Chapter Three Part Three
The Gates of Light
Then—
a new radiance erupted.
Not from the tear in the heavens…
but from Earth itself.
From every continent—
from mountains, oceans, deserts, and forgotten ruins—
pillars of golden light surged upward like spears piercing the sky.
And within that light…
doors appeared.
Gates.
Ancient.
Magnificent.
Impossible.
One in the Himalayas.
One above the Bermuda Sea.
One in the Sahara.
One buried beneath Antarctica's ice.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
As if Earth had been sealed…
and the seals were breaking.
Humanity stared.
For a moment, panic faltered.
Even screaming slowed into silence.
Because something in the human soul recognized this light.
Not as alien—
but as familiar.
As if the Earth itself had opened its eyes.
Humanity's Whiplash
In Seoul, a mother clutching her child whispered shakily:
"…Is that… hope?"
Her daughter's face was wet with tears.
"Mom… are we saved?"
The mother didn't know.
She didn't dare to believe.
Hope was dangerous.
Hope was fragile.
But her arms tightened anyway.
In New York, a man shouting into his phone fell silent.
The livestream continued, millions watching.
His voice cracked.
"Guys…"
"…that's not the sky tearing anymore."
"That's…"
His eyes widened.
"That's something coming out of us."
In Beijing, soldiers who had been aiming rifles upward lowered them without realizing.
One young recruit whispered:
"Sir… are those… our legends?"
His commander's jaw trembled.
"Don't speak."
But his own hands were shaking.
In Rome, priests stood beneath the ringing bells.
One began to sob—not from fear, but from overwhelming relief.
"The Lord did not abandon us…"
He whispered.
But another priest grabbed his arm, eyes wild.
"…Or perhaps something else has been waiting here all along."
Across the world, the mood shifted violently.
Just minutes ago, humanity had been sentenced.
Abandoned.
Condemned.
Earth unprotected.
People had tasted the purest despair.
But now…
now the sky was opening from the inside.
And the human heart, desperate beyond measure, did what it always did:
It grabbed hope like a drowning man grabs air.
Then…
the first figure stepped through.
A silhouette in flowing robes, crowned with stars.
The air bent around him.
The pressure alone made knees buckle.
Livestream chats exploded:
WHAT IS THAT??
IS THAT A GOD??
WE'RE SAVED!!
RUN!!
Then another appeared.
A woman whose eyes held endless oceans.
Children began to cry harder.
Because children could feel it first:
This was not human comfort.
This was something beyond understanding.
Then—
a warrior carrying a spear radiating divine pressure.
Then—
a laughing monkey-like figure atop a cloud of gold.
Then—
a dragon coiling across the heavens, its scales reflecting the birth of worlds.
The myths of Earth…
walked into reality.