The long passage was completely silent.
Rahim walked in front.
Karim, Farid, and Zayan followed closely behind him.
The three keys were still glowing.
The golden light at the end of the passage became brighter with every step.
Karim looked around nervously.
"Rahim, I don't like this place."
Rahim smiled a little.
"Neither do I. But we have to keep going."
Farid suddenly stopped.
"Wait."
Everyone stopped.
Farid looked at the walls.
"There is something written here."
Rahim moved closer.
There were ancient words carved into the stone.
Farid slowly read them.
"Only the true guardian can enter the chamber."
Zayan looked at Rahim.
"So… it is talking about you."
Rahim did not answer.
He looked at the three keys.
Suddenly, the keys floated into the air.
Blue light came from the Storm Key.
Dark purple light came from the Shadow Key.
The third key gave off a golden light.
The three lights joined together.
A large door appeared in front of them.
The door had the symbol of an old guardian.
Rahim stepped forward.
The door opened by itself.
Inside was a huge round room.
At the center of the room stood a tall stone statue.
The statue was holding a sword in one hand and a crystal in the other.
Rahim stared at it.
"This must be Arman," he said.
Farid nodded.
"The First Guardian."
Suddenly, the statue began to glow.
A deep voice filled the room.
"If you have reached this chamber, the three keys have been reunited."
Everyone became silent.
The voice continued.
"But the keys are not enough."
Rahim looked confused.
"What else do we need?"
The statue pointed toward the wall.
A hidden picture appeared.
It showed the Final Gate.
Behind the gate was a huge dark shadow.
Karim stepped back.
"The darkness…"
Farid looked worried.
"Yes. The ancient darkness is still sleeping."
The voice continued.
"The Final Gate cannot be opened by force. It can only be opened by the one who carries the guardian's power."
Rahim looked at his hands.
"But I don't have any power."
The room became silent.
Then the three keys flew toward Rahim.
They stopped in front of him.
A bright light surrounded him.
Rahim suddenly saw a strange vision.
He saw Arman standing beside the Final Gate.
Another person was standing next to him.
But the person's face was hidden.
Arman said,
"You promised to protect the gate."
The unknown person answered,
"I will protect it… but one day, I will open it."
Rahim's eyes became wide.
"No!"
The vision disappeared.
Rahim fell to his knees.
Karim quickly helped him.
"Rahim! Are you okay?"
Rahim looked at everyone.
"I saw Arman… and someone else."
Farid became serious.
"Who was it?"
"I don't know. I couldn't see the face."
Zayan looked at the statue.
"Maybe that person was the one who betrayed Arman."
Suddenly, a loud sound came from below the castle.
BOOM!
The entire room shook.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Karim shouted,
"What was that?"
Farid looked toward the door.
"The Shadow Beast."
Another sound came.
BOOM!
This time, the walls shook even more.
Farid quickly said,
"We must leave this room."
Rahim stood up.
"But where do we go?"
The statue suddenly moved.
Its stone hand pointed toward a small door behind them.
The door opened.
Beyond it was a staircase going down into darkness.
A message appeared on the wall:
"The truth is below."
Rahim looked at Karim.
Karim sighed.
"Of course. We have to go down."
Zayan gave a small smile.
"That's what we always do."
They started walking down the stairs.
But Rahim suddenly looked back at the statue.
For a moment, he thought he saw the statue's eyes move.
Then he heard a very soft voice.
"Rahim… trust no one."
Rahim froze.
He looked at Zayan.
Then at Farid.
Then at Karim.
He didn't know who the voice was warning him about.
The three keys began to glow again.
And deep beneath the castle, something slowly woke up.
To be continued...