BOOK FOUR: THE KINGDOM BEYOND THE LAST GATE
Chapter 21: The World Without Gates
For the first time in thousands of years...
There was no Gate.
No golden doors in the sky.
No cracks between worlds.
No voices from beyond reality.
Just silence.
A peaceful kind of silence.
Riva stood in the middle of the village and watched the people going about their lives.
Children chased one another through the streets.
Farmers carried baskets.
Someone was repairing a wooden roof.
A woman laughed from inside a small house.
Everything looked ordinary.
And somehow...
That frightened Riva more than the monsters had.
She had spent so long fighting for this moment that she didn't know what to do now that it had arrived.
Caelan stood beside her.
"We did it."
Riva looked at him.
"Did we?"
He smiled.
"I think so."
---
Elara approached them.
She looked different.
Not physically.
Something inside her had changed.
There was no darkness in her eyes anymore.
No voice calling from the Gate.
No invisible chain around her soul.
She was simply Elara.
Riva touched her face.
"Are you okay?"
Elara nodded.
"For the first time."
Riva pulled her into a hug.
"I'm sorry."
Elara hugged her back.
"You've said that already."
"I'll probably say it many more times."
Elara laughed.
"Then I'll probably forgive you every time."
Caelan smiled.
For a moment...
They were simply a family.
No prophecy.
No kingdom.
No destiny.
Just three people standing beneath an ordinary sky.
---
But the peace didn't last.
Aren came running from the other side of the village.
"Riva!"
She turned.
"What happened?"
"We found something."
His face was serious.
"What?"
"Come with me."
---
They followed Aren toward the edge of the village.
Eva and Aarvi were already there.
The First Guardian stood beside them.
But something was wrong.
The old man was staring at the ground.
Riva approached.
"What did you find?"
Eva pointed.
"There."
Riva looked down.
A symbol had been carved into the earth.
A circle.
Inside it...
Eight flames.
Riva's heart stopped.
"The Eighth Flame."
Aarvi shook her head.
"No."
Riva looked at her.
"Then what is it?"
Aarvi pointed toward the center.
There was something beneath the flames.
A small symbol shaped like an eye.
The First Guardian whispered:
"The Eye of Origin."
---
Riva looked at him.
"I thought the First Gate was destroyed."
"It was."
"Then why is this here?"
The old man didn't answer.
Aren did.
"Because this wasn't created by the Gate."
Riva stared at him.
"What do you mean?"
Aren pointed toward the forest.
"We found more."
---
They walked deeper into the woods.
One symbol became two.
Two became ten.
Then hundreds.
Trees were covered with the same markings.
Rocks.
The ground.
Even the trunks of ancient trees.
All carrying the same symbol.
The Eye of Origin.
Riva felt a chill.
"How long have these been here?"
The First Guardian answered:
"Before the First Kingdom."
Riva turned.
"Before the Gates?"
"Yes."
"Then who created them?"
The old man looked toward the mountains.
"We don't know."
---
A sudden sound came from the forest.
A branch snapped.
Everyone turned.
Caelan drew his sword.
"Who's there?"
No answer.
Another branch snapped.
Closer.
Elara moved behind Riva.
Then a figure stepped out.
An old woman.
She carried a basket of flowers.
She looked harmless.
But when she saw Riva...
She dropped the basket.
The flowers scattered.
The woman whispered:
"No."
Riva frowned.
"Do you know me?"
The woman stepped backward.
"You survived."
Riva's heart began pounding.
"Survived what?"
The woman shook her head.
"Don't say your name."
"Why?"
"Because they'll hear you."
---
The First Guardian immediately grabbed the woman's arm.
"Who?"
She looked toward the sky.
"The Ones Who Sleep."
Silence.
Riva stared.
"Who are they?"
The woman began trembling.
"You opened the Eighth Flame."
Riva nodded.
"We destroyed the Gates."
The woman whispered:
"That's why they woke up."
---
Aarvi stepped forward.
"What are the Ones Who Sleep?"
The old woman looked at her.
"They were here before the First Aurelia."
