—Narrated by Eli Whitmore
---
The moment the Final Gate fully opened, the world… shifted.
It didn't feel like light or darkness. It felt like everything. All at once. Every realm. Every path. Every gate.
We stood at the threshold of the temple—me, Thorne, Felix, Ryker, Luna, and Draven—our hands still warm from the shards we used to complete the puzzle. Behind us, the Forgotten Realm swirled like a stormy memory. In front of us…
A void.
A space without air, without sky. Only shadows stretched and moved like they were alive. And in the middle of it, floating above a broken pedestal, was a figure.
Bound in silver chains. Covered in glowing, cracked symbols. A mask of bone over its face.
The Binder.
No longer just a curse. No longer just a myth.
A being. A prisoner. A god of memory and forgetting.
"It's real," Luna whispered. "The Binder... it's alive."
We stepped closer—slowly, carefully. My heart thudded with each step. I felt Thorne's hand brush mine, grounding me.
Then its voice rang out. Not loud, but everywhere.
> "You broke the final seal... You remembered what was forgotten. And now, I am free."
A blinding light cracked across the sky. But it wasn't just light—it was gates. Dozens of them. Hundreds. Opening one by one, stretching across every realm.
The Gates of Heaven, the Mirror Gates, the Storm Realms, even the Phantom Pathways from the underworld—all began to pulse and crack open.
> "NO!" Draven cried. "It's too soon—Eli, the seals—!"
But it was too late.
A deep shattering echoed as the chains holding the Binder split apart, flinging broken pieces of silver across the temple.
The creature floated up, arms outstretched. From its chest, a symbol burned—the Mark of Forgotten Time.
And the world screamed.
Out from the broken seal poured monsters—Umbrawraiths, Mirrorfiends, Hollowed Ones, and something else...
Something bigger.
A massive surge of black flame exploded above the realm. From it, came a roar. A sound older than sound. A creature larger than a mountain, built from void, crowned in horns of ash, wings like torn cloth.
"Nyxar..." Thorne said quietly. "The Voidbringer."
The thing that had been locked in the Seal of the Forgotten. The one the Binder was guarding... or feeding.
> "He's free," I breathed. "And he's not alone."
---
Flashes of other worlds came into my vision.
The Arcane Institute's skies turned black with storm ravens. The Celestial Order's floating sanctum fell from the clouds. The Forest of Spirits began to rot at its edges. Even the oceans trembled.
The gates we opened… had connected every realm.
But not just for us.
For the monsters. For Nyxar. For everything we had tried to keep sealed.
---
A Desperate Choice
"Eli," Felix called, grabbing my arm. "We have to go back. The Academy—!"
"We can't!" Luna shouted. "If we leave this place now, the Binder will vanish into the worlds!"
"Then what do we do?" Ryker asked, eyes wide with panic.
Everyone looked at me.
I didn't have the answer.
But then, Seraphina's voice echoed in my mind.
> "Only one who has walked through every gate… can seal the One Who Binds."
Me.
I had to do it. Not just as a Gate Keeper. But as a memory bearer. As someone who held the power to connect, and now... the power to sever.
I stepped forward. The Binder watched me.
"Why were you locked away?" I asked. "Why now?"
Its voice responded like wind over water.
> "Because I knew the truth. I saw the birth of Nyxar. I tried to contain him. But mortals feared me. They bound me. Erased me. And now… you set me free."
"But you were never evil," I whispered. "Just forgotten."
It tilted its head. Then, for a moment, its body shimmered—and I saw something strange.
Not a monster. Not a god. But... a being of light. Someone once human. A Keeper like me. Long ago.
"Eli," Thorne said, stepping beside me. "We don't have much time. He's going to escape into the realms."
"I know," I said. "We need to stop Nyxar."
"But how?" Luna asked.
I turned to my friends, breathing hard. "We use the seals. All of them. Combine our powers. If we can anchor the gates through our souls, we might hold Nyxar in place—just long enough."
"That could destroy us," Draven warned.
"It could," I admitted. "But if we don't… he'll destroy everything else."
They all went quiet.
Then Thorne reached for my hand. "I'm with you."
Felix nodded. "Let's anchor the gates."
Ryker smirked. "What's one more impossible thing?"
Luna and Draven stepped forward. "Together."
---
The Anchor Ritual
We stood in a circle.
Each of us held a seal—Fire, Moonlight, Ice, Light, Shadow, Dream, and the Final Seal.
We began the chant, led by Luna and me, as the temple shook and Nyxar shrieked into the skies.
Energy exploded from our seals—threads of color weaving through the gates that had opened. One by one, the gates slowed. The monsters began to fade. The worlds pulsed as if resisting the pull of chaos.
But it was working.
Until Nyxar dove toward us.
His wings blocked the stars. His mouth opened, revealing a storm inside.
"I'll hold him!" Thorne shouted, running forward with a shield of light erupting from his chest.
"NO!" I screamed.
But I saw it.
For one moment, he was glowing.
Pure.
And when Nyxar struck—
Everything went white.
---
We don't know what happened next.
All I remember is the sound of my name being called…
And the gate closing again.
Somewhere, in the pieces of time and memory—we were scattered.
But I will find them.
I will find Thorne.
And we will finish what we started.
---
To be continued...