Chapter 56 — The Guardian of the Heart of Darkness

  They stood at the edge of the final threshold.

  The gates before them towered like a spire. Carved from black obsidian, inscribed with ancient script, they pulsed with a faint light—as if breathing. From within came a muffled, rhythmic humming, like the beat of a heart.

  “Well... now this looks more like a final boss arena,” Stan whispered, squinting. “Next thing, thunder cracks, and someone flies in on dragons.”

  “Don’t jinx it,” Reyna said at once, checking her spells.

  “I’m not jinxing. I’m predicting,” he argued. “For the record, I have intuition.”

  “You have an allergy to adventure, not intuition,” Ethan added, adjusting his scabbard.

  “Big words for a guy who nearly fainted when a shadow looked at him,” Stan muttered.

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  “I wasn’t scared. I was... strategically retreating.”

  Leonel already stood before the gate, placing his palm on the cold stone. The darkness seemed to respond to his touch, quivering like water beneath the wind.

  “There’s someone here,” he said quietly.

  “Who?” Mirellis came closer. Her eyes darkened, her magic trembling as if recognizing something kindred.

  “A guardian,” Reyna answered. “This is the Heart of Darkness. It won’t open without a fight. The legends said it—before reaching the source of power, you must pass through the keeper of the space itself.”

  “And this ‘keeper’... is it big?” Stan asked, already halfway behind Ethan.

  Instead of an answer, the sky above them thickened with shadow. The hum grew louder, as though the world behind the gate had awakened.

  The doors began to slowly open.

  And from the gloom, He stepped forth.

  The being stood three stories tall, shaped of darkness, stone, and metal. Its face was like a mask—no eyes, no mouth—yet such power radiated from it that each of the heroes felt their magic, their blood, their souls shudder.

  “Well, hello there, nightmare,” Ethan whispered.

  “Can he see me? Maybe I’ll pretend I’m a bush,” Stan muttered, pressing against a column.

  The guardian stepped forward. The ground trembled. One hand was made of chains, the other of molten metal. And when it raised its head, where eyes should have been, two blood-red fires flared to life.

  “I am the Keeper. The Last. I shall see if you are worthy.”

  Its voice boomed like the crash of boulders, layered with the echo of a hundred voices.

  Without hesitation, Leonel stepped forward. The flame of his sword flared brighter.

  “We did not come to destroy. We came for the truth.”

  “Truth demands sacrifice. And strength.”

  “Then test us,” Leonel said firmly.

  “And if we fail?” Mirellis whispered.

  “Then we become part of this place,” Reyna answered. “Forever.”

  And in the moment the Keeper unleashed its first attack, the heavens trembled. Fire and darkness intertwined—and the battle began.