Titan Turn; A TDS Story

Chapter 33

There it was. The blasted portal that got them into this world and the one that would be taking them out. The flat plateau Scout had reached housed the mighty entrance of a deep cavern.
Along the black stone framing the doorway, symbols with unknown meanings were carved. Most of them were untraceable, they had lost their form to the sands of time.
Krampus took a few reluctant steps forward, studying it a bit closer.

The portal visible from the outside appeared to be ancient compared to the one at the base. It's frame was not of steel beams with slick wiring but of a dark stone with pinkish veins pulsating as if it was breathing. The odd part of the structure was not at the top but at the bottom, where, on the left side, stood a small metal box.
It looked like a control panel of sorts, the type you would see on power poles. As for the cavern itself, nothing appeared out of the usual. Stalactites adorned the ceiling that was far above their heads. Stalagmites on the other hand, bordered the path leading to the portal. A few cracks in the walls showed where once were openings to different rooms that no longer existed in the present.

Scout turned on his flashlight as he trailed behind Grave. This place was giving him the creeps! It looked like a cult's ritual site or something! The markings on the walls were not making it any better either!

He looked over to Grave, the boy was admiring his surroundings.. He seemed more enamored by them than Scout was. Maybe they meant something important to Titans that Scout just didn't understand... This was Titan technology after all..
Krampus, however, was rather tense.
Almost as if waiting for something to jump out at them from the dark. Though, he was the one with the worst experience when it came to these portals so it was understandable he wouldn't be thrilled about it.

They trudged closer and closer to the back of the cave where the portal towered over them. Grave turned his attention to the metal box, graciously ripping the door to it open. It took a few tries to get it to fully cracked but he managed to, nonetheless. The crystal which usually was placed atop the gateway was now confined in this tiny steel prison. The gem pulsed the same way the portal did, the beat was simultaneous, akin to an unwritten song or a lousy heartbeat, just barely off rythm with the world.

Grave carefully poked at the crystal, the tip of his finger lit up a sharp pink. He pulled back the instance it started radiating heat... He saw what happened the last time someone got their hand stuck next to these mysterious gems. The boy looked back at his uncle, the older man was trying to decipher the weird glyphs on the wall. Scout, however, was more interested in the blocked cracks which resembled doorways, shining his light inside of them.

Grave watched Scout with a smirk, this was the friend he had never expected would go so far for him. They barely met a few days prior and Scout was ready to put his life on the line for him, go through with this wild plan like it was nothing. The Tower had never seen him as lesser just because he was a Titan and that is something one does not come across easily. Grave kept his gaze on his friend until the latter's sudden jerk away from the wall acompanied by a fall made him snap out of it. Scout was on the ground, staring at that hole like he had just seen a ghost.

Krampus walked over calmly, bending down next to him, "My child, are you alright?" he asked as he grabbed Scout's arms to lift him up.

Without looking away from the wall, the young man responded, his voice trembling, "I... I thought I...saw...eyes."

"What?"

Gravedigger made his way over, shining his own flashlight into the crack. The room was scarcely lit up by the flash, everything was mostly normal, the same symbols, same structure as the one they were in. Everything... until he leaned forward to look towards the back of it.