Chapter 101 – The Thing Behind the Lock
The First Door stood open.
Not completely.
Only a narrow gap separated the two sides.
But that small opening was enough.
Black light poured through it.
The ancient city beneath Crosshaven trembled.
Evetyl stood beside Kai, staring at the darkness.
Cr-Hook stood in front of them.
His First Lock symbol was glowing brightly on his chest.
The Shadow was on the other side of the door.
And for the first time, Cr-Hook noticed something strange.
The Shadow wasn't smiling.
It looked afraid.
Cr-Hook narrowed his eyes.
"You're scared."
The Shadow slowly looked at him.
"Yes."
Evetyl stepped forward.
"Of what?"
The Shadow didn't answer.
Cr-Hook raised his hand.
The First Lock symbol flashed.
The door immediately stopped moving.
The Shadow looked at him.
"You."
Cr-Hook frowned.
"Me?"
"You are still the First Lock."
Cr-Hook looked at the symbol on his chest.
"I don't even remember becoming it."
"You don't need to remember."
The Shadow stepped closer to the gap.
"You only need to open."
Cr-Hook's expression hardened.
"No."
The Shadow smiled.
"Then I'll make the key open it."
Everyone turned toward Kai.
Kai froze.
"Me?"
The silver symbol over his heart began glowing.
Evetyl grabbed his arm.
"Kai, stay behind me."
Kai nodded.
The Shadow whispered:
"The key."
Cr-Hook stepped forward.
"The lock."
The Shadow smiled.
"Exactly."
Cr-Hook's eyes narrowed.
"You're trying to use him."
"I am trying to escape."
"Escape what?"
The Shadow went silent.
Cr-Hook waited.
Then the Shadow finally answered.
"My world."
Evetyl looked confused.
"Your world?"
The Shadow nodded.
"The place behind this door."
Cr-Hook stared at it.
"So you don't want to enter our world."
"No."
The Shadow looked back into the darkness behind itself.
"I want to leave mine."
Kai looked at Evetyl.
"Then why are you attacking us?"
The Shadow looked at him.
"Because you are the only way out."
The silver symbol on Kai's chest became brighter.
Cr-Hook immediately moved between them.
"You're not taking him."
The Shadow laughed.
"You still say that."
Cr-Hook froze.
"What?"
"You said the same thing before."
Cr-Hook's eyes widened.
"When?"
The Shadow didn't answer.
Instead, another voice came from behind the door.
"Cr-Hook."
He turned.
A familiar voice.
A woman's voice.
His mother's.
"Elara…"
Evetyl looked at him.
"You hear her?"
Cr-Hook nodded slowly.
"She is calling me."
The Shadow whispered:
"She always called you."
Cr-Hook's fists tightened.
"Where is she?"
The Shadow pointed deeper into the darkness.
"Behind the first memory."
Cr-Hook stepped toward the door.
Evetyl grabbed him.
"Don't."
He looked at her.
"I have to."
"Why?"
"Because she's my mother."
Kai stepped closer.
"Then we go together."
Cr-Hook shook his head.
"No."
Kai frowned.
"You don't have to do this alone."
Cr-Hook gave him a small smile.
"You really haven't changed."
Kai looked confused.
"What does that mean?"
Cr-Hook didn't answer.
Suddenly, the door shook.
BOOM!
Everyone stumbled.
The Shadow reached through the opening.
Black energy wrapped around Kai.
"KAI!"
Evetyl grabbed his hand.
Cr-Hook grabbed Kai's other arm.
Kai screamed.
"It's pulling me!"
Cr-Hook planted his feet.
"I've got you!"
The First Lock symbol burned brighter.
The Shadow pulled harder.
The ancient city began cracking.
Evetyl held Kai tightly.
"Don't let go!"
"I won't!"
Kai's feet slowly left the ground.
"Evetyl!"
"I have you!"
Cr-Hook shouted:
"Close the door!"
"I can't!"
"The Lock!"
Cr-Hook looked at his symbol.
"I am trying!"
The symbol flashed.
The First Door began closing.
The Shadow screamed.
"NO!"
Cr-Hook pushed harder.
The door moved another inch.
Then—
A face appeared behind the Shadow.
Kai suddenly stopped struggling.
His eyes widened.
"Lyra…"
Evetyl looked through the gap.
A woman stood behind the Shadow.
Lyra.
She looked exactly as Kai remembered her.
She was holding the hand of a small boy.
Cr-Hook stared.
"Who is that?"
The boy stepped forward.
