Chapter 1 THE GATEWAY
The sky was dark.
Heavy clouds covered the night, and thunder rolled across the city.
Zevia walked alone, her phone in her hand.
Suddenly—
BOOM!
Thunder cracked across the sky.
Her phone vibrated.
She looked down.
The screen flickered.
A strange warning appeared.
⚠️ DANGER
Zevia froze.
Before she could understand what it meant, the screen flashed with a blinding violet light.
The air around her began to twist.
The street disappeared.
The sound of thunder vanished.
And Zevia was gone.
She opened her eyes.
The first thing she noticed was the sky.
It wasn’t the sky she knew.
Silver mist covered enormous mountains. Ancient forests stretched across the valleys, while rivers wound through unfamiliar lands. In the distance, magnificent structures rose through the mist, their ancient towers disappearing into the clouds.
Zevia slowly stood.
She had no idea where she was.
All she knew was that—
this wasn’t her world.
Then she noticed something behind her.
A glowing gateway.
A vast circle of violet light hovered above the ground, surrounded by mysterious symbols.
Zevia stared at it.
Then the gateway moved.
Someone came through.
A young woman stumbled onto the unfamiliar ground.
It was Sakura.
Only moments earlier, Sakura had been in Japan, looking at her phone when it suddenly flashed.
The light became brighter.
Her phone slipped from her hand.
Then the screen pulled her forward.
Before she could understand what was happening, she disappeared.
And now she stood in this strange world.
Another figure emerged.
Meera had been in India when her phone suddenly froze. The screen flashed repeatedly, and the light grew stronger. Before she could react, she was pulled through.
Then came Lian from China. She had been texting when a strange light appeared across her screen. The gateway opened, and she was drawn through it.
Eleni from Greece had encountered a mysterious gateway while walking. One moment she was in her own world; the next, she had crossed through it.
Claire from France had watched her phone change strangely before the light swallowed her.
Layla from Arabia had seen a strange symbol appear on her phone before being pulled through the gateway.
Kai from South Korea had been playing a game when his screen suddenly changed and the world disappeared around him.
Ivan from Russia had watched his phone distort before falling through darkness.
Luca from Brazil had seen a strange message appear on his phone before the gateway swallowed him.
And Mateo from Italy had disappeared from his world without even understanding how.
Ten strangers now stood beneath the unfamiliar sky.
Different countries.
Different lives.
One gateway.
One unknown world.
Before anyone could understand what had happened, footsteps approached through the mist.
Amaël de Varenne appeared with several guards dressed like common people.
He looked at the ten strangers carefully.
He had studied the mysteries of the Mist Kingdom.
“I am a local,” Amaël said. “You are in the Mist Kingdom.”
The strangers followed him through the mist.
Zevia finally asked,
“How did we reach here?”
Amaël looked toward the distant mountains.
“The Mist Kingdom has many mysteries,” he replied. “It has portals that can connect to other worlds—worlds of strange beings, dragons, spiritual realms and demons. There are hidden secrets, illusions and places that even this kingdom does not fully understand.”
Zevia looked at the others.
“We need to stay together.”
She paused.
“Let’s create a team.”
Amaël looked at them.
“You can travel with us.”
Together, they continued through the Mist Kingdom.
Soon they reached a village.
People were selling goods in the marketplace.
Children were playing around the streets.
The village appeared peaceful.
The strangers sat nearby, watching the people and trying to understand their new surroundings.
But as night began to fall, something changed.
One by one, things began disappearing.
A shop vanished.
Then a house.
Then another part of the village.
The people disappeared.
The children disappeared.
The streets slowly vanished into the mist.
The strangers stood up in shock.
They could only stare in disbelief.
One of Amaël’s guards suddenly looked into the distance.
He felt as though something was coming.
He leaned toward Amaël and muttered into his ear.
Amaël sighed.
“Everyone, hide in that cave. Quickly.”
His guards brought wood for the fire.
Inside the cave, Ivan looked at Amaël.
