Chapter 37
It began with a single heartbeat.
Hers.
But then another echoed it.
And another.
Until it wasn't just a rhythm in her chest—but a drumbeat shaking the world.
The Heartgate was waking.
Eliendara staggered as light burst from her sternum, not golden like before, not crimson like fire—but pure white, edged in violet and memory. The seal they'd carved into her soul to keep the Eighth Name buried began to crack.
Kael moved toward her.
But the air around her pulsed and pushed him back—not violently, but with finality.
"She's crossing," Ravien whispered. "From vessel to truth. From flame to form."
Solryn stood tall, arms still outstretched, that maddening calm in his voice.
"Let it open. Let the world see what it tried to hide."
Eliendara wasn't listening anymore.
She was feeling.
Every memory the crown had sealed, every flame it had suppressed, now tore through her bones. The first life. The second. The one where she had wings. The one where she was a child-god. The one where she watched the stars die and kept their names in her blood.
And the one—
Where Kael died in her arms.
No more.
She clenched her fists.
The Blade of Unwriting hummed, responding to her resolve. The Scorched Crown cracked down the center, shattering into ash that floated upward like lost stars.
And in its place—
The Heartgate opened fully.
A burning circle of energy, spinning behind her like a halo carved from fire and forgotten time.
Kael shielded his eyes. "Eli—"
She turned to him.
And for a moment, she looked like a stranger.
Eyes glowing. Skin lit from within. A goddess. A gate. A force older than gods.
But then—
Her voice.
"Do you love me?" she asked.
Kael didn't hesitate.
"With everything I am."
She stepped toward him. The Heartgate followed her like a crown, and time bent around her footsteps.
"Even if I stop being me?"
"You are always you," he said. "Even if the world forgets… I won't."
Her lips trembled. "Then remember this."
She kissed him.
The world trembled.
Solryn's face fell—not with anger, but with recognition. "You've chosen."
Eliendara turned.
"I've remembered," she corrected. "All of it. You. Me. Them. But I am not your key."
She raised the Blade of Unwriting.
And drove it into her own chest.
Ravien shouted. Kael surged forward.
But it was too late—
The blade didn't pierce flesh.
It pierced the gate inside her.
The Heartgate shrieked.
And then—
Silence.
The flames vanished.
The sky healed.
And Eliendara stood, glowing still, but whole. Human.
The Heartgate hovered behind her—closed now, sealed not by gods, not by kings—
But by choice.
Solryn stepped back, his power dimming.
"You've locked yourself again," he said, voice almost a whisper. "You could've been infinite."
"I don't want to be infinite," she said.
"I want to be real."
He vanished in shadow.
Kael caught her as she stumbled, eyes dimming, heart steady.
"Are you okay?"
She smiled, resting her forehead to his.
"I am now."
But deep beneath the earth, in a chamber with no light and no name—
The Seventh Gate pulsed once.
And began to open.
🔮 Next Chapter Preview – Chapter 38: The Gate That Opens Itself
The Seventh was never truly sealed—It was waiting.
And now that Eliendara has refused her destiny…
The world's final gate chooses its own path.
And what steps through…
Wears her face.