The smoke from the ritual lingered like a ghost. It curled into the sky in slow, spiraling tendrils, thick with the scent of burnt sage, old magic, and something metallic—like blood. Aira lay trembling on the ground, her fingers digging into the earth as if it could anchor her to the present.
Kael knelt beside her, his hand cradling the back of her head. "Aira, look at me. Breathe."
She tried. Her lungs worked, but the air felt like fire. Her mind reeled. Not from the intensity of the ritual—but from the man she had seen. Eiran.
Sareth was pacing the edges of the circle, his eyes glowing amber with unspent fire. His shoulders were stiff, and the runes on his arms pulsed like warning lights. "Something else came through that portal," he muttered. "Something… that doesn't belong here anymore."
And then he stopped.
Kael turned sharply. The temperature dropped. Even the birds had gone silent.
Aira felt it too—a ripple in the air. Like time itself had hiccupped.
Out of the curling smoke stepped a tall figure, cloaked in black, with silver eyes that reflected the dying embers like starlight. He walked with the casual grace of someone who had seen the rise and fall of kingdoms. His presence wasn't evil. But it was old. Older than any of them.
Kael stood, already reaching for his sword. Sareth conjured a small flame between his fingers. But Aira didn't move.
Because her heart was thudding in recognition.
The man stopped at the edge of the ritual circle, his gaze never leaving hers. "You opened the gate," he said calmly. "And I walked through it. As I always do."
Kael's voice was a snarl. "Name yourself."
The man tilted his head. "Names are fickle things. But you may call me Eiran."
Sareth's flame expanded. "You were sealed beyond the Veil. You shouldn't exist anymore."
"And yet," Eiran replied, eyes twinkling with quiet amusement, "here I am."
Kael stepped in front of Aira protectively, his body tense. "Stay back."
Eiran chuckled, low and intimate. "Relax, knight. I'm not here to fight." His eyes slid to Aira. "Not yet."
She finally stood, legs shaky, but her voice clear. "Why do I remember you?"
His smile faded, replaced by something darker—more sorrowful. "Because once, you loved me more than life. And then, you ended mine."
The words slammed into her like a blow. Her breath caught in her throat.
Kael looked over his shoulder at her, confusion flashing across his face. "Aira?"
"I don't know," she said, but her voice trembled. "I don't know what happened."
Eiran stepped forward, just close enough for her to feel his presence. "The truth is buried in your past. The lives you've lived—the ones you've forgotten. The ritual has awakened them, and now… they're bleeding through."
Sareth snarled. "Why now?"
"Because time is collapsing," Eiran said simply. "And she is the fracture point."
Lightning cracked across the distant sky. The eclipse was fading, slowly returning the moon to silver. But nothing felt restored.
Eiran turned away. "I'll return when you're ready to remember, Aira. All of it."
"Wait!" she called out. "Why do I feel like I'm still in love with you?"
He paused.
Then glanced over his shoulder, his voice a low murmur. "Because love like ours… doesn't die. It just sleeps."
And then he vanished into smoke.
Silence reigned.
Kael sheathed his sword with unnecessary force. "We should never have done the ritual. He's dangerous."
"Not more dangerous than the truth," Sareth said, voice low.
Aira stood between them, shaking, her heart torn. Kael was her anchor. Sareth was her fire. But Eiran… he was the void she couldn't stop falling into.
That night, sleep did not come.
Because in her dreams, she kissed Eiran under starlight.
And when she woke up, her lips still tingled with the memory of it.