A Door Beneath the Tower

As soon as he touched the book, the room went dark, and he was pulled back to the entrance of the chamber.

Wade had a mixture of shock and worry on his face, "Why was he brought back here," "What was going on?"

Just then he saw himself walk past him.

He tried speaking, but no words came out, that was when he realized he was a ghsotly figure, couldn't be seen of heard.

And the book was replaying moments from when he entered, so he watched and followed patiently, this time paying more attention to his surroundings.

The chamber was vast, circular, and utterly still. The air had weight here, as if time itself pressed against his shoulders. The walls were carved with symbols older than the academy's own glyphs, older than any language he recognized. Every surface glowed faintly in pale blue and silver—runework that pulsed like a heartbeat.

In the center stood the Codex.

A pedestal of black stone, jagged and spiraling upward like a twisted spire, held a thick tome bound in leather so dark it seemed to absorb the light. He noticed the moment he approached, the book trembled, but he hadn't noticed it before.

He watched himself reach out—drawn more by instinct than thought, He watched as the book fly open and a gust of wind shot outward.

That's when he noticed it now.

Light erupted beneath his feet, albeit faintly. A seal spread out in all directions—a circle layered with ancient geometric lines, all intersecting a single sigil directly beneath his body.

A sun. Encircled by a serpent consuming its tail.

Then he began to feel the heat now.

Wade winched—not in pain, but something else. Something primal. He clenched his chest, panting now, it felt like his soul was being carved into. Lines of searing golden fire wrapped around his forearm, burning a spiral that shimmered in this ghostly form and he watched as it began to appear on the figure of himself he was watching.

He heard a voice—it wasn't the system, it seemed to be speaking directly into his head.

The room went dark.

"At last, the world has chosen again."

Wade dropped to one knee, panting, heart hammering like a war drum.

He rose slowly, staring at the spiral brand etched into his skin. It pulsed once, gently. Like a heartbeat.

Then the book—which he later came to find out was called the Codex appeared in front of him with a soft warm glow and opened.

It didn't flip pages in sequence—no wind, no motion. Just a blink. One second closed. The next, open.

The first page bore only a name, written in gold that shimmered like starlight:

Solryn Auris – The Last Hero

Wade's pulse quickened.

The moment he read the name, a pressure clamped onto his temples. The chamber around him shifted again. His body staggered.

He stood on a battlefield.

Not a memory. Not a dream. A vision—vivid and sharp enough to taste.

The sky above was ash. The earth cracked with rivers of molten fire. Across a ruined plain stood a lone figure, cloaked in silver white armor, a cape torn and scorched, a spiral brand blazing across her bare forearm.

She held a long spear wreathed in divine flame. Her breathing was ragged. Her shoulders shook.

Across from her stood another.

Towering. Inhuman. Wreathed in darkness, its body shifting like smoke given form. Three swirling elements orbited its shoulders—fire, wind, earth and something else that seemed to move around it, it seemed alive, the deepest, cruelest shadow.

The Demon Lord.

Wade couldn't move. He couldn't look away.

The woman—Solryn—charged. Their clash was thunder and fury. Her spear burned with blue fire and lightning. His fists called storms from the void.

And then…

He struck her down.

Not cleanly. Not quickly.

She fought until she had no magic left. Until she bled from every pore. Until the ground beneath her feet shattered.

Her final scream echoed across the plains.

And the world broke.

Wade collapsed, gasping, hands trembling.

The Codex closed.

The system that had been quiet lit up.

[Vision Fragment Confirmed – Historical Memory Accessed]

[Hero Confirmed: Chosen Successor to the Dragon, the Last Hero]

Wade stared at the ground.

The war had already happened once.

And the world had lost.

He wasn't just chosen.

He was expected to finish what the last Hero could not.

The room went back to how it was now, he was back in his body.

The seal under his feet dimmed, but did not vanish. The spiral brand pulsed again, brighter this time, as if the chamber itself acknowledged him.

Then came a deeper rumble.

Stone shifted. Ancient machinery turned.

A voice echoed—not from the Codex, not from the world—but from behind him.

"Intruder detected. Access unauthorized. Commencing Elimination."

Wade turned just in time to see the wall crack open.

And the Guardian began to rise.

The wall cracked with a groan, ancient stone grinding against itself, and the air in the chamber shifted. Cold vanished. Heat surged.

Wade stumbled back instinctively as something stepped through the smoke and dust.

It was massive. Eight feet tall, forged of obsidian plates and golden flame, humanoid in shape but in no way human. Its face was a blank mask of glowing runes, and its chest bore the same serpent sun crest, etched deep and burning with inner fire. Lines of molten energy pulsed beneath its armor like veins.

The system flickered to life, its voice sharp.

[Entity Identified: Vault Guardian – Flamebound Class]

[Purpose: Final Trial of Recognition – Trial of the World]

[Warning: This construct does not recognize your mark.]

Wade's breath caught. "It doesn't?"

[Clarification: The last Hero failed. The Vault has not updated its protocol in over 300 years.]

The Guardian's head tilted as if scanning him. Then, without warning, it stepped forward—and the floor cracked beneath its weight.

Its hand ignited.

A sword of pure fire formed in its grip, humming with power.

"Eliminate," it said in a voice like burning stone.

Wade brought his arms up just as the blade came down.

He barely dodged the strike, a shockwave rippling through the chamber. Sparks flew. His boots slid across the ancient floor. He rolled, came up on one knee, and threw his arm forward.

"Vortex!"

The wind fire attack slammed into the Guardian's shoulder—no damage.

None.

It marched through the blast, unflinching, and raised its blade again.

Wade's heart thundered. His fire wasn't enough. Wind wasn't enough.

This thing had been built to challenge legends.

He leapt back, blasting himself airborne with wind, sweat pouring down his brow.

[Emergency Protocol: Tap Reserve Mana – Elemental Overflow Risk: 47%]

[Energy Detected: Lightning Affinity – Dormant Pathway]

[Activation Possible – Consequences Unknown]

"Do it," Wade gasped.

[Confirmed.]

A sharp jolt surged through him—his veins lit up like burning wire. A searing white glow poured from his fingers.

Then the crackling began.

And with it, a storm.

White lightning danced across his skin, and the Guardian stopped, blade halfway raised.

For the first time—it hesitated.