The Guardian of Twilight

The small village of Eldoria had always followed a simple rule: no one should be outside after the last ray of sunlight vanished beyond the hills. For the elders, it was an unbreakable tradition. For the younger ones, just an old superstition.

Ethan, a curious and fearless young man, never believed in such tales. He found it ridiculous that everyone locked their doors and lit candles inside as if afraid of something unseen. His grandmother, one of the village’s oldest women, had always warned him:

— Twilight is not just a time of day. It is a passage. And some secrets should never be uncovered.

But that night, Ethan was determined to prove them all wrong. As the sun dipped below the horizon, a cold breeze swept through the empty streets. With a lantern in hand, he slipped out of his home unnoticed, walking toward the village square.

The silence was unsettling. No crickets, no owls—only the wind whispering through the trees. The very air felt different, thick with something unseen.

Then he saw it.

In the center of the square, where there had once been only an old, dry fountain, now stood a towering stone archway.

Its surface shimmered with glowing blue symbols, pulsating like a heartbeat. Ethan’s breath caught in his throat. That had never been there before.

He stepped closer, reaching out a hand to touch the strange markings. The moment his fingers grazed the cold surface, a deep, resonating hum filled the air. The world seemed to tremble, and from within the archway, a shadowed figure emerged.

Its eyes glowed like distant stars in an endless void. A voice, deep and commanding, echoed inside Ethan’s mind:

— You should not be here.

Ethan tried to step back, but his feet refused to move.

— Who… what are you?

— I am the Guardian of Twilight. The last protector of the boundary between worlds.

The wind howled louder, and the shadows around the figure twisted unnaturally.

— Your village obeys the sunset for a reason. Something ancient slumbers beyond this portal. Something that must never awaken. But now… it has sensed you.

A chill ran through Ethan’s spine. He wanted to run, to shout for help, but he knew deep inside that it was too late.

Behind the Guardian, the archway began to pulse violently, as if a monstrous heart was preparing to beat for the first time in millennia.

Then, a massive, clawed hand of pure darkness broke through the veil of reality.

The Guardian raised its arms, a golden light radiating from its chest, trying to hold the creature back. But Ethan could see it wasn’t enough. The portal was open. The nightmare was coming.

And then he remembered.

His grandmother’s words.

— Twilight is a passage. Some secrets should never be uncovered.

If this was a passage, there had to be a way to close it.

Without hesitation, Ethan ran to the archway, pressing his hands against the glowing symbols. The Guardian shouted something, but the words were lost in a deafening roar of energy.

Pain seared through his body. It felt as if the portal was draining his very essence. The arch trembled, resisting, but he knew he had to keep going.

The shadows screeched, retreating as the light grew stronger. The Guardian, realizing what Ethan was doing, joined him, channeling its power into the seal.

Then, with one final pulse, the portal shattered.

The silence that followed was absolute.

Ethan collapsed to his knees, breathless, the glowing marks on his hands fading. The Guardian stood before him, watching in silence.

— You have done the impossible. But now… twilight knows you.

Before Ethan could ask what that meant, the Guardian dissolved into the wind.

When he returned home, the village was still sleeping. No one would ever know what had happened that night.

But Ethan knew.

And every evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, he could feel twilight watching him.