She closed her eyes.
"I don't know what to choose!"
The voices became louder.
Choose.
"What do you want from me?"
Silence.
Then one voice answered.
It was gentle.
Familiar.
Mira opened her eyes.
A golden figure stood before her.
It was the First Dragon.
But it was different now.
It wasn't frightening.
It looked almost peaceful.
"You already know."
Mira whispered:
"What?"
The First Dragon smiled.
"The future isn't something you discover."
It touched her forehead.
"It is something you create."
The vision disappeared.
Mira looked at the battlefield.
Leo was on the ground.
Kael was badly injured.
The Second Dragon was preparing another attack.
Mira raised her hand.
"STOP!"
The entire kingdom went silent.
The dragon stopped.
The wind stopped.
Even the falling stones seemed frozen.
Mira's eyes began glowing gold.
"I won't become your weapon."
The dragon stared at her.
"Then what will you become?"
Mira answered:
"Someone who chooses."
A massive wave of golden energy exploded from her body.
BOOOOOOM!
The darkness shattered.
The Second Dragon screamed.
Leo covered his face.
Kael stared in disbelief.
The golden energy spread across the entire kingdom.
For one moment, everyone could see the future.
Not one future.
Thousands.
Millions.
Every possible path.
Every possible choice.
Every possible life.
Then the visions vanished.
Mira collapsed.
Leo caught her before she hit the ground.
"Mira!"
She opened her eyes.
"Did we win?"
Leo looked toward the dragon.
"No."
Mira frowned.
"Then why are you smiling?"
Leo looked at the sky.
"Because now I understand."
The Second Dragon was disappearing.
But before it vanished completely, it smiled.
"You have opened the Gate."
Leo's smile disappeared.
"What gate?"
The dragon answered:
"The Gate beyond the future."
Then it disappeared.
Three days passed.
Chingy City began rebuilding.
But Leo could not forget the dragon's final words.
The Gate beyond the future.
He returned to the forbidden archive.
Mira and Kael followed him.
They searched for hours.
Finally, Mira found something hidden behind a shelf.
A small metal box.
Inside was a letter.
The handwriting was familiar.
Leo stared at it.
It was his father's handwriting.
He opened it.
The letter contained only a few words.
My son,
If you are reading this, then the Second Dragon has awakened.
Leo's hands began shaking.
He continued.
Do not trust the Crown.
Mira looked at him.
"Why?"
Leo kept reading.
The Crown was never the greatest power.
There is something beyond it.
Something even the dragons feared.
Leo turned the page.
There was one final sentence.
If the Gate opens, do not let anyone pass through.
Suddenly, the floor began glowing.
Mira's golden mark activated.
A circular symbol appeared beneath their feet.
Kael stepped backward.
"No."
Leo looked at him.
"What is it?"
Kael's face was filled with fear.
"The Gate."
The symbol grew larger.
Stone began disappearing.
A doorway formed in the middle of the archive.
Beyond it was not another room.
It was darkness.
But within that darkness were countless stars.
Mira stepped closer.
"Where does it lead?"
Kael whispered:
"Beyond time."
Leo stared at the doorway.
Then a voice came from inside.
A voice that sounded like his father's.
"Leo."
Leo froze.
"Father?"
Mira grabbed his arm.
"Don't go."
The voice came again.
"My son..."
Leo's eyes filled with tears.
"Father?"
Kael shouted:
"That's not King Austin!"
The voice changed.
It became deeper.
Older.
More terrifying.
"Come and see what your future became."
The doorway widened.
A hand reached through.
Leo raised his sword.
Mira stepped beside him.
Kael stood on the other side.
Three warriors.
Three choices.
And one impossible doorway.
Then someone walked out.
Leo's heart stopped.
The man looked exactly like him.
But he was wearing a black crown.
He stared at Leo.
And smiled.
"Hello, Father."
Leo dropped his sword.
Mira gasped.
Kael stepped backward.
The stranger raised his hand.
The symbol on Mira's palm turned black.
Then the stranger spoke:
"I am Leo."
He looked at the old king.
"Your son."
Leo could barely speak.
"But..."
The stranger smiled.
"I am the future you failed to prevent."
And behind him, thousands of figures began emerging from the Gate.
Armies.
Dragons.
Kings.
Monsters.
And versions of people who had not yet been born.
Mira stared in horror.
The future had opened.
And it was coming for them.