The choice: go home or become part of Keitha forever.
The sanctum was crumbling.
What had once felt like an eternal city—enchanted, untouchable—now quivered like glass under pressure. Cracks webbed through the glowing walls, and the crystal heartbeat of Keitha had slowed to a whisper.
The group stood in the fading pulse of her magic, silent, breathless. Eight souls, bound tighter than blood. Each one scarred, tested, changed.
Zora cradled the shattered core in her hands. Her eyes, once soft and wondering, were now ancient. "She's dying," she whispered. "But... not gone. Not yet."
Axel stirred weakly, propped up by Athena, who refused to let go of his hand.
Sylvia looked at the others, voice trembling. "There has to be a way to save her."
"There is," Zora said. "But it comes with a price."
They all turned toward her.
"The city needs guardians. Keepers. Souls who will stay and mend the magic. She's offering that to us."
"You mean..." Enzo swallowed. "We don't get to just walk away?"
"She's giving us a choice," Zora said. "Stay, and rebuild Keitha. Or leave, and let her fade."
The weight of it crashed into the room like thunder.
Asher stood tall. "I spent my whole life trying to rewrite the rules. Now I know why they mattered."
Blair clenched her fists. "My lyrics... they changed this world. But can I live without my world back home?"
Ace spoke quietly. "There's no script for this. Just... instinct."
Athena's eyes brimmed with tears. "What about our families? Our futures?"
Zora placed a hand on her shoulder. "We are the future here. Keitha chose us for a reason."
A glowing door appeared in the wall—flickering and unstable. The way out. The last path back to their lives.
Eight friends.
Eight different hearts.
One by one, they moved.
Asher walked to the center, then slowly backed away from the exit. "I'm staying. I think I always knew I belonged here."
Blair looked at the door, then at her journal. The words inside had changed this realm. "I thought I came here to write a story. But maybe... this is the story." She stepped beside Asher.
Ace hesitated, clutching the page that unlocked Keitha's greatest secret. "I cracked the code. And I think I want to write the ending from within." He joined them.
Athena helped Axel to his feet. He was pale, barely holding on, but when she looked in his eyes, he nodded.
"I'll stay," Axel rasped. "As long as she's here, I'm not leaving."
Sylvia turned to Enzo. "What about you?"
Enzo stared at the exit, tears falling freely. "We promised we'd go to college together. Remember?"
"I do," she said softly.
"But this place... this magic..." He looked around. "It's part of me now."
They hugged like it was goodbye.
And maybe it was.
Sylvia stepped toward the door, her voice cracking. "I have to go back. For my family. But I'll never forget any of this."
Enzo kissed her forehead. "Then sing our story to the world."
Zora stood last, holding Keitha's dying heart. "I was part of the city before. Now I'll be part of her rebirth."
The door pulsed one last time.
Sylvia looked back, then walked through.
Gone.
And with her, the outside world.
The door faded.
The air shifted.
Keitha's light, though dimmed, held steady.
The seven who remained stood in a circle, hands clasped, hearts open.
They weren't just visitors now.
They were Keitha's chosen.
As the city settled, threads of magic wove through them—colors unique to each soul.
A new heartbeat began.
Not from the crystal core.
But from them.
Keitha was alive again.
Because they stayed.
Because they believed.