One by one, the others began walking toward the opening gate, their footsteps slow and uncertain as the massive iron doors continued sliding apart with a grinding sound that echoed across the silent night, revealing the vast darkness beyond the fortress walls where the ruined world stretched endlessly beneath a cold sky.
The wind rushed through the opening, brushing against their faces and carrying the distant scent of dust and decay that had long since become the natural smell of the outside world.
For several seconds the group simply stood there, staring at the wasteland beyond the gate as if seeing it clearly for the first time rather than imagining it from behind the safety of thick concrete walls.
The vast wasteland outside the fortress curved into the distance before disappearing into a forest of skeletal trees, their branches twisted and lifeless like the remains of a forgotten world.
