The entire underwater kingdom shook.
I held Shawshank's hand as another crack appeared across the ancient gate.
CRACK.
The sound traveled through the water like thunder.
"What happens when it breaks?" I asked again.
Azrael looked at me.
"The sea and the land will no longer be separated."
I swallowed.
"And that's bad?"
Marina answered softly.
"Not every creature beneath the sea is peaceful."
A deep roar came from behind the gate.
The water around us trembled.
Shawshank moved closer to me.
"Whatever happens, don't leave my side."
I looked at him.
"You nearly became a monster five minutes ago."
He gave me a weak smile.
"And you still love me?"
"Unfortunately."
He laughed.
For the first time since the darkness appeared, I smiled too.
Then the gate cracked again.
My smile disappeared.
A red light burst through the opening.
Angela suddenly grabbed my shoulders.
"Bjei, listen to me."
I looked at her.
"If the boundary breaks, the creature won't be the only thing that escapes."
"What else is behind it?"
She hesitated.
"Thousands of them."
My heart dropped.
"Thousands?"
Angela nodded.
"Creatures that have been trapped beneath the sea for centuries."
My grandmother stepped forward.
"Then we must seal it."
Azrael shook his head.
"It is already too late."
"No," I said.
Everyone looked at me.
I walked toward the gate.
Shawshank immediately followed.
"Bjei."
"I can feel it."
"Feel what?"
I placed my palm against the stone.
"The gate isn't trying to open."
Marina frowned.
"Then what is it doing?"
I closed my eyes.
The answer came to me.
"It is trying to escape."
Everyone went silent.
A strange vibration traveled through my body.
I could hear whispers.
Hundreds of them.
Maybe thousands.
Some were crying.
Some were angry.
Some were begging.
And one voice stood above all the others.
Bjei.
I opened my eyes.
"I can hear them."
Shawshank looked worried.
"Who?"
"The prisoners."
Azrael's expression changed.
"That's impossible."
"Why?"
"Because nobody can hear the voices behind the boundary."
I looked at him.
"I can."
My golden mark appeared.
The cracks in the gate stopped spreading.
Everyone stared.
I slowly raised my other hand.
The red light faded.
The gate became silent.
For a moment, I thought I had done it.
Then someone whispered behind me.
"Bjei."
I turned.
Angela was standing there.
But she wasn't looking at me.
She was looking at the gate.
Her face had gone pale.
"Mom?"
She didn't answer.
I stepped toward her.
"What is it?"
She whispered,
"I know that voice."
"Whose?"
Angela's eyes filled with tears.
"My sister's."
The kingdom went silent.
I stared at her.
"You have a sister?"
Angela nodded slowly.
"I did."
"What happened to her?"
Angela looked at the gate.
"She disappeared twenty years ago."
My grandmother suddenly looked away.
I noticed.
"Grandma?"
She didn't respond.
I walked toward her.
"You knew?"
She sighed.
"Yes."
"What happened to Angela's sister?"
Grandmother's eyes filled with sadness.
"She went into the sea."
Angela shook her head.
"She didn't just go into the sea."
Everyone turned toward her.
"She was taken."
"By who?" I asked.
Angela looked at me.
"The queen."
The false queen immediately stepped backward.
"That wasn't me."
Angela stared at her.
"Not you."
She pointed toward the gate.
"Her."
The false queen's face changed.
"Who?"
Angela whispered,
"The real queen."
My heart began pounding.
"But we thought the real queen was dead."
Marina shook her head.
"She isn't dead."
"Then where is she?"
Nobody answered.
Suddenly the gate opened.
Only a few inches.
A woman's voice floated through the darkness.
Cold.
Beautiful.
Powerful.
"Angela."
Angela froze.
The voice laughed softly.
"You kept my daughter hidden for eighteen years."
My entire body went cold.
I looked at Angela.
"Your daughter?"
She couldn't speak.
The woman behind the gate continued.
"But now…"
The darkness moved.
"…she has found her way home."
Shawshank stepped in front of me.
"Who are you?"
The woman laughed.
"You should know me, Shawshank."
His expression changed.
"How?"
"I knew your father."
Azrael raised his weapon.
"Enough."
The voice became colder.
"Azrael."
He froze.
"You still haven't learned."
The gate opened another inch.
"You cannot keep the truth buried forever."
I looked at Angela.
"Mom…"
She finally looked at me.
Tears were running down her face.
"I wanted to tell you."
"Tell me what?"
She took a trembling breath.
"You were never the only child I was protecting."
My heart sank.
"There was another."
I stared at the gate.
The woman's voice whispered:
"Your sister."
I couldn't breathe.
Shawshank grabbed my hand.
Then the gate opened another inch.
And a woman's hand slowly emerged from the darkness.
Wearing a golden crown.
The real queen had returned.