Chapter 19: The Temple Between Time
—Narrated by Eli Whitmore
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We left the Academy just after dawn. The sky was still tinted with pale gold, and mist hugged the ground like it was trying to keep secrets from the sun.
I clutched the page Seraphina had left me in my dream—a map inked in stardust and old blood. It pulsed faintly, reacting to my magic, guiding us to a place no one had stepped foot in for centuries. Maybe longer.
"The Temple of Forgotten Threads," I whispered, staring at the crumbling landmarks marked in the shape of a circle—like a clock that had lost its numbers.
Thorne walked beside me, silent as always, his eyes scanning the terrain with his usual sharp focus. Felix and Ryker followed, slightly behind us, their hands always close to their wands. Luna and Draven took the rear, keeping an eye out for anything that moved. Anything that didn't feel right.
"You alright, Eli?" Felix asked quietly.
I nodded, though I wasn't sure. Something inside me was tugging, pulling my magic in strange directions. Like the world itself was trying to speak—but only in pieces.
We reached the cliff by midday. Below, swallowed in layers of fog, the ancient temple rested. Tall columns wrapped in thorny vines. Giant stone doors that didn't belong to this time. The moment I looked at it, the air shifted. A strange ringing filled my ears.
"This place... it's caught between time," Thorne murmured.
Luna frowned. "What does that mean?"
Ryker spoke, his voice low. "Some temples aren't part of the world as we know it. They shift. Move. Exist in past, present, and future all at once."
Felix whistled. "Fun. So we're basically entering a place that might decide what year it wants to spit us out into?"
Draven chuckled, but it didn't hold humor. "Let's not get lost then."
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Inside the Temple
The moment we stepped through the gate, my body froze. Not with fear—but with the sensation of being stretched thin. I saw flashes—of old battles, ghostly figures, ancient voices whispering in a language I didn't know but somehow understood.
"Stay close," I said.
Inside, the corridors glowed dimly with blue light. Time-warped architecture curved in impossible angles. Some doors were sealed with golden runes, others melted into shifting walls. Everything here was alive, watching.
We followed the map through winding halls, deeper into the heart of the temple.
Thorne stopped suddenly. "Something's moving ahead."
We readied our spells. Luna held up her hand, whispering an incantation, casting a veil over us.
A figure appeared in the distance.
She was tall. Draped in dark robes. A mask covered her face, but her voice echoed clearly: "You shouldn't be here, Gate Way Keeper."
My heart pounded.
"Who are you?" I called.
"One who guards the Chained Book. You come seeking knowledge... but you carry the Curse."
Thorne stepped in front of me. "You'll have to get through all of us."
The woman didn't move. "You misunderstand. I am not your enemy. I am your test."
Then the ground beneath us split.
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Trial of the Threads
Each of us landed in a different part of the temple—alone.
My room was circular. Floating threads of golden light circled a single pedestal where a chained book hovered. I stepped closer. The book trembled.
"Eli Whitmore," the voice echoed again. "Will you let go of who you were, to become who you must be?"
Visions struck me—my mother's tear-streaked face, Seraphina's prophecy, my friends risking everything for me. The light in my hands flared, pulsing with my heartbeat.
"Yes," I whispered.
The chains shattered. Light wrapped around me, like a cloak of threads being stitched into my soul.
Then—
I woke up in the main chamber. So did the others.
"You alright?" Luna asked, helping me up.
"I think... I passed."
The book now hovered gently in my hands.
Thorne stepped forward. "What did it show you?"
"Truth. Future. Pain. Hope." I swallowed. "The next key is hidden beyond the Scorched Vale. And the final gate will not open until we find all pieces of the Seal."
Felix groaned. "Always more gates."
Draven smirked. "Always more secrets."
Thorne just looked at me, his voice soft. "And more strength in you than you realize."
I nodded.
Because now, more than ever...
I believed him.
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To be continued...