Liam couldn't escape the feeling that time was running out. The city, the one he knew so well, had changed irreversibly. The streets, once familiar, now seemed to warp before his eyes. The shadows stretched, twisted, and the air grew denser, weighed down by an almost unbearable presence. The people around him no longer seemed human; their movements were empty, their gazes lost. Something inside them had vanished.
Elena had warned him. The mother door, the final key, was the only way to seal the Void once and for all. If they failed, the city would only be the beginning, and what lay beyond the doors would spill over, consuming everything in its path.
"Where is it?" Liam had asked, feeling the growing pressure in his chest as Elena looked at him with a gravity he had never seen before.
"I don't know, but there's something we can do," she had replied. "If we find the center, the source, we can destroy the door. But it won't be easy. It will be protected by the worst of what you've seen. And it's not just the Void that threatens us anymore. The worst of all is what haunts us on the way."
That last phrase had echoed in his mind like a refrain. The worst of all…
Liam and Elena had been wandering the crumbling streets of the city for hours, searching for anything that might show them the way. The fog, slowly rising from the ground, seemed to drag a sense of hopelessness with it. Every corner felt more unfamiliar than the last, and the sound of their footsteps was muffled by the void surrounding them.
"How will we know when we find the door?" Liam asked, staring at the shadows stretching above them.
"We'll know," Elena replied firmly, though her voice sounded tired. "The door cannot hide. Its power is too great to remain concealed for long. Just trust your instincts. We'll know when we're close, when... you feel it in the air."
Liam nodded, though he wasn't entirely convinced. Feel it in the air? The air was already so dense and oppressive it could be anything.
Suddenly, they stopped in front of a collapsed building. On its façade, an inscription etched with almost cosmic precision read: "The end is only the beginning."
Elena approached slowly, running her fingers over the letters as if making sure they wouldn't crumble at her touch. Her expression hardened.
"This is the place."
Liam felt a knot tighten in his stomach. Something was wrong. The sensation of being watched returned with force, as if an invisible presence surrounded them. All at once, the air grew even heavier. The silence was absolute.
Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble. A low, muffled roar echoed from within the ruined building. Something was awakening—something that shouldn't.
"Run!" Elena shouted, grabbing Liam's arm and pulling him toward the entrance. The air around them seemed to tear. Liam could feel it—something was pulling him, calling him. An irrational urge to step into the darkness opening before them.
The inside of the building was darker than night itself. The floor was coated in a layer of dust that seemed to have accumulated over centuries. Old iron structures dangled from the walls, creaking with every step. In the distance, at the center of the hall, a door stood. It was unlike any Liam had seen before. Made of a dark material, it bore symbols etched into its surface that glowed faintly in the dim light. The mother door.
Before they could approach, a shadow darted toward them. Suddenly, a massive figure emerged from the darkness, blocking their path. It was a creature, but not like the others. Its body was composed of fragments of darkness that shifted and changed form, as though its very existence was being constantly rewritten. Its eyes were like voids, bottomless and endless.
Liam stepped back, but Elena moved forward, determination etched on her face.
"We can't run now. This is the final trial," she said calmly. "You're the one who has to close it, Liam."
Liam stared at her, not fully understanding.
"What...?"
"Do it!" Elena exclaimed, pushing him toward the door. The creature lunged at them, but at that moment, the ground collapsed beneath its feet. Liam felt the world crumble around him, and suddenly, the creature vanished, swallowed by the shadows.
Silence overtook the room, and Liam felt a growing pressure in his chest. The air was no longer heavy—it seemed to dissolve around him.
Before him, the mother door slowly opened, as if inviting him to cross the threshold. The Void lay beyond, waiting.
Elena looked at him with a final, sorrowful smile.
"It's your destiny, Liam. Close the door, and everything will return to normal."
Liam stepped forward, his trembling hand reaching for the door. The darkness enveloped him, but in his mind, everything became clear. The truth, the reason for it all, was simple. This wasn't an external battle but an internal one. He wasn't fighting the Void—he was fighting himself. His own fear of losing everything. His need to know, to understand.
With one last breath, Liam touched the door.
As he did, the Void began to close. The creatures vanished. The city, the people, the air returned to calm. Light began to reappear, but the feeling of having crossed a threshold, of having faced what most fear to confront, lingered.
The mother door shut with a dull thud, and Liam, exhausted, fell to his knees. He knew he had saved the city, but deep inside, something within him had changed forever.
The Void had not been a door. It had been a lesson. And now, as he looked at himself, Liam knew he would never be the same.