He looked about ten years old.
Black hair.
The same eyes.
The same face.
Cr-Hook's face went pale.
"No…"
Evetyl looked at him.
"Cr-Hook?"
The boy stared directly at Cr-Hook.
Then he smiled.
Cr-Hook whispered:
"That can't be…"
Kai looked at the boy.
"He looks like you."
Cr-Hook couldn't answer.
The boy raised his hand.
The First Lock symbol on Cr-Hook's chest reacted.
The two symbols became identical.
Evetyl stared.
"Who is he?"
An old voice answered from behind them.
"My son."
Everyone turned.
Elara stood at the end of the ancient street.
Cr-Hook stared at her.
"Mother?"
Elara slowly walked forward.
Her eyes never left the boy behind the door.
"The one you know as Cr-Hook…"
She looked at the Cr-Hook standing beside Evetyl.
"…is not the first."
Silence.
Cr-Hook's face went blank.
"What?"
Elara continued.
"The boy behind the door is the original Cr-Hook."
The ancient city became completely silent.
Kai looked at Cr-Hook.
Then at the boy.
Then back at Cr-Hook.
"There are two of you?"
Elara nodded.
"One was created to become human."
She looked at the boy.
"The other was created to become the Lock."
Cr-Hook stepped backward.
"Which one am I?"
Elara looked at him.
"You are the one who survived."
The boy behind the door smiled.
"And I am the one who was forgotten."
Cr-Hook's eyes filled with confusion.
"What happened to you?"
The boy pointed at the First Door.
"You locked me inside."
Cr-Hook shook his head.
"No."
"You did."
"I would remember."
The boy smiled sadly.
"You were made to forget."
Evetyl suddenly understood.
"The memory erasure…"
Elara looked at her.
"Yes."
Evetyl stared at Cr-Hook.
"You weren't just protecting the door."
Cr-Hook slowly looked toward the boy.
"I was protecting everyone from him."
The boy shook his head.
"No."
He looked at Kai.
"I wasn't the danger."
Then he looked toward the Shadow.
"It was."
The Shadow suddenly became furious.
"Silence!"
The boy smiled.
"You are afraid they will remember."
The Shadow attacked.
Black energy exploded through the gap.
Cr-Hook raised his hand.
The First Lock activated.
A massive barrier formed between the Shadow and the city.
The attack shattered against it.
Cr-Hook dropped to one knee.
Evetyl rushed toward him.
"Cr-Hook!"
He breathed heavily.
"I can hold it."
"For how long?"
He looked at the door.
"I don't know."
The Shadow screamed:
"Open!"
The First Door began forcing itself wider.
Cr-Hook's symbol cracked.
A thin line appeared across it.
Evetyl's eyes widened.
"Your symbol!"
Cr-Hook looked down.
"I know."
Kai suddenly stepped forward.
"No."
Everyone looked at him.
Kai walked toward the door.
Evetyl grabbed his shoulder.
"Kai, don't."
Kai looked at her.
"If I'm the key…"
He looked at Cr-Hook.
"…then maybe I can help the lock."
Cr-Hook shook his head.
"You don't know what is behind that door."
Kai smiled faintly.
"Neither do you."
Cr-Hook stared at him.
Kai continued walking.
Evetyl tightened her grip.
"Kai."
He turned.
For a moment, he looked like the same boy she had once found.
The same person she had named.
The same person she had protected.
"I trust you."
Evetyl's eyes filled with tears.
"And I trust you."
Kai turned back toward the door.
The silver symbol over his heart began shining.
The First Lock symbol on Cr-Hook's chest answered.
Key.
Lock.
Together.
The First Door began closing.
The Shadow screamed.
The original Cr-Hook reached toward Kai.
"Wait!"
Kai looked at him.
The boy whispered:
"You still don't remember."
"Remember what?"
"You were here before."
Kai froze.
"What?"
The boy pointed behind himself.
"You saw the end."
A flash of light filled the doorway.
Kai suddenly saw it.
A burning world.
A collapsing city.
Lyra.
Elara.
Young Cr-Hook.
And Evetyl—
standing at the edge of everything.
Kai's eyes widened.
"I…"
The door slammed shut.
CRASH!
Everything went black.
Evetyl couldn't see.
Couldn't hear.
Couldn't move.
Then—
two voices spoke at exactly the same time.
One from in front of her.
One from behind.
"Welcome back."
Evetyl's eyes opened.
And somewhere in the darkness—
two identical Cr-Hooks were standing beside her.
To be continued…