"Before the Devourers."
"Before the First Gate."
Riva felt her stomach tighten.
"What are they?"
The woman answered:
"They are the original guardians of this world."
Riva frowned.
"Then why should we fear them?"
The woman looked at her.
"Because they don't protect the world."
"They protect the balance."
"And you..."
She pointed at Riva.
"...have broken it."
---
The ground suddenly shook.
Birds flew from the trees.
The sky darkened.
Elara grabbed Riva's hand.
"Mother."
"I know."
Something was coming.
The First Guardian looked toward the mountains.
"No."
Riva turned.
"What?"
The old man's voice trembled.
"They're waking."
---
A deep sound echoed through the earth.
Once.
Twice.
Then a third time.
The mountain split open.
A massive golden eye appeared inside the stone.
Everyone froze.
The eye opened.
A voice shook the entire valley.
"THE GATES ARE GONE."
Riva stepped forward.
"Yes."
The voice continued:
"THE CYCLE IS BROKEN."
Riva raised her head.
"We wanted freedom."
The eye narrowed.
"FREEDOM WAS NEVER YOURS TO TAKE."
Caelan stepped beside Riva.
"And who decides that?"
The mountain answered:
"WE DO."
---
The ground cracked.
Three enormous figures rose from beneath the earth.
They were not human.
They were not monsters.
They looked like statues carved from living gold.
Each carried a different symbol.
One held the symbol of Birth.
One held the symbol of Death.
One held the symbol of Memory.
The First Guardian fell to his knees.
"The Three Keepers."
Riva stared.
"Who are they?"
He whispered:
"The ones who existed before Aurelia."
---
The Keeper of Memory looked directly at Riva.
Its eyes glowed.
Then it spoke.
"YOU CARRIED MEMORIES THAT WERE NEVER YOURS."
Riva stiffened.
The Keeper of Death looked at Caelan.
"YOU HAVE DIED SEVEN TIMES."
Caelan's face went pale.
The Keeper of Birth looked at Elara.
"YOU WERE NEVER SUPPOSED TO BE BORN."
Elara stepped backward.
Riva immediately moved in front of her.
"No."
The Keeper of Birth continued:
"YOUR EXISTENCE IS THE FIRST TRUE BREAK IN THE ORIGINAL ORDER."
Riva clenched her fists.
"Then you'll have to come through me."
The Three Keepers looked at her.
For several seconds...
Nothing happened.
Then the Keeper of Memory smiled.
"That is exactly what we wanted."
---
The sky turned completely black.
Eight golden flames appeared above the village.
Riva looked up.
The Eighth Flame was among them.
But it wasn't alone.
Seven new symbols appeared beside it.
Not flames.
Crowns.
Riva stared.
"What are those?"
The First Guardian whispered:
"The Eight Crowns."
"What's their purpose?"
He looked terrified.
"To choose the next rulers of the worlds."
Riva's heart sank.
"The worlds?"
The Keeper of Memory answered:
"The Gates are gone."
"Now the worlds must be ruled another way."
Riva looked at Elara.
Then Caelan.
Then the dark sky.
She understood.
The battle had not ended.
It had only changed.
The Keeper of Death raised its hand.
And eight beams of light descended toward the earth.
One landed before Riva.
One before Caelan.
One before Elara.
The remaining five disappeared beyond the horizon.
The Keeper of Birth spoke:
"Find the other five."
"Bring them to the First Kingdom."
"Only then will the new world begin."
Riva looked at the distant lights.
Five unknown people.
Five unknown worlds.
Five new choices.
She tightened her grip around Elara's hand.
"Then we'll find them."
Caelan smiled.
"Together."
But the Keeper of Memory gave one final warning.
"Be careful."
Riva looked back.
"Why?"
The Keeper answered:
"One of the five wants you dead."
The eight crowns vanished.
And somewhere beyond the mountains...
A man opened his eyes.
He looked at the golden light before him.
Then smiled.
"Finally."
He picked up a black crown.
And whispered:
"Riva has returned."
End of Chapter 21