd of people, pointing at the stars which seemed like the Three Sisters better known as Orians Belt. The door itself was clad in a strange gold metal that had an otherworldly glow about it.

As I caught my breath I noticed a soft white light growing from the crack between the doors. A subtle pull of the air into the room beyond sounded through the whole cavern. It made me feel calm and for a moment I forgot about my constitution and my stamina as I stumbled through the door.

My vision was overwhelmed with the grandeur of the otherworldly ruins that filled this structure. I was left in a state of oblivion and had to stop for a moment and stare until what I saw made sense.

A wide and circular tunnel went on into the distance, further than the eye could see. Segmented pillars melted into the walls and gradually into the floor at regular intervals. Between the pillars were alcoves displaying an altar or a fresco depicting a strange scene between humans and the creatures mentioned before. Sometimes the depressions led to rooms filled with strange tables and antiquities.

The tunnel’s roof hosted a series of perfectly cut circular apertures. A white paint coated the edges and decorated the roof with strange symbols and glass beads. I stopped and turned around attempting to spot where the snake creatures were but found no sign of them. I was relieved to have a brief moment of respite.

Then the white light faded, and the paint coating the apertures lit up with a faint glow. The silence rang loud in my ears as if some metallic peal. Darkness filled my gaze, light agitations faded after a few minutes and I had to resort to staring at the white circles above to convince myself that I could still see.

The air was once again pulled into the distance of the never-ending passageway, and light emitted from all surfaces as it passed by like a wave in the ocean.

I walked closer to one of the alcoves and noticed that the age-worn stone had survived a great deluge with significant proof of a yellow and white-ish line that formed along the walls. The fresco resting within the alcove depicted a creature with a squid-like head, trading and conversing with an ancient human that had a large and archaic forehead. 

The frescos that followed show how humans would steal from one another and murder each other, even the children, all in the name of establishing dominance over one another. And whilst the humans destroyed one another, a pair of eyes stared at them from beneath the waves.

Some scenes showed offerings at the gates from which I entered of human sacrifice, while others depicted the exchange of glass beads and symbols of unknown significance.

As I walked, my fingertips traced the ancient depictions, revealing a history of how the waters have risen and retreated, and a timeline of epochs long past, where humans coexisted with these enigmatic creatures.

The story then told a tale of subjugation, as the creatures feasted upon the flesh, dreams, and craftsmanship of the tribes that once inhabited these lands. They banished the people into the wilderness, leaving them to wander in darkness, bereft of their homes and memories, with only stories and songs to sustain them.

I continued to follow the stories etched into the walls, my every step guided by the fleeting white light. Suddenly a primal shriek echoed from an aperture behind me. I sought refuge in one of the recesses, uncertain that the lurking entity had detected my feeble escape, pressing my back against the cold stone wall and holding my breath, hoping to avoid the owner of that terrible sound. 

The main hallway swallowed the air into the unknown distance once again into an awful silence as the light raced past my vision. I peeked around the corner and witnessed what should have remained in the shadows. 

A pair of long sharp claws firmly placed themselves on the ceiling. A grotesque body fell into this realm. The hulking mass of sinew and muscles rose to a towering height onto all four legs like a dog. 

Rough patches of white fur covered its flesh that protruded from underneath torn white robes. Large fangs protruded from its gaping maw with soft wheezing sounds. A distorted face that resembled a human twisted with the features of a wolf. The eyes held warmth but gleamed with a feral intensity, hiding a mind consumed by savagery. A visage of primal fury.

The light faded and darkness devoured the scene. I could not see, but I was dreadfully aware when the creature moved, its nails scratched with every step, and a soft wheeze sounded every time it sniffed the atmosphere. 

Then the air was consumed into the distance once more as the light returned illuminating all the apertures as well as the once-dark recesses like a gust of wind to kindle, revealing my position.

The creature’s movement came closer, and the wheezing became louder and filled me with fear. I wanted to run, I wanted to scream, I would even have wanted to turn around and fight but I froze. I sat like a hopeless child lost with no option but to surrender. 

