The Architect's Warning
694 Words
FADE IN:
INT. OBSERVATION ROOM – CONTINUOUS
The old photograph lay on the desk.
Westbrook High wasn't in it.
Instead, an imposing stone building stood where the school should have been.
Above its entrance were the words:
BLACKRIDGE INSTITUTE
Jordan studied the image.
"I've never heard of this place."
Mr. Ellis frowned.
"Neither have I."
Emma looked closer.
"But if this stood here before the school..."
"...why doesn't anyone know about it?"
Maya turned the photograph over again.
There was something else.
Pressed into the corner of the paper was a faded wax seal.
A bell.
The same bell carved into the clocktower.
INT. OBSERVATION ROOM – MOMENTS LATER
Maya searched the desk drawers.
Most contained old attendance records and maintenance logs.
One drawer was locked.
She tried the brass key.
Click.
Inside was a leather folder.
Across the front were two words:
Construction Records
Jordan opened it.
The first page contained a handwritten note.
Official records begin in 1931.
All earlier records were ordered destroyed.
Emma's eyes widened.
"Someone erased the school's history."
Mr. Ellis nodded slowly.
"And they were thorough."
INT. OBSERVATION ROOM – HIDDEN WALL
As Jordan examined the room, he noticed scratches on the concrete behind one of the broken monitors.
He pushed the monitor aside.
There, carved into the wall, was a message.
It wasn't recent.
The letters were worn with age.
IF YOU FOUND THIS ROOM, DON'T STOP NOW.
Below it was another line.
THE MAP IS INSIDE THE FOUNDATION STONE.
Maya looked around.
"Foundation stone?"
Emma pointed to the floor.
Near the center of the room was a large square stone that looked different from the others.
It had a tiny metal ring set into it.
The four of them worked together to lift it.
With a heavy scrape, the stone moved.
Beneath it was a narrow cavity.
Inside rested a rolled-up map tied with a red ribbon.
INT. OBSERVATION ROOM – CONTINUOUS
Maya carefully unrolled the map.
It showed the entire school campus.
But beneath the classrooms and hallways...
There was another level.
Not the maintenance tunnels.
Something much older.
Stone corridors.
Circular rooms.
A large chamber directly beneath the school courtyard.
At its center, someone had drawn a black circle.
Beside it, in faded ink, were the words:
THE FIRST HALLWAY
Jordan whispered,
"So Project Hallway didn't create the tunnels."
"They discovered them."
Mr. Ellis nodded.
"And then they built the school over them."
INT. SCHOOL HALLWAY – SAME TIME
Unseen by the group, a security camera slowly turned toward the hidden entrance to the Observation Room.
In the security office, Vice Principal Grant watched the live feed.
He wasn't alone.
A tall figure stood beside him, hidden in shadow.
Only one hand was visible.
On one finger gleamed a silver ring engraved with the school crest.
Grant spoke quietly.
"They found the map."
The figure remained silent for several seconds.
Then a calm voice replied,
"I expected they would."
Grant looked uneasy.
"Should I stop them?"
The figure shook their head.
"No."
"They've earned the next truth."
Grant frowned.
"And if they reach the First Hallway?"
The figure finally turned toward him.
For the first time, part of the stranger's face was visible.
Not enough to identify them.
Just a scar running from the left eye to the jaw.
"They won't."
The voice remained calm.
"Because they'll never make it past the Keeper."
INT. OBSERVATION ROOM – NIGHT
Maya carefully folded the map and slipped it into Noah's notebook.
"We need to find the First Hallway."
Jordan nodded.
"And whoever the Keeper is."
As they prepared to leave, Emma stopped.
"Wait."
She pointed toward the wall where the old monitors had been.
One monitor had turned on by itself.
The screen displayed a single sentence:
DON'T BRING EMMA.
Everyone froze.
Emma stared at the screen.
"What... does that mean?"
Before anyone could answer, the screen went black.
Maya looked at Emma.
Then at Jordan.
Neither of them spoke.
For the first time since they met...
A seed of doubt entered Maya's mind.
Could the message be another trick...
Or was someone trying to warn her?
To be continued in Episode 5 – Part 5...
- Writer
