The mist began to thin as they crossed the fractured remains of the Bridge of Shadows. Behind them, the ravine groaned and settled, fragments of stone collapsing into the abyss. Ahead lay a jagged archway carved into the cliffside—its surface etched with runes that pulsed faintly with silver light.
The air shifted. Cold, heavy. Every breath carried a metallic tang, as though the stones themselves bled.
Mira lowered her bow slightly but didn't relax. "This place… it wasn't built by men."
Kael grunted, still flexing his bandaged arm. "Or elves. I've seen ruins of both. This feels… older."
Rihan stepped forward, the System flickering at the edge of his vision.
[Location Discovered: The Forgotten Gate]
[Warning: Presence of Sealed Essence Detected]
His heartbeat quickened. Sealed Essence? The same phrase the Mistress had whispered before. Was this place tied to her reach?
Elira pressed her hand against the rune-marked arch. Light shimmered faintly from her touch, the symbols reacting to her essence. "It's warded," she murmured. "Locked to keep something in… or out."
The runes pulsed brighter, as if answering. The stone groaned, dust falling in fine streams.
Suddenly, a crack of sound echoed—like chains snapping. The archway's center shimmered, mist folding inward until a dark passage revealed itself. Beyond, only shadows stretched, yet the faint sound of whispers drifted from the depths.
Rihan's stomach twisted. He could feel something watching.
Kael's hand tightened on his sword. "If we go in there, there's no turning back."
"Then we prepare," Mira said sharply. Her gaze slid to Rihan. "What's your System saying?"
Rihan hesitated. The others looked at him expectantly. He hadn't told them everything—the warnings, the cryptic notes about "Forgotten Deities." But lying here, now, felt dangerous.
"…It says this place holds a Sealed Essence," he admitted quietly. "Something ancient. Dangerous."
Elira's eyes narrowed. "Essence of what?"
Rihan swallowed. "…I don't know yet."
Silence fell, heavy and uneasy.
Finally, Kael stepped toward the gate, his expression grim. "Then we find out. If the Cult of the Eclipse has ties here, it could explain their strength."
Mira smirked faintly, masking tension with sarcasm. "Wonderful. Walking into cursed ruins to poke at sealed nightmares. What could possibly go wrong?"
Still, none of them turned back.
Together, they crossed the threshold.
---
The tunnel swallowed them. The walls shimmered with half-faded murals—depictions of figures cloaked in starlight battling shapes of fire and shadow. Their eyes glowed faintly, as though fragments of divine energy lingered within the stone.
Lyra would have known more, Rihan thought bitterly. The memory of her loss still ached like a fresh wound.
As they descended, the whispers grew louder. Not words—fragments. A chorus of voices bleeding through the walls, overlapping, pleading.
Elira tightened her grip on her staff. "They sound… trapped."
Kael's jaw tightened. "Or luring us."
At last, the tunnel opened into a vast chamber. Pillars lined the walls, cracked but still standing, carved with runes that pulsed faintly like heartbeats. At the center stood an altar—stone blackened with age, chains of silver binding something within.
The air thrummed. The Soul Link inside Rihan's chest flared painfully, as if trying to tear itself free. He stumbled, clutching his heart.
[Warning: Resonance Detected]
[System Sync Incomplete – External Force Interfering]
His companions turned toward him in alarm.
"Rihan?" Elira rushed to his side.
He forced out words between clenched teeth. "…It's reacting… to whatever's sealed here."
The altar shuddered. The chains rattled. And then, a voice—deep, resonant, neither male nor female—echoed in the chamber.
"At last… a bearer of the Forgotten calls to me."
The silver bindings split, cracks racing across the altar. A flood of light burst forth, dazzling and violent, as a shadowy figure began to rise.
Kael drew his sword instantly. Mira notched an arrow.
Rihan, however, felt the System lock onto the presence before him.
[Entity Identified: Fragment of the Forgotten Deity]
[Initiating Synchronization Protocol…]
The voice thundered again, shaking the chamber.
"Child of two worlds… will you be my vessel… or my jailor?"
The altar split wide open.
And the true trial of the Forgotten Gate began.