The hallway breathed in deeply, softly tugging at the clumps of hair covering the creature. The aperture above was shining brightly. A cold spike grew from my spine as the creature’s maw slowly protruded into view. I could tell it noticed me. The pungent smell of fear filled the air. Its stance changed like a predator’s would when prey was nearby. It lowered its neck and the body followed. Claws placed firmly together as its hind legs readied themselves to pounce. 

Then I heard someone say “Are you okay?”. The creature’s ears indicated its interest as its body slowly moved to its new target, “Has this hole always been here?” asked a woman from the other side.

I wanted to warn them, but it would serve no purpose. The creature would have surely made quick work of them and then returned to me. It lifted its freakishly elongated arms into the hole above and jumped in effortlessly followed by screams fading into the distance. 

I sat for what felt like a lifetime and reminded myself to breathe every time the hallway did. Not even the most grotesque dreams of man could conjure such a creature that invoked such fear with its presence. Slowly I ventured back into the hallway, more cautious of the holes above me.

I monitored a full cycle and the only thing that made sense was to call them doorways to other worlds or different times. A new world from a new angle would present itself when the light filled the tunnel. Then a swirling blackness that consumed all light would fill the aperture only to be reopened somewhere else when the light returned.

I saw worlds with green and yellow horizons, floating islands, many moons, dark woods and vast oceans. I followed deeper into the tunnel and heard a beating heart thumping from one of the passages connected to the main tunnel. The passage entryway displayed a vast chamber filled with stairs, doors and many terraces overlooking the ever-descending staircase in front of me.

A candle was flickering in one of the small house-like structures connected to the stairs. And that’s where I found the notes left by Abdul Alhazred. The first page stated “If you are reading this, then you are in the wrong universe.” translated in different languages and different handwritings.

The second page displayed names, dates and locations. Some were unrecognizable to me as they seemed like hieroglyphs and strange characters that I had never seen before. Though some have managed to end up in English.
Dates that range thousands of years before Christ and dates far beyond the current. Some of the entries stated that they came from Uruk, Mapungubwe, Mesopotamia, Babylon, Damascus, Great Zimbabwe, and many more unrecognizable names.

The third page was dominated by Arabic writing. Large spaces between each line were filled with translations, although the sentences were not complete. Abdul Alhazred stated that he has arrived at this location twice, and perhaps a translation error occurred but Abdul said that he found this collection of notes written by himself the first time he arrived here. He came here by accident while searching for a terrible snake-like creature that plagued the southern mouth of the Nile.

Lost and wounded he walked these halls until he found the only constant which was the sound of a beating heart. That’s when he found these notes bathed in candlelight. He heeded his own words without a doubt and descended the staircase into the utter darkness that awaited below. There he found the source, a heart of thorns that rested beneath black waters.

Abdul explained that this place does not abide by the rules of nature as we know them. Time and space are of no importance and impossible to try and comprehend how or why this location behaves the way it does. He noted that he had found many doors that led to this exact location, some were of this world and some were not.

He then warned those who came looking for the black waters where the heart rests. Drinking from the water grants knowledge only comparable to that granted from a Djin’s wish. The knowledge is not forbidden, but it is earned. And more importantly, some may not deserve it and will be cast into oblivion within their own mind for the rest of their days.

Sharing the knowledge with those who have not quenched their thirst would have consequences of a cosmic proportion. Abdul will proceed to finish his life’s work ‘Kitab al-Azif’ and beneath it ‘Necronomicon’ is written in a handwriting I recognized. The handwriting belonged to an entrant on the second page called Ἀπολλόδωρος ὁ Δαμασκηνός – Apollodorus of Damascus. Abdul intends to share what he has received from the cosmos and counsels those who follow to seek out his work if it should survive.

Abdul left one final warning. Escape without knowing the way is futile, the path from whence you came does not remain. A new or repeating labyrinth lies behind every passage and every door leading you further away from your only escape.

I have borne witness to this statement, for when I ventured back from whence I came I found another tunnel behind the doors instead of the stairs that led down into the dusty passage from before. I walked as far as my fear of losing my way allowed me before returning to this spot. Escape is impossible and my time is running out. I have added my name, date and location to the pile of notes, and left my story here next to the candle. Now I sit upon the summit of a great staircase that descends into the blackness of the abyss.

A pulse beckons me to follow its sinister rhythm.

I am Guillaume Kriel, I was here and I will drink from the void.

Click here for part 1