Episode 6 - The Beast Beyond the Gate
1383 Words
The gigantic claw slammed against the edge of the portal.
The entire tunnel shook violently.
Ancient stone cracked apart while silver energy burst wildly from the Gate Shrine. Elias stumbled backward, nearly falling as freezing wind exploded from the dark portal.
The creature on the other side pushed forward slowly.
Its golden eyes glowed like suns inside the darkness.
Kael’s face had gone pale.
“Close the gate!” he shouted.
Elias stared at him in panic. “HOW?!”
“I don’t know!”
“That’s not helpful!”
The claw forced itself farther through the portal.
It was enormous—larger than a car—and covered in black scales that shimmered faintly with silver cracks. Each claw looked sharp enough to slice through steel.
The Hunters in the tunnel had completely stopped advancing now.
They stood perfectly still.
Watching.
Afraid.
One Hunter slowly stepped backward again.
Then another.
Even they feared the creature beyond the gate.
Lyra’s expression tightened.
“That thing shouldn’t exist near the lower worlds.”
Elias backed away from the portal. “What IS it?!”
Kael answered quietly.
“A Void Beast.”
The name alone sounded wrong.
The portal darkened further.
The creature growled again, deeper this time, and the sound vibrated through Elias’s chest like thunder.
Then the beast began pulling itself through.
Its second claw appeared.
The Gate Shrine trembled violently.
Silver symbols across the walls flickered uncontrollably.
Kael immediately drew his sword again.
“If it fully enters this world, the shrine will collapse.”
“That sounds bad.”
“It is VERY bad.”
The Hunters suddenly moved.
Not toward Elias.
Toward the gate.
Crimson energy erupted from their hands as they attacked the portal itself.
Elias blinked in confusion. “Wait… now they’re helping us?!”
“They’re protecting the Veil,” Lyra said quickly. “If the shrine breaks completely, the damage could spread across nearby realities.”
“That sentence somehow made things worse.”
The Hunters slammed their crimson blades into the shrine.
The giant portal shook.
The Void Beast roared furiously.
Then its golden eyes locked directly onto Elias again.
The silver key in Elias’s hand suddenly burned with heat.
Pain shot through his arm.
The glowing symbols spread farther across his skin.
Elias gritted his teeth. “AGH!”
Lyra grabbed him before he collapsed.
“The beast is reacting to the key!”
Kael turned sharply toward Elias.
“Because the relic opened the gate.”
The Void Beast pushed forward again.
Half of its massive head emerged from the darkness.
Elias froze.
The creature looked ancient.
Its body resembled a giant wolf, but distorted and unnatural. Black scales covered parts of its skin while silver light pulsed beneath its flesh like veins. Long curved horns extended backward from its skull, and shadows leaked constantly from its body like smoke.
And its eyes—
Those terrible golden eyes—
Looked intelligent.
Hungry.
The beast opened its mouth slowly.
Rows of glowing silver teeth filled the darkness within.
Then it spoke.
“Keybearer…”
Elias stopped breathing.
The voice echoed directly inside his mind.
Not through the air.
Inside him.
Kael’s eyes widened in horror.
“It can speak?”
The Void Beast smiled slightly.
“You carry the First Relic…”
The Hunters attacked the creature again desperately.
Crimson energy exploded across the tunnel.
But the beast barely reacted.
Its attention remained fixed entirely on Elias.
“You smell of the Ancient Seal.”
Elias stepped backward nervously. “I have absolutely no idea what that means.”
The beast lowered its massive head slightly.
“But I remember your soul.”
Silence.
Even the Hunters stopped moving.
Kael stared sharply at Elias.
Lyra looked just as shocked.
Elias blinked rapidly. “WHAT?!”
The Void Beast growled softly.
“You walked the Final Gate long ago.”
Elias shook his head immediately. “No, I didn’t!”
The beast’s golden eyes narrowed.
“You do not remember.”
The tunnel suddenly shook harder than before.
Cracks spread rapidly across the Gate Shrine.
Silver light burst from the walls violently.
