Millions of years later...
*BOOM*
"Damn it, Rick! Why did you set off the charge like that? This is an ancient site! You can't detonate a damn bomb unless you want to destroy any precious treasure or compromise this whole structure. Even a random stone here would be worth millions of dollars."
"Oh, stop it, Brad. I know what I am doing. Don't teach me how to do my job, hmph. I have been plundering treasure sites and tombs for a couple of years already. You should instead focus on your pregnant wife, heh. You sure have the guts to bring Dina along for such a dangerous job."
"Shut your trap, Rick. All these years, I have been plundering old underground caves like these with you people. Just because I got married and pregnant doesn't mean I will stop what I love doing the best. Besides, I am only 1 month in and if Brad is risking his life, so will I. I don't want to raise a child without a father," Dina said with a frown, not liking how Brad was looking down on her just because she got married and was having a baby on the way.
"Dina, relax. Don't waste too much of your energy, and let's focus on what's before us," Brad said in a concerned tone. However, inwardly he was moved that Dina was very much worried about his life.
Although he had tried to persuade her countless times to stay home, her stubbornness won in the end.
Hearing her husband's words, Dina, a beauty herself, didn't say anything more before giving a glare at Rick.
However, for a moment, she felt creeped out by the look that flashed past Rick's eyes when he looked at her. She wondered if it was her imagination or something else.
A burly and tall man who was exploring the way ahead turned around and said in an aggravated tone, "Can you three shut up and focus? God knows the various kinds of traps in this place. We are already over 5000 meters beneath sea level, and who knows how many meters underground. This is the deepest ancient underground site we have ever come upon.
"After all, remember that we had to deep dive into the damn sea to reach this site. And it even further led us underground for quite a distance. According to our informer, this whole place was submerged at least tens of millions of years ago. So, keep your eyes open for the bones of any ancient creatures or beasts. If we even get to bring back one of them, we would get enough riches to last us for at least a few lifetimes."
"Alright, Coby. But can you come over here for a second?" Brad said while noticing the greed shining in Coby's eyes.
Coby rolled his eyes and came close to Brad and asked, "What is it?"
Brad gestured with his eyes towards the six men walking ahead, dressed in armor and armed with rifles, shotguns and asked, "Why did you have to bring those group of mercenaries? Can we even trust them?"
Seeing the big guns the mercenaries were carrying, Brad was feeling uneasy about it.
Coby patted Brad's shoulders and said, "Chill, pal. They are a bunch we can at least trust to get the job done and also to take a bite in case shit goes down. Why do you think we are letting them walk ahead? Usually, ancient ruins like these can have unstable surfaces because of how old everything inside this cave is. And if the rumors about those legends are true, then we can even expect traps. I am just trying to be careful here. You can complain all you want. Heck, you can leave if you are that scared."
Brad pushed off Coby's shoulder and said, "Hah, you think too low of me. Don't remember who saved your ass countless times for all these years."
Coby shook his head with a chuckle and continued to walk without saying anything more.
Coby, Brad, Dina, Rick...these four were a group of raiders who plundered treasure troves and ancient ruins for a living. They have been doing this for quite a while.
But they had no idea that the ancient ruins they were inside now were one of a kind they had never seen before and how it was going to change all of their lives for the better or for, the worse.
The eight mercenaries with guns were walking ahead while looking around with sharp eyes though one would wonder if they were looking for treasures or for any dangerous things that could hurt their party.
Coby had hired them, and this was something he had never done before. This was why Brad wondered why Coby was doing this.
But when he remembered the rumors related to this mysterious ancient ruin and how the whole place's entrance was located under the bottom of an ocean, he felt that maybe hiring the mercenaries was a good thing.
Even though the mercenaries carried guns, he also had them, and of course, Dina had them too. So, he was not that worried about protecting himself and his wife.
The group of twelve had to use a deep sea exploration vehicle to go a few thousands of meters deep into the ocean to reach the entrance to this ancient ruin.
Never before had the group of four raiders ever embarked on such a dangerous adventure or one that was located so deep beneath the ocean.
But how could they resist when rumors said that this ancient ruin once belonged to an ancient civilization which sounded complete nonsense since these ruins dated back to at least millions of years ago.
However, the more they walked through these ruins, the more they felt that these ruins were indeed not ordinary or anything similar to what they had seen before; especially the moment they entered this underground cave since they came upon a special mechanism that drained out all water from the entrance they came in, allowing them to walk inside the large cave as if they were walking on the ground.
But the more they walked deeper into the ruins, the less they felt that this was a cave but a large hall of sorts.
Their surroundings were completely dark and damp, because of which they had to make use of fire torches and flashlights.
After walking for a long time, the group was surprised that they didn't come upon any treasure nor any dangers other than the long and dark passage they were walking through.
But finally, they came to a stop when they came upon a strange and mysterious-looking door for the first time. They stood there with shocked and astonished expressions because this meant that these ruins were indeed part of an ancient civilization which should have been impossible to exist according to their history!