(Jayjay's Point of View)
The sky changed before anyone noticed.
One moment, it was bright — the late afternoon sun pouring through the windows — and the next, the light dimmed like someone had covered the world with smoke.
The clock on the wall froze at 4:11 PM.
That was when I knew something was wrong.
The air was too still. Too heavy.
Keifer stood up from his seat first.
"Guys… do you feel that?"
Yuri turned toward the window, his expression hardening. "It's back."
Before I could ask what, the entire building shuddered. The windows shattered outward, and a roar — like thunder and screaming mixed — filled the hallways.
The Soul Gate had awakened again.
Students screamed outside. Teachers yelled for everyone to evacuate.
But we knew where we had to go.
The courtyard.
We ran through smoke and broken glass.
I could hear Ella chanting a shield spell behind us, protecting the ones still trying to escape. Keifer led the way, hand glowing faintly with his power, pushing through falling debris.
By the time we reached the courtyard, it was already too late to call this a "containment."
The gate was open — a spiraling hole of black energy rising from the center of the school grounds.
And standing in front of it… was Zyn.
He looked the same, but different. His eyes were hollow, burning violet.
His smile was calm — too calm.
"Hello, Section E," he said, his voice distorted by the echo of the Soul Gate. "Did you miss me?"
Yuri's hand tightened around his weapon. "You're supposed to be gone."
"I was," Zyn said softly. "Until one of you called me back."
We froze. His words sliced through the chaos.
Keifer stepped forward, anger flashing in his eyes. "Stop lying!"
Zyn's gaze turned to me. "Then tell them, Jayjay. Tell them what you found in the restricted floor."
My heart stopped.
No one was supposed to know about that.
The memory hit me — the broken seal, the strange warmth, and the voice whispering in my mind:
"Set me free, and you'll never lose again."
I didn't mean to open it. I thought it was a test, a remnant of the old magic from the school's archives. But… I did.
And Zyn came back because of me.
"Jayjay…" Ella whispered behind me. "Tell me he's lying."
I couldn't speak.
The guilt burned like fire in my chest.
Zyn raised his hand, dark energy swirling around him. "Checkmate begins."
The courtyard cracked. The ground split apart, forming runes that glowed red. Shadows crawled out, twisting into shapes that had once been human.
Section E scattered into formation, instincts kicking in.
Keifer shouted commands, Yuri covered the left side, Ella and Ci-N combined spells for defense.
And I… I tried to focus.
But every time I looked at Zyn, I saw the truth — the chaos started with me.
"Mutya, snap out of it!" Keifer's voice snapped me back. "We need you!"
I nodded, forcing the energy out of my palms, light forming between my fingers. The sky screamed with thunder.
"Formation E-01!" I yelled.
We attacked as one — light against darkness, unity against despair.
The courtyard filled with explosions of color.
Every strike, every scream, every desperate heartbeat felt like it would be the last.
And then I heard Zyn laugh.
"Even when you win, Jayjay… you lose something."
He pointed to the gate — it pulsed, glowing brighter.
The sky opened.
Keifer shouted, "Fall back!"
Too late.
A blinding white light swallowed everything.
The last thing I heard before the world broke apart was my own voice whispering—
"Checkmate."