“Why are we hiding here?”
Mateo looked confused.
“This doesn’t make sense to us.”
Amaël finally spoke.
“I have read about villages disappearing in the Mist Kingdom because of the Curse Kingdom.”
Lian looked at him.
“Curse Kingdom?”
Kai asked,
“How many kingdoms do we have here?”
Amaël took out a weathered grimoire.
He opened it.
The pages revealed the vast world beyond the Mist Kingdom.
The Nineteen Human Kingdoms
The first pages showed the 19 Human Kingdoms.
The Royal Kingdom, known for its strong royal family and politics.
The Moon Kingdom, known for moon magic and prophecies.
The Sun Kingdom, known for holy magic and light warriors.
The Forest Kingdom, known for spirit guardians and herbs.
The Ocean Kingdom, known for its navy and sea trade.
The Snow Kingdom, known for ice magic and elite warriors.
The Desert Kingdom, known for ancient ruins and beast tamers.
The Mountain Kingdom, known for mining and blacksmiths.
The River Kingdom, known for farming and trade routes.
The Wind Kingdom, known for archers and messengers.
The Thunder Kingdom, known for lightning magic and battle tactics.
The Crystal Kingdom, known for magic crystals and artifacts.
The Golden Kingdom, known for wealth and economy.
The Shadow Kingdom, known for intelligence and assassins.
The Rose Kingdom, known for diplomacy, nobles and culture.
The Flame Kingdom, known for fire forges and weapon crafting.
The Mist Kingdom, known for illusions and hidden villages.
The Sacred Kingdom, known for shamans, temples and healing.
And the Star Kingdom, known for astrology and celestial knowledge.
The strangers stared at the pages.
Amaël continued.
The Sixteen Demon Kingdoms
The next pages revealed the 16 Demon Kingdoms.
The Abyss Kingdom — demons, void magic and supreme power.
The Mirror Kingdom — reflections, illusions and mirror demons.
The Nightmare Kingdom — fear, nightmares and dream manipulation.
The Blood Kingdom — blood magic, vampires and life force.
The Ghost Kingdom — spirits, possession and hauntings.
The Bone Kingdom — bone demons and living fossils.
The Skeleton Kingdom — necromancy and undead armies.
The Beast Kingdom — werewolves, monster clans and beasts.
The Poison Kingdom — venoms, toxic creatures and plagues.
The Curse Kingdom — hexes, dark rituals and forbidden magic.
The Void Kingdom — space distortion, portals and immortality.
The Ash Kingdom — ash demons and volcanic destruction.
The Decay Kingdom — rot, corruption and withering life.
The Chaos Kingdom — anarchy and demonic power.
The Soul Kingdom — soul magic and soul-stealing powers.
The Abyssal Sea Kingdom — sea demons and deep-ocean leviathans.
The strangers remained silent.
Then Amaël turned to another section.
The Ten Spiritual Realms
The Soul Realm — pure souls and reincarnation.
The Guardian Realm — spirit guardians and divine protection.
The Ancestor Realm — ancient souls, wisdom and guidance.
The Dream Realm — dreams, illusions and the subconscious.
The Nature Realm — tree spirits, flowers, forests and elemental spirits.
The Moon Realm — moon spirits and mystic powers.
The Star Realm — fate, destiny and celestial guidance.
The Harmony Realm — peace, healing and spiritual balance.
The Whisper Realm — secrets, forgotten spirits and hidden knowledge.
The Sacred Realm — divine laws, holy spirits and sacred wisdom.
The strangers looked at the ancient pages in silence.
Nineteen Human Kingdoms.
Sixteen Demon Kingdoms.
Ten Spiritual Realms.
A world of forty-five kingdoms and realms.
And they had entered it without knowing anything about it.
Amaël slowly closed the grimoire.
Outside the cave, the Mist Kingdom remained hidden beneath the darkness.
The strangers could only wonder what other secrets were waiting beyond the mist.
