Chapter 89: The Echoes of a Forgotten Name
The prison was **drowning in silence.**
The once-wild chains of molten gold and fractured fire no longer **roared** with defiance. The jagged stone throne no longer **creaked under strain**, no longer split against the weight of the Kings it held.
Because **they were still now.**
The Sealed Kings—**bound and broken**—remained locked in place, their massive forms no longer struggling, their twisted limbs of shattered light and molten shadow **motionless**.
Because **Sai held them.**
His body was **woven into the prison itself**—his strength the lock, his will the key.
And still, **he sat there.**
His hands rested **limply** on the arms of the throne, his fingers pale and still. The golden chains **coiled around his limbs**, their jagged edges pressing so deeply into his skin that they were no longer separate from him.
They were **part of him** now.
He no longer **felt them.**
Not the chains.
Not the stone beneath him.
Not the prison slowly **draining him dry.**
Because **he was barely there at all.**
The Sai who had once **laughed with the others**, who had **fought beside them**, who had walked into the gates with **fire in his veins and defiance in his eyes**—
**That Sai was gone.**
What remained was **only the lock.**
Bound.
Unyielding.
Forgotten.
And **still holding on.**
---
### **The Fragments He Clung To**
The memories were **slipping further away.**
Every heartbeat **stole another piece**, dragging him deeper into the stone, into the prison.
But **he still fought for them.**
Even as they **bled through his fingers** like sand.
Even as they **grew dimmer** and more fragmented.
He held them.
**Desperately.**
Because he knew **once they were gone**,
Once the memories slipped away—
**He would be gone too.**
And he **wasn't ready.**
Not yet.
---
The first memory was **faint and fractured**, little more than a flickering scene on the edge of a fading dream.
Kael's **hand on his shoulder**, steady and strong.
A deep, familiar voice saying,
**"Keep moving."**
Just two words.
But **Sai clung to them**.
Because Kael had always been the **wall at his back**.
The unyielding force **that never faltered**.
And even though **Sai was alone now**, he could still **feel that hand on his shoulder.**
Solid.
Steady.
**Unbreakable.**
And **he refused to let it go.**
---
The second memory was **sharper**, cutting through the numbness like a jagged blade.
Ezren's voice, **sharp and biting**, his grin flashing in the dark.
**"Don't get yourself killed. That's my job."**
Sai could **still hear the smirk** in his voice—the casual defiance, the reckless confidence.
Ezren had always fought like **he had nothing to lose**, daring death with every swing of his dagger, every taunt to the gods.
And **Sai remembered** how Ezren had **stood beside him**, grinning like a fool, even when the gates were falling, even when **they were outnumbered and doomed.**
Ezren had **never stopped fighting.**
And **Sai clung to that memory**, because he knew—
Even if the **world forgot him**—
Ezren wouldn't.
Not until **his last breath.**
---
The third memory was **softer**—more fragile—**but it burned the most.**
Lena's eyes.
**Bright and sharp**, the way they **searched for him** in the dark, refusing to look away, even when **he wanted her to.**
The way **her voice shook** when she had grabbed his wrist and whispered,
**"Don't make me find out if you're still you."**
He could still **feel her grip** on his arm, tight and trembling, holding on as if she could **keep him from slipping away.**
And **she had.**
For so long, **she had.**
But **not anymore.**
Because now, **he was too far away.**
And she was **losing him.**
**One heartbeat at a time.**
But he **still remembered her eyes.**
The last thing he had seen **before the chains took him.**
And he **wouldn't let go of them.**
Because once he did—**he would be truly gone.**
---
### **The World That Forgot Him**
Far beyond the prison, **the world moved on.**
The broken cities Sai had **once saved** were rebuilt.
The kings and rulers who had once **feared the gates** forgot they had ever existed.
The surviving hunters **put away their blades**, turning their eyes toward **new wars, new borders, new battles**.
And **Sai's name was never spoken.**
Because no one **knew it.**
The people who walked the rebuilt streets **lived their lives in ignorance**, never knowing they were **alive because of him.**
Never knowing that **far beyond the edges of reality**, there was a man sitting on a throne of jagged stone, his limbs **bound by golden chains**, holding their peace together.
And they never would.
Because **he was already forgotten.**
By **the world.**
By **the history he had saved.**
But **not by them.**
---
### **The Ones Who Wouldn't Let Him Go**
Ezren stood on the edge of a **storm-torn ridge**, his cloak **whipping in the wind**, his golden eyes hard and sharp as he stared into the **endless horizon.**
The ridge was barren—nothing more than **cracked stone and broken earth**, with no trace of the gates that had once stood there.
The dungeon was **long gone**, sealed and forgotten by the world.
But **Ezren still stood there.**
Because he could still **feel him.**
Faint and distant.
Like a blade **pressed lightly against his throat**—just enough to remind him that it was **still there.**
Ezren's hand **tightened on the hilt** of his dagger, his knuckles white from the pressure.
Because he knew.
Somewhere—
**Sai was still fighting.**
Still **holding the chains.**
Still **burning through eternity alone.**
And Ezren would **keep looking**.
For as long as it took.
Even if it took **forever.**
---
### **The Sword With No Master**
Kael sat by a **dying campfire**, the **orange glow flickering** against the edge of his blade.
The massive sword lay **across his lap**, its runes **cold and dim**, the once-blazing light **extinguished years ago.**
He **hadn't drawn it** since the day Sai vanished.
Because he **didn't need it anymore.**
The gates were closed.
The war was over.
And **he had no one left to fight beside.**
Kael slowly ran his **fingers along the edge** of the sword, his touch heavy and slow.
And he remembered the **last time he saw Sai**—
**Walking into the gate alone.**
Without looking back.
Without hesitating.
And **Kael had let him go.**
His hand **tightened around the blade**, his knuckles pale.
And for the first time in years—
**He lit the fire again.**
Because he knew.
If **Sai was still holding on**,
Then **so would he.**
---
### **The One Who Waited**
Lena sat on the **edge of a wind-swept cliff**, her cloak **wrapped tightly around her**, her knees pulled to her chest.
The sky was **grey and clouded**, the wind biting cold, cutting sharply against her cheeks.
But she **didn't move.**
She just **stared at the horizon**, watching the sun slowly **sink beneath the clouds**, her hands trembling faintly in her lap.
Her fingers clutched the **charm Sai had given her**, the tiny, crude carving of a **hunter's sigil**, rough and uneven, its edges **worn smooth** by time.
She **pressed it against her chest**, her grip trembling.
Because she could still **feel him.**
Faint and distant.
Like a voice **carried on the wind**, too far away to reach, but **too familiar to ignore.**
And she **wouldn't let him go.**
Because she knew—
**He was still out there.**
Still **fighting the chains.**
Still **holding on.**
And **she would wait.**
For as long as it took.
Even if it took **forever.*