Silence gripped the heavens.
No one could believe what they had just heard.
The Devourer...
Had entered the Gate of Origin.
The one place it was never supposed to reach.
The older Kael stood before the gathering, his cloak fluttering in the cosmic winds flowing from the Gate.
His golden eyes were filled with exhaustion.
The exhaustion of someone who had fought for thousands of lifetimes.
Astraeus immediately stepped forward.
"This is impossible."
The First Candidate shook his head.
"No."
His voice was grim.
"It's already happening."
Behind him, the golden light of the Gate flickered.
Dark cracks began spreading across its ancient surface.
The Gate of Origin had existed since the dawn of creation.
Yet now...
Something was corrupting it.
---
Far within the Gate...
A sound echoed.
A heartbeat.
THUMP.
THUMP.
THUMP.
Each beat shook entire dimensions.
Entire galaxies trembled.
Ancient worlds collapsed.
And from the depths of the Gate...
A voice emerged.
> I remember.
The moment those words were spoken, every Sovereign froze.
Even Lyra.
Even the Ninth Sovereign.
Even Astraeus.
Fear filled their eyes.
Because they recognized that voice.
The Devourer was awakening memories it should never have possessed.
---
Kael looked toward the older version of himself.
"The Watcher said you were the First Candidate."
The older Kael nodded.
"I was."
"Then why are you here?"
A sad smile appeared on his face.
"Because I refused to disappear."
The answer made little sense.
But before Kael could ask more, the older Kael raised his hand.
A vision appeared.
Kael saw countless timelines.
Ten thousand worlds.
Ten thousand failures.
In every one of them, the Devourer won.
Cities burned.
Stars died.
Reality collapsed.
And standing at the center of each ruined world...
Was the same figure.
The Devourer.
But something was different.
In the oldest timeline...
The Devourer looked human.
Kael's eyes widened.
"What?"
The vision vanished.
The older Kael's expression darkened.
"The Devourer wasn't born a monster."
Everyone froze.
"What do you mean?" Orion asked.
Astraeus closed his eyes.
As if he already knew what was coming.
The older Kael looked toward the Gate.
Then spoke the truth.
> The Devourer was once a Sovereign.
The heavens shook.
Lightning exploded across the sky.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody moved.
The revelation was too great.
A Sovereign?
The being threatening all existence had once been one of them?
Lyra clenched her fists.
The Ninth Sovereign looked away.
Neither denied it.
Which meant it was true.
---
Suddenly—
BOOOOOOM!
The Gate of Origin cracked.
A massive claw burst through the golden light.
Not the gigantic hand Kael had seen before.
Something worse.
The claw was covered in broken stars.
Entire constellations were trapped inside it.
The claw gripped the edge of the Gate.
Then another claw appeared.
The Devourer was forcing its way through.
Astraeus immediately raised both hands.
Golden barriers appeared.
Lyra summoned her black throne.
The Ninth Sovereign unleashed silver flames.
Three ancient powers struck at once.
BOOOOOOM!
The universe shook.
Yet the claw continued moving.
Slowly.
Relentlessly.
As if their attacks meant nothing.
Then the Devourer laughed.
> You still do not understand.
The voice echoed everywhere.
Inside minds.
Inside souls.
Inside reality itself.
> I am no longer what I once was.
Darkness exploded from the Gate.
Thousands of stars vanished instantly.
Consumed.
Erased.
Gone.
Kael felt a chill run through him.
The thing emerging wasn't simply powerful.
It was becoming part of existence itself.
---
Then something impossible happened.
The Last Throne's symbol on Kael's chest began burning.
A terrible pain shot through his body.
He dropped to one knee.
Golden energy erupted around him.
The countdown clock above Elysium suddenly shattered.
The pieces froze in midair.
Then rearranged themselves into a new message.
A message that nobody had ever seen before.
> FINAL PROTOCOL ACTIVATED.
SOVEREIGN OF SOVEREIGNS REQUIRED.
ASCENSION TRIAL COMMENCING.
The heavens fell silent.
The older Kael's face changed.
Astraeus looked shocked.
Even the Devourer stopped moving.
For the first time...
It seemed surprised.
Kael struggled to stand.
"What's happening?"
The older Kael stared at him.
Then slowly answered.
"The final trial."
A chill spread through everyone's hearts.
Because the older Kael knew exactly what that meant.
And he looked terrified.
Then a golden door appeared directly behind Kael.
The door slowly opened.
Blinding light poured out.
And from within the light...
A familiar voice spoke.
A voice Kael had not heard since he was a child.
> Kael...
Come find me.
His heart stopped.
It was Queen Elara.
But this time...
She wasn't calling from a vision.
She was calling from beyond the final trial.
And before Kael could react—
A shadow moved behind her.
A shadow holding a crown of stars.
The figure slowly lifted its head.
And smiled.
To be continued...