Martin the Last Necron

Chapter 2 ( Hidden Door )

Martin unlocked the cellar door and headed back down the stairs, closing and locking the door behind him. What could the key to happiness mean he kept repeating over and over to himself. Not coming up with anything, he decided to search more around the room for clues. He picked up a few of the strange knives checking them over. Then he spotted a knife with some strange symbols on it in the middle of the table. Intrigued by its design he decided to keep it and strapped it to his side. I wonder where grandpa got all this stuff he thought to himself. 

As he searched through the other knives a memory flashed in his mind. He turned his head to the side and recalled something his grandpa used to say. 

Happiness is living, my boy, if you're not living you're not truly happy. Hmm, how could that be a clue, he whispered. After he repeated the memory a sudden thought struck him. 

He scanned the room to see if anything pertained with living. He then realized everything in the room was an object of no life except for the plants, they were alive. He went over and started dusting off and examining each one of them. Wait, all these are made of plastic, they are not even real. Feeling a little overwhelmed from thinking he had just unlocked the riddle and failed, he sighed and flopped down on the ground next to the plants. They are beautiful, they look full of life, but they are not real, he thought. What else could it be then he wondered.  He then spotted a small cactus hiding behind one of the bigger plants looking a little grim, as if it were dying from lack of water. 

"Hold up!" he said out loud, "Fake plants can't die."

He reached down and picked up the small cactus and to his surprise, underneath the cactus was a small keyhole. With a big grin on his face Martin hopped up and dug the small key out of his pocket. He inserted it in the keyhole and turned it till it clicked. Just then he heard a low rumble on the other side of the room. Watching with amazement, he saw the floor slowly move and a stairway revealed itself.

 "Holy shit, grandpa is full of surprises."

Martin headed down the stairs to find a door that had no hinges or a doorknob or handle of any kind. He noticed that there was a small indention of some sort almost the shape of a small knife. Inside the small indention, he also noticed the strange symbols he had seen before on the knife he strapped to himself. He pulled the knife out and looked at it, it was the same shape and everything, but it was way to big to fit the indention.

 "Why does everything got to be so difficult?" he sputtered out loud.

Looking up into the air Martin said, "Well, now what grandpa, I have run into a dead end, I think, and you have not given me any more clues?" 

It is getting late, he mumbled to himself, I will figure this out tomorrow. After using the key to lock the hidden door, he replaced the cactus over the keyhole. He then went and put the key to the strange door and the knife on his belt into the safe and locked it. Then he headed upstairs, locking the cellar door behind him and headed to the bedroom to settle down for the night. After a few minutes of preparing himself for bed, Martin climbed in under the covers and looked over at the clock. Ten thirty, only an hour and a half till I am twenty one, he thought to himself. In moments, he was fast asleep. 

When Martin awoke the next morning, he felt a little different, stronger and more alert than usual. He got up out of bed and headed into the bathroom to wash up and get ready for the new day.

He looked in the mirror and smiled at the man looking back at him, "You're looking good today." he told the man in the mirror. 

Martin is handsome yet rugged, tall, muscular, with dark hair and hazel eyes. Even though he wouldn't admit it, most of the women gawk whenever they see him. He is really friendly and always smiles, making him that much more attractive.

He turned on the water to wash his hands and face, when he noticed on his right hand, something mysterious.

"What the hell?"  

On his right hand the same symbols that were on the knife and the door are now imprinted on the palm of his hand. At first he thought it was just ink from the knife and he tried to wash it off, but it wouldn't come off. 

"What is going on?" he mumbled. "Don't panic, there has to be a simple explanation." he insured himself. "Things like this happen all the time." At least that's what he hoped.

After finishing up with getting ready and dressed for the new day Martin headed into the kitchen for breakfast. After a quick bowl of corn flakes and curiosity hammering in his mind, he headed for the cellar door. Unlocking the cellar door, he entered and locked it behind him and headed down to the safe. In the safe he found the knife and the key to the strange door. He put the key in the keyhole under the cactus and turned it till it clicked. Waiting for the floor to move again to reveal the strange door, he started to rummage through the trinkets in some of the jars. After a few minutes of rummaging he found a locket that caught his interest. 

He opened it to find a tiny picture of his parents inside. Wanting something of his parents, he decided to wear it. Strapping it around his neck, he headed over to the stairs and walked down to the door. Martin started to feel a small sensation in his right hand, he noticed the symbols on his hand began to glow faintly. For some odd reason he reached out his hand and put it on the small indention on the door and the door instantly vanished. Out of astonishment the door was hiding a small corridor that looked to go on forever. Martin took a step forward through the doorway and gasped at what he saw. 

Instead of the corridor, he saw a trail in the middle of the forest. On both sides there were tall pines towering over, casting shadows that seemed to strangle the trail with their presence. As far as he could see both ways in the army of trees was a vast forest. Knowing there was no way all this could fit under a house he came to the conclusion he went through some kind of portal. He wasn't sure if he should freak out or try to wake himself up. Martin turned around to see if he could see inside the house behind him and to his amazement it looked like a small corridor in the middle of the trail. Just like what he saw from inside the house. 

Martin's curiosity was eating at him to venture forward a ways. Although he knew he probably shouldn't go any further, he listened to his curious side and headed on down the trail. The smell of fresh pine and a hint of cool air was refreshing to him. He always enjoyed the forest and the smell of trees, that is why he got a job at the sawmill. Fresh cut trees and the scent they gave off were one thing, but forest smells were all together a more satisfying scent. After awhile down the trail he came to a fork that split into two paths. He noticed a sign pointing to each path, one saying Nettles and the other saying Fever Brook. What strange names he thought, are they towns or landmarks he wondered. 

Still curious, he decided to head down the one that said Nettles. After following the path a ways he began to hear the sounds of a small creek nearby and decided he's a bit thirsty. Thinking himself stupid for wandering so far and not packing a lunch or preparing for a small hike, he decided he will go check out the creek then head back to the house before he goes too far. He followed the sounds of the creek through the forest marking trees along his way with the knife so he wouldn't get lost. He finally came to the creek after about ten minutes trekking through the forest. Right when he was about to lean down and get a drink his world went black.

Thank you for stopping in and I hope you enjoyed what you read in this chapter. If you feel the need to comment, please do so, no matter good or bad. I would greatly appreciate your feedback on my works. Still learning and anything you can point out that needs attention is a plus. Oh, and if you think it deserves to be rated, that too. :)

Happy reading and writing where ever that may be. :)