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"The past burns. The future haunts. And between the two, two hearts search for each other."
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🏰 Introduction: The Fortress of Ashes
An urgent call reaches the Mirror Guild. An ancient battlefield — the Fortress of Ashes — has begun to pulse once again with unstable magical energy. Echoes of the past materialize in apparitions, reanimated corpses, and surges of emotional magic.
Master Asgor summons Cael and Ezren:
— "In that fortress, time doesn't heal. It reopens wounds. If there's anything inside you still bleeding... it will bleed more."
It's a containment mission. But also a trial.
☁️ Arrival: Broken Time, Exposed Emotions
The fortress rests between grey mountains, covered by black snow that falls endlessly. The air is thick. The guild's protective runes don't work here. Neither do clocks.
Ezren murmurs:
— "Time here… is broken."
Cael kneels, touching the ground:
— "It's soaked in memories. And none of them are kind."
Through cracked walls, voices from the past echo like sighs:
— "You promised you'd return…"
— "Did you lie when you said you loved me?"
— "If you're going to forget me, then kill me instead."
🪞 The Echo Room: Love That Burns
In the east wing of the fortress, they find an old ritual chamber. In its center lies a worn altar with dried blood, burnt petals, and shattered mirrors. A living magic still pulses within.
Upon touching it, they are drawn into an emotional simulation — an illusion created by war spells to force soldiers to confront possible… or inevitable… futures.
🕯️ The Vision: Duel of Fates
Cael and Ezren see themselves… older.
They stand on opposite sides of a ravaged battlefield. Ezren leads a guild of light. Cael commands a legion of shadows. Between them lies the body of someone they loved… perhaps a friend. Perhaps one of them.
Ezren, bitter:
— "You became what you hated most."
Cael, hollow-eyed:
— "You became what abandoned me."
They clash. Magic against magic.
Each strike reveals repressed memories:
🌊 The touch at the lake.
🤝 Fingers intertwined.
💬 Words left unspoken.
💔 The kiss that never happened.
In the end, they fall together. Dying side by side.
And the fortress whispers into their minds:
"If your love is feared… this will be the end."
"If it is hidden… war will be inevitable."
💔 The Choice
Back in the present, they awaken on the floor. Silent. Crying.
Ezren approaches, kneels, and touches Cael's face:
— "I saw what happens if I keep denying it."
Cael whispers, eyes teary:
— "And I… don't want to lose you before I ever have you."
Ezren leans in. Closes his eyes. Their lips almost touch…
But the fortress trembles.
Wandering souls emerge from the walls, drawn to the corrupted altar.
Cael and Ezren clasp hands and channel a new, shared magic:
✨ "Flame of Commitment" — a fusion of truth's light and feeling's shadow.
The energy explodes, purifying the fortress.
The souls finally rest.
And the stained glass — shattered for centuries — glows in violet and gold.
🌙 Closing: An Almost Kiss
Exhausted, they sit side by side beneath a dead tree.
Ezren asks:
— "If we had kissed back there… would you regret it?"
Cael looks at him.
— "Yes…"
(pause)
— "…for not doing it sooner."
Ezren smiles. A sad, warm smile.
And slowly, a white flower blossoms on the dead tree.