The dark storm spirits climbed quickly toward the bridge.
Lightning flashed around them as the giant storm roared below.
Karim looked terrified.
"Why does every place have monsters?" he shouted.
Rahim held the crystal tightly.
"Focus on moving forward!"
The storm spirits moved unnaturally fast.
Their shadowy bodies twisted in the air like smoke.
Their glowing white eyes stared directly at the three boys.
Farid looked serious.
"Do not let them touch you!"
Karim nervously asked,
"And what happens if they do?"
Farid replied,
"They feed on fear."
Karim immediately stepped farther away from them.
"Great. That sounds terrible."
One of the storm spirits suddenly jumped onto the bridge.
The bridge shook violently.
The creature let out a sharp screech.
Rahim quickly raised the crystal.
Blue light burst forward.
The spirit moved back slightly.
Karim looked surprised.
"The crystal hurts them!"
Farid nodded.
"Yes. The guardians' energy is their weakness."
Another spirit climbed onto the bridge behind them.
Now they were trapped between two shadow creatures.
Lightning flashed brightly around the tower.
The storm became stronger.
Karim swallowed nervously.
"This is really bad."
Rahim looked around quickly.
"We cannot fight forever on this bridge."
Farid pointed ahead.
"The exit is close!"
At the end of the bridge, another glowing platform waited inside the tower.
Rahim nodded.
"Then we run."
Karim blinked.
"Run? On THIS bridge?"
Before Rahim could answer, another storm spirit attacked.
Its shadow claws moved toward Karim.
Karim ducked just in time.
"Okay! Running sounds good now!"
The three of them rushed forward across the shaking bridge.
Strong wind pushed against them.
Lightning exploded around the tower.
The storm spirits chased them closely.
Rahim kept the crystal raised.
Blue light protected them from the dark creatures.
Suddenly—
CRACK!
Part of the bridge broke behind them.
Karim shouted,
"Don't look back! Don't look back!"
Farid yelled,
"Move faster!"
The spirits screamed angrily as the crystal's light burned them whenever they got too close.
But more shadow figures were appearing inside the storm below.
Rahim realized something.
"There are too many!"
Farid nodded grimly.
"The tower is testing our courage."
Another lightning strike hit the bridge directly.
BOOOOM!
The entire bridge shook violently.
Karim slipped dangerously near the edge.
For a moment, he almost fell into the storm below.
"Karim!"
Rahim quickly grabbed his hand.
Karim looked down at the endless storm beneath him.
His face became pale.
"I-I don't want to die here…"
Rahim pulled him up strongly.
"You won't."
Karim took a deep breath.
Then he nodded.
"Okay… okay… I'm fine."
Farid looked at them seriously.
"This trial feeds on fear. If you lose hope, the tower will defeat you."
Rahim understood immediately.
"That's why the bridge keeps breaking."
Farid nodded.
"Yes."
Karim slowly stood up.
His legs were shaking slightly.
But then he looked at Rahim and smiled weakly.
"We've survived worse."
Rahim smiled back.
"Exactly."
The crystal suddenly glowed brighter.
Its blue light pushed back the storm around them.
The bridge slowly became stable again.
Farid looked impressed.
"The crystal responds to courage."
Karim laughed nervously.
"Then it should glow a lot right now because I'm extremely scared."
Even Rahim laughed slightly.
The storm spirits attacked again.
But this time, Rahim stepped forward bravely.
He raised the crystal high.
"We are not afraid of you!"
The crystal released a powerful wave of blue energy.
The storm spirits screamed loudly.
Their shadow bodies began disappearing into the storm.
One by one, the creatures vanished.
The wind slowly became calmer.
The lightning strikes became less violent.
Karim blinked in surprise.
"We… actually did it."
Farid smiled slightly.
"Yes. You passed the Trial of Courage."
The bridge stopped shaking completely.
A warm blue light filled the tower.
At the end of the bridge, a large stone door slowly opened.
Rahim looked toward it.
"The second key must be there."
The three of them carefully crossed the remaining distance.
As they entered the next chamber, they stopped in amazement.
The room was beautiful.
Blue lightning floated softly through the air like glowing ribbons.
In the center stood a tall stone pedestal.
And on top of it—
A glowing blue key floated silently.
Karim smiled widely.
"That must be the second key!"
Farid nodded.
"Yes. The Storm Key."
Rahim slowly walked toward it.
The crystal and the silver key both reacted immediately.
Blue and silver light filled the chamber.
Rahim carefully reached out and touched the floating key.
The moment he grabbed it—
A powerful vision appeared in his mind.
He saw the three ancient keys glowing together.
Then he saw a giant black gate surrounded by darkness.
Behind the gate—
Something enormous moved.
A deep voice echoed inside his head:
"When the Final Gate opens, the ancient darkness will awaken."
Rahim suddenly stepped back.
Karim quickly asked,
"What happened?"
Rahim looked at the blue key seriously.
"The Final Gate is not protecting treasure."
Farid's expression changed immediately.
"Then what is it protecting?"
Rahim looked toward the darkness outside the chamber.
His voice became quiet.
"Something dangerous."