Kael cursed under his breath.
“The shrine is failing!”
The Hunters finally retreated farther down the tunnel.
Their leader pointed toward Elias.
“Seal the gate, Keybearer.”
Elias stared at the Hunter in disbelief.
“You tried to kill me five minutes ago!”
“And we will again,” the Hunter replied coldly. “But the beast cannot remain.”
Fair enough.
Kael moved beside Elias quickly.
“Listen carefully. The shrine is connected to the Silver Key.”
Elias swallowed nervously.
“You need to command it.”
“I DON’T KNOW HOW!”
“You’re the only one who can!”
The Void Beast suddenly lunged forward.
The tunnel exploded apart as its massive body forced itself farther through the portal.
Kael blocked one claw strike with his sword.
The impact launched him across the chamber.
“KAEL!”
Lyra raised both hands.
Silver markings ignited across the floor.
Chains of glowing light shot toward the beast, wrapping around its limbs briefly.
The creature roared.
The chains shattered instantly.
Lyra staggered backward, coughing blood.
Elias felt panic rising rapidly.
Everyone was losing.
The Hunters.
Kael.
Lyra.
None of them could stop it.
And the beast kept staring at him.
Like it knew him.
The silver key pulsed violently in Elias’s hand.
Then something strange happened.
The tunnel disappeared.
Elias suddenly stood somewhere else.
A vast dark space stretched endlessly around him.
Stars floated beneath his feet instead of above him.
And directly ahead—
A giant silver door.
Ancient symbols glowed across its surface.
The Final Gate.
Elias somehow knew its name instinctively.
A figure stood before the door.
A young man around Elias’s age.
Silver light flowed through cracks across his skin.
And in his hand—
Another Silver Key.
The stranger slowly turned toward Elias.
Their faces were identical.
Elias froze.
“…What?”
The other Elias smiled sadly.
“You’re finally here.”
Before Elias could speak—
The vision shattered.
Reality returned violently.
The Gate Shrine was collapsing.
Kael struggled to stand.
Lyra could barely move.
The Void Beast had nearly forced itself completely through the portal now.
Elias stared at the silver key in horror.
His breathing became uneven.
That vision…
That person…
It looked exactly like him.
The beast growled again inside his mind.
“Remember.”
The silver key suddenly floated from Elias’s hand.
Bright silver light exploded across the tunnel.
Every symbol inside the shrine ignited at once.
The Void Beast stopped moving.
Its golden eyes widened slightly.
Elias slowly lifted his hand instinctively.
And for the first time—
The key obeyed him.
The ancient symbols around the gate began rotating rapidly.
The portal started closing.
The Void Beast roared furiously.
“No!”
The darkness behind it pulled violently backward.
The creature fought against the shrinking portal, claws digging into stone as reality itself dragged it away.
Elias gritted his teeth.
Pain tore through his body.
But somehow—
He understood the key now.
At least a little.
The gate continued closing.
Smaller.
Smaller.
The Void Beast locked eyes with Elias one final time.
Then it spoke softly.
“The Hollow King is waking.”
Fear crawled through Elias’s chest.
Then the portal snapped shut.
Silence.
The tunnel became still again.
The Void Beast vanished.
The Gate Shrine dimmed completely.
Elias collapsed to his knees, breathing heavily.
The silver key dropped back into his hand.
Cold again.
Quiet again.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then one Hunter stepped forward slowly.
Its crimson gaze fixed on Elias.
“…The seal truly recognizes him.”
Kael immediately raised his sword again.
But the Hunter didn’t attack.
Instead, the creature lowered its head slightly toward Elias.
Almost like respect.
Then all the Hunters vanished into darkness.
Gone.
The tunnel fell silent.
Elias looked around weakly.
Kael was injured.
Lyra looked exhausted.
And the shrine behind them had nearly collapsed entirely.
Then Elias remembered the vision.
The other version of himself.
The Final Gate.
His hands trembled slightly.
Because deep inside—
He knew the Void Beast was telling the truth.
Something ancient inside him had started waking up too.
- Writer
