The thunder rolled again, louder this time, and not from the sky. Auron looked upward. Dust fell from the ceiling. The air vibrated.
"They're already here," Seliora said, rising to her feet. "They've been waiting for you to touch that crown."
Auron turned toward the dark corridor they came through. In the distance, footsteps echoed. Not hurried. Not afraid. Slow, steady, confident.
"They don't hide," he muttered. "They don't have to."
"Because they think you're still incomplete."
Seliora moved beside him. Her eyes never blinked. The violet flame of the torches died on its own, one by one, as if something colder had entered the chamber.
The first figure appeared at the top of the stairs.
Tall. Robed. Masked.
But this mask wasn't like Auron's. It was bone-white with a line down the center, eyes glowing faint blue. More figures followed behind it—each one different in shape, but they all wore masks. Some gold. Some cracked. One even headless, with the mask floating above its shoulders.
"Auron Vale," the first one said, voice distorted like it was coming from deep water. "Bearer of the Hollow Crown. Breaker of memory."
"I remember you," Auron replied.
"Do you remember *what you did*?"
"No. But I'm sure you deserved it."
Another figure stepped forward. Her mask was long, thin, like a bird's beak. She leaned slightly, curious.
"You've touched the Origin," she said. "The others will not like this."
"Let them come."
"They will," said the first. "But we are not here to fight. Not yet."
Auron narrowed his eyes. "Then why are you here?"
"To see if you are the same child we cast into the dark," the voice said. "To see if you are worth fearing again."
Auron stepped forward, holding the crown in one hand. "You erased my name. You buried my kingdom. You sealed her. You called me a child."
He lowered his hand slowly.
"You should've made sure I never got back up."
The headless one tilted sideways. Then laughed. Not loudly. Not wildly. Just a hollow sound like iron dragging on stone.
"You still have fire," the bird-masked figure said. "Good. The real war hasn't even begun."
They turned.
"Remember this, Auron Vale," the first one said. "You are not the only forgotten king."
The masked group stepped back into the shadows, and vanished as if the world swallowed them whole.
Seliora exhaled. "That was only one Echo Delegation. A fraction of their court."
"I know," Auron said. "The rest will follow."
He looked down at the crown still glowing in his hand.
"But next time, I won't let them walk away."
Seliora smiled faintly. "Then you're ready."
"Ready for what?"
"To shake the world hard enough it can't forget you again."