The world seemed to hold its breath.
Rain hissed against broken stone. The corrupted Starborne Drake lay still, its massive chest no longer rising. The fissure behind it pulsed faintly, like a wound that refused to close.
Aiden opened his eyes.
The Harrow King's hand was still extended.
Aidem stood rigid, jaw clenched so tightly that thin lines of light cracked across his knuckles—signs of power barely restrained.
Aiden did not take the Harrow King's hand.
But he did not turn away from him either.
"Say it," Aiden said quietly.
Both beings looked at him.
"Say what you mean," Aiden continued. "Both of you. No more half-truths. No more 'later.' I'm done being the piece everyone moves without asking."
The Harrow King's helm tilted slightly.
Aidem closed his eyes.
And that alone told Aiden everything.
---
THE LAST HEIR
Aidem exhaled slowly.
"There were many Kings," he said. "Most ruled worlds. A few ruled systems. One… ruled endings."
Aiden felt a chill crawl up his spine.
"The Lost King," Aiden whispered.
Aidem nodded.
"He was not erased," Aidem continued. "He chose erasure. To prevent the Origin Maw from consuming existence itself."
The Harrow King spoke smoothly, almost gently.
"And when the Lost King erased himself, his worlds followed. Not destroyed—sealed. Folded into absence."
Aiden's chest tightened.
"And those worlds…" Aiden said, voice hoarse, "they didn't just disappear."
Aidem shook his head.
"No. They were compressed. Bound into a lineage."
Silence.
Aiden's breath trembled.
"You're saying…"
The Harrow King finished it for him.
"You were born carrying the residue of erased worlds. Their memories. Their grief. Their unfinished stories."
Aiden staggered back a step.
"No. I was just—" His voice cracked. "I was just a normal kid."
Aidem looked at him with something dangerously close to sorrow.
"You were born in a quiet world precisely because no one was watching it."
Aiden laughed weakly.
"That's not an answer."
Aidem met his eyes.
"You were hidden."
---
WHY AIDEM CHOSE HIM
Aiden's fists shook.
"So you found me. You trained me. You dragged me across realities because—what? I was convenient?"
Aidem's voice dropped.
"Because you were the only one who could survive awakening."
The Harrow King laughed softly.
"Survive?" he echoed. "He means contain."
Aiden turned sharply.
"Contain what?"
The Harrow King raised a finger.
"The Erased Chorus."
The air trembled.
Aiden's chest burned as whispers—faint, distant—rose beneath his thoughts. Not voices. Emotions. Longing. Rage. Hope.
Entire civilizations—inside him.
Aiden gasped, dropping to one knee.
Lyra rushed to him. "Aiden—look at me—focus—"
Aidem knelt beside him.
"I didn't tell you because once you know, they know," Aidem said. "The Chorus wakes when acknowledged."
Aiden panted.
"So all those dreams… the ruins… the voices…"
"Yes," Aidem said. "They were never random."
Aiden looked up at him, eyes burning.
"You lied."
Aidem didn't deny it.
"I protected you," he said quietly. "From becoming what the Echo King became."
The Harrow King's voice sharpened.
"And in doing so, you delayed the inevitable."
---
THE HARROW KING'S OFFER
The Harrow King stepped forward, rain hissing against his armor but never touching it.
"Aiden," he said. "I do not want to control you."
Aidem snapped, "That's a lie."
The Harrow King ignored him.
"The Cycle is broken. The Origin Maw stirs. The Chorus inside you will eventually tear you apart—or tear reality apart."
Aiden's head throbbed.
"So what do you want?" he asked.
The Harrow King lowered his blade.
"Let me teach you how to rule what you carry."
Lyra's eyes widened. "Rule—?!"
"You cannot erase the Chorus," the Harrow King continued. "But you can command it. Give those dead worlds direction. Purpose."
Aiden clenched his teeth.
"And become what you are?"
The Harrow King answered without hesitation.
"A King of Endings."
The words echoed like a sentence being passed.
---
AIDEN'S THIRD WAY
Aiden stood.
The whispers inside him surged—but did not overwhelm him.
He breathed.
Slowly.
"No," he said.
Both Kings froze.
"I won't seal worlds like the Lost King," Aiden said. "And I won't dominate them like you."
The Harrow King's voice darkened.
"There is no third option."
Aiden met his gaze.
"I already forged one."
The sigils on Aiden's chest flared—not gold, not shadow—
—but white-gold threaded with color.
Fragments of light rose around him: streets, laughter, forests, stars.
Not erased.
Remembered.
"I won't rule endings," Aiden said.
"I'll give them continuance."
Aidem's eyes widened.
"That's—Aiden—that's never been done—"
"Then it's time," Aiden replied.
The Harrow King took a step back.
For the first time—
He hesitated.
---
THE CONSEQUENCE
The fissure behind them convulsed violently.
A roar—ancient, infinite—echoed from beyond reality.
The Origin Maw felt Aiden's choice.
Aidem looked at him sharply.
"You've made yourself visible."
Aiden nodded.
"I know."
Lyra squeezed his hand. "Then we face it together."
The Harrow King slowly lowered his blade.
"…Very well," he said. "Prove me wrong, Heir of Erased Worlds."
He stepped back into the fissure.
"But understand this," his voice echoed.
"The Maw will come for you first."
The tear sealed shut.
Silence fell.
Rain continued to fall.
Aidem looked at Aiden—no longer mentor to student, but something closer to equal.
"The next path is the hardest one," Aidem said.
Aiden exhaled.
"Good," he replied. "I'm done running from hard truths."
He looked toward the horizon—where reality trembled faintly.
"Let's save the worlds that were never allowed to finish their stories."