The woman didn't flinch. If anything, her golden eyes gleamed brighter at Adam's declaration, like a flame catching wind. The stone guardians responded to her will, shifting forward in slow, deliberate steps. Each one stood ten feet tall, carved with ancient sigils, pulsing with mana that felt old as time itself.
Adam's wings of energy flared out, cracking the ground beneath him.
He leapt.
The first guardian swung—a boulder-sized fist laced with arcane force. Adam ducked, surged upward, and drove a blazing punch into the guardian's chest. The impact sent a shockwave through the valley. Rock shattered. The guardian stumbled—but didn't fall.
He spun midair, landing beside a second construct that lashed out with a stone blade. Adam caught it with glowing hands. Sparks flared where mana met mana, and with a guttural shout, he ripped the blade free and slammed it into the guardian's core.
It collapsed with a thunderous groan.
Two more advanced.
The woman watched, arms crossed, face unreadable.
Adam gritted his teeth. His body still ached from the battle with the Sovereigns. His mind was heavy with the voice that haunted him—the one that said he was made.
Not chosen.
Created.
Another guardian lunged. Adam raised a wall of mana—pure light formed from instinct. It held, barely, and as the force cracked it, he retaliated with a shockwave of energy that split the construct in half.
Dust clouded the air. Mana stormed like lightning around him.
And still… they came.
Four more rose.
He cursed under his breath, panting.
"You said it was one fight," he shouted. "How many more do you have?!"
The woman stepped forward, and the remaining guardians froze in place.
"That was the fight," she said calmly. "Now comes the truth."
Adam frowned. "What?"
She approached, slow and deliberate, until they stood just a few feet apart. "You're stronger than any who came before. Even the Originals. But strength without clarity is a weapon turned inward."
Adam's fists clenched. "I know why I fight."
"You think you do," she said, tilting her head. "But the Third Gate opened because of your pain. Not your purpose."
He blinked.
She touched a finger to his forehead.
And the world vanished.
---
He stood in a corridor. Cold. Metallic. Familiar.
Adam's heart thudded. "No," he whispered. "Not here."
The walls were sterile white. The hum of machines echoed in the distance. Monitors blinked with ancient code. And beyond a sealed door at the end of the hall—her scream.
Belle.
He sprinted.
Every footstep echoed through memory. Every light flickered like it remembered what happened here. He reached the door. Slammed a fist against it.
But it didn't open.
A voice behind him said, "You failed her once already."
He turned—and saw himself.
A perfect copy. Same clothes. Same face. But his eyes…
Empty.
Cold.
"This is the real test," the double said. "You think fighting monsters proves anything? You think breaking stone makes you worthy? You think she needs a hero?"
"I am not you," Adam snarled.
"No. You're worse," the double said. "Because you pretend."
The double raised a hand—and Adam felt it. A surge of identical mana, matching his own. The mirror self attacked—fast, brutal, precise.
Adam fought back, but every strike he made, the double matched.
Blow for blow. Thought for thought.
"I'm what you are without her," the mirror said. "I'm what you become when you lose everything."
"No," Adam growled, barely blocking a strike aimed at his chest.
"Yes," it hissed. "You will lose her. You will fall. And when you do, all this power will burn the world."
Adam's legs buckled under a heavy kick. He fell, coughing blood.
The double raised a glowing hand.
But Adam smiled.
"You're wrong," he whispered. "Because I'm not fighting alone."
Light exploded behind him.
The door shattered open.
And Belle's voice echoed like a bell: "Adam!"
A warmth surged through him, flooding his veins, deeper than mana.
Hope.
He rose, light cracking from his skin like lightning.
The double tried to strike again, but Adam caught the blow mid-air. "I'm not what you say I am."
He crushed the double's hand.
And in a blast of pure radiance, erased him.
---
The vision faded.
Adam dropped to one knee, gasping.
The woman stood over him, face soft now. "Now you've seen the fourth key."
He looked up. "What?"
She offered him her hand. "The Fourth Gate isn't about power. It's about purpose. You opened the Third through rage. But the Fourth… only opens when you understand what you're protecting, and why."
He stood without taking her hand. "I understand now."
She nodded. "Then go to her."
The ruin behind them opened—stone sliding aside like breath.
A staircase spiraled down into darkness.
Adam stepped past her.
But she called out one last time.
"Adam."
He turned slightly.
"When you reach the final Gate," she said, "He will wake."
Adam didn't ask who.
He just nodded.
And descended.
---
Below the ruin, the world changed.
No longer ancient stone. No longer forgotten ruins. This was a lab.
Sterile. Silent.
And at the center, suspended in a field of energy—Belle.
Her hair floated weightless, her eyes closed. She looked untouched, like frozen time. Machines surrounded her. Some Sovereign tech. Some older.
Adam approached slowly.
But a voice echoed behind him. Familiar.
"Well done," it said. "You passed the test."
He turned.
And Verius stood there, unmasked.
No helm. No blade. Just a smile that didn't reach his eyes.
"I was hoping you'd come," Verius said. "You're exactly on time."
Adam raised his hands. "I'm done playing games. Step aside."
"Oh, I will," Verius said, holding out his hand.
A cube floated into view—a control device. "I'll even let you have her. This time."
Adam narrowed his eyes. "What's the catch?"
Verius grinned. "You take her. You wake her. But by doing so… you open the Fourth Gate. And when that happens… He returns."
Adam's heart stopped.
"You want Him back," he whispered.
"I want balance," Verius said. "This world belongs to more than Sovereigns. More than mortals. It belongs to the First Flame."
The machines shuddered.
The field around Belle flickered.
"You can walk away," Verius offered. "Leave her safe in stasis. Keep your Gate closed. Live quietly."
Adam looked at her. Remembered her laugh. Her touch.
"No."
He stepped forward.
Pressed a hand to the field.
And whispered, "Wake up."
Light tore through the room.
The Fourth Gate opened.
And far beneath them… something ancient breathed.